Disaster Victims and the Response to Trauma

Abstract

In late August of 2005, Hurricane Katrina roared ashore on the Gulf Coast of the southern United States, leaving in its wake large swaths of physical destruction and human tragedy. The storm resulted in the deaths of nearly 2,000 people, most of them residents of New Orleans, where the storm’s water surge breached nearby levees and flooded nearly 80% of the city. Coastal communities in Mississippi and Alabama were also ravaged by the hurricane. During and immediately following the storm, many residents experienced extreme adversity—life threats, physical injury, lack of appropriate food, water, sanitation, or shelter. Some had to walk long distances through flood waters, while others were rescued from the rooftops of their homes by boat or helicopter. Many locals, including a disproportionate number of poor residents, were left homeless and unemployed, coping with the deaths of loved ones, the separation from family members, and the loss of important social institutions such as churches, medical clinics and hospitals, and community centers. The storm created a large diaspora, with thousands of Gulf Coast residents relocating to cities such as Houston and Chicago. Property damage due to the storm was estimated at over $80 billion, with the total economic cost estimated at up to $150 billion (Tate 2010).