Disaster Risk Management In The Republic Of

Korea Kim Yongkyun Sohn download

https://ebookbell.com/product/disaster-risk-management-in-the-
republic-of-korea-kim-yongkyun-sohn-6754324

Explore and download more ebooks at ebookbell.com

Here are some recommended products that we believe you will be
interested in. You can click the link to download.

Waterrelated Disasters And Disaster Risk Management In The Peoples

Republic Of China Asian Development Bank

https://ebookbell.com/product/waterrelated-disasters-and-disaster-
risk-management-in-the-peoples-republic-of-china-asian-development-
bank-47290366

Strong Safe And Resilient A Strategic Policy Guide For Disaster Risk
Management In East Asia And The Pacific 1st Edition Abhas K Jha Zuzana
Stantongeddes

https://ebookbell.com/product/strong-safe-and-resilient-a-strategic-
policy-guide-for-disaster-risk-management-in-east-asia-and-the-
pacific-1st-edition-abhas-k-jha-zuzana-stantongeddes-51259178

The Capacity Crisis In Disaster Risk Management Why Disaster

Management Capacity Remains Low In Developing Countries And What Can
Be Done 1st Edition Asmita Tiwari Auth

https://ebookbell.com/product/the-capacity-crisis-in-disaster-risk-
management-why-disaster-management-capacity-remains-low-in-developing-
countries-and-what-can-be-done-1st-edition-asmita-tiwari-auth-10303376

Heads Or Tails Financial Disaster Risk Management And Survival

Strategy In The World Of Extreme Risk 1 Evgueni Ivantsov

https://ebookbell.com/product/heads-or-tails-financial-disaster-risk-
management-and-survival-strategy-in-the-world-of-extreme-
risk-1-evgueni-ivantsov-53640854
Disaster Risk Management In Agriculture Case Studies In South Asian
Countries Huong Ha Author Lalitha S Fernando Author

https://ebookbell.com/product/disaster-risk-management-in-agriculture-
case-studies-in-south-asian-countries-huong-ha-author-lalitha-s-
fernando-author-33356592

Coastal Disaster Risk Management In Bangladesh Vulnerability And

Resilience 1st Edition Mahbuba Nasreen

https://ebookbell.com/product/coastal-disaster-risk-management-in-
bangladesh-vulnerability-and-resilience-1st-edition-mahbuba-
nasreen-47654554

Strategic Disaster Risk Management In Asia 1st Edition Huong Ha

https://ebookbell.com/product/strategic-disaster-risk-management-in-
asia-1st-edition-huong-ha-5143338

Local Disaster Risk Management In A Changing Climate Perspective From

Central America Hori Tsuneki

https://ebookbell.com/product/local-disaster-risk-management-in-a-
changing-climate-perspective-from-central-america-hori-tsuneki-5218274

Communitybased Disaster Risk Management In Azerbaijan 1st Edition

Rovshan Abbasov Auth

https://ebookbell.com/product/communitybased-disaster-risk-management-
in-azerbaijan-1st-edition-rovshan-abbasov-auth-6790992
Disaster Risk Reduction
Methods, Approaches and Practices

Yong-kyun Kim
Hong-Gyoo Sohn

Disaster Risk
Management
in the Republic
of Korea
Disaster Risk Reduction

Methods, Approaches and Practices

Series editor
Rajib Shaw, Keio University, Shonan Fujisawa Campus, Fujisawa, Japan
About the Series

Scope of the Series

Disaster risk reduction is a process, which leads to the safety of community and
nations. After the 2005 World Conference on Disaster Reduction, held in Kobe,
Japan, the Hyogo Framework for Action [HFA] was adopted as a framework of risk
reduction. The academic research and higher education in disaster risk reduction has
made / is making gradual shift from pure basic research to applied, implementation
oriented research. More emphasis is given on the multi-stakeholder collaboration
and multi-disciplinary research. Emerging university networks in Asia, Europe,
Africa and Americas have urged for the process-oriented research in disaster risk
reduction field. Keeping this in mind, this new series will promote the outputs of
action research on disaster risk reduction, which will be useful for a wider range of
stakeholders including academicians, professionals, practitioners, and students and
researchers in the related field. The series will focus on some of emerging needs in
the risk reduction field, starting from climate change adaptation, urban ecosystem,
coastal risk reduction, education for sustainable development, community based
practices, risk communication, human security etc. Through academic review, this
series will encourage young researchers and practitioners to analyze field practices,
and link it to theory and policies with logic, data and evidences. Thus, the series
emphasizes evidence based risk reduction methods, approaches and practices.

Series editor
Rajib Shaw, Keio University, Shonan Fujisawa Campus, Fujisawa, Japan

Editorial Advisory Group

1. Ms. Margareta Wahlstorm, Former Special Representative of the Secretary General
of the United Nations for the Disaster Risk Reduction, and head of UN ISDR
(International Strategy for Disaster Reduction), Geneva, Switzerland
2. Dr. Juha Uitto, Director, Independent Evaluation Office, Global Environment
Facility, Washington DC, USA
3. Professor Kaoru Takara, Disaster Prevention Research Institute (DPRI), Kyoto
University, Kyoto, Japan
4. Professor Joy Jacquline Pereira, University Kebansan Malaysia (UKM), Malaysia
5. Professor David Sanderson, Faculty of Built Environment, University of New South
Wales, Sydney, Australia
6. Dr. Anshu Sharma, Board Member, SEEDS India, Delhi, India
7. Professor Ailsa Holloway, Director, Disaster Mitigation for Sustainable Liveli-
hoods Programme, Stellenbosch University, South Africa
8. Professor Arnold Howitt, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, USA
9. Professor Fuad Mallick, Former Chair of Disaster Management Program, BRAC
University, Dhaka, Bangladesh
10. Professor Jayant K Routray, Coordinator of Disaster Preparedness, Mitigation and
Management Academic Program, Asian Institute of Technology, Pathumthani, Thailand

More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/11575

Yong-kyun Kim • Hong-Gyoo Sohn

Disaster Risk Management

in the Republic of Korea
Yong-kyun Kim Hong-Gyoo Sohn
Disaster Preparedness and Coordination School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Division Yonsei University
Ministry of Public Safety and Security Seoul, Korea (Republic of)
Sejong, Korea (Republic of)

ISSN 2196-4106 ISSN 2196-4114 (electronic)

Disaster Risk Reduction
ISBN 978-981-10-4788-6 ISBN 978-981-10-4789-3 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4789-3

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017939627

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2018

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of
the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations,
recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission
or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or
dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt
from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this
book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the
authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained
herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with
regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Printed on acid-free paper

This Springer imprint is published by Springer Nature

The registered company is Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21-01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721,
Singapore
Foreword

This book is a unique combination of historical analysis of disaster events, original

data analysis on social disasters, and strong insights on policy initiatives in the
Republic of Korea (ROK). ROK, being located in the Asian typhoon path, is prone
to different climate-related disasters, which have been aggravated in recent years
due to anthropogenic and natural reasons. The country is also prone to several
technological disasters. Through past experiences of both natural and man-made/
technological/industrial disasters, the country has built its resilience through several
policy measures, formed over a period of time.
This book starts with a detailed analysis of evolution of disaster concept in the
world as well as in ROK with illustrative examples from past disasters in the
country as well as globally. The book then provides a detailed analysis of evolution
of policy issues over past 60 plus years, with original analysis of frequency and
magnitude of disasters with its relation to disaster losses. The book then identifies
the key events, which enhances policy-related changes in the case of disaster. The
book then illustrates how the disaster event has opened up policy window, and
finally leading to formation of disaster countermeasures act. The book finally
provides a few sets of implementable recommendations.
To my knowledge, this is the first book on such an in-depth analysis of the policy
evolution to disasters in Republic of Korea. I find this book to be extremely useful
reference document for future research on this topic, not only for ROK but also for
similar research globally, especially with the development of new global disaster
framework (Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction: SFDRR) and other
related international frameworks like Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and
Paris Agreement on Climate Change; this book is extremely timely to contribute
significantly to the evolution of disaster-related education and research. I highly

v
vi Foreword

congratulate the authors for bringing out such an important book, and I am
confident that it will serve a wide range of researchers, policy makers, and practi-
tioners.

Keio University Rajib Shaw

Shonan Fujisawa Campus
Fujisawa, Japan
Preface

Over the next several decades, developing countries will achieve rapid economic
growth and social development. However, it is inevitable for them to face more
intensified and deadlier disasters due to the increasing disaster and climate risk
inherited in socioeconomic development.
Unlike the Republic of Korea (hereafter “Korea”), which never had a guidepost
to develop an effective policy for disaster-resilient growth – resulting in unneces-
sary sacrifices in terms of time, resources, and human capital – during its rapid
economic growth, developing countries now have a good roadmap highlighted
throughout our book to achieve smart socioeconomic development and disaster
resilience without the sacrifices. We believe that by providing this valuable
roadmap of Korea’s sound practices and lessons learned through its history of
disasters and institutional reforms, countries and those responsible for them can
prevent and mitigate the catastrophic impact of disasters.
The reason we focused our study on building a unique disaster resilience policy
change model based on Korea’s experience is that Korea has a rare experience
achieving resilience building and institutional reforms together with rapid eco-
nomic growth while coping with various natural, technological, and social disasters
and new types of disasters, consecutively or even simultaneously, within the last
few decades. Although we look at Korea’s extensive disaster documentation and
policy history through in-depth cases and historical journals, our central focus is the
years between 1948 and 2015. These pivotal years witnessed rapid economic
modernization, social and political policy maturation, and a typical disaster trajec-
tory. Additionally, it has well documented its major disasters and the corresponding
policy changes and institutional reforms. In the near future, developing Asian and
African countries may experience Korea’s disaster trajectory (emerging and com-
plex disaster types to a rapid increase in disaster magnitude and complexity) as the
cost of rapid economic growth. And it is one of the intents of this book to lay out the
future disaster path, theoretical policy making guide, and desirable institutional and
organizational transformation for Asia and Africa, also applicable to South Amer-
ica and the Middle East in time.

vii
viii Preface

As this is the first book to outline the whole disaster and policy change history of
a nation, using complexity theory and policy change models based on the charac-
teristics of disasters, it primarily targets capacity builders that want to propagate
disaster-resilient growth such as trainers and trainees of donor countries’ official
development assistance programs and UN personnel that focus on reducing the
embedded risk in economic development. Additionally, academia including grad-
uate students, leading policy makers, United Nations’ organizations and personnel,
and capacity building institutes can use this book in order to provide insightful
inspiration and useful in-depth cases about what are the characteristics and histor-
ical path of major disasters, how major disasters arise and affect policy change, how
leaders predict and model certain types of disasters and design public policy, and
especially what nations and institutes need to do to reduce disaster risk and mitigate
death and economic turmoil in the wake of disasters.
Furthermore, the potential readership of this book will include national disaster
training institute in developing nations, academia in the fields of ecology dealing
with panarchy theory, physical science dealing with complexity theory, and donor
agency’s ODA program officers and UN personnel dealing with Sustainable Devel-
opment Goals, climate change issues, etc. Since the enactment of the Hyogo
Framework for Action in 2005, many developing countries, in support of the UN
and developed countries, have established national disaster management agencies
and strengthened legislation and public policy; however, insufficient human capac-
ities to implement the legislation and public policy remain as a barrier for disaster
risk reduction (DRR) for those countries, highlighted in the Sendai Framework for
DRR in March 2015. To bridge the gap, many countries like Myanmar or the
African Economic Triangle (Kenya, Uganda, and United Republic of Tanzania
(Tanzania)) have established or are in the processes of establishing national training
institutes but lack proper and modern book material or modules. For example,
Myanmar, an upcoming economic powerhouse, has 100,000 people waiting to be
trained for public administration positions and needs guiding materials that include
effective disaster response policy change in the wake of major disasters based on a
comprehensive understanding of the complexities of disaster. Government officers,
trainers, scholars, and graduate students in developing nations will also find the case
studies inspirational and citable. Additionally, this book will provide an insight and
an appreciation of how complexity theory and policy change models can be used to
further studies.
We have been working in this field for more than three decades and have always
wanted a book that outlined the entire disaster path and the ensuing policy changes
of a single country. There are many books that highlight certain countries within a
greater spectrum; none, however, has appeared about the research on the dynamics
of policy change after a focusing event. Therefore, we felt it was time to present to
the disaster community as well as to those who want to build disaster resilience to
read about one country’s journey to find a way to recognize, reduce, and recover
from disaster. We hope you find the journey professionally and personally
inspirational.
Preface ix

We would like to thank the many supporters who stood by us and encouraged us
during this long journey bringing our book and our findings to you, the reader. We
are indebted to the hard work and support of Dr. Yunjung Yang, an expert in
history, culture, and ancient map interpretation, Mr. Jesse Arndt, and Professor
Sohn’s incredible students from GRSLAB (GIS, Remote Sensing, & Surveying
Lab) Yonsei University, especially Sang-pil Kim and Yun-jo Choi. We would also
like to thank Yosuke Nishida and Risa Takizawa from Springer Publishing for their
advice during the publishing phase as well as Professor Rajib Shaw for his invalu-
able advice. We would like also to give special thanks to Dr. Sang-Kook Han,
Dr. Jong-Moon Chung, Dr. Hak-Su Kim, and Dr. Suhng-Bin Lim for their advice on
Dr. Yong-kyun Kim’s doctoral dissertation, which laid the foundation of this book.
We would finally like to thank our families who endured the long hours getting our
book just right.

Sejong, Korea Yong-kyun Kim

Soeul, Korea Hong-Gyoo Sohn
28th of March 2017
Contents

1 Overview and Historical Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

1.1 Introduction and Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Historical Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.2.1 Understanding Disaster as God’s Act . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.2.2 Understanding Risk: Hazard and Vulnerability . . . . . . . . 11
1.2.3 Evolutionary Understanding of Disaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2 Disaster Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.1 Conceptual Foundation of Disaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.1.1 Concept of Disaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.1.2 Categorization of Disaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
2.2 Disaster Theories and Progress of Disaster Management
in Modern Times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
2.2.1 Disaster Theories in Modern Times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
2.2.2 Progress of DRM Since the Twentieth Century . . . . . . . . 44
2.2.3 Current Disaster Response Institutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
2.2.4 Policy Implications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
3 Disasters from 1948 to 2015 in Korea and Power-Law
Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
3.1 Major Disasters from 1948 to 2015 and Trend in Korea . . . . . . . . 77
3.1.1 Torrential Downpour in the Nakdong River Basin
in 1957 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
3.1.2 Typhoon Sarah in 1959 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
3.1.3 Flood in Jeollabuk-do Namwon-eup
and Gyeongsangbuk-do Yeongju-gun in 1961 . . . . . . . . . 78
3.1.4 Suncheon Flood in 1962 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
3.1.5 Torrential Downpour in Central Region in 1965 . . . . . . . 79
3.1.6 Wow Apartment Collapse in 1970 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

xi
xii Contents

3.1.7 Namyoung Ferry Sinking Accident in 1970 . . . . . . . . . . . 80

3.1.8 Seoul Daeyeongak Hotel Fire in 1971 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
3.1.9 Gunpowder Freight Train Explosion at Iri Station
in 1977 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
3.1.10 Typhoon Agnes in 1981 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
3.1.11 Great Flood in 1984 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
3.1.12 Typhoon Judy in 1989 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
3.1.13 Collapse of Levee in Ilsan Region in 1990 . . . . . . . . . . . 82
3.1.14 Train Overturn Accident at Gupo Station in 1993 . . . . . . 82
3.1.15 Asiana Airlines Boeing 737 Crash in 1993 . . . . . . . . . . . 82
3.1.16 Seohae Ferry Sinking Accident in 1993 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
3.1.17 Seongsu Bridge Collapse in 1994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
3.1.18 Gas Explosion in Daegu City in 1995 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
3.1.19 Sampoong Department Store Collapse in 1995 . . . . . . . . 83
3.1.20 Typhoon Janis in 1995 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
3.1.21 Korean Air Boeing 747 Crash in 1997 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
3.1.22 Torrential Downpour in 1998 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
3.1.23 Typhoon Rusa in 2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
3.1.24 Daegu Subway Fire in 2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
3.1.25 Typhoon Maemi in 2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
3.1.26 Woo-myun Mountain Landslide in 2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
3.1.27 Typhoon Bolaven and Typhoon Tembin in 2012 . . . . . . . 86
3.1.28 Hydrofluoric Acid Leak in Gumi-si in 2012 . . . . . . . . . . 86
3.1.29 Gyeongju Mauna Ocean Resort Gymnasium Collapse
Accident in 2014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
3.1.30 Sewol Ferry Sinking Accident in 2014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
3.1.31 Middle East Respiratory Syndrome in 2015 . . . . . . . . . . 87
3.2 Power-Law Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
3.2.1 Theoretical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
3.2.2 Relation Between the Frequency and the Magnitude
of Disasters in Korea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
4 Focusing Events in the Power-Law Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
4.1 Focusing Events as a Policy Change Factor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
4.2 Potential Focusing Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
4.3 Focusing Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
5 Disaster Response Policy Change in the Wake of Major Disasters,
Labeled Focusing Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
5.1 Disaster Response Policy Change Since 1948 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
5.1.1 Change of Organizations Operating Central
Countermeasure Headquarters and Related Laws . . . . . . . 114
5.1.2 Change of Organizations Implementing Search
and Rescue and Related Laws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Contents xiii

