Resource allocation when planning for simultaneous disasters

Xuan Vinh Doan and Duncan Shaw

European Journal of Operational Research, 2019, vol. 274, issue 2, 687-709

Abstract: This paper uses stochastic optimisation techniques to allocate scarce national resource across eight cities to best respond to three simultaneous disasters happening across these locations. Our first model analyses the risk of not being able to achieve performance targets given resource constraints while our second model analyses the resources needed to meet target performance levels. A third hybrid model (constructed from the first two models) analyses the implications of different financial budgets. Additional sensitivity analysis is performed by looking into different settings of location importance, number of simultaneous disasters, and resource requirements. We reflect on the use of such modelling techniques for these problems and discuss the influence of political aspects of resource allocation which such models cannot address. We also reflect on the need for advanced modelling to recognise the abilities of the users and the availability of realistic assumptions if they are to influence the practices of disaster managers.

Keywords: OR in disaster relief; Simultaneous disasters; Resource allocation; Stochastic optimisation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (15)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0377221718308671
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ejores:v:274:y:2019:i:2:p:687-709

DOI: 10.1016/j.ejor.2018.10.015

Access Statistics for this article

European Journal of Operational Research is currently edited by Roman Slowinski, Jesus Artalejo, Jean-Charles. Billaut, Robert Dyson and Lorenzo Peccati

More articles in European Journal of Operational Research from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().