For the capital of Prague, the main natural risks endangering the inhabitants and the environment can be anticipated : windstorms, hailstorms and rainstorms, epidemics, long and hard frosts, heavy snow, heat waves, droughts and the resulting insufficiency of potable water, flooding, etc.

Floodings and rainstorms can produce considerable damage, such as the destruction of buildings, the devastation of green areas, damage to automobiles and other machinery, damage to the city’s infrastructure, damage caused by flooding of basements and warehouses of individuals and companies, etc.

The main recovery procedures are :

• to reopen access roads as quickly as possible,
• to eliminate immediate dangers of falling debris from buildings, uprooted trees and other unstable material,
• to drain flooded areas,
• to repair the city’s infrastructure,
• to dispose of waste.

Disasters may also be caused by human acts : fires, emergencies in chemical factories, traffic incidents with possible combined effects, explosions of gas and other explosive compounds, leaks of petrol products, breakdowns in water, gas, fuel and electric power supplies, destruction of buildings, other emergencies caused by terrorist actions, etc. These incidents can have serious consequences. Extensive fires, or emergencies in chemical factories, for example, can put the health and life of inhabitants at risk, as may leaks of toxic compounds to the environment, pollution of underground waters due to fire extinguishing works, accidents or traffic incidents on local roads, movements of panic in public places (cultural buildings, sports stadiums, educational and medical buildings, etc.).

The main recovery procedures are :

• to rapidly inform the Prague’s Fire Department,
• to extinguish the fire immediately by all available means,
• to simultaneously evacuate people, animals and hazardous materials from the affected areas,
• to immediately warn and inform the inhabitants about how to protect themselves in the given situation,
• to evacuate the inhabitants and animals to an unaffected area,
• to divert the traffic away from the affected area,
• to continuously control the leaks of hazardous substances from damaged technological equipment.

In the case of a terrorist attack, the possible extent of damage is : extensive destruction of strategic buildings and areas (Prague Castle, Government Offices, buildings of the Czech Parliament and other central or local authorities, telecommunication buildings, potable water sources and treatment stations, dams on the Vltava river above Prague, storage areas of fuels and other hazardous chemical compounds, military buildings, …).

There can also be sudden and extensive damage to factories, residential areas, automobiles and public transport means, which may consequently lead to fires.

In this event, recovery procedures are :

• to rescue people from the destroyed or damaged buildings, providing medical care to the injured,
• to remove car wrecks,
• to divert traffic from the affected area,
• to provide temporary lodging to inhabitants from the affected residential areas.