5.1.3 Disasters and Direct Change in Disaster Response

Organizations and Laws (1948–2015) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
5.2 Disaster-Triggered Policy Change Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
5.2.1 Policy Change Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
5.2.2 Relationship Between Major Disasters and the Change
of Disaster Response Organizations and Laws:
Disaster-Triggered Policy Change Model . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
5.3 Disaster-Triggered Policy Change in Korea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
6 Disaster Resilient Future in Korea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
6.1 Current Disaster Response Institution in Korea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
6.1.1 Background of the Establishment of the Ministry
of Public Safety and Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
6.1.2 Establishment Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
6.1.3 Implications of the Establishment of MPSS . . . . . . . . . . . 193
6.1.4 Main Policies of MPSS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
6.2 Global Trend and Policy Implications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
6.2.1 Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction
2015–2030 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
6.2.2 The 21st Conference of the Parties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
6.2.3 Sustainable Development Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
6.2.4 Significance of the Global Agenda for Resilience . . . . . . 206
6.3 Disaster Resilient Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
6.3.1 Intensive Risk Aligned with the Power-Law
Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
6.3.2 Comprehensiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
6.3.3 Government’s Role as Facilitator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
6.3.4 Third-Party Inspection and Professionalism . . . . . . . . . . . 211
6.3.5 Risk-Based Policy Prioritization and Resource
Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
6.3.6 Risk Governance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
6.3.7 Field-Based Response with Network Governance . . . . . . 214
6.3.8 Science, Technology, and Innovation for DRM . . . . . . . . 215
6.3.9 Accordance with the International Agenda . . . . . . . . . . . 216
6.3.10 Prioritization of DRM in the National Strategy . . . . . . . . 216
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
About the Authors

Yong-kyun Kim is the director of the Disaster Preparedness and Coordination

Division for the Ministry of Public Safety and Security in the Republic of Korea. He
has worked closely with national and local governments in Asia and Africa, NGOs,
and international organizations including the United Nations during his 20-year
professional career in the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, the
Ministry of Public Safety and Security of Korea, the National Emergency Manage-
ment Agency of Korea, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency of the
USA. His research interests are disaster risk management, institutional reforms for
effective disaster response, emergency management in complex situations, and
climate change adaptation. He has published several articles in the field of disaster
risk management and community-based water management.

Hong-Gyoo Sohn was a senior research associate of the NASA-sponsored

Radarsat Antarctic Mapping Project (RAMP) at the Byrd Polar and Climate
Research Center of Ohio State University, USA. For the successful accomplish-
ment of RAMP, he received the NASA Group Achievement Award. He has been
involved with various GIS and remote sensing projects in natural disaster-modeling
techniques utilizing national databases, damage identification techniques using
geospatial image information, and more. He is a full professor in the Department
of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Yonsei University, Korea. He has
worked closely with local governments and international organizations, including
UNISDR and UNESCAP. He is also working as an expert in “The open-ended
intergovernmental expert working group on targets and indicators relating to
disaster risk reduction” as a follow-up activity of the Sendai Framework
2015–2030.

xv
Chapter 1
Overview and Historical Review

Abstract This book investigates and scrutinizes the lessons learned in the Repub-
lic of Korea during a five-decade swath of disasters – from 1948 to 2015 – and
results in the disaster response policy change model in the wake of major disasters
for resilience building. This book is structured of power-law relation between
disaster loss and frequency in Korea from 1948 to 2015, focusing events in the
power-law distribution, Disaster-Triggered Policy Change Model, and suggestions
for resilient future. To start with the historical review, how to understand disaster
throughout the ages was investigated: from an Act of God to Mother Nature’s will
to societies’ inherent risk. As we journey through disaster’s history, we start to see
the categorization of disasters by cause, principle, and risk – drawing to an
understanding of risk through hazard and vulnerability.

Keywords Large-scale disaster • Typical disaster characteristics • Complexity

theory • Power law • Disaster-Triggered Policy Change MODEL • Disaster Risk
Reduction (DRR) • Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) • Climate change • Act
of God • Hazard • Vulnerability

1.1 Introduction and Overview

Everyone hopes to enjoy a safe life: a life free from turmoil and disaster. In
addition, governments and political leaders are no different; they too pursue this
illustrious goal through laws, policies, and organizations. Look at most political
elections – some of the main reasons the electorate vote for a certain candidate is
their belief that the candidate will be able to make an economy free of turmoil or a
nation safe from large-scale disasters domestically and internationally. However,
whereas most people try to be proactive in preventing disaster from touching their
lives, governments have been historically reactionary when it comes to disaster
management response. Jeong, Yak-yong, a renowned Korean scholar and govern-
ment official in the late Joseon Dynasty, said, “Always prepare for disaster because
an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” This notion is wise and poignant;
however, it seems difficult to follow as society is becoming more complex,
interconnected, and ripe for new types of disasters with intricate and devastating
ripple effect. We can see this in five disaster events that have taken place recently:

© The Author(s) 2018 1

Y.-k. Kim, H.-G. Sohn, Disaster Risk Management in the Republic of Korea,
Disaster Risk Reduction, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4789-3_1
2 1 Overview and Historical Review

the 2003 Daegu Subway fire in the Republic of Korea, the 2011 Tohoku earthquake
and tsunami, and the subsequent Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident
in Japan, the 2015 Tianjin explosions in China, the Ebola virus, and the Middle East
respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) that has infected people around the
globe. Each of these events exposed their respective governments to their ill
preparedness to catastrophic events.
So, what do governments need to do is to enhance national preparedness to
disaster in light of increasingly interconnected societies, the growing complexities
and magnitudes of disasters, and intensifying disaster damage. More specifically, an
increased level of scrutiny and research needs to be conducted on effective Disaster
Risk Management (DRM) and response based on a comprehensive understanding
of disaster characteristics and disaster response policies.
The five disasters described above exhibit the typical disaster characteristics in
line with complexity, interconnectivity, uncertainty, and intensifying magnitude,
and policy implications for effective disaster response in modern society. The 2003
Daegu Subway fire in the Republic of Korea was a human-triggered disaster caused
by one person’s angst against society in combination with poor staff education and
training dealing with subway accidents and a poor safety culture that left passengers
too powerless and untrained to use emergency exits. The 2011 Tohoku earthquake
and tsunami, and the following Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant accident in Japan,
was a “supercomplexed” disaster in combination with a natural disaster that
triggered a technological disaster.
Authorities failed to increase the predictability measure of uncertainty, relying
on past data or disaster precedents to build disaster countermeasures (the protection
levee system was designed to handle a base 8 earthquake on the Richter scale;
however, the earthquake that struck Tohoku and Fukushima was base 9 on the
Richter scale). The 2015 Tianjin explosions in China were an increasing disaster
risk combined with industrialization and a concentration of high-risk facilities,
which falls within Normal Accident Theory. And, the Ebola virus and the MERS-
CoV are newly emerging disasters triggered by interconnectivity of the world,
making local infections easily transmittable to other countries and insufficient
information sharing among countries, such as a lack of sharing of medical status
of symptoms. From 1976 to 2013, the Ebola virus that struck sub-Saharan Africa
occurred mainly in isolated villages and killed all inflicted people so it was rarely
transmitted to the outside world. However, after a significant increase of activity
between the United States (USA), Europe, and Africa, the Ebola virus that stuck
West Africa in 2014 was easily transmitted from its origin source to Europe and the
USA. MERS-CoV, in 2012, was also easily transmitted outside of its origin source
in Saudi Arabia to the rest of the world through greater interconnectivity.
Historically, scholars and leaders have tried to understand and tame disasters. In
ancient times, people mainly understood major disasters as God’s punishment and
placated them through rituals and prayers. After the 1790 Lisbon earthquake,
scholars tried to understand what constituted disaster, called hazard, such as an
earthquake, a hurricane, and a volcanic activity. Leaders used this knowledge to
start developing policies and laws to reduce risk due to hazard. In modern times, we
1.1 Introduction and Overview 3

have tried to understand vulnerability that is interrelated with social structure, such
as population density, patterns of urbanization and industrialization, and social
inequality. Through planning, understanding risk, developing disaster mitigation
plans, education and training programs, and so forth, modern scholars and leaders
strive to push hazard and vulnerability as far away from society as possible.
Currently, Complexity Theory is coming to the forefront of explaining the
characteristics of disasters. Complexity Theory, which began from research on
complex natural phenomena such as meteorology, has been recently applied to
the characteristics of disaster as recent disasters have been triggered by various and
complex causes. Pelling (2003) argued that Complexity Theory possesses a very
important lesson to understanding ways to respond to disasters. For example, one of
the characteristics of Complexity Theory is emergence, and it shows a trait of
disasters that take place with unexpected causes at an unexpected place. In addition,
studies by various scholars, such as Barton et al. (1994), Becerra et al. (2006),
Janczura and Weron (2012), and Jo and Ko (2014), indicate that the relation
between event frequency and its magnitude regarding earthquakes, hurricanes,
and floods follows the power law, which is one of the characteristics of a complex
system. However, most previous studies on disaster and complexity have been
limited by focusing on specific types of disaster. To understand the characteristics
of disaster in a country, additional and comprehensive analysis about the charac-
teristics of all types of disasters that have occurred in that nation needs to be
scrutinized using comprehensive data sets of natural and social disasters. The
power law has a significant implication for enhancing disaster risk management
in that long-tailed distributed events in the power law function will have a severe
impact on social systems due to damage beyond acceptable and comprehensible
levels even though the events are infrequent. Birkland (1997) noted that these
events, labeled as “focusing event,” could provide a window of opportunity for
policy change by concentrating the attention of various organizations, government
officials, and media. However, there has been little research done on the dynamics
of policy change after a focusing event irrespective of its benefit and advantage,
which is one of the reasons we decided to focus our attention on this monumentally
missed opportunity, an opportunity to help people and society become safer and
happier.
This book investigates and scrutinizes the lessons learned in the Republic of Korea
during a five-decade swath of disasters – from 1948 to 2015. The reason we have
focused on Korea is because it is considered to be one of the quickest modernized
economies (rapidly developing from a “super” poor nation to a leading Organization
for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) nation within 50 years), and, in
the same period, it experienced the typical disaster trajectory types, emerging and
complex disaster types, and a rapid increase in disaster magnitude and complexity.
With a strong political will and effective public policy, Korea successfully improved
the way it responded and strengthened its resilience to disasters.
The Korean people have suffered many casualties, uncountable physical dam-
ages, and severe economic loss caused by various disasters; of course, none more so
than from colonization and war in the twentieth century. In the twenty-first century,
4 1 Overview and Historical Review

disaster risk in Korea is increasing due to the emergence of new types of sudden
disasters, such as MERS-CoV, the increase of complex disasters, and the height-
ened probability of a slow onset severe drought interwoven with climate change.
However, research on disasters in Korea has been limited by focusing on the effect
of a single disaster, finding the cause of a disaster, or making policy recommenda-
tions based on a study of other nations’ disaster management systems. To remedy
this, it is essential, for the future development of an effective disaster response
policy, to understand the characteristic of power-law distributed disasters and to
analyze the dynamics of various elements, such as political will and media, on
policy change in the wake of focusing events. Therefore, research needs to be
conducted and focused on the dynamics of disaster response policy change and
power-law distribution in Korea.
We hope that change and research begin with our book. In our book, the key
question that we believe that needs to be addressed is “What model can best explain
DRM in the Republic of Korea?” To find the answers to the key question, this book
will dig into the following four sub-questions:
Q1. What are the relations between event frequency and disaster damage in Korea?
Q2. What are triggering events that influence organization and law change for
disaster response in the power-law distribution?
Q3. How does the triggering event affect organization and law change for an
effective disaster response in Korea?
Q4. What is the most important factor to bring about organization and law change
in the wake of major disasters in Korea?
By answering these questions, we hope to improve disaster response organiza-
tions, policies, and laws that will give people and the society at large a happy life
free of turmoil and disaster, on a basis of a better understanding of how disasters
had occurred or will occur and what are key factors for resilience and sustainability.
To this end, we have organized this book into five progressively leading parts that
will conclude with a potential future path for disaster management, an effective
disaster response based on the Disaster-Triggered Policy Change Model, and
research in developing nations in Asia and Africa and, hopefully, other continents
around the world. Overall, we focused our attention on global trends in responding
to disasters, the characteristics of power-law distributed disasters, and the dynamics
of policy change in the wake of focusing events.
We begin our book by laying out the basic theoretical background needed to
conceptualize and categorize disaster (Chap. 2) in order to design a disaster data
collection method and to categorize the analysis. We also go through the ways
society has looked at, explained, and mitigated various disasters from ancient to
modern times. Finally, we introduce disaster theories and progresses of disaster
management in modern times.
Our first look into specific natural and social disasters in Korea (Chap. 3) helps to
define and analyze the characteristics of disasters. From there, we can start to
identify the disaster loss-frequency relation in Korea from 1948 to 2015 by using
1.2 Historical Review 5

three types of variables: natural disaster death frequencies, natural disaster eco-
nomic loss frequencies, and social disaster death frequencies.
After making a firm foundation, we start to look at the focusing events in the
power-law distribution (Chap. 4). From here, we can start to see some potential
focusing events by using a statistical model and real focusing events by linking
major disasters with disaster response policy change.
Before moving forward, we need to find disaster response policy changes
(Chap. 5) that are in line with focusing events that brought about change in disaster
response organizations and laws. With those found, we can now analyze how
various dynamic streams after focusing events had affected the corresponding
disaster response policy change. We begin to use the Disaster-Triggered Policy
Change Model as an analytical tool as well as build the role of each stream for the
change in disaster response organizations and laws.
Chapter 6 introduces the current disaster response institutions in Korea and
draws a conclusion with a direction for a resilient future, in line with global trends,
such as Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR), Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs), and climate change negotiations.
This is the first book to outline the whole spectrum of disasters and policy
change for a nation – using Complexity Theory and policy change models based
on the characteristics of disasters. Korea has a unique experience achieving resil-
ience building and institutional reforms together with rapid economic growth while
coping with various natural, technological, and social disasters and new types of
disasters, consecutively or even simultaneously, within 50 years. Additionally, it
has well documented its major disasters and the corresponding policy changes and
institutional reforms. In the near future, developing Asian and African countries
may experience this disaster trajectory at the cost of rapid economic growth, and it
is one of the intents of this book to lay out the future disaster path, theoretical policy
making guide, and desirable institutional and organizational transformation for
Asia and Africa; it could also be applied to South America and the Middle East
in time.

