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Equal Safety for All: Advancing Inclusive Crisis Preparedness

By Knowledge Network – Staff memberPublished on

Since its launch by the United Nations in 1992, the International Day of Persons with Disabilities has served as a moment to reflect on the rights, dignity and well-being of persons with disabilities worldwide. It is a moment to reaffirm our commitment to an inclusive society in which preparedness and resilience truly leave no one behind.

With one in six people globally living with a disability, inclusive preparedness is not optional, but essential for effective civil protection (WHO Global report). This year’s edition takes on added relevance for the civil protection community in light of recent research. A 2025 scoping study on the Experiences of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing (DHH) During Emergencies in OECD Countries shows that many still lack access to timely warnings, accessible risk information and tailored preparedness support, highlighting the urgency of more inclusive approaches across the entire disaster cycle.

The EU’s Preparedness Union Strategy (PUS) recognises that inequality is a risk factor for preparedness. Groups in situations of vulnerability, such as persons with disabilities, children, older people, and those facing discrimination or social exclusion, are disproportionately affected by crises. This means that EU-wide public warning systems and crisis communication channels must be fully accessible and inclusive, ensuring that everyone, regardless of age, language, disabilities, or legal status, can receive timely and accurate information. By mainstreaming these considerations into all preparedness efforts, the civil protection community can empower all citizens to actively participate in building resilience before, during, and after crises. 

Experiences of People Who are Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing during Emergencies

The previously cited scoping study offers valuable insights for civil protection practitioners, identifying the key domains in which DHH individuals encounter barriers, and highlighting good practices that can strengthen preparedness and reduce the disparities evidenced in the UNDRR survey. The study identifies three factors that influence access to and participation in communication during emergencies for DHH people:

  • Warnings, alerts and announcements. Because many warning systems rely on sound, DHH people often miss life-saving information. The consequences: slower evacuations, uncertainty about safe routes and missed services are well documented. Evidence points to the effectiveness of multi-modal systems combining visual signals, text alerts, captions, pictograms and local sign languages, as well as accessible, verified information on social media.
A person in a wheelchair is escorted to be a disinfection area during a CBRN exercise.
A wheelchair user is escorted to a disinfection station during a CBRN exercise. © European Commission
  • Emergency response. Communication barriers, especially at night, in low visibility, or when responders wear masks, can lead to missed assessments or misunderstandings. Good practices include speech-to-text tools, video sign-language interpreting and relay services. Their impact improves significantly when first responders receive basic training in inclusive communication and understand how to work with interpreters, including for deafblind persons.
     
  • Preparedness. Many people who are deaf or hard of hearing lack accessible preparedness information or tailored training opportunities. Preparedness planning for evacuation centres is also limited, often because DHH communities are not involved in designing or testing plans. The study highlights the need for community-led disaster risk reduction (DRR) training, accessible alerting technologies (such as vibrating or low-frequency alarms), and research on the resilience of hearing devices during emergencies.

Across all themes, the conclusion is clear: inclusive preparedness is most effective when people who are deaf or hard of hearing and their organisations are active partners in planning and resilience-building.

Good Practices: Inclusive Preparedness in Action

Across Europe, several initiatives already demonstrate how inclusive preparedness can be put into practice.

  • The Horizon-funded BUILDERS project has enabled the Italian National Fire and Rescue Service to develop rescuer -and picture cards that support communication with people with specific needs, especially when speech or lip-reading is not possible. Co-created with affected communities, these tools help first responders convey essential instructions and assess needs quickly.
     
  • Led by Croatia’s Ministry of Interior, SEE ME 2 project, funded under UCPM TRACK 1, strengthens the protection of persons with disabilities by sharing good practices, training first responders and 112 operators, supporting persons with disabilities to build their own resilience, and upgrading GIS tools to better locate and assist people with specific needs.
Person reaching out to an elderly woman in a flooded street.
A person reaches out to an elderly woman in a flooded street after the Nova Kakhovka disaster in Ukraine. © People in Need, 2023 (Photographer: Albert Lores)
  • The PROACTIVE project, also Horizon-funded, focused on CBRN emergencies and delivered an accessible mobile app and pre-incident information materials for both first responders and vulnerable citizens, improving self-protection and communication in high-risk situations.
     
  • Within the eNOTICE-2 project, funded under the UCPM KAPP call, a recent study explored how CBRN decontamination procedures can be adapted to safeguard persons with disabilities and their assistive devices, a long-standing gap in emergency protocols. The upcoming recommendations offer practical ways to make technical operations more accessible.

Together, these projects show that inclusive preparedness is both practical and achievable. With the right tools, training and partnerships, civil protection systems can significantly improve safety and dignity for persons with disabilities, while strengthening resilience for all.

EU civil protection expert assessing the interior of a medical evacuation plane.
The EU medical evacuations hub facilitates transfers of Ukrainian patients. An EU civil protection expert assesses the interior of a medical evacuation plane. © European Union, 2022 (photographer: Bartosz Siedlik)

Looking Ahead

Under the Preparedness Union Strategy, the Commission is developing EU-level guidelines to help Member States adapt civil protection actions to all types of disabilities. Developed in close cooperation with the European Disability Forum, these guidelines will include practical advice to support persons with disabilities in preparing for disasters, as well as guidance and accessible e-training modules for first responders. The guidelines are expected by the end of 2026, marking a significant step toward a more inclusive and resilient Europe.

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Risk awareness & communication Risk reduction & assessment