inTERRAgate project launch, Grange City Hotel, London
inTERRAgate held its launch on the 22nd of March 2007 at the Grange City hotel in London. The event was attended by a wide range of industry and research professionals from across the city and the UK.
The database, which is freely accessible at https://interragate.info, aims to assist disaster management NGO’s, humanitarian agencies and search and rescue teams responding to natural disasters. The site seeks to draw attention to potential future threats for every nation to help improve hazard preparedness and foster appropriate mitigation and management measures.
inTERRAgate has been developed by combining hazard and risk expertise from the BUHRC at UCL - including information on future threats to regions - with logistical information on access and mobility across regions and vital contact details from project partners. Some aspects of the database automatically update, but the site will operate on the basis of minimal editorial control and will depend on user-updating and expansion of content.
Commenting on the launch of the database, Professor Bill McGuire, Director of the Benfield UCL Hazard Research Centre said:
“The new inTERRAgate website is designed to provide up-to-date hazard and regional contact information that will give humanitarian field agencies and international NGOs a clearer picture of global potential hazards, enabling them to identify the most vulnerable countries and their incident history. Like the online encyclopaedia, Wikipedia, the database will be ‘owned’ by registered data suppliers and users, who will be able to upload information and influence content.”
At launch, the database includes introductory information on natural hazard threats in ten countries (Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Chile, El Salvador, Indonesia, Iran, Jamaica, Mexico and the Philippines - which can be readily identified on the country map with flag icons for each of the country locations), but its ultimate success will depend upon registered data suppliers from around the world uploading textual and graphical information to expand the initial country portfolio.
Basic contact information is available for some of the 10 countries with further information looking to be made available in the next few months. This information will be available to first responders and organisations working and operating within countries. To gain access to this content please sign up for an account and then e-mail Tina Hyde at to have this section activated.
Garry de la Pomerai, speaking onbehalf of the International First Responder community, explained how inTERRAgate "will prove an essential tool for all USAR teams, aid agencies and first responders by providing vital proactively collated data, including in-country contact information, likely specialist responder and equipment requirement details, historical data to enable efficient field logistics and immediate post disaster planning. InTERRAgate will also enable response teams to produce plans for countries within known hot spot areas, reviewing structure types, potential hazardous activity locations and access alternatives. Interragate will identify 'proactive' USAR teams, UN and international agencies, developing disaster preparedness so that contingency planning and community preparedness planning projects can be activated. InTERRAgate in collaboration with others will prove an essential disater reduction and life saving tool."
Further areas will also be added to the site in the next few months (which includes a mapping database that will feature content from a range of organisations) with future developments centred around user feedback - if this something you want to see let us know.
If you would like to get involved in the project or have data that you would like to make available to the inTERRAgate system please e-mail Tina Hyde at the above address or contact inTERRAgate development manager Lucy Stanbrough at L.S