Public perception of hurricane hazards: Examining the differential effects of hurricane Diana

Abstract

Abstract This article reports the findings of a telephone survey of two coastal regions in North Carolina in the aftermath of hurricane Diana: one that received a direct hit from the storm (Oak/Pleasure Island area) and one that received only media reports of the storm and its impacts (Nags Head area). It was hypothesized that the hurricane had differential effects on attitudes in these two regions. It was predicted that because of the media depiction of Diana as a large hurricane, contrasted with the actual low levels of damages to result, support for mitigation programs in the region of greatest impact would be low. Conversely, it was expected that awareness and support of mitigation programs would be higher in the unaffected region, where the media images of disaster were not neutralized by firsthand observation of the storm's impact. Data from the study indicate that there are statistically significant differences between these groups in their perceptions of Diana's impact and hurricane hazards genera...