By KARIN VON LERBER

Since the UN International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction in the 1990s, many text-based disaster response tools have been developed and published. Research in neurology, psychology, and behavioral science has shown that in situations of stress even short texts are not understood. The use of more pictorial and decision diagram-based instructions and tools is suggested, focusing on procedures that will fit many different types of objects and situations. Some of the instructions given in existing manuals, when tested in salvage operations or large-scale exercises, turn out to be well intended but not applicable, causing bottlenecks. Based on fundamental institutional needs in object tracing and documenting, labels were developed that allow quick, efficient, pencil-based, but information-rich object tracking in any kind of disaster situation.