The people on standby when a storm strikes

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1. 1

   The people on standby when a storm strikes

   BBC NewsPublished Oct 24, 2026Checked Oct 24, 2026

   “Tree surgeon Callum Kirk said preparing for severe weather involves checking and sharpening equipment While most people are preparing to stay indoors as another storm approaches, others are getting ready to head straight into it. Storm Boelo is expected to bring strong winds and disruption to parts of Northern Ireland this weekend. For those tasked with keeping people safe and dealing with the damage, severe weather can bring long hours, dangerous conditions and calls for help at any moment. In preparation for the storm, the Department for Infrastructure said their teams have been checking and clearing road gullies, monitoring river levels and tidal surges, and deploying a portion of temporary flood defences. "Regional Community Resilience Groups have also been advised of weather patterns and to make appropriate preparations," a spokesperson said. From rescue volunteers to tradespeople, being on standby means preparing for situations they cannot always predict. With equipment checked and vehicles ready, they are prepared to respond whenever their help is needed. The Belfast area commander for the Community Rescue Service said: "Don't underestimate the weather" Darren Harper is the Belfast area commander for the Community Rescue Service, whose volunteers are preparing to respond to emergencies. He said severe weather can bring heavy rainfall, rising water levels and flooding, with volunteers placed on standby to respond if needed.”

2. 2

   Composite Index for Managing Emergency Repair in Electrical Utilities under Heterogeneous Incident Data

   Energy Systems Research (Komarova et al.)Published Mar 31, 2026Checked Oct 24, 2026

   “Finally, the operational readiness index is aggregated as a normalized weighted geometric mean, ensuring its non-compensatory nature. Simulation software was developed to model emergency scenarios in Moscow power grids. For a fixed point in time, the index values are calculated for multiple crews to match them with an incident and establish the most effective crew for that incident. The impact of temperature, traffic congestion, crew size, along with personnel experience and qualifications is analyzed. The analysis demonstrates diminishing returns on crew size and saturation of the experience curve, alongside the significant influence of adverse meteorological conditions and traffic congestion. The proposed index is compared with existing simulation-based, probabilistic, and optimization-oriented models, as well as fuzzy-logic and decision support systems. The findings demonstrate that the proposed operational readiness index offers superior interpretability for dispatcher decision-making and can be seamlessly integrated into assignment and routing optimization tasks, facilitating bottleneck identification and dispatcher training.”

3. 3

   Winter Storm Elliott: Energy Emergency Alert Lessons Learned

   Research paper (Chinthavali et al.)Published Feb 1, 2024Checked Oct 24, 2026

   “The GRIDS Project was established to understand and address the gaps in communication between the transmission and distribution operators. With the ongoing energy transition including electrification, distributed energy resource penetration, and so on, this project aims for improved energy emergency communications at the transmission-distribution interface. In 2022, Winter Storm Elliott affected 60% of the United States population (Weather Underground 2022), resulting in rolling blackouts in many areas of the eastern United States (Knoxville Utilities Board [KUB] 2023). Information presented here is based on the GRIDS workshop findings and subsequent research and interviews with stakeholders. After a brief summary of the effects of Winter Storm Elliott, this report covers the standard energy emergency communications processes currently in use, how the storm affected power management operations for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and its local utility companies, and related experiences in other states. The report concludes with lessons learned and recommendations for improvements and a path forward.”

4. 4

   Maintenance and restoration of telecommunications cable networks under operational stress

   Global Prosperity (Bondariev)Published Jul 25, 2026Checked Oct 24, 2026

   “Special attention is given to the methodology of rapid communication restoration via a two-stage approach employing tactical Emergency Restoration Kits (ERK) and ribbon splicing technology. The empirical basis of the study, which includes the analysis of high-profile incidents in the USA (Hurricane Katrina, Superstorm Sandy, the Nashville bombing), demonstrates that high-precision technical intervention is critical for maintaining infrastructure uptime in high-stress environments. The role of precision infrastructure maintenance in ensuring the operation of 5G/6G networks, autonomous transport and edge computing technologies is examined. The author substantiates the necessity of implementing digital asset cataloging and the standardization of procedures according to Telcordia and TIA/EIA regulations as a fundamental factor in the formation of network resilience and the sustainable development of the information society amidst global climatic and anthropogenic challenges.”

5. 5

   Impacts of Natural Disasters on Emergency Care Delivery in the United States: A Scoping Review and Digital Health-Informed Framework.

   Environmental health insights (Zhou et al.)Published Aug 12, 2026Checked Oct 24, 2026

   “Vulnerable populations, including the elderly and socioeconomically disadvantaged, experience heightened risks and service needs. Key challenges include increased demand for emergency care and reduced capacity in disaster-affected areas. Digital health tools, such as telehealth and dynamic ambulance dispatch systems, were identified as promising solutions.DiscussionFindings highlight the relevance of digital health in mitigating identified EMS challenges during disasters. By addressing gaps in communication, resource allocation, and service delivery, technology can enhance system responsiveness and resilience.ConclusionA specialized digital health framework was developed to strengthen EMS delivery during natural disasters. Structured across four domains, patient, transport, facility, and provider, it offers actionable strategies to improve emergency care resilience and outcomes in disaster scenarios.”