Disaster Database

The Disaster Database is the main information resource of the Regional Disaster Information Center (CRID). It has more than 15500 bibliographic records (2004) and growths at about 1,500 records annually.

Database records describe bibliographic data about published and unpublished documents, such as books, book chapters, specialized magazine articles, dissertations and papers presented in conferences, workshops and training courses, national reports, emergency plans, training materials, technical reports and thesis. A high percentage of CRID's collection corresponds to non-conventional, unpublished technical materials prepared by disaster specialists, which would otherwise be difficult to disseminate and circulate through the Region.

The database includes documents produced in Latin America and the Caribbean and those produced elsewhere about the Region. It also includes relevant disaster documents produced at the international level in Spanish, English, French and Portuguese.

Content-wise, the database focuses its interest on scientific and technical literature about natural and man-made disaster management, without leaving aside social, economic, physical and human aspects of disasters.

The Disater Database was designed in MicroIsis, software developed by UNESCO, and uses the Lilacs structure and methodology developed by the Latin America and the Caribbean Health Sciences Information Center (BIREME), of the Pan American Health Organization.

Visual Database

The Visual Database maintains bibliographic references to the audio visual material available at CRID. It includes information about videos (VHS and CD ROM formats) used as support material for training activities and education in the area of disasters. There are 300 bibliographic records in the database.

As with the Disaster Database, this one was developed in MicroIsis and uses the Lilacs methodology for information analysis and processing.