Domestic Civil Defence - United Kingdom Threat Assessment [Back to Introduction] [Back to Government Advice] Annex : UK Threat Assessment :

The American Government&s FEMA advice 'Are You Prepared ?' applies to the major part of an extensive continent. The United Kingdom is a far smaller area than most major States within the United States, so problems in Britain are fewer in range, if more acute because of a high population density and a vulnerable urbanised 'sophistication'. :-

• Hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, tornadoes and volcanic eruptions are very unlikely to occur.
• Being an assembly of islands, the British Isles do not suffer extremes of heat and cold present in extensive continents.
• Few parts of the British Isles are more than 10 miles from some house or other settlement. Isolation for more than a few days is therefore rare, limited to high ground above 1,000 feet or to offshore islands.
• Transport services are under heavy pressure, particularly in South East England, due to settlement patterns around London. This exacerbates the risk of rail, air and road disasters, simply from statistical probability.
• In common with parts of New York, large cities are losing community integrity except on immigrant ethnic lines. This is due to people living (in some cases) up to a hundred miles from work locations and not taking part in 'home' community activities. In a crisis, that can mean that neighbourhood friendships are absent.
• Whilst not as severe as it might be, the pressure of modern life has led to large numbers buying in 'fast food' and ready-made meals, with the result that basic cooking skills may be unknown. Shops (notably supermarkets) tend to rely upon 'last-minute deliveries' to cut down on storage for more than a day or two. This dangerous reliance on transport and deliveries is tending to run further back into the food chain and some manufactured goods.
• Many residential areas are too close to industrial areas that store or process large tonnages of industrial chemicals and fuels. The consequence is a risk that even a relatively small industrial disaster may cause devastation.
• Flooding damage to households is increasing in frequency. The main cause is the construction of housing in river valley flood-plains and low-lying coastal areas where developer influence bypasses warnings on known flood hazards. The result has been uninsurable risks and frequent heavy losses for householders.
• Rural areas are steadily losing access to shops, schools, banks, buses and other services, because the majority of voters and consumers now live in large towns and cities. There is an increased rural vulnerability to weather hazards and the effects of losses in electrical services. As against that, an informed rural population can handle such crises better than can most urban households. This site provides advice that will be relatively easily followed by all rural and most suburban households.
• Water utility services are more vulnerable to disruption by chemical pollution, over-use of fertilisers and slurry spraying than ever before. This is particularly true in south-eastern England and in former industrial areas, where pollution from old industrial sites, poorly-contained landfill tips and dumping, threatens to injure many people.
• In the event of a war or a major terrorist event, urban areas are highly vulnerable to damage and disruption, purely because they are 'living machines' that cannot function without continuously-working utility services, access to 'last minute' deliveries and the presence of specialist staff. It is the duty of central and local government to establish the nature of the hazards and to provide the means for rapidly dealing with them in any crisis. Some urban households will be able to make use of some information on this website, but in general only if organised as a group or a community.
• So many things are now contained or manufactured in plastic, that there are fewer and fewer sources of fire-proof metal for use in fireproof stoves. The writer is examining alternative designs using tins, foil, old cooking trays and grids, combined with either bricks or stone.