Ψυχοκοινωνικές επιπτώσεις μετά από φυσικές καταστροφές στους First Responders- Ο ρόλος του πυροσβεστικού σώματος.

Οι πρώτοι ανταποκριτές καλούνται να συνδράμουν στο κύκλο διαχείρισης των καταστροφών. Έχουν πρωταρχική θέση στη διαχείριση των καταστροφών, καθώς παρέχουν διάσωση, φροντίδα και στήριξη στα θύματα. Οι πρώτοι ανταποκριτές όμως δεν είναι άτρωτοι. Εκτίθενται σε σωματικό και ψυχικό κίνδυνο. Δεν απειλείται μόνο η ζωή τους και η σωματική τους ακεραιότητα κατά την διάρκεια διαχείρισης μιας μεγάλης καταστροφής, αλλά μακροπρόθεσμα αντιμετωπίζουν ποικίλες ψυχοκοινωνικές επιπτώσεις. Σκοπός της παρούσας εργασίας, είναι να καταγραφούν μέσω βιβλιογραφικών αναφορών οι ψυχοκοινωνικές επιπτώσεις των πρώτων ανταποκριτών με έμφαση στο πυροσβεστικό σώμα σε εθνικό και διεθνές επίπεδο. Παρουσιάζονται συνοπτικά παραδείγματα μεγάλων φυσικών καταστροφών και αποτυπώνονται οι μακροπρόθεσμες επιπτώσεις που είχαν στον ψυχισμό των θυμάτων και των πρώτων ανταποκριτών. Τέλος παραθέτονται παρεμβάσεις για τον σχεδιασμό και την πρόληψη των ψυχοκοινωνικών επιπτώσεων στους πρώτους ανταποκριτές.First responders correspond in the disaster management cycle. They contribute in disaster management, as they provide rescue, care and support to victims. The first correspondents, however, are not invulnerable. They are exposed to physical and mental danger. During a major disaster management, their lives and physical integrity are threatened, and they also face a variety of long term psychosocial consequences. The purpose of this research is to investigate through bibliographic reports the psychosocial effects of first responders with emphasis on the fight fighters, at national and international level. Examples of major natural disasters are presented as well as the long-term effects on the psyche of the victims and first responders. Finally, interventions are proposed for the planning and prevention of psychosocial effects on the first responders

Angular reconstruction of high energy air showers using the radio signal spectrum

The Hellenic Open University extensive air shower array (also known as Astroneu array) is a small scale hybrid detection system operating in an area with high levels of electromagnetic noise from anthropogenic activity. In the present study we report the latest results of the data analysis concerning the estimation of the shower direction using the spectrum of the RF system. In a recent layout of the array, 4 RF antennas were operating receiving a common trigger from an autonomous detection station of 3 particle detectors. The directions estimated with the RF system are in very good agreement with the corresponding estimations using the particle detectors demonstrating that a single antenna has the potential for reconstructing the shower axis angular direction

Reconstruction efficiency and discovery potential of a Mediterranean neutrino telescope: A simulation study using the Hellenic Open University Reconstruction & Simulation (HOURS) package

We report on the evaluation of the performance of a Mediterranean very large volume neutrino telescope. We present results of our studies concerning the capability of the telescope in detecting/discovering galactic (steady point sources) and extragalactic, transient (Gamma Ray Bursts) high energy neutrino sources as well as measuring ultra high energy diffuse neutrino fluxes. The neutrino effective area and angular resolution are presented as a function of the neutrino energy, and the background event rate (atmospheric neutrinos and muons) is estimated. The discovery potential of the neutrino telescope is evaluated and the experimental time required for a significant discovery of potential neutrino emitters (known from their gamma ray emission, assumedly produced by hadronic interactions) is estimated. For the simulation we use the HOU Reconstruction & Simulation (HOURS) software package.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, to be published in Nucl. Inst. and Meth. A v2: minor changes, 1 page adde

Solar axion search with the CAST experiment

The CAST (CERN Axion Solar Telescope) experiment is searching for solar axions by their conversion into photons inside the magnet pipe of an LHC dipole. The analysis of the data recorded during the first phase of the experiment with vacuum in the magnet pipes has resulted in the most restrictive experimental limit on the coupling constant of axions to photons. In the second phase, CAST is operating with a buffer gas inside the magnet pipes in order to extent the sensitivity of the experiment to higher axion masses. We will present the first results on the $^{4}{\rm He}$ data taking as well as the system upgrades that have been operated in the last year in order to adapt the experiment for the $^{3}{\rm He}$ data taking. Expected sensitivities on the coupling constant of axions to photons will be given for the recent $^{3}{\rm He}$ run just started in March 2008.Comment: Proceedings of the ICHEP 2008 conferenc

Probing eV-scale axions with CAST

We have searched for solar axions or other pseudoscalar particles that couple to two photons by using the CERN Axion Solar Telescope (CAST) setup. Whereas we previously have reported results from CAST with evacuated magnet bores (Phase I), setting limits on lower mass axions, here we report results from CAST where the magnet bores were filled with \hefour gas (Phase II) of variable pressure. The introduction of gas generated a refractive photon mass $m_\gamma$, thereby achieving the maximum possible conversion rate for those axion masses \ma that match $m_\gamma$. With 160 different pressure settings we have scanned \ma up to about 0.4 eV, taking approximately 2 h of data for each setting. From the absence of excess X-rays when the magnet was pointing to the Sun, we set a typical upper limit on the axion-photon coupling of \gag\lesssim 2.17\times 10^{-10} {\rm GeV}^{-1} at 95% CL for \ma \lesssim 0.4 eV, the exact result depending on the pressure setting. The excluded parameter range covers realistic axion models with a Peccei-Quinn scale in the neighborhood of $f_{\rm a}\sim10^{7}$ GeV. Currently in the second part of CAST Phase II, we are searching for axions with masses up to about 1.2 eV using \hethree as a buffer gas.Comment: 18 pages, 7 figures. Revised version of the paper after referee's comments. Main changes on the gas sectio

Deep sea tests of a prototype of the KM3NeT digital optical module

The first prototype of a photo-detection unit of the future KM3NeT neutrino telescope has been deployed in the deepwaters of the Mediterranean Sea. This digital optical module has a novel design with a very large photocathode area segmented by the use of 31 three inch photomultiplier tubes. It has been integrated in the ANTARES detector for in-situ testing and validation. This paper reports on the first months of data taking and rate measurements. The analysis results highlight the capabilities of the new module design in terms of background suppression and signal recognition. The directionality of the optical module enables the recognition of multiple Cherenkov photons from the same (40)Kdecay and the localisation of bioluminescent activity in the neighbourhood. The single unit can cleanly identify atmospheric muons and provide sensitivity to the muon arrival directions