Responses of the Long-Term Care System to Recent Natural Disasters

Abstract

The number of people affected by disasters has grown steadily since the mid-1970s. The number of deaths due to natural disasters world-wide between 1970 and 2006 is estimated at nearly 2.8 million (EM DAT 2009). Recent natural disasters include the tsunami in South Asia, and major earthquakes in Haiti, Japan, Pakistan, China, and Turkey. In the United States, four powerful hurricanes struck Florida in 2004, and Hurricanes Katrina and Rita caused major destruction in the Gulf Coast states in 2005. These events highlight serious and fatal health consequences following major disasters. In the United States, more than 45 million people live in the coastal region of the Atlantic and Gulf Coast, which are exposed to considerable risk of hurricanes (U.S. Census Bureau 1997); the risk of hurricanes has increased by nearly 40% in the past 15 years, due in large part to rising sea temperatures (Pew Center on Global Climate Change 2009). More than 12% of the population of U.S. coastal states will be aged 65 and above by 2025. Large heavily populated areas of the United States are also at risk of major earthquakes, including much of the West Coast, the Central Mississippi River Valley, and the coastal Southeast (U.S. Geological Survey 2009). The growing numbers of natural disasters, as well as the threat of man-made emergencies, underscore the importance of improved planning at the individual and community levels to address the disaster preparedness and recovery needs of older people and their families.