1.2 Historical Review

1.2.1 Understanding Disaster as God’s Act

1.2.1.1 Global Perspective (Ancient Period to Middle Age)

In ancient and medieval times, disaster was considered the divine realm of
God. Ancient human societies considered praying to God the only way to ward
off disaster, and when a force majeure did occur, it was seen as God’s punishment
for sinful or disrespectful behavior. During such historical catastrophic epics
like Noah’s Great Flood, the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64, and the Black
Death in medieval Europe, tens of thousands of people perished; however, neither
6 1 Overview and Historical Review

the government nor the people contemplated the root causes of the disaster. There
was no reason to ponder the root causes, as prayer was the only prescription to
overcome disaster because catastrophe was a way of God punishing sinners.
It is noteworthy, however, that there were efforts during the ancient and medi-
eval times to prepare countermeasures against God’s method of punishment and
preparations to overcome the result of God’s disasters. The initial awareness of
disaster management began in AD 6, when the Roman emperor Augustus organized
a professional fire brigade as well as vigilantes to monitor different areas of Rome.
The 1000 strong vigilantes were responsible for seven quadrants of the city, being
placed in seven groups to handle the 14 administrative districts of Rome. These
seven groups were responsible for preventing, monitoring, and extinguishing
threatening fires within their designated area of responsibility. In AD 64, a massive
conflagration broke out – known later as The Great Fire of Rome. In the wake of the
disaster, the ruling emperor, Nero, instituted a series of building codes to prevent
the recurrence of disastrous fires, which included the use of geometric architectural
forms and open spaces to prevent the rapid spread of a fire, if one broke out again.
Additionally, he further introduced several systematic disaster management mea-
sures to handle a fire as well as the masses trying to flee it. Some of these measures
were water nods, built around the city to secure supplies of water for the fire
brigades; dedicated people, appointed to manage water supplies; and fire shelters,
created as a safe haven for the masses to escape an inferno.
The most infamous disaster to have occurred during the European Medieval
Ages is the fourteenth-century pandemic known as the Black Death, decimating one
third of the population. At the time of the outbreak of the plague, the authorities,
citizens, and even medical doctors were ignorant of the cause of the disease and
thus implemented inappropriate response methods, which resulted in the spread and
mutation of the pathogen. However, it is notable that the authorities made some
efforts to reduce the impact of the disease: with the Black Death as an impetus, a
policy to isolate people, who were possibly carrying the virus, for 40 days from
entering cities, was introduced, which is interpreted as the starting point of public
health policies (Kim et al. 2014).

1.2.1.2 Korean Development (Three Kingdoms, Unified Silla,

and Goryeo)

Records of Disaster

There is no written record of a disaster occurring during the Gojoseon era; there-
fore, we will address disasters that took place during the Three Kingdoms period
from which disaster records are available. The most significant historical records
for this period are the Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms (the Korean word
“Samguk Sagi”) and the Heritage of the Three Kingdoms (the Korean word
“Samguk Yusa”). Although, the main objective of these two chronicles was to
record the political history of the Three Kingdoms, and thus these sources are
1.2 Historical Review 7

limited in describing disaster occurrence and countermeasures in depth; albeit, they

are still a reliable source of disaster history, which can be used to illustrate Korea’s
historical disaster trajectory and responding policies. According to Jung (1986),
there are 937 records of calamity and disaster in the Chronicles of the Three
Kingdoms, and that is where we will start our look into the history of disaster in
Korea.
Goguryeo (BC 1C ~ AD 668)
The total number of records of calamity and disaster during the Goguryeo era was
162. One hundred and nineteen records are of abnormal astronomical phenomena
(e.g., solar eclipses and meteorites), climatological disasters (e.g., droughts and
frigid temperatures), geophysical disasters (e.g., earthquakes), and social disasters
(e.g., fires and smallpox). Sixty-three records are of upheaval during wars, rebel-
lions, or riots. Among them, earthquakes with 19 records were the most frequent
disaster, and most articles about them lack specific impact information, simply
describing when an earthquake occurred. One example of recording states is “there
was an earthquake during the winter in October in the second year of King
Moonjamyung” (Samguk Sagi Vol 19). The second highest recorded disaster was
damage due to cold weather such as frost or hail damaging grain crops. Goguryeo,
the northernmost of the Three Kingdoms, frequently experienced frost and hail in
April and from August to October. The cold-weather damage in fall and winter and
droughts in spring and summer (12 records) caused the area to suffer from starva-
tion frequently. Some records state thieves appeared from across the border during
certain droughts, pushing the people of Goguryeo into the kingdom of Silla
(a neighboring realm). In addition, there are records of thunder and lightning,
heavy snowfall, disease, and insects.
Baekje (BC 18 ~ AD 660)
The total records of calamity and disaster during the Baekje era are 140, which does
not include calamities such as war, rebellion, and riot. Among them, drought was
the most frequent disaster (32 records), which caused disproportionately more
calamites as Baekje encompassed the largest plain area among the Three King-
doms. One example of record states that the fields turned red because of no
precipitation for an extended period (Samguk Sagi Vol. 28). It can be inferred
that since Baekje’s major industry was agriculture, it put great effort on watching
the weather by observing movements of heavenly bodies. Therefore, Baekje
records contain more statements about such things as solar eclipses (25 records)
and comets (10 records) than Goguryeo or Silla. Other disaster records include
earthquakes (16 records), floods, typhoons, fires, and smallpox outbreaks.
Silla (BC 57 ~ AD 676)
The record shows that drought was the most frequent disaster, recorded 39 times in
the Silla era. Next were earthquakes that marked 26 records. Like the disaster
records that centered in the capital city or along the royal road in the Samguk Sagi,
the Goryeosa disaster records predominantly show those that occurred in the capital
city. The five major earthquakes in the 21st year of Pasa of Silla (AD 100),
8 1 Overview and Historical Review

the 7th year of Girim of Silla (AD 304), the 42nd year of Nulji of Silla (AD 458),
and the 4th year of King Munmu caused many casualties, along with severe damage
to private houses. Moreover, there is a record that the south gate of the Golden
Palace was collapsed by the earthquake that occurred in February in the 42nd year
of Nulji of Silla (AD 458). According to the Samguk Sagi Vol. 34, a royal palace
was established in the 21st year of Hyeokkeose and was named Golden Palace.
Thus, it can be inferred that the south gate of Golden Palace, which was a palace in
the early Silla period, was collapsed because of an earthquake. The third and fourth
most recorded disasters were cold-weather damage due to frost and hail, with
24 records, and flood with 23 records. Severe floods took place mostly in April
and July by the lunar calendar, and there were two major floods in April and July in
the 5th year of Soji of Silla (AD 482). In July (autumn) of AD 589, according to the
record of the 11th year of King Jinpyeong, a deadly flood swept through the western
part of the realm; 30,300 buildings and 60 private homes were destroyed, and
200 people perished (Samguk Sagi Vol. 4). Earthshocks, landslide, heavy snowfall,
fire and smallpox are disasters further recorded in the era. Also, there was damage
from a gale-force wind (the Korean word “daepoong”).1
The Unified Silla (AD 676 ~ 935)
Droughts were the most common disasters during the Unified Silla era with
39 records, and some of them were accompanied by locust damage in autumn.
Earthquakes were the second most common with 36 records2 (Shin 1984) followed
by frost and hail damage with 24 records and floods with 23. There were also
records of disasters such as heavy snowfall, landslide, fire, and smallpox.
The Goryeo Dynasty (AD 918 ~ 1392)
Goryeo was founded by the 1st King Wanggun in 918 and lasted for 475 years with
the 34th King Gongyang as the last emperor. Like the disaster records that centered
in the capital city or along the royal road in the Samguk Sagi, the Goryeosa disaster
records predominantly show those that occurred in the capital city.
The most reliable disaster record source for the Goryeo Dynasty is the 1451
Historical Book of the Goryeo Dynasty (the Korean word “Goryeosa”).3 Compared

1
Damage from a severe wind recorded in the Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms is quite different
from damage from typhoons collected by the current Korean government. Currently, damage from
typhoons estimated by the Korean government refers to what the WMO officially recognizes as
damage from typhoons, which normally occur from July to October. On the other hand, from the
literature of premodern history, when weather observation technology was not developed, damage
from a severe wind is highly likely to refer to damage from wind literally. For example, it said that
the east gate of Golden Palace just collapsed due to a severe wind in Seoul in April by the lunar
calendar in the 24th year of Talhae of Silla. This damage refers to damage from wind rather than
damage from a typhoon that the Korean government would estimate it as today.
2
Records additionally state that there were two earth tremors, one ground sinking, five towers
shaking, and three stone collapses.
3
Most of historical records in the period from 902 to 1009 were destroyed during the invasion of
the Khitans, and accordingly disaster records during that period are not fully reliable.
1.2 Historical Review 9

to the records of the Three Kingdoms and Unified Silla, the Goryeosa contains more
records of disaster, which may suggest that there were more disasters in the Goryeo
Dynasty than previous eras or that the Goryeo Dynasty took more interest in
disaster damage. Drought was the most frequent disaster with 380 records, and
like Baekje, agriculture was an integral part of the Goryeo Dynasty. Therefore,
droughts, which normally begot social disasters such as starvation, thievery, and
spread of disease, were closely monitored and recorded. The second most frequent
disasters were fires and casualties caused by lightning strikes with 345 records;
lightning rods were not invented until the 1750s. In Goryeosa, one record states, “as
lightning caused a fire to Sinheungchang, the crop warehouse blew away and a
blaze covered the sky” (Goryeosa Vol. 53a). Damage from lightning can be
identified with such records.
Hail, frost, earthquake, gale-force wind, and heavy rainfall were logged as
disasters with 238, 56, 152, 161, and 139 records, respectively. Also, fire-related
records were 174. Abnormally low temperatures took place in the latter Goryeo
Dynasty, too. Climatologically speaking, this phenomenon was due to a sudden
beginning of a cold climate in the latter Goryeo Dynasty. According to Goryeosa,
there were people with outerwear due to a wind blowing and cold weather in June
the 13th year of King Gojong (Goryeosa Vol. 53b) and in May the 3rd year of King
Chungryeol (Goryeosa Vol. 53c), and some deaths occurred because of hail and
snow in April in the 11th year of King Chungsook.

Disaster Response Ways

The ways to respond to disasters written in Samguk Sagi can be summarized with
three points. First, disaster response policy was not developed yet on the basis of the
comprehensive understanding of the root cause of each disaster type, rather it was
based on the unity of government and religion and the ritual associated with the
disaster type. For example, there were records of a ritual for rain after an extended
period of drought – the king would hold a memorial service as a priest – as an effort
to minimize damage when droughts continued. Samguk Sagi recorded seven rituals
for rain in Silla, four in Baekje, and one in Goguryeo. An interesting fact is that the
king performed the ritual for rain fewer times than the real frequency of severe
drought, implying that the king and the religious leaders waited until the last
moment to perform the ritual to placate the people more than call upon the Gods
for rain.
Second, though there was not a systematic disaster relief aid like today, there
were efforts by the government to help people’s lives, which were burdened from
disaster. For example, when drought- or locust-related disaster took place, ambas-
sadors were deployed to seek out ways to help people or to help starving people by
opening up a storage depot. Also, the king personally gave pardons after looking at
conditions of sinners. In addition, the king announced not to execute large-scale
engineering works so that it would not bother the farming period, but also relieve
the burdens of tax and tribute worth a year to a village facing disaster.
10 1 Overview and Historical Review

Third, in order to minimize disaster, facilities were established. One of the

pivotal national projects in the ancient time was to minimize damage of the crops
from flood and drought since agriculture was the key industry during the period.
Efforts by the government to create small and large reservoirs for irrigation and to
minimize damage from disaster in each town were partly registered in Samguk
Sagi. At this time, one of the representative reservoirs was the Byeokgolje Reser-
voir Site in the Baekje period, and its embankment remains from Pogyo-li to
Walsong-li in Buryang-myun, Kimje-si, Jeollabuk-do. The Byeokgolje Reservoir
Site is the largest reservoir among ancient reservoirs that remain until now and was
created in the 27th year of King Biryu (AD 330) who was the 11th king of Baekje.
Also by seeing that they secured water by artificial walls rather than just relying on
rainwater, it can be inferred that ancestors found wise ways to live a safe life from
disaster.
The Goryeo Dynasty was based on the agricultural industry and the governing
during the period was not completely separated from religious practices, linking
disaster with heaven’s will; thus, drought was not considered just as a natural
phenomenon, but also as a spiritual disharmony between heaven and people. As
a result, when droughts continued, the central government initially held a ritual
to heaven as a response. The most frequent way to abate disaster was to hold a
royal religious ceremony, followed by reducing tax, granting clemency to
prisoners, and laying the dead to rest.
Lightning, like drought, was considered as a reprimand of the sky. So rather than
establishing countermeasures to prepare for lightning, it was interpreted from
a political viewpoint. In the third year of King Seongjong (AD 984), when there
was a lightning strike, royal secret inspectors, Sirang, Nangjung, and lobbyists,
were all removed from office (Goryeosa Vol. 3). Also according to the record of the
second year of King Heejong (AD 1206), it can be inferred that lightning was
considered as a punishment of the sky as one record is written as “imperator
Park Jungmo was struck by lightning since he was greedy and untruthful”
(Goryeosa Vol. 21).
Other natural disasters, such as hail, frost, flood and earthquake, were also
understood as punishment caused by the imbalanced link between human beings
and heaven.
In case of fire, response ways were more realistic compared to natural disasters
such as drought. When a fire broke out in a central administrative institution,
managers of nearby institutions were mobilized to seize the fire. Also the record
of the 20th year of King Moonjong (1066) tells that a manager watched over fire in
every storage and warehouse, and an Eosadae (fire inspector) from time to time was
sent to inspect (Goryeosa Vol. 8).
In the Goryeo Dynasty, a tendency to consider disaster as a hardship from
heaven was quite strong. Though measures to deal with each disaster were not
institutionalized, several ways to respond to disaster, which are seen in the
1.2 Historical Review 11

contemporary world, appeared in earnest such as the revision in fire protection

systems, flood and drought plans such as building reservoirs, and an increase of
government’s interest on disasters.

1.2.2 Understanding Risk: Hazard and Vulnerability

1.2.2.1 Global Evolution (From 17C to the Beginning of 20C)

In the 1600s, the first insurance company in the history of disaster management was
found. Evidence suggests that an insurance company started to offer fire insurance
in the wake of the 1666 Great Fire of London (Kim et al. 2014).
It took another century for disaster management groups to adopt more scientific
methods. In Lisbon, Portugal, on November 1, 1755 (Fig. 1.1), a society-changing
earthquake, called the Great Lisbon Earthquake, rocked the just waking-up city
with a magnitude of 8.5 ~ 9.0 on the moment magnitude scale. It resulted in huge
death tolls, ranging from 10,000 to 100,000, and is considered as one of the
deadliest earthquakes in history. After the earthquake, society, administrators, and
disaster management companies (e.g., insurance companies) started to look at
disasters from a wider perspective. Research into earthquakes using scientific
methods began in earnest, and preparations for future disasters began to be codified
and implemented into construction, public works, and city planning. Hereby,
people began to move away from the traditional God-centered disaster management
theory. Furthermore, through the Great Lisbon Earthquake, academic studies such
as “Disaster Relief,” “Seismology,” and “Earthquake Engineering” became avail-
able for study (Shrady 2009).
The 1800s saw disaster-related laws enacted in the USA. In 1802, a great
conflagration broke out in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. In 1803, the US Congress
passed an act for the federal government to support disaster recovery and relief for
the New Hampshire, and this act is regarded as the first legal support by the US
federal government (Haddow et al. 2014). However, after this enactment, it took
one century for the US federal government to provide comprehensive disaster relief
to state governments damaged by a catastrophic natural disaster. After massive
disasters during the century, such as the earthquake in New Madrid, Missouri, in
1811 (Fig. 1.2), the fire in Chicago in 1873, and the Johnstown Dam collapse in
Pennsylvania in 1889, only ad hoc relief activities were taken by state and local
governments, and there were no national policies to deal with natural or social
disasters (Anna et al. 2006).
The 1900s was the era of ideological confrontation, the Cold War, where
democracy and communism were in conflict. At that time, disaster management
was conducted using the “quasi-war model,” which is a way of using war research
methodologies to practice disaster study (Gilbert 1995).
In the early 1900s, the USA suffered the impact of various natural disasters such
as a hurricane in Galveston in 1900. As in the 1800s, local groups provided ad hoc
12 1 Overview and Historical Review

Fig. 1.1 Great Lisbon Earthquake (Parker n.d.)

