Individuals with Disabilities and Sheltering During Hurricane Ike Laura M. Stough, PhD Elizabeth H. Ducy, M.Ed Texas A&M University

Sheltering Experience Sheltering is an integral part of emergency management Certain populations have been found to be vulnerable to the effects of disaster –Female head of households –Those whose first language is not English –Individuals from ethnically and culturally diverse groups –Individuals with disabilities Vulnerability to disaster and its aftermath is socially constructed and is best viewed as social vulnerability

AP Photo/Eric Gay

Literature on Sheltering Report on Special Needs Assessment for Katrina Evacuees (SNAKE) Project (2005) Four “rapid assessment teams” deployed during the first week of September 2005 Conducted interviews and observations in shelters and emergency operations centers in four Gulf States Documented accessibility issues and barriers to services in shelters

Literature on Sheltering Brodie, Weltzien, Altman, Blendon, Benson (2006) Surveyed residents of Houston area shelters after Hurricane Katrina People with a physical disability reported not being able to evacuate Disproportionate number of shelter residents were African American, low income and uninsured

Aftermath of Hurricane Ike Storm surge of 17 feet 74 deaths in Texas 1.9 million evacuees Over 2 million without power 40,614 in public shelters (FEMA)

State Evacuation Sequence Execution Window H–120 H–96 H-72 H–48 H–36 H-24 H Hour Decision Window Evacuation Contraflow Begins (+/-) Current Operations H-Hour = Arrival of Tropical Force or 39 mph winds on the coast (Sep 12, 11:00 AM) SAR General PopSpecial Needs Sep 11/11:00 AM

Evacuation to Special Needs Shelters

Dallas Convention Center Shelter

Shelter had a maximum capacity of 1300, which was filled on Friday the 12th Several small bus loads of individuals with medical needs / disabilities arrived on Thursday and early Friday morning at the shelter –Contacted through 211 evacuation registry –No confirmed shelter destination – Many “Medical Special Needs” shelters were full –Special case of dialysis patients

Dallas Convention Center Shelter

Disability Assessment Survey Questions of interest: –What were the current needs of individuals with disabilities and their families in this sheltering situation? –What were the physical and psychological impacts of the evacuation and sheltering experience? –How many individuals with disabilities were in the general shelter population?

Disability Assessment Study Instrument: –27 items on the survey 8 items were demographic in nature 7 items were disability-related 3 items were used to determine if the individual was classified as having a disability Procedure: –Each person in the designated special needs area were interviewed using all questions on the survey –All individuals in Section “B” of the shelter were contacted

Disability Assessment Survey Data Collected: –Combined special needs beds46 Individuals with disabilities36 Companions/family members10 –General population beds206 Individuals with disabilities17 Companions/family members TOTAL CONTACTS + INTERVIEWS252

2008 Congreso Ingeniería Civil – Costa Rica Disability Assessment Study

In Summary Only 30-35% of the estimated population with special needs in this shelter were identified by the Red Cross All of those assessed in the special needs section either 1) had a disability, or 2) were a caretaker, or 3) were the family member of someone with a disability An estimated 8.3% of those in the general shelter section had a disability that significantly limited at least one ADL (Activity of Daily Living) In this non-medical special needs shelter % of the total population had a disability

In Conclusion Sheltering and evacuation procedures need to include the needs of people with disabilities in the general population It is not enough for shelters to be physically accessible but “service accessible” Shelters need to plan for “universal design” services so that the needs of a full cross-section of the population are included

Contact Information Laura M. Stough, Ph.D. Elizabeth H. Ducy, M.Ed. Project REDD at redd.tamu.edu