Identifying Risk and Resilience Factors Impacting Mental Health among Black and Latinx Adults following Nocturnal Tornadoes in the U.S. Southeast.

Jennifer M First,Mary Lehman Held,Kelsey Ellis,Florence Glass

doi:10.3390/ijerph18168609

Abstract

Prior research has found that Black and Latinx communities in the U.S. face significant disparities that impact both preparedness for severe weather events and the support received after a disaster has occurred. In the current study, we examined key risk and protective factors that impacted mental health among 221 Black and Latinx adult respondents exposed to the 2–3 March 2020 nocturnal tornado outbreak in the U.S. state of Tennessee. Key factors that adversely affected mental health among participants were encountering barriers for receiving tornado warning alerts and tornado-related exposure. Key factors that served a protective mechanism against adverse mental health included having access to physical resources, supportive relationships, and adaptive coping skills. These findings may assist National Weather Service (NWS) personnel, emergency managers, and mental health providers with the development of policies and practices to address barriers and promote protective strategies for future nocturnal tornado events.

Highlights

Extreme weather events such as severe tornadoes and storms are increasing in prevalence and intensity in the United States, within the southeast areas [1]
This study uses a sample of Black and Latinx adults (N = 221) from Middle Tennessee to examine if weather alert barriers encountered during nocturnal tornadoes are related to more tornado exposure and adverse mental health, and if individual-level resilience helps protect against posttraumatic stress (PTS) and depression symptoms
We examined key risk and protective factors that impacted mental health among Black and Latinx adult respondents exposed to a nocturnal tornado outbreak in the U.S state of Tennessee

Summary

Introduction

Extreme weather events such as severe tornadoes and storms are increasing in prevalence and intensity in the United States, within the southeast areas [1]. The physical and economic damage from the March 2020 nocturnal tornado outbreak is estimated to be between $1.5 and $2 billion and was one of the deadliest tornado outbreaks in the Middle Tennessee area [2]. Nocturnal tornadoes are 2.5 times more likely to inflict fatalities in comparison to tornadoes that occur during the daytime [4]. This is in part due to the fact that nocturnal tornadoes are more difficult to spot at night and they occur when people are sleeping and are less likely to receive warnings or other emergency information [5,6,7]. Tennessee and the broader Southeast region of the United States are at elevated risk for experiencing nocturnal tornadoes, with nearly half of Tennessee tornadoes occurring at night [5]

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion