Acknowledgment The author wishes to acknowledge guidance provided by Mark Keim, MD, MBA. Dr. Keim’s assistance proved invaluable for the author’s development of this chapter. Background Medical intelligence can be…

Operational rescue , or as it is sometimes referred to, contingency or hasty rescue , is a multidisciplinary approach to rescue while operating within dynamic, often high-threat, and asset-depleted environments….

Description of event A heat wave is defined in meteorological terms as a prolonged period of unusually hot weather. The duration and intensity of the heat play an important role…

Acknowledgments The author thanks Kingkarn Waiyanak for the literature search and retrieval, Glenn K. Shingledecker for his help in editing the manuscript, and the staff personnel at Krabi Hospital, Krabi,…

Description of event Floods are the most common natural disasters. They cause greater mortality than any other natural disaster. Worldwide, floods account for approximately 40% of natural disasters. In the…

Description of event Earthquakes are among the most devastating natural disasters. In many regions of the United States imperceptible earthquakes occur frequently. Historically, massive earthquakes have led to some of…

Description of event The American Meteorological Society defines a tornado as “a violently rotating column of air, in contact with the ground, either pendant from a cumuliform cloud or underneath…

Description of event Hurricanes, cyclones, and typhoons are all tropical weather systems formed by overly warm water in tropical oceans. Each, characteristically, exhibits rotary circulation and can be described as…

In a terrorist incident, medical and rescue personnel will respond to locate, extricate, treat, and transport patients. Simultaneously, law enforcement resources will respond to investigate, interview, and collect evidence. Medical…