Fig. 1.2 Landslide trench and ridge resulting from the New Madrid earthquake (USGS 1995)

disaster response. Noticing the severe limitations of these local groups handling
disaster relief, the US federal government, specifically the US Congress, assigned
the American National Red Cross as the official organization for the federal
1.2 Historical Review 13

government for disaster relief in 1905. Since then, the Red Cross has served as the
primary organization for disaster relief in the USA, just in time to provide relief for
catastrophic events, such as the 1906 earthquake and fire in San Francisco, the 1926
hurricane in Miami, and the 1927 flood of the Mississippi River downstream (Claire
2012).
At the same time in Europe, scholars began to conduct research on the vulner-
ability embedded in their society after the December 28, 1908, devastating earth-
quake (magnitude 7.5) and tsunami, which occurred along the Straits of Messina
between the island of Sicily and mainland Italy (RMS 2008). Those events, which
almost completely destroyed Messina, are recorded as one of the biggest natural
catastrophes that had occurred in Europe until that time. The disaster made head-
lines worldwide, and international relief efforts were launched. For the reconstruc-
tion of the city, the USA, together with several European countries including
Russian Federation (Russia), United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland (UK), and France, assisted in the recovery efforts after the great disaster.
The 1908 earthquake spurred the adoption of the first seismic design regulations in
Italy in 1909, which were issued by Royal Decree. However, until the Second
World War, not much effort was spent on risk management, specifically natural
disasters. In fact, it was not until the British 1948 Civil Defense Act that a basis for
DRM came to fruition in Europe.

1.2.2.2 Korean Evolution (Joseon, Japanese Colonial Era, and US

Military Period)

Records of Disaster

Joseon Dynasty (AD 1392 ~ 1910)

The Joseon Dynasty lasted for 518 years from 1392 to 19104 and is divided into the
early and late dynasties by the Japanese Invasion of Korea in 1592, because there
were many changes in political, economic, and the social system after the Japanese
invasion. Similarly, ways to respond to disaster dramatically changed after the
Japanese invasion in 1592; therefore, this book investigates Joseon Dynasty’s
disaster response ways during its former and latter period. Most of the data for
the investigation came from the records of disaster in the Annals of the Joseon
Dynasty, in which most major disasters in Joseon Dynasty, such as drought, flood
damage, fire, and infectious disease, were described.
Major disasters during the Joseon Dynasty were lightning with 1375 records,
hail with 1083 records, earthquake with 1030 records, severe storm with
354 records, frost with 301 records, and drought with 272 records (Lee 1997).
From 1392 to 1600, about 1.3 droughts occurred annually on average, indicating

4
Joseon Dynasty is sometimes divided into two periods: Joseon Dynasty (1392 ~ 1897) and The
Greater Korean Empire (1897 ~ 1910).
14 1 Overview and Historical Review

that there was a drought almost every year. Also regarding flood damage, there
were 178 records in total, indicating that flood damage occurred 0.8 times annually
on average. Therefore, it can be inferred that the former part of Joseon Dynasty
suffered from drought and flood damage every year. The fact that such disasters
took place every year in the Joseon society, where agriculture was the basis of the
state, shows that those disasters affected not only the daily lives of the people but
also the political stability of the Dynasty. Droughts were concentrated in the regions
such as Youngseo in Gangwon province, the northwest of Hwanghae province, the
southwest coast of Pyungahn province, and eastern Kyungsang province. This can
be seen as an effect of geological traits. If drought happened especially in time of
sowing rice seeds or rice ripening in those regions, where rice farming was
concentrated, the damage was felt on a national level.
Also in case of flood damage, damage occurred frequently in the downstream of
the Amnok River and the Tumen River and mid- and downstream of the Han River
and the Nakdong River. For flood, farmland around the river was flooded, private
houses were washed away, and people and livestock were swept away (Oh 1991).
In the late Joseon Dynasty, continuing natural disasters since the sixteenth
century and large-scale wars, such as the Japanese Invasion of Korea in 1592, the
Japanese Invasion in 1597, the Manchu Invasion of Korea in 1627, and the Manchu
Invasion in 1636, led the society in a state of confusion. Also, an infectious disease
spread all over the country including Jeju Island from the 1660s to the early 1670s,
and according to the Chronicles of the fifth year of King Hyunjong, infectious
disease was severe in Gaesong-bu, and a cow epidemic occurred as well (The
Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Hyunjong Vol. 9). These records indicate that
the late Joseon Dynasty suffered immensely from several severe social disasters.
Among natural disasters in the late Joseon Dynasty, thunder and lightning were
identified 995 times. Other frequent disasters were hail (849 records), flood damage
(570 records), earthquake (470 records), drought (344 records), frost (291 records),
heavy storm (279 records), and unexpected snow and rain (242 records) (NEMA
2005).
The comparison of disaster frequency records between the early and the late
Joseon Dynasty is as follows:
• The records of earthquake largely decreased in the late Joseon Dynasty com-
pared to 1000 earthquakes that occurred in the early Joseon Dynasty; the reason
of the decrease is still being investigated.
• The records of drought in the late Joseon Dynasty, with a total of 344 droughts
from 1601 to 1863, are similar to that of the early Joseon Dynasty.
• There were 570 records of flood damage in the late Joseon Dynasty: the flood
occurrence increased from 0.8 (the early) to 2.1 (the late) per year on average.
The increase of flood damage in the late Joseon Dynasty might have been
triggered by two causes: the increase of natural hazards, such as heavy rain and
typhoon, and the increase of social vulnerability due to the development of urban
areas followed by increase in population and the expansion of agricultural areas. If
flood damage or droughts occurred where people did not live or did not grow crop,
1.2 Historical Review 15

such disasters were not likely to be recorded in the Chronicles. As the population
increased and the city and farming technology developed, the extent of damage
from disaster probably increased and vulnerable regions that needed to be managed
also expanded too. This logic has something in common with what is seen today in
Asia and Africa that are experiencing fast industrialization and urbanization and are
facing an increase in frequency and the scale of disasters.
Japanese Colonial Era (AD 1910 ~ 1945)
The Japanese Colonial Era lasted from 1910 to 1945; Korea was under colonization
due to Japanese imperialism. The records of disaster at that time are mainly about
natural disasters including flood damage and drought.
There were 46 records of flood damage including the torrential rain in Busan
City5 on July 12, 1912. Among them, the biggest damage took place in 1920, 1925,
and 1936. The heavy rain in Sancheong-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do, on July 19, 1920
poured 400 mm of rain, and the water level of Samnangjin-eup reached 8.09 m,
which was the highest water level ever recorded to that time. Accordingly,
37,829 ha flooded and 21,482 ha of land was lost or buried. In addition, 7170
private houses were lost and collapsed and about 1100 people died. Four consec-
utive severe floods, called the Eulchuk severe flood, occurred in 1925.
About 300 ~ 500 mm of torrential rain came to the southern part of Hwanghae-
do from July 11 to 12, and the Han River, the Quem River, the Mankyoung River,
and the Nakdong River were in flood. The second flood caused the Han River and
the Imjin River to breach their banks due to the heavy rain from July 16 to 18 with a
maximum precipitation of 650 mm near the Han River and the Imjin River’s
watersheds. The water levels of the Han River on the 18th recorded the highest,
13.59 m at Ttuk-Seom (Island),6 11.66 m at a footbridge, and 12.74 m at Yongsan-
gu. As the water of the Han River went across the embankment, about 30,000
jeongbo7 of land flooded. Places with the worst damage were Ichon 1-dong, Ttuk-
Seom, Songpa-dong, Jamsil-ri, Shincheon-ri, and Pungnap-ri. At this time, the first
floor of the official residence of the National Railroad of Yongsan was inundated by
water and trains at Yongsan station flooded. The third flood came due to lots of rain

5
As of 2015, the Republic of Korea has 244 local governments: 17 upper-level local autonomies
and 227 lower-level local autonomies. 17 upper-level local autonomies are composed of 8 prov-
inces (the Korean word “do”), 1 special autonomous province (Jeju), 1 special city (Seoul),
6 metropolitan cities (Busan, Daegu, Incheon, Daejeon, Gwangju, Ulsan), and 1 autonomous
metropolitan city (Sejong), and 226 lower-level local autonomies are composed of 75 cities (the
Korean word “si”), 82 counties (the Korean word “gun”), and 69 districts (the Korean word “gu”).
Lower-level local autonomies are further subdivided into community-level administrative centers:
220 towns (the Korean word “eup”), 1193 townships (the Korean word “myeon”), and 2089
neighborhoods (the Korean word “dong”). In this book, city and do refer to the upper level; si, gun,
and gu refer to lower level; and eup, myeon, and dong refer to community level (Ministry of the
Interior, 2016).
6
The Korean words “Seom” and “Do” mean island.
7
30,000 jeongbo is equivalent to 30,000*3000*3.3 km2.
16 1 Overview and Historical Review

in the Kwan-Seo area8 in August, which resulted in severe damage by the flood of
the Daedong River, the Cheongcheon River, and the Amnok River. The last flood
was formed as a tropical depression that created near the Mariana Islands in the end
of August and went out to the East Sea through Mokpo-si and Daegu City in early
September. Because of this, there was heavy rain in the northern part, and the
Nakdong River, the Yeongsan River, and the Seomjin River flooded. Due to the
severe floods from July to September in 1925, called the “Eulchuk year floods,” the
number of dead reached 517 (NEMA 2005). In 1934 and 1936, several severe
disasters triggered by heavy rain occurred consecutively.
Another great disaster that severely damaged Korea during the Japanese Colo-
nial Era was drought. During the period, there were a total of 31 drought records.
The fact that there were 31 droughts in 35 years indicates that there was famine and
damage every year due to drought. Among them, some of the worst cases are as
follows: a drought in Jeju Island continued from May 15, 1924 to July 11, 1924.
Also, as a drought continued in the northern central area from July 28, 1924 to
September 6, 1924, Japan even had to import 1.27 million bags of rice. The central
region faced damage due to a drought from April 26, 1929 to May 25, and in the
same year, Mokpo-si had a drought with no rain for 34 days starting May 12. The
Yeongnam region9 too went through a severe drought from July 3 to August 14. In
1939, there was a spring drought focused on Daegu, and Gwangju City met with
consecutive dry days from May 12 to June 15 and from July 1 to 23. The national
production of rice in 1939 decreased by 40% of that of the average yearly yield due
to the drought in Mokpo-si from May 12, 1939 to June 20, 1939 and a nationwide
drought in July and August in the same year.
In 1942, there again was another year of drought called the “Imonyeon drought.”
The great drought from May to August hit every corner of the Korean peninsula and
crushed the military provision base of Japan. This drought was continued by
another one in April and May in 1943 and another summer drought in 1944. As a
result, a three-year poor harvest was unavoidable.
During the Japanese Colonial Era, the majority of the people in Korea could not
avoid famine due to a lack of absolute quantity and therefore had to rely on roots of
herbs and barks of trees to sustain their lives (NEMA 2005).

Disaster Response Ways

One of the ruling ideologies that the first king of the Joseon Dynasty had was
physiocracy, the “agriculture-first” principle. Therefore, agriculture was the basis
of the national industry, and farmers and rural areas were the backbone of a social
structure. Thus, the Joseon Dynasty took practical and concrete measures against

8
The Kwan-Seo area means Pyeong-An South and North Provinces.
9
The Yeongnam region means Gyeongsangnam-do, Gyeongsangbuk-do, Busan City, Daegu City,
and Ulsan City.
1.2 Historical Review 17

disasters, such as drought and flood that could hugely impact agriculture production,
and put efforts to improve the disaster management system. First, the measures were
concentrated on irrigation facilities because they were essential in solving the
agriculture-related problems caused by the shortage or the excess of water. Irrigation
facilities of the Joseon Dynasty include a bank that was to block valleys with dikes and
irrigate water with a water gate. Blocking water is to build banks to block seawater,
and irrigation facilities to draw water for irrigation water called a river port are the
major irrigation facilities. Representative irrigation facilities of the Joseon Dynasty are
threefold: the Korean word “Je” that was to block valleys with dikes that incorporated
a water gate, the Korean word “Eon” that was to build bank to block seawater, and the
Korean word “Bo” that was to draw water from a river for irrigation.
In the volume of King Taejo, in the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, a passage
reads, “One that matters to encourage agriculture is to build Je-Eon in order to
prepare for a drought and the rainy season (The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King
Taejo Vol. 8).” It can be inferred that there were efforts to respond to drought and
flood damage from the earliest days of the state. Also in the ninth year of King
Taejong, Woo Hee-yeol, governor of Wojnu, handed in public appeals to build
Je-Eon, and he argued that Je-Eon was very important for preparing for or
preventing drought, and there was a need to establish a government agency for
the tasks (The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Taejong Vol. 17).
Accordingly, the Joseon Dynasty established a temporary government agency;
called the “Je-Eon Dogam,” responsible for embankment construction and man-
agement projects. In time, it repaired the Byeokgolje Reservoir Site in Kimje, the
Nulje reservoir in Gobu, and the Sutong reservoir in Bupyung and created the
Gareungpodaeje reservoir in Ganghwa. Such irrigation facilities were mainly about
repairing or creating reservoirs on a large sale in the early period, and to correspond
to the needs of farmers for small reservoir sites was also secured. Also in 1679, the
fifth year of King Sookjong, Hojo’s minister Oh Jung-wui suggested a department
of embankment (The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Sookjong Vol. 8). As a
result, a regular department of embankment called the “Je-Eon Sa” was established
to control and coordinate regional offices’ management of irrigation facilities.
Secondly, within the expansion of irrigation facilities, the Joseon government
practiced religious ceremonies such as rituals for rain, gicheongje,10 and worship
at noted mountains and large rivers; at Jongmyo, a royal ancestral shrine; and at
Sajik, an altar where ritual ceremonies were performed for the purpose of over-
coming drought and flood damage altogether. Such method was transcended from
the ancient times with an idea that disaster is the punishment by the heavens.
Thirdly, in the Joseon Dynasty when Confucianism was accepted, the king himself
responded to disaster as a way to become a virtuous man to win respect and take the
lead service. That is, several policies were initiated such as asking for measures to
overcome disaster to retainers; banning construction practices such as duty work,
tribute, and donation; banning military training; avoiding power cuts which is to
avoid activities in the midst of power outage; and reducing number of food and

10
The Korean word “Gicheongje” means ritual ceremony to God.
18 1 Overview and Historical Review

personnel affairs such as resignation according to a degree of damage from disaster.

These indicate a will to overcome natural disasters with the royal regime instead of
heavenly mandates such as ritual for rain that was mentioned in the second point
(NEMA 2005). During the reign of Sejong the Great, the fourth king of the Joseon
Dynasty, instruments for astronomical observations like a rain gauge were invented
along with the development of astronomy; various astronomical books and charts
were studied and published. In that period, knowledge for agriculture, such as an
almanac, the 24 divisions of the year, and chronemics, was considered as the basic
of Imperial politics. Therefore, kings in the early Joseon Dynasty invested in
astronomical phenomena, namely, the world of the sun, the moon, and the stars.
Also, they were considered one of national supreme studies as the movements of
heavenly bodies were connected to the livings of human. The study of astronomy is
vital not only for the dignity of King but also for the stability of agriculture-based
economies and the enrichment of the people.
For example, Yi Sun-ji (1406 ~ 1465) of the Sejong era obeyed the royal
command to publish a Korean book of “Cheonmunyoucho,” which includes the
integrated astronomical theory from the earth and the sky, the five elements to
meteorological phenomena, and this made a connection between national safety
and disasters for the public. In other words, academic researches on hazard that
occur due to external factors were used as a political tool for the king and as a tool
for the lives of the public.
Ways to respond to social disaster such as arson also evolved systematically.
From the early fifteenth century to the end of the sixteenth century, there was
Byeolwaseo, which was a division that manufactured and sold roof tiles. This was
set up to block fire outbreaks in private houses in the capital city following a request
from a monk, Haesun, in 1406, the sixth year of Taejong. At that time, most homes
were thatched, which made the nation vulnerable to conflagration. The establish-
ment of Byeolwaseo is evidence of the government’s institutional effort to mini-
mize the potential damage from fire.
Also in 1417, the 17th year of Taejong, the first regulation on firefighting activity
called “Gumhwa Regulation” was announced. The Regulation set a punishment
according to the scale of fire and defined responsibilities of officers to prevent fire in
detail (The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Taejong Vol. 34). Also from the
records of the eighth year of Sejong the Great, fire prevention measures were set up
such as building anti-fire provision in rooms on both sides of the main gate where
servants lived and expanding roads inside the city (The Annals of the Joseon
Dynasty, King Sejong Vol. 31). In 1467, the 13th year of Sejo, a detailed checklist,
called “Samok,” describing goods and individual roles for soldiers for fire preven-
tion, was developed and sent to responsible agencies, such as the Ministry of Labor
and the Hansung11-boo (The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Sejo Vol. 44).
This is an early version of modern firefighting systems, and it can be seen that a
systematic system for disaster response from fire had been prepared.

