MODELLING, SIMULATION AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS AS A TOOL TO SUPPORT DECISION-MAKING PROCESS IN CRISIS MANAGEMENT

The field of crisis management develops continuously and adapts to new challenges posed by modem world. One of the most influential elements of this process is the adaptation of emerging technologies. The crisis management can be viewed as a cycle of individual phases for which the goal is to minimise damages and losses caused by the crisis phenomena. Each of these phases poses specific challenges both in terms of managing processes and from the perspective of applying emarging information and communication technologies. These challenges are due to distinctive, sometimes extreme conditions of usage. In particular, modelling and simulation are becoming more prominent in the crisis management. Modelling and simulation techniques help to improve the disaster managers' skills and to prepare them to face a wider variety of crisis situations more effectively. This paper comprises the state of the art in the area of modelling and simulations for crisis management and attempts to define the requirements and features the information system should meet to address the needs of the crisis management.