Multi-hazards disaster response and recovery: experiencing natural hazards in pandemic

Multi-hazards disaster response and recovery: experiencing natural hazards in pandemic

Abstract as pdf

Corresponding Author:

Takako Izumi
Tohoku University Japan
izumi@irides.tohoku.ac.jp

Author(s):

A number of countries were affected by both pandemic and natural disasters in 2020 causing tremendous stresses and damages on these countries, i.e., several typhoons in India and the Philippines, severe floods in Japan, and wildfires in the US. This research aimed to identify the impact of both disasters on the response and recovery efforts, understand the risk perception of the public before and after the disasters in the affected areas, examine the motivation of their evacuation actions and the major challenges in the evacuation centers, and study the support by and role of volunteers in each disaster case.

The major findings include the followings:

• More than 90% of the responders answered that COVID-19 made some impacts on their lives. In India and the Philippines, the impact on their economic and financial situation was the highest. In the US, the highest impact was that the interaction with their neighbors was reduced. In Japan, the impact on their mental health was highest.
• The highest impact by disasters was on their mental health or heavy stress and trauma. The second was that the reduction of household income. However, in the US, the impact on their health was nearly highest.
• More than 70% answered that it took longer to make a decision to evacuate due to their concerns on the impact of COVID-19. Under the situation of multi-hazards, the concerns and needs from different perspectives will increase and it will take longer to make an important decision.
• Regarding the issues that must be prioritized when making improvements at an evacuation center, the lack of enough food and other necessary items was the highest. The answers differed from country to country. The highest answer in the US was that they needed to be considerate when taking care of children. In Japan, the lack of privacy was the highest.
  
  these natural disasters did not occur under the COVID-19 situation, the number of evacuees and volunteers would have been increased. It would have been easier for people to make a decision to evacuate. Both the pandemic and the disasters put tremendous impact on their finance situation and mental health. In addition, many people felt they lost ties with people and the interaction with their neighbors were reduced.
  
  Sharing Disaster Experience, Research and Innovation: A multi-hazard approach for risk management after Covid-19