11
Hansung is name of Seoul during the Joseon Dynasty.
1.2 Historical Review 19

In case of the infectious diseases that killed many during the Joseon Dynasty,
retrospective measures rather than preventive measures were taken. The central
government deployed medical doctors along with medicine to the affected regions
and recorded all management processes for future mitigation measures (The Annals
of the Joseon Dynasty, King Seongjong Vol. 15). The Joseon Dynasty’s response
way laid the foundation for today’s disaster response measures. Though the level of
response was not comprehensive and proactive enough to block risk factors in
advance to disaster like today, it is notable that institutions and tools to minimize
damage were prepared, and evolutions continued toward a more efficient system
management.

1.2.3 Evolutionary Understanding of Disaster

Major disasters in Goguryeo, located in the northern area of the Korean peninsula,
were earthquakes, cold-weather damages harming agriculture in the spring and
the early fall season, and droughts in spring and summer. Major disasters in both
Baekje, centered around the Han River basin, and Silla, located in the southern
region of the Korean peninsula, were drought, earthquake, flood, fire, and small-
pox. Drought was considered to be the most severe disaster in the period of the
Three Kingdoms, Unified Silla, and the Goryeo Dynasty. As agriculture was the
center of most economic activities during the period, severe drought caused crop
failure that brought about a food shortage, hunger, looting, and the spread of
diseases, which resulted in a big social disaster. In the ancient countries where the
form of politics was theocracy, people held rituals for rain to resolve droughts
because droughts were seen as a judgment of the sin of human from the heavens.
The government also put some efforts to relieve the public by releasing
government-stocked rice, exempting tax to lessen the burden of the public, and
constructing reservoirs like Byeokgolje. However, a ritual for rain was giving
more hope and comfort than the construction of reservoirs to the public suffering
from disasters.
In the Joseon Dynasty, rituals for rain were still important ways to deal with
drought. There were places for Jongmyo and Sajik in the center of each region
as well as the nation to worship Gods of land and soil like their ancestors.
However, the government’s disaster response ways evolved. Unlike the ancient
era, where heat or cold and drought or floods were entirely considered as the
face of Providence, people in the Joseon Dynasty tried to resolve natural
disasters by considering topography and using agricultural technology. In other
words, people grew rice mainly in Jeolla-do,12 Gyeongsang-do,13 and

12
The Jeolla-do is composed of Jeollanam-do and Jeollabuk-do.
13
The Gyeongsang-do is composed of Gyeongsangnam-do and Gyeongsangbuk-do.
20 1 Overview and Historical Review

Chungcheong-do14 rather than the Yeongseo region15 of Gangwon-do and the

southern region of Gyeongsang-do where droughts occurred frequently and made
efforts to expand and improve irrigation facilities. Also, the “Je-eon Sa” that is
responsible for managing irrigation facilities was established for more systematic
farming management.
The evolving pattern of worldwide disaster management is similar to that of
Korean disaster management. In ancient/medieval eras, people prayed to Gods as
severe disasters were mostly considered as a judgment of the heavens or God. Even
though many people died from the Noachian deluge, the Great Fire of Rome AD
64, and the Black Death, which ran rampant in Europe, no comprehensive or
systematic research on the cause of the disaster was conducted. This was because
people thought that the disasters were punishment by Providence, which could be
only overcome by prayers. However, it is worth noting that they had made an effort
to make countermeasures even during ancient and medieval eras. After the Noa-
chian deluge, Noah searched for a lean field to live a new life, and after the Great
Fire of Rome, the government repaired the roads and waterways to respond
promptly to fire. Also, in medieval times, when many people died from the Black
Death, the government implemented policies on public health like isolating
suspected cases. In other words, nations have taken actions to prepare countermea-
sures to protect the public from disasters.
Disaster response ways in Europe had significantly evolved in the wake of the
1755 Lisbon earthquake. People started to study the cause of disasters in earnest,
and the importance of a national relief system and the safety of urban settlement
were brought to the forethought of government officials and urban planners. This
was also related to the social atmosphere of the Renaissance, where people were
interested in “human.” In other words, disaster was perceived as a field requiring
scientific research, not as God’s realm. Therefore, damage investigation was
implemented to recover the destructed site, and disaster recovery based on urban
planning was implemented under the leadership of Marquis Pombal. The modern
concept of disaster management was formed in the wake of the 1755 Lisbon
earthquake. Since the nineteenth century, many countries had started to develop
national relief systems, which laid the foundation of the establishment of special-
ized organizations on disaster management and the development of disaster insur-
ance systems. From the mid-twentieth century, comprehensive research started on
the vulnerability of society as well as natural phenomena like typhoon and
earthquake.
As reviewed above, the way humans have responded to disasters has evolved:
starting from praying to Gods for countermeasures; to understanding hazard
through research on natural phenomenon, such as earthquake and hurricane;
and to reducing vulnerability, a disaster-causing factor embedded in society

14
The Chungcheong-do is composed of Chungcheongnam-do and Chungcheongbuk-do.
15
Gangwon-do is divided into the Yeongdong (east of mountain range) and Yeongseo (west of
mountain range) with the Taebaek mountain ranges.
References 21

Fig. 1.3 Evolutionary understanding of disaster

through human endeavor. The development of science and technology and an

increased interest in human society has made disaster shift from God’s domain to
natural and social science areas. In addition, increased citizenry rights made
governments become actively engaged in disaster management.
Figure 1.3 shows the evolving process of the overall perception of disaster. The
row describes changes in viewpoint of responses to disasters historically, and the
column indicates a percentage of overall disaster perception. The amount of
activities of government and citizens to respond to disasters is expressed in the
sum of the blocks inside the picture. The percentage is not an accurate numerical
value but rather addresses that such change in viewpoint is enlarged or minimized.
What can be inferred from the figure is that the ways to respond to disasters show
a tendency to gradually evolve due to a triggering point momentum. When disasters
take place, a perspective to interpret disasters as Gods’ act was dominant in the
ancient world, and this belief became weaker in modern society. Although some
cases that still view disaster as a supernatural phenomenon from a religious point of
view can be found even in contemporary societies, disaster response ways have
evolved through more comprehensive and systematic understanding of hazard,
vulnerability, and the characteristics of the contemporary society in the wake of
triggering events, such as the 1755 Lisbon earthquake.

References

Anna KS, Katherine E, Brower DJ (2006) Hazard mitigation and preparedness

Barton CC, Nishenko SP, Tebbens SF, Loeb WA (1994) Fractal scaling and forecasting of the size
and frequency for Florida hurricanes 1886–1991 and of U.S. hurricane financial loss, Santa Fe
institute workshop on natural hazards Reduction, Jan 5–9, Santa Fe, New Mexico, p 1
Becerra O, Johnson N, Meier P, Restrepo J, Spagat M (2006) Natural disasters, casualties and
power laws: a comparative analysis with armed conflict, In Proceedings of the annual meeting
of the American Political Science Association, Loews Philadelphia, and the Pennsylvania
Convention Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA
22 1 Overview and Historical Review

Birkland TA (1997) After disaster: agenda setting, public policy, and focusing events. Georgetown
University Press, Washington, DC, pp 3–5
Claire B (ed) (2012) Emergency management: the American experience, 1900–2010, 2nd edn.
Boca Raton, CRC Press
Gilbert C (1995) Studying disaster: a review of the main conceptual tools. Int J Mass Emerg
Disasters 13(3):231–240
Goryeosa vol 3, Sega 3, King Seongjong Gapsin 3 years May
Goryeosa vol 8, Sega 8, King Moonjong Byeongoh 20 years February
Goryeosa vol 21, Sega 21, King Heejong Byeongin 2 years June
Goryeosa vol 53a, Ji 7, O-haeng 1, Hwa
Goryeosa vol 53b, Ji 7, O-haeng 1, Hwa
Goryeosa vol 53c, Ji 7, O-haeng 1, Hwa
Haddow G, Bullock J, Coppola D (2014) Introduction to emergency management, 5th edn.
Butterworth-Heinemann, Amsterdam
Janczura J, Weron R (2012) Black swans or dragon kings? A simple test for deviations from the
power law. Eur Phys J Spec Top 205(1):79–93
Jo HH, Ko YI (2014) Large variance and fat tail of damage by natural disaster. Vulnerability,
uncertainty, and risk, pp 2744–2753
Jung C (1986) Research on catastrophic event and countermeasures in three kingdoms, Master’s
thesis of Yeungnam University
Kim I, Ryu S, Song Y, Yang K, Lee D, Lee J, Hong Y (2014) Disaster management, Daeyoung Co
Lee T (1997) Catastrophic event and the change of point of view to heaven in Goryeo and the
middle Joseon Dynasty, a methodology to study about Korean history of thought. (in Korean)
Ministry of the Interior (2016) Local Government’s Administrative district and the state of
population
NEMA (2005) NEMA’s vision with a viewpoint from 5000 year history of disaster management
Oh J (1991) Characteristics and countermeasures of natural disaster in the 15th century, history
and reality, vol 5, pp 34–36
Parker B (n.d.) The power of the sea. Available at: http://thepowerofthesea.com/images.html.
Accessed 5 Jan 2016
Pelling M (2003) Natural disaster and development in a globalizing world. Routledge,
London/New York
Robert H (1785) The fire of Rome
RMS (2008) The 1908 Messina earthquake: 100-year retrospective
Samguk Sagi vol 4, 3, Silla-bongi vol 26 King Jin-Pyeong
Samguk Sagi vol 19, Goguryeo-bongi vol 7 King Munja-pyeon
Samguk Sagi vol 28, Baekje-bongi vol 6 King Euija-pyeon 17 years April
Samguk Sagi vol 34, Zapji 3, Jiri 1
Shrady N (2009) The last day: wrath, ruin, and reason in the great Lisbon Earthquake of 1755
Shin H (1984) Political implication of earthquake in the ancient history of Korea. Oriental Stud
14:151–153
The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Hyunjong vol 9, 5 years November 5 Imjin 3rd article
The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Taejo vol 8, 4 years July 30 Sinyoo 3rd article
The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Taejong vol 17, 9 years March 22 Eulchuk 1st article
The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Sookjong vol 8, 5 years January 3 Gihae 1 st article
The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Joongjong vol 75, 28 years July 14 Eulmyo 1st article
The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Taejong vol 34, 17 years January 10 Sinyoo 1st article
The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Sejong vol 31, 8 years February 20 Gapsin 6th article
The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Sejo vol 44, 13 years December 20 Imja 1st article
The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, King Seongjong vol 15, 3 years February 6 Gyeyoo 8th article
USGS (1995). Historic Earthquakes – New Madrid Earthquakes 1811–1812. Available at: http://
earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/states/events/1811-1812_pics.php. Accessed 17 May 2016
Chapter 2
Disaster Theory

Abstract To find a conclusive definition for contemporary purposes and uses, we

look at many of the various definitions of disasters through cataclysmic events,
historical records, public policies, laws, and organizational usage. Our natural
progression leads us to modern theories of disaster and Disaster Risk Management
(DRM) that have had to tackle new types of disasters that are being brought about
by the interconnectivity of societies, people, diseases, technology, etc., increasing
in magnitude and complexity like what was seen in Fukushima, Japan, in 2011 and
on-setting disasters like climate change. After looking at all the historical evidence,
we come to a definition for the term disaster for modern usage and what it means for
policy implications.

Keywords Concept of disaster • Disaster category • Natural disaster • Human-

caused disaster • Social disaster • Disaster theory • Disaster response institution

2.1 Conceptual Foundation of Disaster

2.1.1 Concept of Disaster

There has been an ongoing debate on defining and conceptualizing a term for
human-caused and natural calamities; a commonly used English word is “disaster.”
The concept of disaster has been understood in different ways depending on the era
and defined in various ways depending on the purpose of users, such as national
governments, United Nations (UN) agencies, and scholars. The commonly used
English word “disaster” originates from the Latin words “dis-astrum,” meaning
“ominous star.” Disaster, as it is reflected in its origin, had been historically
interpreted and used as a massive and sudden calamity due to the unfavorable
position of a planet or star, implying “impossible to control,” because it is caused by
God’s will (Etkin 2015). In other words, disaster had been mostly considered as a
naturally occurring disaster, resulting from external components, such as typhoons
and earthquakes. Currently, it has matured to include technological and social
disasters, reflecting the evolutionary circumstances of the contemporary society.
The concept of disaster is various depending on nations, organizations, and
scholars. In Korea, the Disasters and Safety Act defines disaster as “what causes

© The Author(s) 2018 23

Y.-k. Kim, H.-G. Sohn, Disaster Risk Management in the Republic of Korea,
Disaster Risk Reduction, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-4789-3_2
24 2 Disaster Theory

or is likely to cause any harm to the lives, bodies, and property of citizens and the
State.” The first appearance of the definition of disaster in Korean law was in the
Countermeasures against Typhoons and Floods Act (Act No. 1894), enacted on
February 28, 1967, where the Korean word “jaehae” was defined as “damage
caused by a flood, downpour, heavy snowfall, storm, or tidal wave, and other
natural phenomena equivalent thereto.” In this Act, the English word “disaster”
was interpreted to be the Korean word “jaehae,” meaning disaster triggered by
natural hazard. This Act was fully revised into the Countermeasures against Natural
Disasters Act (Act No. 4993) on December 6, 1995, defining “disaster” as “damage
caused by a typhoon, flood, downpour, storm, tidal wave, heavy snowfall, drought,
or earthquake (including tsunami), and other natural phenomena equivalent
thereto.”
With regard to human-caused disasters, the Disaster Control Act, enacted (July
18, 1995) in the wake of the Sampoong Department Store collapse, defined the
Korean word “jaenan” as “accidents that may cause any harm to the lives and
property of citizens and the State, such as fire, collapse, explosion, traffic accidents,
chemical, biological and radioactive accidents, and environmental pollution inci-
dents, excluding natural disasters.” In this Act, the English word “disaster” was
interpreted to be the Korean word “jaenan,” meaning disaster triggered by techno-
logical hazard. By doing this, this Act brought about a confusion of the concept of
disaster in Korea until it was abolished in 2004, labeling the single English word
“disaster” with two different terms: “jaehae,” meaning disaster triggered by natural
hazard, and “jaenan,” meaning disaster triggered by technological hazard.
As the Disasters and Safety Act was enacted on March 11, 2004 (Act No. 7188),
disaster, the Korean word “jaenan,” was redefined as “what actually causes or is
likely to cause any harm to the lives, physical safety and property of citizens and the
State” embracing the following three types of disasters:
• Natural disaster: disaster caused by a typhoon, flood, downpour, strong wind,
wind and waves, tidal wave, heavy snowfall, lightning, drought, earthquake,
sandy dust, red tide, ebb and flow, and other natural phenomena equivalent
thereto
• Human-caused disaster: damage beyond the scale prescribed by Presidential
Decree, such as a fire, collapse, explosion, traffic accidents, chemical, biological
and radioactive accidents, and environmental pollution incidents, and other
accidents similar thereto
• Social disaster: damage caused by the paralyzation of the State’s critical sys-
tems, such as energy, communications, transportation, finance, medical treat-
ment, and water supply, etc., and by a spread of infectious diseases, etc.
The Act included social disaster as a category of disaster for the first time in
Korea. Human-caused disaster and social disaster were combined into one word
“social disaster” according to the Disasters and Safety Act (Act No. 11994),
partially amended on August 16, 2013. Therefore, the currently used definition of
disaster in Korea is “any of the followings, which actually causes or is likely to
2.1 Conceptual Foundation of Disaster 25

cause any harm to the lives, physical safety, and property of citizens and the State,”
with the following categorization:
• “Natural disaster” referring to disasters caused by typhoon, flood, downpour,
strong wind, wind and waves, tidal wave, heavy snowfall, lightning, drought,
earthquake, yellow dust, red tide, outbreak, ebb and flow, and other natural
phenomena equivalent thereto
• “Social accidents” referring to damage beyond the scale prescribed by Presi-
dential Decree, such as a fire, collapse, explosion, traffic accidents, chemical,
biological, and radioactive accidents, environmental pollution incidents, and
other accidents similar thereto and damage caused by the paralyzation of the
state’s critical systems, such as energy, communications, transportation, finance,
medical treatment, and water supply, and by a spread, etc., of infectious diseases
under the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act, and contagious animal
diseases under the Act on the Prevention of Contagious Animal Diseases.
In the United States (USA), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
distinguishes “major disaster” from “emergency” in the Robert T. Stafford Disaster
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (hereafter “The Stafford Act”).
“Emergency” means “any occasion or instance for which, in the determination of the
President, Federal assistance, is needed to supplement State and local efforts and capabil-
ities to save lives and to protect property, and public health and safety, or to lessen or avert
the threat of a catastrophe in any part of the United States.”

