Better prepared for the event of an earthquake
The Swiss IT platform of the Earthquake Claims Organization has been fully developed and the organization is ready for use. With the mobile applications, which are also new, claims experts can quickly record all damage and information about an event after an earthquake and estimate the costs of reconstruction.
Just in time for the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction on October 13, the Earthquake loss organization ready for use after a year of preparation, according to the Association of Cantonal Building Insurers (VKG) writes in its media release. Earthquakes are considered one of the top risks in Switzerland, with devastating consequences if a major earthquake occurs near population centers.
For this reason, a public-private partnership organization with broad support among the cantons and the insurance industry has been established over the past twelve months. The project, which required intensive collaboration between the federal government, cantons, insurers and development partners Swiss Re and risktec AG, was completed with the expected functionality and on time and within budget, according to the statement.
Unique IT platform
"With the new platform and its broad-based network of experts, the Earthquake Claims Organization helps the economy and society recover quickly after an earthquake," says Dr. Stephanie Eymann, member of the Basel-Stadt government and president of the association.
Immediately after an earthquake, the command and control organization is activated. The basis for this is the newly developed IT platform, which is unique worldwide. Based on information from the earthquake risk model of the Swiss Seismological Service of ETH Zurich, the system allows the number of potentially damaged buildings and the number of damage experts needed to assess the event to be calculated within a short time.
All data from the Federal Register of Buildings and Housing would be made available in the platform so that the experts would have the necessary information to assess the condition of the affected buildings and make a damage estimate. For this work, the experts deployed would use two mobile applications that were also newly developed. To ensure rapid processing, the platform also provides details of the experts needed to deal with the incident, such as engineers, architects and construction specialists. This enables the earthquake claims organization to request support from hundreds of experts within a short time via SMS and e-mail.
Systematic approach
A systematic and structured procedure is central to the recording of damage to all buildings. For this reason, all buildings in Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein were divided into sectors of 10 to 30 buildings in a complex technical procedure. Each sector has a unique identification consisting of information on the canton, the municipality and a number. In the event of an incident, these sectors are assigned to the damage experts for processing.
Together with its partners Touring Club der Schweiz (TCS) and risktec AG, the earthquake claims organization ensures that the organization and platform are ready for operation at all times. TCS, as one of the leading emergency organizations in Switzerland, provides personnel and logistical support, especially in the organization and deployment of the network of experts. risktec AG ensures the operational readiness of the platform and the required technical support in the event of an operation, it concludes.
About the damage organization earthquake
The Earthquake Claims Organization is tasked with providing comprehensive information after an earthquake in order to assess damaged buildings and estimate the expected reconstruction and repair costs. In this way, the organization contributes significantly to making authorities, the economy and society more resilient.
The earthquake claims organization originates from a public-private partnership project. It is supported and financed by the cantons, the Principality of Liechtenstein, the cantonal building insurers and private insurers. Federal agencies such as the Swiss Seismological Service at the ETH Zurich, the Federal Office for Civil Protection and the Federal Office for the Environment also support the Earthquake Claims Organization and ensure coordination with federal measures for earthquake prevention.
