Challenges to the Fire Service–Centric Emergency Management System

Abstract

Taiwan has a population of 23.6 million on just 36,000 km2. This densely populated area is highly vulnerable to destructive natural hazards and thus the Taiwanese government is constantly focusing on improving its emergency management system. This research explores how the fire service-centric system influences disaster response on the ground in Taiwan. The data come from 28 qualitative, semistructured, in-depth interviews with disaster responders from four disasters in Taiwan between 2014 and 2016. Based on the authors’ findings, the current Taiwanese disaster response system might not be sufficient to cope with disasters with uncertain situations. As a result, the authors suggest (1) adding more networking functions to the current hierarchical system, (2) increasing the diversity of participants in the decision-making processes during responses, and (3) considering incorporating previous disaster research to develop a new response system.