“Major disaster” means “any natural catastrophe (including any hurricane,

tornado, storm, high water, wind-driven water, tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake,
volcanic eruption, landslide, mudslide, snowstorm, or drought), or, regardless of
cause, any fire, flood, or explosion, in any part of the USA, which in the determi-
nation of the President causes damage of sufficient severity and magnitude to
warrant major disaster assistance under this Act to supplement the efforts and
available resources of States, local governments, and disaster relief organizations
in alleviating the damage, loss, hardship, or suffering caused thereby (FEMA
2013).”
In Japan, “disaster” is defined as “damage caused by typhoon, downpour, heavy
snowfall, flood, tidal wave, earthquake, tsunami, volcanic eruption, other abnormal
natural phenomena or massive fire, explosion, and other causes” in the Basic
Disaster Countermeasures Act.
All three countries have commonly referred to “disaster” as “what is triggered by
three types of hazards: natural, technological and social hazards.” The differences
of the three countries are that Korea considers “social disaster” as “damage beyond
the scale prescribed by Presidential Decree,” while the USA differentiates emer-
gency and major disaster depending on the scale of damage, and Japan puts more
emphasis on natural disaster in their Acts.
Efforts to conceptualize disaster have also been done by international organiza-
tions and academia. United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)
defines “disaster” as “A serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a
26 2 Disaster Theory

society at any scale due to hazardous events interacting with conditions of expo-
sure, vulnerability and capacity, leading to one or more of the following: human,
material, economic and environmental losses and impacts. (UNISDR 2016).”
Academically, disaster has also been variously defined. According to Fritz, “disas-
ter is an event, concentrated in time and space, in which a society of a relatively
self-sufficient subdivision of society, undergoes severe danger and incurs such
losses to its members and physical appurtenances that the social structure is
disrupted and the fulfillment of all or some of the essential functions of the society
is prevented (Fritz 1961).” Quarantelli (1985) acknowledged disaster as occupying
time and space, as a social phenomenon when society or a small community cannot
perform all or part of its social functions due to the result of the impact occurring
from natural or technological causes that cannot be managed by the knowledge or
capability of the society or a small community Table 2.1 summarizes the various
concepts of disaster as described above.
To conceptualize disaster more clearly, we will examine the terms related to
disaster such as safety, security, risk, and crisis.
First, the English word “safe” originates from the Old French word “sauf” that
means “free from danger,” which is derived from the Latin word “salvus” that
means “in good health.” As the primitive Indian-European word “solwos” means
“sound,” the word “solidus” means “consistent like solid” in Latin, and “sanah” in
Sanskrit means “not wounded, in its original state, and sound.” In the scriptures of
Zoroastrianism, “haurva” means “not wounded in its original state,” and the Persian
archaic word “haruva” and Greek word “holos” mean “sound” (Lee 2007). The
Merriam-Webster Dictionary’s definition of “safety” is “the condition of being safe
from undergoing or causing hurt, injury; or loss or the state of not being dangerous
or harmful (Webster Dictionary 2015).” The word “safety” is translated in Korea as
“anjeon.” “Anjeon” is composed of two characters: “an” that means a comfortable
state and “jeon” that means a whole and entire state. Since the nineteenth century,
the word “safety” has been commonly used to proactively sort out the issues
surrounding industrial disasters that had emerged as social issues.
Second, the term “security” originates from a combination of the Latin word:
“se” that means “without” and “cura” that means “concern or care,” therefore
indicating “no anxiety.” The term “security” is defined as “the state of being
protected or safe from harm; things done to make people or places safe” in the
Merriam-Webster Dictionary (Webster Dictionary 2015).” In Korea, the term
“security” in the UN Charter of 1947 was translated as “anbo” and has been used
as the meaning of “securing safety.” The security area in Korea includes the
Northern Limit Line West Sea Border Incident, the President’s Vacuum of Author-
ity, protection of Korean residents abroad, terrorism, and nonmilitary maritime
disputes (Jeong 2009).
Third, the term “risk” originates from a Spanish nautical word, meaning “pen-
etrating into the reefs.” As the term “risk” became widely used, its meaning
expanded to a hardship that must be endured to obtain wealth. Researchers and
government officials have developed diverse definitions of risk to fit the purpose
and nature of the activities. The United Nations Development Programme defined
2.1 Conceptual Foundation of Disaster 27

Table 2.1 Summary table of various disaster concepts

Commonality Disaster is triggered by external factors such as natural phenomena, lack of
technology, terror, etc.
Disaster means a condition where the damage cannot be overcome without
national or external assistance due to lack of capacity or resources of the
damaged community or local/state governments
Uniqueness Korea A Presidential Decree regulates the magnitude of disaster, which
can be financially supported by the national government
USA Disaster is classified into emergency and major disaster declara-
tion depending on the magnitude of the damage
Japan Disaster caused by natural hazard was historically emphasized in
Act
UNISDR A comprehensive approach considering human, physical, eco-
nomic, or environmental losses and impacts is emphasized
Fritz Considers disaster as the disruption of the essential functions of
the social system
Quarantelli Considers disaster as what is caused by natural or technological
hazard that is beyond the knowledge of modern society

risk as “the probability of harmful consequences, or expected loss (of lives, people
injured, property, livelihoods, economic activity disrupted or environmental dam-
aged) resulting from interactions between natural or human induced hazards and
vulnerable conditions” (UNDP 2004). In the National Infrastructure Protection Plan
(NIPP 2013), Department of Homeland Security (DHS) considered risk elements as
“threat nature and magnitude, vulnerability to a threat, and consequence that could
result.”
Haddow et al. (2014) noted that risk is composed of (1) the probability and
frequency of a hazard occurring, (2) the level of exposure of people and property to
the hazard, and (3) the effects or costs, both direct and indirect, of this exposure.
The Korean word for risk is “wiheom” or “wiheomdo.”
Finally, the origin of the word “crisis” is the Greek word “krinein (separate;
critical moment);” and it has been used as the medical term of “decisive moment of
life and death.” Quarantelli (1998) viewed that a crisis of a certain organization
appears in the three following interrelated conditions: (1) a type of threat including
organizational value, (2) sudden occurrence of an unexpected event, and (3) need to
respond collectively as the outcome may seem more negative otherwise. The term
“crisis” is defined as “a difficult or dangerous situation that needs serious attention”
in the Merriam-Webster’s Learner’s Dictionary (Webster Dictionary 2015).
The Korean word for crisis is “wigi.” The term indicates a dangerous crucial
moment or time and the state to make the final decision on a critical matter. The
term “wigi” is a combination of the two characters: “wi” meaning danger and “gi”
meaning chance. In the same context, Lee et al. (2004) defined crisis as an
“incomplete state that desperately needs a significant change or the turning point
to determine whether to proceed with, modify, or end an event or a behavioral
process.”
28 2 Disaster Theory

Table 2.2 Terms related to disaster

Korean English Origin Usage
Jaenan Disaster Dis (separation, destruction, and Unexpected calamity and ordeal
inconsistency) + aster (astrum in
Latin, meaning star)
Anjeon Safety Originates from the Old French word The condition of being safe from
“sauf” meaning “not damaged or not undergoing or causing hurt,
harmed,” or the Latin word “salvus” injury
meaning “not damaged or healthy”
Anbo Security Originates from se (¼without, liber- The state of being protected or
ation) + cura (¼care, concern, or safe from harm
distress)
Wiheom Risk Originates from the Spanish word A probability of harm that
(do) “risque,” known to be used from the encompasses threat/hazard, vul-
mid-seventeenth century nerability, and consequence
Wigi Crisis Originates from the Greek word Dangerous crucial moment or
“krinein” (separate) time

Jeong (2009) saw the word “crisis” as natural disasters such as typhoons, heavy
snowfalls, and floods; human and technical disasters such as explosion, traffic
accidents, and collapse; comprehensive risk situations in various contexts such as
terrorist attacks, status of diplomatic relations with North Korea, failure of various
policies, financial difficulties of firms, stores, and state, crimes, spread of diseases,
and various scandals. The terms related to disaster can be summarized as Table 2.2.
Summarizing the discussions above, “disaster” can be conceptualized as
follows:
• A state that cannot be recovered to the original state with the ability of the
community due to great damages in human life and property
• Inclusive of disasters triggered by natural, technological, or social hazard1
The term “disaster” will be used embracing natural, technological, and social
disasters that the whole community need to cope together reflecting the character-
istics of contemporary societies. Therefore, in this book, we will define “disaster”
as “a status of community or nation’s being seriously damaged by natural, techno-
logical or social cause and difficult to recover from the damage with its own
resources, requiring the whole community to cope together.” This definition is
similar to the definition of disaster by UNISDR and consistent with the definition
by laws in Korea, Japan, and the USA.

1
In this context, referring to “jaehae” as natural disaster and “jaenan” as human-caused disaster is
not appropriate, which had been commonly used in Korea from 1995 to 2004; it is still partially
used. Both “jaehae” and “jaenan” should be used as terms pointing out natural, technological, and
social disasters. To be more precise, “jaehae” means the damage caused by hazards, and “jaenan”
means the situation that creates or is likely to create damage.
2.1 Conceptual Foundation of Disaster 29

2.1.2 Categorization of Disaster

Like the concept of disaster, its categorization is also very diverse. The typical one
is a categorization by disaster cause. The other ways include categorization by the
characteristics of the event, phase-related categorization, and categorization by
surgical and medical disaster.

2.1.2.1 Categorization by Disaster Cause

In Korea, the current Framework Act on the Management of Disasters and Safety
classifies disasters into natural and social disaster. Its original version enacted in
2004 classified disasters into natural, human-caused, and social disasters, but the
same Act when it was amended in 2013 integrated “human-caused disaster” and
“social disaster” into “social disaster.” Thus, disaster in the current Korean law is
divided into “natural disaster” and “social disaster.” The categorization by disaster
cause is a typical way about disaster type. Most of renowned organizations dealing
with disaster data, such as Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters
(CRED) and Munich RE, and many scholars have used disaster cause as the
principle of disaster categorization.
By Laws and Manuals in Korea
The official categorization of disasters in Korea is “natural disaster” and “social
disaster” regulated by disaster-related laws, which are differentiated by causing
phenomenon. The Countermeasures against Natural Disasters Act, formerly the
Disaster Control Act and the Disasters and Safety Act, defined disaster-related
terms as below:
• Countermeasures against Natural Disasters Act (Act No. 14113, amended on
March 29, 2016)
The purpose of this Act is to prescribe necessary matters concerning natural
disaster prevention or recovery and other countermeasures against natural disasters,
in an effort to preserve national land and to protect lives, bodies, and properties of
nationals as well as key infrastructures from disasters caused by natural phenom-
ena, such as typhoons, floods, etc. This Act defined “jaehae” as any damage caused
by “jaenan” and encapsulated “jayeon-jaehae,” meaning natural disaster and
“pungsu-hae,” meaning disaster triggered by hydrological hazard as specific exam-
ples of “jaehae.”
Article 2 (Definitions) The definitions of the terms used in this Act shall be as
follows:
1. The term “jaehae” means any damage caused by “jaenan” under subparagraph
1 of Article 3 of the Disasters and Safety Act (hereinafter referred to as the
“Framework Act”);
30 2 Disaster Theory

2. The term “jayeon-jaehae” means any disaster caused by typhoon, flood, heavy
rain, strong wind, wind wave, sea wave, tidal water, heavy snowfall, lightning,
drought, earthquake (including any earthquake-caused tsunami), yellow dust or
other natural phenomena corresponding thereto, from among disasters falling
under subparagraph 1;
3. The term “pungsu-hae” means any disaster caused by typhoon, flood, heavy
rainfall, strong wind, wind wave, sea wave, tidal water, heavy snowfall or other
natural phenomena corresponding thereto.
• Disaster Control Act (enacted on July 18, 1995, Act No. 4950 and abolished on
June 1, 2004)
This Act, abolished when the Disasters and Safety Act was established on March
11, 2004, states that the purpose of the Act is to establish a disaster and safety
control system of the state and local governments, establish a system for prevention
of and countermeasures against disasters as well as emergency rescue, declare a
special disaster area, and define matters such as emergency measures necessary for
disaster management in order to protect the lives and property of citizens from
disasters due to artificial causes. This Act was enacted to prepare for human-caused
disasters, such as arson and building collapse, rather than natural disasters, such as
drought and floods. Thus, it targets technological disasters, such as explosions,
collapse of bridges, traffic accidents, and chemical, biological, and radioactive
accidents, like the leakage of hazardous material and environmental pollution
incidents.
• Framework Act on the Management of Disasters and Safety (enacted on March
11, 2004, Act No. 7188)
The Framework Act on the Management of Disasters and Safety that took effect
in 2004 categorized disaster into natural, human, and social disaster and defined
them as follows:
Article 3 (Definitions) The terms used in this Act shall be defined as follows:
1. The term “disaster” means any of the followings, which actually causes or is
likely to cause any harm to the lives, physical safety and property of citizens and
the State:
(a) Disasters caused by a typhoon, flood, downpour, strong wind, wind and
waves, tidal wave, heavy snowfall, lightning, drought, earthquake, sandy
dust, red tide, ebb and flow and other natural phenomena equivalent thereto;
(b) Damage beyond the scale prescribed by Presidential Decree, such as a fire,
collapse, explosion, traffic accidents, chemical, biological and radioactive
accidents, and environmental pollution incidents and other accidents similar
thereto;
(c) Damage caused by the paralyzation of the State’s backbone systems, such as
energy, communications, transportation, finance, medical treatment and
water supply, and by a spread, etc. of infectious diseases.
2.1 Conceptual Foundation of Disaster 31

2. The term “overseas disaster” means those which actually cause or are likely to
cause any harm to the lives, physical safety and property of citizens of the
Republic of Korea outside the territory of the Republic of Korea, and which
require the Government to take measures thereon.
• Framework Act on the Management of Disasters and Safety (partially amended
on August 16, 2013, Act No. 11994)
Types of disasters were categorized into natural and social disasters in the
Disasters and Safety Act partially amended on August 16, 2013, defining them as
follows.
The Korean government classifies 32 standardized disaster types on the standard
crisis management manual as shown in Table 2.3 according to the statutory
classification of disasters summarized above.
Article 3 (Definitions) The terms used in this Act shall be defined as follows.
1. The term “disaster” means any of the followings which actually causes or is
likely to cause any harm to the lives, physical safety and property of citizens and
the State.
(a) Natural disasters: Disasters caused by a typhoon, flood, downpour (the
Korean word “howoo”), strong wind, wind and waves, tidal wave (the
Korean word “hae-il”), heavy snowfall, lightning, drought, earthquake,
sandy dust (the Korean word “Hwangsa”), red tide (the Korean word
“jeokjo”) outbreak, ebb and flow (the Korean word “josu”), and other
natural phenomena equivalent thereto
(b) Social disasters: Damage beyond the scale prescribed by Presidential
Decree, such as a fire, collapse, explosion, traffic accidents, chemical,
biological and radioactive accidents, and environmental pollution incidents
and other accidents similar thereto, and damage caused by the paralyzation
of the State’s critical systems, such as energy, communications, transporta-
tion, finance, medical treatment and water supply, and by a spread, etc. of
infectious diseases under the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act,
and contagious animal diseases under the Act on the Prevention of Conta-
gious Animal Diseases
Enforcement Decree Article 2 (Scope of Disasters) “Damage beyond the scale
prescribed by Presidential Decree” in subparagraph 1 (b) of Article 3 of the
Disasters and Safety Act (hereinafter referred to as the “Act”) means the following
harm:
1. Harm to human life or property for which measures at the level of State or local
government are required;
2. Other harm deemed by the Administrator of the National Emergency Manage-
ment Agency to be necessary for disaster control, and which is equivalent to the
harm referred to in subparagraph 1
32 2 Disaster Theory

