This exercise was held in Istanbul, Turkey from 9 to 13 May 2016. This event was supported by the Government of Turkey.

The purpose of the exercise was to practice international coordination methodology in accordance with the INSARAG Guidelines, with a focus on cooperation between national and international disaster managers and response actors as well as joint operations planning between Local Emergency Management Authorities (LEMA) and the international On-Site Operations Coordination Centre (OSOCC). This exercise saw active involvement of international urban search and rescue (USAR) teams from the region responding and working alongside fellow national USAR members, and in parallel, there was engagement of the national disaster management team working alongside the United Nations in-country response mechanisms during such major disasters.  

 

 

The INSARAG Asia-Pacific Region Earthquake Response Exercise 2016 was held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, from 25 to 29 July 2016. 

This  exercise  was  held  in  Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia,  from  22 to 26 June 2015. This event was jointly supported by the Governments of China and the United States.

The purpose of the exercise is to practice international coordination methodology  in  accordance  with  the  INSARAG Guidelines, with a focus on cooperation  between  national  and  international  disaster  managers  and response  actors  as  well  as  joint  operations  planning  between  Local Emergency  Management  Authorities  (LEMA)  and  the  international On-Site Operations  Coordination  Centre  (OSOCC).  This  exercise  will see active involvement  of international urban search and rescue (USAR) teams from the region  responding  and working alongside fellow national USAR members, and in  parallel,  there will be engagement of the national disaster management team  working  alongside  the United Nations in-country response mechanisms during such major disasters.

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The INSARAG Asia Pacific Regional Earthquake Response Exercise 2014 was co-hosted by China Earthquake Administration together with the INSARAG Secretariat (UN OCHA’s Field Coordination Support Section) and jointly supported by the Governments of China and the United States. Targeted participants to this Exercise are Local Emergency Management Authority (LEMA), USAR experts from Asia Pacific countries, international and regional organizations from 25 to 31 August 2014

 

The INSARAG Asia Pacific Region Urban Search and Rescue Earthquake Response Exercise was held in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, from 07 to 09 November 2013.

The purpose of the exercise is to practice international coordination methodology in accordance with the INSARAG Guidelines, with a focus on cooperation between national and international disaster managers and response actors as well as joint operations planning between Local Emergency Management Authorities (LEMA) and the international On-Site Operations Coordination Centre (OSOCC). This exercise, based on the scenario of a possible major earthquake occurring in India, will see active involvement of international urban search and rescue (USAR) teams from the region responding and working alongside fellow national USAR members, and in parallel, there will be engagement of the national disaster management team working alongside the United Nations in-country response mechanisms during such major disasters.  

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An Urban Search and Rescue Exercise was held in Pstrąże, Poland from 23 to 26 April 2013.

The purpose of the exercise is to practice urban search and rescue (USAR) operations and international coordination methodology in accordance with the INSARAG Guidelines. The exercise is based on a major earthquake scenario. It provides a platform for both international and national USAR teams to work together. In parallel, it aims to practice the joint operational coordination between the Local Emergency Management Authority (LEMA) and the On-Site Operations Coordination Centre (OSOCC).

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The annual meeting of the INSARAG AEME Regional Group was held on 2-3 November 2016 in Amsterdam, The
Netherlands. The meeting was hosted by the Government of The Netherlands and was chaired by Mr. Carlo Post
in his capacity as AEME Regional Chair.
The meeting gathered a total of 70 participants from 30 countries and organisations as well as the Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in its capacity of INSARAG Secretariat. The meeting was supported
by Mr. Arjan Stam, Mr. Robert Merkx and Mr. Camille Michel who facilitated the group work sessions. The
countries and organizations present were represented by their INSARAG focal points or their delegated
representatives. See annex for complete list of participants.

Chairman’s summary/ Annex 1: Group work discussions/ Annex 2: Agenda

Annex 3: Participant list

Presentation materials

Photos

The XV Meeting of the INSARAG Americas Regional Group took place jointly with the III Consultation meeting on the emergency response cooperation mechanism of the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) team from 16 to 18 November 2016 in Bogotá, Colombia.

The meeting was hosted by the National Disaster Risk Management Unit (UNGRD) of Colombia and co-organised by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) in its capacity as INSARAG Secretariat and UNDAC system manager.

The meeting gathered a total of 56 participants from 14 countries of the region, 1 regional organisation (CEPREDENAC), 2 countries from other regions, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO) as well as the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in its capacity as INSARAG Secretariat. The countries and organisations were all represented by their INSARAG focal points or in delegation of the focal points, as well as with some UNDAC members and UNDAC focal points. 

The chairman summary, with its annexes, including the list of participants, as well as the presentations done during the meeting can be found below. 

  1. Ecuador earthquake 2016, experience and lessons learnt, Government of Ecuador
  2. Ecuador earthquake 2016, experience and lessons learnt, USAR coordination by UNDAC team
  3. Ecuador earthquake 2016, experience and lessons learnt, Secretariat experience
  4. Ecuador earthquake 2016, experience and lessons learnt, USAR response Colombia
  5. Ecuador earthquake 2016, experience and lessons learnt, USAR response Peru
  6. Ecuador earthquake 2016, experience and lessons learnt, USAR response Mexico
  7. Report on implementation of INSARAG regional work plan 2016, Regional Chair, Colombia
  8. Regional SIMEX Colombia 2016, results and achievements, Government of Colombia see also the video
  9. Regional SIMEX Colombia 2016, results of participant evaluation, Secretariat
  10. Regional SIMEX Colombia 2016, experience of EMT participation, PAHO
  11. Role of INSARAG focal points, Secretariat
  12. Proposal on international light teams 1, Chair of the LTWG
  13. Proposal on international light teams 2, Chair of the LTWG
  14. Proposal on the INSARAG external support and recognition process for national USAR team accreditation processes, Regional Chair, Colombia
  15. INSARAG general and working group updates, Secretariat and Chair of Training Working Groups
  16. Progress report on the Regional assessment of national USAR team capacities, Regional Chair, Colombia
  17. Proposal for INSARAG strategy 2017-2020 and regional work plan 2017, I Vice Chair, Ecuador
  18. Announcement of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction 2017 in Mexico, Government of Mexico
  19. Announcement of the Humanitarian Network and Partnerships Week (HNPW), OCHA/ INSARAG Secretariat

 

 

 Also see here the welcome video to the meeting from the INSARAG Americas Regional Chair, Dr. Carlos Iván Márquez Pérez, National Director of the UNGRD in Colombia.