The Implications of Hurricane Sandy for Disaster Response

Thomas Chandler, PhDNational Center for Disaster Preparedness

The Earth InstituteColumbia University

1,000 miles long

The 700 Year Storm?• Knocked power out for 8 million people• 32 ft wave recorded in New York Harbor• 3 feet of snow in West Virginia

Linkage to Climate Change?

• Sea levels have risen 1 ft since 1900• Intensity vs frequency• Insurance industry: Munich Re: Weather risks

are changing faster in North America than anywhere else in the world.

But, Wait…

• Recent IPCC report downplayed linkage between hurricanes and climate change

• Historical record of hurricanes in the Atlantic is not extensive

• Monstrous hurricanes have always threatened the US east coast: The Great Miami Hurricane of 1926 would have cost $180 billion today

What We Know

• 1/3 of all Americans live in counties immediately bordering the oceans

• The sea level will continue to rise this century and impact storms like Hurricane Sandy

Risk Communication: What Happened?

• NYC residents expected strong winds, not flooding

• 1/3 of residents did not have flood insurance• Uncertainty about evacuation zones• Underestimation of power failures and lack of

fuel

Why Didn’t People Evacuate?

• Lack of family or financial support network• NYC Shelter System: Concerns about safety• Fear of looting• Religious fatalism • Inability to leave: Eg, Elderly residents in the

Far Rockaways. • -> Take Away: Government messages need to

be decentralized

Typhoon Haiyan

• How do we define a disaster?• Haiyan affected 11.3 million people and

displaced at least 673,000 Filipinos. In contrast, the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami killed perhaps 250,000 people throughout Southern Asia but affected roughly 5 million.

• Strongest tropical storm ever recorded at landfall, packing sustained winds of at least 195 mph with gusts of 235 mph

Building a Culture of Preparedness

• In many nations, disaster preparedness is part of the school curriculum

• 2004: Hurricane Ivan struck Cuba as a category 5, no deaths

• 2005: Hurricane Katrina, 1,833 deaths

You Are Your Own First Responder

• Misperception that help will arrive immediately

• Need 3 day supply of water and food

Resources

• ready.gov• fema.gov• ncdp.columbia.edu Preparedness Wizard

In Conclusion

• 1/3 of all Americans live in counties immediately bordering the oceans

• The sea level will continue to rise this century and impact storms like Hurricane Sandy