Table 2.3 Disaster types by the crisis management standard manual (MPSS 2017)
Disaster type Definition
Natural Damage caused by storm Any disaster caused by typhoon, flood, heavy rain,
disaster and flood strong wind, wind wave, sea wave, tidal water, heavy
snowfall, lightning, drought, earthquake (including
any earthquake-caused tsunami), yellow dust, or
other natural phenomena corresponding thereto
※ Article 2 of the Countermeasures Against Natural
Disasters Act
Earthquake Direct damage by earthquake ground vibrations
(namely, ground vibrations caused by earthquakes)
and fire, explosion, and disasters caused by other
phenomena
※ Article 2 of the Earthquake Recovery Plans Act
Eruption of a large volcano Damage by volcanic activities caused by volcanic
ash, pyroclastic flow, volcanic mudflow, volcanic
gas, lava, volcanic earthquake, or flood and damage
occurred by consequent fire, explosion, or other
phenomena
※ Article 2 of the Earthquake Recovery Plans Act
Red tide Damage on cultured marine products and fishery
production facilities due to a discoloration of sea-
water to red or light brown caused by an explosive
growth in phytoplankton density
※ Article 2 of the Act on the Prevention of and
Countermeasures Against Agricultural and Fishery
Disasters
「Methods regarding the monitoring, prediction of red
tide, and damage prevention」(Directive of Ministry
of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries)
Drought A prolonged shortage of water supply in a certain
region due to a period of below-average precipitation
or insufficient available water resources: it can be
categorized as a meteorological drought, a hydro-
logical drought, an agricultural drought, or a socio-
economic drought depending on its usage
Tidal wave Damage by level rise due to the effects of tides,
weather tidal waves, swells, and abnormal waves in
costal or estuarine waters
Social Forest fire Trees, weeds, fallen leaves, etc. in a forest or in an
disaster area adjoining to a forest are burned by a fire artifi-
cially or naturally ignited
※ Article 2 of the Forest Protection Act
Chemical accident All situations that occur because a chemical flows
out or leaks out to humans or the environment due to
the fault of a worker as at the time he/she works, such
as replacement of facilities, defects in facilities or
deterioration of facilities, a natural disaster, a trans-
port accident, etc.
※ Article 2 of the Chemicals Control Act
(continued)
2.1 Conceptual Foundation of Disaster 33

Table 2.3 (continued)

Disaster type Definition
Water pollution Accident that oil, toxic substance, or sewage or
wastewater is discharged to river, causing continuous
large-scale suspension of water intake or perish of
fishes and significant effects on the people’s living
and natural ecosystem
Large-scale marine pollution Accident caused by the crack of oil tank due to
accident sinking, stranding, or collision of a ship resulting in a
significant and extensive damage to the people’s
living and natural ecosystem and requiring compre-
hensive measures at the government level
Utility-pipe conduit Accident occurred on the facility installed under-
ground for smooth maintenance, aesthetic improve-
ment, preservation of road structure, and smooth
traffic flow by accommodating underground facili-
ties (electricity, gas, waterworks supply facilities,
communication facilities, drainage system, etc.)
commonly
Collapse of dam Accident of leak or overflow occurred due to natural
disaster such as large-scale flood or earthquake or
structural defect of dam, concerning the collapse of
dam
Large-scale subway accident Accident occurred due to the collision, derailment,
fire, explosion or flooding of electric train in opera-
tion, causing casualty or expecting the suspension of
train operation for a long period of time
Large-scale high-speed rail- Accident occurred due to the collision, derailment,
road accident fire, or explosion of high-speed train in operation,
causing casualty or expecting the suspension of train
operation for a long period of time
Large-scale fire at multiuse Accident at a facility used by the many and
facility unspecified general public concerning which has a
high concern of large casualty and property damage
in case of large-scale fire
Radiation exposure from a Situation requiring national protection measures due
neighboring country to a large-scale radiation exposure or radiation con-
tamination exposure accident from a nuclear facility
of neighboring country
Marine vessel accident Accident occurred due to the collision, fire, explo-
sion, stranding, sinking of vessel, loss of loaded
cargo, or other hull damage
Large-scale casualty acci- Accident of large-scale casualty such as physical
dent at workplace explosion related to tasks at the workplace, large-
scale collapse accident at construction site, choking
accidents due to oxygen deficiency, acute poisoning
accident due to exposure to chemicals, or other
equivalent accidents
Multiuse facility large Accident at a facility used by the many and
building collapse accident unspecified general public concerning large casualty
and property damage in case of collapse of building
(continued)
34 2 Disaster Theory

Table 2.3 (continued)

Disaster type Definition
Disaster and accident at Accident concerning many casualties due to fire,
correctional facility typhoon, heavy rain, riot, rampage, and group escape
of prisoners at a prison, detention center, and
branch installed according to the Administration and
Treatment of Correctional Institution Inmates Act
Domestic animal disease Disease of domestic animal due to viruses of foot-and-
mouth disease, highly pathogenic avian influenza
(HPAI) virus, and new domestic animal disease
Infectious disease Any infectious disease classified in Group 1 of
infectious diseases, Group 2 of infectious diseases,
Group 3 of infectious diseases, Group 4 of infectious
diseases, Group 5 of infectious diseases, designated
infectious diseases, infectious diseases under
surveillance by the World Health Organization,
infectious diseases spread through bioterrorism,
sexually transmitted infectious diseases, zoonoses,
and nosocomial infectious diseases
※ Article 2 of the Infectious Disease Control and
Prevention Act
Information and communi- Disturbance, paralysis, or destruction of critical
cation infrastructure information and communications infrastructure due
to natural and social disaster
Financial information Paralysis of essential national financial information
function due to natural disaster, strike, terrorism, and
electronic infringement on the financial information
system which is the key national infrastructure
Safety of nuclear facility Disaster caused by radiation leak or radioactive
contamination from a nuclear power plant and
research reactor facility
Electric utility Serious impediment to national life and paralysis of
national functions due to anxiety about the electricity
demand and supply caused by increased demand,
defected facilities, and social conflicts
Demand and supply of oil Serious hazard to the national safety and the stability
of national economy due to imbalance between
demand and supply of oil caused by foreign oil
producing countries
Health and medical services Serious hazard to national health due to the paralysis
of healthcare system
Drinking water National crisis situation such as suspension of
drinking and industrial water supply due to water
pollution, destruction of facility due to natural and
artificial disasters, and strike and cyber terror
Cargo transport Situation which may cause or lead a significant crisis
in the national logistics system due to refusal of
(continued)
2.1 Conceptual Foundation of Disaster 35

Table 2.3 (continued)

Disaster type Definition
people in cargo truck transport business to cargo
transport as a group without justifiable grounds
resulting in suspension or setbacks of cargo transport
GPS signal interference Service interruption of national infrastructure due
to intentional or unintentional interruption of GPS
signal reception for national core infrastructure
and service using GPS
Cosmic radio wave Disaster related to radio wave occurred due to
change in electromagnetic energy existing outside
of the earth’s atmosphere

By CRED and Munich RE The CRED is a research institute founded in 1973 by

Lechat, a professor in Belgium and has been studying international disasters and
disputes for over 30 years. It has been a World Health Organization (WHO)
Collaborating Center since 1980 and is operating an international disaster database
called Emergency Events Database (EM-DAT). The disaster classification system
of EM-DAT is in four levels: generic group, subgroup, main type, and subtype.
Generic group, the highest level of the system, classifies disaster into natural and
technological disasters. The natural disaster category is divided into six subgroups:
biological, geophysical, climatological, hydrological, meteorological, and extrater-
restrial disasters. Each subgroup in turn covers 12 disaster types and more than
32 subtypes. More detailed information can be found in the EM-DAT report (CRED
2008).
NatCatSERVICE provided by Munich Re Group in Germany is another database
related to disasters that wins global recognition, using a natural disaster classifica-
tion system similar to EM-DAT. NatCatSERVICE enters all natural disasters that
cause human and physical damages regardless of scale, but it does not mention
artificial/technological disasters (Munich Re 2011).
In 2009, CRED and Munich RE developed and presented a joint standard
classification system for natural disasters (CRED and Munich RE 2009). This can
be considered the international standard classification system for natural disasters.
This system classifies disasters into five levels, dividing disaster into two generic
disaster groups of natural disasters and technological disasters. Natural disasters are
then divided into six disaster groups, geophysical, meteorological, hydrological,
climatological, biological, and extraterrestrial, each of which is then classified into
main type, subtype, and sub-subtype. However, this system is limited in that it
cannot present a detailed classification system for artificial/technological disasters,
as Munich RE does not have the classification for such disasters.
Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment The Threat and Hazard
Identification and Risk Assessment (THIRA) is a four-step common risk assess-
ment process that has been designed by the DHS in the USA. This process helps the
whole community identify risks, and enables the community to build local resil-
ience to the risks. According to THIRA, threats and hazards are divided into three
36 2 Disaster Theory

Table 2.4 Threat and hazard types used in THIRA (DHS 2013)
Natural Technological Human-caused
Avalanche Airplane crash Biological attack
Animal disease outbreak Dam failure Chemical attack
Drought Levee failure Cyber accident
Earthquake Mine accident Explosives attack
Epidemic Hazardous minerals release Radiological attack
Flood Power failure Sabotage
Hurricane Radiological release School and workplace violence
Landslide Train derailment
Pandemic Urban conflagration
Tornado
Tsunami
Volcanic eruption
Wildfire
Winter storm

types as listed in Table 2.4. The natural hazards are the types that result from acts of
nature, such as flood, earthquakes, drought, pandemics, epidemics, or more. The
technological hazards are the types that result from the accidents or the failures of
systems and structures, such as transportation accidents, collapse, hazardous mate-
rials spills, or more. The human-caused incidents are the types that result from the
intentional actions of an adversary, such as terrorism, sabotage, cyber incident,
chemical attack, biological attack, or more.

2.1.2.2 Innovative Disaster Classification Prism for Effective Disaster

Response

Classification of disasters by their cause has been useful for deciding governmental
actions toward disaster recovery because it clearly indicates the responsibility of
who will pay for what, e.g., supporting disaster victims and/or providing disaster
relief. However, the categorization is not useful for disaster response because the
response way is not different depending on its cause. Therefore, a new prism is
needed.
Kim et al. (2015) have analyzed the occurrence of large-scale disasters in Korea
since 2005 and the government’s response to them and have proposed new optics
for classifying disaster types for advancing disaster responses. To this end, two
important elements were considered: the evolutionary or devolutionary pattern of
the magnitude of disaster damage and the roles and responsibilities of responding
agencies.
Regarding the first element of the pattern of disaster damage, three types can be
derived: (1) events with measurable prediction of large-scale damage, (2) events
Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
"My son, thou hast thy wonderful art. Go and live amongst those
who believe in thee. Thou hast a great work to complete, and the
face of thy love shall shine for ever upon the generations to come.
This thou canst still do for her memory's sake, and that power is
given to few.
"There was a time when I believed I ought to guard our beautiful
Stella from all touch of mortal love; but now I know that thus it is
best. Each human being must fulfil his destiny, and Stella's destiny
was to be the realization of thy dream.
"The days of each man's life are counted, and not any of our poor
knowledge can add an hour to the length of time Fate has decreed
we should live.
"Thou didst not kill her with thy kiss; she lived as a flower from
some unknown land, yielding her sweet perfume to but one single
being; then God took her for His own, and thus her life was to end.
Cry not out against what had to be. Go thy way, and one day
perhaps thou wilt know the meaning which now our mortal mind
cannot fathom. My blessing is with thee. Go in peace."
And that day Eric Gundian left the dark wandering people and old
Zorka the witch.
When he had reached the crest of a hill he turned round and waved
to the trembling old woman who had been so faithful a friend.
Over his head his inseparable companion fluttered like a snow-white
sail caught by the wind.
Zorka stood leaning on her crooked staff, her hand raised to protect
her eyes, that were blinded with tears, against the glare of the rising
sun.
She stood watching the departing youth she had so dearly loved,
and it seemed to her that he walked away from her straight into the
glittering sky.
 XXIX

Spring in all its beauty was covering the world with blossoms pink
and white. Within the tender sprouting grass pale anemones were
raising their delicate faces to peep at the radiant sun. Humble sweet-
smelling violets covered the lawns with a carpet of richest hue.
Everywhere the birds were singing hymns of praise to the sweet
resurrection of life and joy. The larks were for ever mounting into
the sky in eternal adoration of the shining sun.
A haze of green was beginning to spread over the awakening woods,
and innumerable flowers were pushing out their tiny heads from
beneath the thick carpet of fallen leaves. Over all lay a sweet hush
of promise, timid yet spreading far and wide.
King Wanda sat upon his marble terrace basking in the first warmth
of the season. Close beside him was Oona in a new dress of gold, a
marvellous book upon her knees containing pictures in glowing
colours, relating of fairies, both good and bad. She piped away with
sweet clear voice, explaining all the wonders she saw; but King
Wanda sat with a frown on his brow; nothing seemed to bring a
smile to his lips; he had become morose and silent, and vainly his
courtiers had tried to replace the favourite who had so suddenly left
him long ago.
 King Wanda sat upon his marble terrace
basking in the first warmth of the season.

