Tropical Cyclone Hazards in the USA

Abstract

Coastal development, population, and hurricane activity are all projected to increase in the near future. Thus, the USA has a tropical cyclone problem that requires interdisciplinary solutions from physical and social scientists. In this article, we review topics that summarize the current state of hurricane hazards in the USA. A review of meteorological hurricane hazard literature is broken into sections discussing wind and water hazards associated with land-falling tropical cyclones. This section is followed by a review of societal impact literature such as mortality and morbidity, hazard perception, communication, evacuation, and risk. Ideas are presented which introduce suggestions on how to possibly change processes and promote cross-dialog that may alleviate both the physical and societal impacts of tropical cyclones in the USA.