King Wanda could find no joy since that day when Eric Gundian, the
mad painter, had gone from his palace in search of his dream. He
had given up all hope of seeing him again, although many a night he
lay tossing upon his kingly couch, harking if he could not discern
some sound of the step that once he had loved.
Other painters had proposed to finish the frieze in the beautiful hall,
but sternly the King had repressed their zeal. He himself kept the
keys of that now silent chamber, and none save himself had entry
through those massive doors. He raised his head as some one came
towards him over the sunlit terrace. It was a page, and this was the
news he brought. Outside the palace doors a stranger was standing
in the garb of a beggar, demanding admittance, saying he had come
to do King Wanda's bidding, and entreating to be allowed to speak
to the master himself.
"He is all travel-stained," said the page, "and upon his back he
carries a load wrapped in a cloth. His feet are bare, his head
uncovered, his clothes all torn and soiled; within his hands he bears
a staff wrought with unknown designs. The hair on his head is long
and covered with dust, and his eyes are horribly sad; most strange
of all, upon the beggar's shoulder a curious bird is quietly seated. In
truth the man seems to have come from the end of the earth."
"I will have word with him," said the King, "as it is his desire to talk
with me. Am I not here for all those who call at my door? None, it
shall be said, go unconsoled or are sent away without receiving their
heart's desire."
Now the tattered traveller was standing upon the terrace before the
presence of the King. His load had been laid upon the marble floor.
The white bird sat motionless upon his shoulder, like a ghost in a
dream. The rays of the sun shone upon his bent head, and as they
lit on the long locks of the stranger's hair, making them sparkle and
flash in the light, King Wanda gave a sudden cry, clutching at his
heart. Then he sprang forward, and all the courtiers were witness of
an astounding sight: a beggar lying against the heart of their King,
who was sobbing as if his heart would break!
And then Eric was on his knees, his head hidden in the hands of the
good old King he had left to wander so far away. He was telling the
crowned man that he had come back to finish the picture he had
once begun, because now he knew what was the face of the woman
who sat on the golden throne.
"Give me leave, O most royal master, to complete the work of my
hands; but let me tell thee that Eric Gundian, thy singing-bird, died
one early morn under an alien sky at the break of day—it is only his
spirit that has come to thee, because the Dreamer of Dreams has a
last great wish to paint the face of love upon thy gilded walls!"
So the King himself led the weary wanderer into his gorgeous hall,
unlocking the heavy door with the key that hung from his waist.
Like a soft white cloud the falcon glided into the room before them,
settling upon the tall stone fire-place, whence it watched the
strangely assorted couple.
When alone together, for the first time Eric of the golden locks raised
his haggard face and looked straight into the eyes of the King.
The old man felt as though a dagger were piercing his heart when
he met that hopeless gaze. Certainly those were the features of the
boy he had loved, but oh, what was it he had gone through to be so
cruelly changed? His cheeks were hollow, the sunken orbs stared
with a far-away look too sad for the language of men, and his
golden hair was covered with a fine web of silver that lay like an
early frost over a ripe field of corn.
Long did King Wanda stand mute, not finding a word; he felt that he
stood in presence of a grief so deep that he dared not come too
near. It was Eric who spoke:
"May I remain within thy palace, O King, to complete the work that
once I began? I feel that now I can verily put the finishing touches
to a picture that in ages past was the pride of my painter's art.
"And above all, I crave thy pardon for having left thee on that
summer's morn so long ago. It must have seemed as if I were void
of both gratitude and love, but it was not thus.
"I have wandered far, and have returned from the regions of dreams
to fulfil the task that thou didst once demand of me, so that thy
belief in Eric Gundian should not have been in vain! I see by thy
look, O most royal master, that still thou dost trust in me."
"May the completing of thy work bring peace to thy heart!" was the
King's reply; and once more he drew the dusty wayfarer within his
fatherly arms. Within a few days Eric was again established in his old
place, working with all his soul.
King Wanda had given orders that he should be left entirely
undisturbed; and there he painted from early morn as long as the
daylight lasted. Even King Wanda dared not trouble his peace—he
had a feeling that this work was being done with a love that no
stranger's eye should watch.
Indeed, it was with his very life's blood that the painter was now
completing his masterpiece; he felt that each day he was giving
some of his strength—that little by little his force was going with
each fresh stroke of his brush.
At times his face was corpse-like, as one no more of this earth.
Once little Oona had peeped through an opening in the window-
curtain, and had then run quickly back, with a feeling that she had
seen a ghost.
But the face that Eric was creating upon King Wanda's wall was of a
beauty no words can describe.
The woman on the throne, with the golden dress that flowed down
like a river seen at sunset, was leaning slightly forward, her eyes
looking away over the heads of the crowd that was calling upon her
name in praise.
She seemed to see no one; but other visions more beautiful than
earthly eyes could conceive filled her gaze. The two palms of her
hands were pressed down at her side in a strained attitude, as one
who is half afraid, or perhaps awakening to some astounding
knowledge.
But her eyes was the spot within which Eric Gundian had
concentrated all his inimitable art: they were the most marvellous
wells of light and shade that had ever been painted by mortal hand.
They were a mighty realization of his eternal dream—that dream
that had led him through distant countries and deadly dangers to
the very fount of love. Eric now lived only sustained by his feverish
desire to leave those eyes, he had so loved, for ever upon that frieze
that would be a living incorporation of his one great aim.
But behind those shut doors he was wasting away; he was but a
spirit whose body was an overcome burden, living by the soul alone,
only a breath of that human life he had spent in the eternal effort to
reach his glorious dream. Near by sat the snow-white hawk, who
would never leave his side except for short moments when Eric
opened the window, upon the beauties of spring, letting the bird out
to search for its daily food.
Eric himself seemed to dread the light of the sun; neither would he
eat of the royal dishes that were brought him; he sipped from time
to time a little water, otherwise he lived sustained by the love of his
work.
Eric Gundian—Eric of the golden locks—was now but a wavering
breath, kept alive by the desire to finish his wonderful picture.
One morning, when all had been stiller than usual behind those
silent walls, King Wanda, with anxious face, opened the heavy door
—and there, upon the ground, stretched all his length before his
finished masterpiece, lay Eric Gundian, the dreamer of dreams, his
wet brush still clasped in his hand.
Near him, as always, sat the strange white bird watchfully
motionless, but this time there were actually tears in its piercing
eyes.
The lids of the dreamer were closed for ever, as one, dead-tired,
who mercifully has found rest at last....
But on the golden throne of the picture sat a woman more beautiful
than any brain can conceive,—within the expression of her eyes lay
a world of joy and sorrow, that had blended into a look of unearthly
glory impossible to describe.
King Wanda stood staring, unable to move, overcome with a sorrow
too deep for words; yet he had the feeling that whoso had been able
to accomplish such a miracle could only die at the moment of
attainment, because such a marvel must verily be paid for by the life
of the one who thus was allowed to create it.
All the courtiers now came trooping together and stood in awe
behind their King, staring and whispering, hushed by the dark
mystery they could not understand.
Then a murmur went from lip to lip.
"Oh, why has the marvellous woman a crown of thorns upon her
head? Why, oh why did he paint the face of Love crowned with a
wreath of thorns?"
King Wanda bowed his weary head: then he knelt on the floor and
kissed the brow of the favourite he had loved so well—and, looking
into that pale and silent face, he thought he understood what the
Dreamer had meant when, with the last touch of his brush, he had
crowned Love's immaculate visage with a wreath of thorns.
 XXX
And Beauty, Peace, and Sorrow are dreams within dreams.
Fiona Macleod.

In a distant land Spring was also spreading over hill and dale.
But on a bare plain, where nothing grew, a miracle had come to
pass: a peasant, returning home one starry night, had espied, from
the road upon which he was slowly sauntering, a strange light in the
form of a cross, gleaming far over the barren waste.
Full of astonishment he had run to the spot, and there he had
discerned a magic crystal, all charged with radiance, in the shape
before which every Christian bends the knee. And the most curious
of all, this burning cross was the hilt of a glistening sword which
must have dropped from heaven, to remain thus firmly planted in
the ground.
Awed and filled with wonder the youth had spread the astounding
news from village to village, and all the simple folk had run together,
falling down in worship before this miraculous sign, which God had
put in so desert a place, as a blessing on the land.
From far and wide, rich and poor, old and young, men, women, and
children came in pilgrimage to that holy site.
None ever knew, except one humble little peasant, from whence the
cross had come.
But Radu, the shepherd, held his peace, thanking the Kind Mother of
Christ for having thus ordained that so many pious believers should
go and pray on the grave where the dreamer of dreams had buried
his love.
One morning when the warm rays of the sun were lying like a
blessing over the deserted waste, a white bird might have been seen
descending out of the blue.
It hovered for a time over the gleaming sword, circling very slowly,
so that its outspread wings resembled a snowy cloud floating in the
air.
Then down it swooped out of the heavens, there, where Stella lay
beneath the dark heavy mould. Within its beak this unknown bird
was holding a simple seed, which it dropped on the very spot where
the dead girl's heart rested under the sod—a seed it had carried
from a distant land of the north from the tenderly tended grave in a
great king's garden. Hardly had the seed touched the barren earth
than it sprang up and spread all over the tomb a thick network of
rambling thorns covered with countless roses—as crimson as the
broken heart of a lover.
And these roses bloomed, even in the winter months, upon the icy
covering of snow, red as the reddest blood, till all the simple folk
declared that indeed the place was Holy Ground.
And thus it was that God blessed the Love of him who once had
been called Eric Gundian, the Dreamer of Dreams.

THE END
Printed in Great Britain by R. & R. Clark, Limited, Edinburgh.
THE LILY OF LIFE
A FAIRY STORY

BY THE
 QUEEN OF ROUMANIA
WITH ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR BY HELEN
STRATTON
"A graceful and charming work of fancy.... To every imaginative child
it will prove a rich delight."—Daily Telegraph.
"It is distinctly a book to possess and delight in. The few words of
preface contributed by 'Carmen Sylva' are an appreciation, expressed
with true felicity, of the charm of this prose poem, and the illustrator
has caught its spirit admirably."—World.
"A noble picture-book. A graceful and poetic tale marked by real
talent, and not a few touches of genuine feeling. Miss Stratton's
pictures are very clever and effective."—Guardian.
"Great beauty pervades it all, and every situation is so entirely
picturesque. All readers of fairy lore will find it true and beautiful....
The illustrations are delightful."—Daily Express.
"Graceful fancy, elevated sentiment, and simple but dignified
expression ensure a high place among the fairy tales of the
publishing year for the Queen of Roumania's charming work, The
Lily of Life.... The merit of the telling is unusual, and it has the
further advantage of being presented in an exceedingly handsome
and artistic form. The coloured illustrations of Miss Helen Stratton
show graceful drawing and fine gradations of tone. They are not
merely a pictorial summary of the story, but genuine works of art,
and a distinctive feature of the volume."—Scotsman.
"A tale of great beauty.... The author shows considerable powers of
imagination and direct expression."—Spectator.
"The story is beautiful in its conception, and floats from incident to
incident in the wondrous glamour of that atmosphere of fairyland so
dear to the hearts of little readers.... The illustrations in conception,
drawing, and reproduction are in perfect harmony with the beauty of
the story and the volume."—Northern Whig.
 *** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE DREAMER OF
DREAMS ***

Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will
be renamed.

Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S.

copyright law means that no one owns a United States copyright in
these works, so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it
in the United States without permission and without paying
copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of
Use part of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project
Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™
concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark,
and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following
the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use
of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything
for copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is
very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as
creation of derivative works, reports, performances and research.
Project Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given
away—you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with
eBooks not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject
to the trademark license, especially commercial redistribution.

START: FULL LICENSE

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
 PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK

To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the free

distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work (or
any other work associated in any way with the phrase “Project
Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full
Project Gutenberg™ License available with this file or online at
www.gutenberg.org/license.

Section 1. General Terms of Use and

Redistributing Project Gutenberg™
electronic works
1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg™
electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree
to and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or
destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in your
possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a
Project Gutenberg™ electronic work and you do not agree to be
bound by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund
from the person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in
paragraph 1.E.8.

1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only be

used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people
who agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a
few things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg™ electronic
works even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.
See paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with
Project Gutenberg™ electronic works if you follow the terms of this
agreement and help preserve free future access to Project
Gutenberg™ electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.
1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the
Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the
collection of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. Nearly all the
individual works in the collection are in the public domain in the
United States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law
in the United States and you are located in the United States, we do
not claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing,
performing, displaying or creating derivative works based on the
work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of
course, we hope that you will support the Project Gutenberg™
mission of promoting free access to electronic works by freely
sharing Project Gutenberg™ works in compliance with the terms of
this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg™ name associated
with the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this
agreement by keeping this work in the same format with its attached
full Project Gutenberg™ License when you share it without charge
with others.

1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also
govern what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most
countries are in a constant state of change. If you are outside the
United States, check the laws of your country in addition to the
terms of this agreement before downloading, copying, displaying,
performing, distributing or creating derivative works based on this
work or any other Project Gutenberg™ work. The Foundation makes
no representations concerning the copyright status of any work in
any country other than the United States.

1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:

1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other

immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg™ License must
appear prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg™
work (any work on which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” appears,
or with which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” is associated) is
accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, copied or distributed:
 This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United
States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away
or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License
included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you
are not located in the United States, you will have to check the
laws of the country where you are located before using this
eBook.

1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is derived

from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not contain a
notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the copyright
holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in the
United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are
redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase “Project
Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the work, you must
comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through
1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project
Gutenberg™ trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.

1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is posted

with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any
additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms
will be linked to the Project Gutenberg™ License for all works posted
with the permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning
of this work.

1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project

Gutenberg™ License terms from this work, or any files containing a
part of this work or any other work associated with Project
Gutenberg™.

1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this

electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1
with active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
Gutenberg™ License.

1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form,
including any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you
provide access to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg™ work
in a format other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in
the official version posted on the official Project Gutenberg™ website
(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or
expense to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or
a means of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original
“Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other form. Any alternate format must
include the full Project Gutenberg™ License as specified in
paragraph 1.E.1.

1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,

performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg™ works
unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.

1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing

access to or distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works
provided that:

• You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive
from the use of Project Gutenberg™ works calculated using the
method you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The
fee is owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark,
but he has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to
the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty
payments must be paid within 60 days following each date on
which you prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your
periodic tax returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked
as such and sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
Foundation at the address specified in Section 4, “Information
 about donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
Foundation.”

• You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who

notifies you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt
that s/he does not agree to the terms of the full Project
Gutenberg™ License. You must require such a user to return or
destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
Project Gutenberg™ works.

• You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of

any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in
the electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90
days of receipt of the work.

• You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works.

1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg™

electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of
the Project Gutenberg™ trademark. Contact the Foundation as set
forth in Section 3 below.

1.F.

1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend

considerable effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe
and proofread works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating
the Project Gutenberg™ collection. Despite these efforts, Project
Gutenberg™ electronic works, and the medium on which they may
be stored, may contain “Defects,” such as, but not limited to,
incomplete, inaccurate or corrupt data, transcription errors, a
copyright or other intellectual property infringement, a defective or
damaged disk or other medium, a computer virus, or computer
codes that damage or cannot be read by your equipment.

1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for

the “Right of Replacement or Refund” described in paragraph 1.F.3,
the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the
Project Gutenberg™ trademark, and any other party distributing a
Project Gutenberg™ electronic work under this agreement, disclaim
all liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR
NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR
BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH
1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE TRADEMARK
OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL
NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT,
CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF
YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.

1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you

discover a defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving
it, you can receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by
sending a written explanation to the person you received the work
from. If you received the work on a physical medium, you must
return the medium with your written explanation. The person or
entity that provided you with the defective work may elect to provide
a replacement copy in lieu of a refund. If you received the work
electronically, the person or entity providing it to you may choose to
give you a second opportunity to receive the work electronically in
lieu of a refund. If the second copy is also defective, you may
demand a refund in writing without further opportunities to fix the
problem.

1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you ‘AS-IS’, WITH NO
OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED,
INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF
MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.

1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied

warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted
by the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any
provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.

1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation,

the trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation,
anyone providing copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in
accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with
the production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™
electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses,
including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of the
following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or
any Project Gutenberg™ work, (b) alteration, modification, or
additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg™ work, and (c) any
Defect you cause.

Section 2. Information about the Mission

of Project Gutenberg™
Project Gutenberg™ is synonymous with the free distribution of
electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of
computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.
It exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and
donations from people in all walks of life.

Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the

assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg™’s
goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg™ collection will
remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a
secure and permanent future for Project Gutenberg™ and future
generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help,
see Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at
www.gutenberg.org.

Section 3. Information about the Project

Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit
501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
Revenue Service. The Foundation’s EIN or federal tax identification
number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state’s laws.

The Foundation’s business office is located at 809 North 1500 West,

Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up
to date contact information can be found at the Foundation’s website
and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact

Section 4. Information about Donations to

the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
Foundation
Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without
widespread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can
be freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the
widest array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many
small donations ($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to
maintaining tax exempt status with the IRS.

The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating

charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and
keep up with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in
locations where we have not received written confirmation of
compliance. To SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of
compliance for any particular state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate.

While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where

we have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no
prohibition against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in
such states who approach us with offers to donate.

International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make

any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.

Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation
methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of
other ways including checks, online payments and credit card
donations. To donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate.

Section 5. General Information About

Project Gutenberg™ electronic works
Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project
Gutenberg™ concept of a library of electronic works that could be
freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and
distributed Project Gutenberg™ eBooks with only a loose network of
volunteer support.
Project Gutenberg™ eBooks are often created from several printed
editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in
the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not
necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper
edition.

Most people start at our website which has the main PG search
facility: www.gutenberg.org.

This website includes information about Project Gutenberg™,

including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how
to subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
Welcome to our website – the perfect destination for book lovers and
knowledge seekers. We believe that every book holds a new world,
offering opportunities for learning, discovery, and personal growth.
That’s why we are dedicated to bringing you a diverse collection of
books, ranging from classic literature and specialized publications to
self-development guides and children's books.

More than just a book-buying platform, we strive to be a bridge

connecting you with timeless cultural and intellectual values. With an
elegant, user-friendly interface and a smart search system, you can
quickly find the books that best suit your interests. Additionally,
our special promotions and home delivery services help you save time
and fully enjoy the joy of reading.

Join us on a journey of knowledge exploration, passion nurturing, and

personal growth every day!

ebookbell.com