IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/riskan/v31y2011i5p787-804.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

To Leave an Area After Disaster: How Evacuees from the WTC Buildings Left the WTC Area Following the Attacks

Author

Listed:
  • Rae Zimmerman
  • Martin F. Sherman

Abstract

How people leave a devastated area after a disaster is critical to understanding their ability to cope with risks they face while evacuating. Knowledge of their needs for communications about these risks is particularly crucial in planning for emergency responses. A convenience sample of 1,444 persons who survived the World Trade Center (WTC) attacks on September 11, 2001 were surveyed to ascertain their initial and ultimate destinations once they had left the buildings, how they arrived there, the role of types of obstacles they encountered, and the need for information and the seeking of other people as potential factors in influencing the process of leaving immediately. This survey was part of a larger, original survey. Results showed differences in how people traveled by mode to initial and ultimate destinations, how immediately they left the area, and factors associated with when they left. How they traveled and when they left were associated with where people lived, their tendency in times of stress to seek out other people including who they knew in the immediate area (e.g., co‐workers or friends), the physical conditions surrounding them, and the importance to some of waiting for more information. Many people indicated they did not leave immediately because they had no information about where to go or what services would be available to them. Perceptions and communications about risks they were facing were reflected in the choices they considered in how and when to leave the area. These findings have numerous ramifications for understanding and guiding personal behavior in catastrophic situations.

Suggested Citation

  • Rae Zimmerman & Martin F. Sherman, 2011. "To Leave an Area After Disaster: How Evacuees from the WTC Buildings Left the WTC Area Following the Attacks," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(5), pages 787-804, May.
  • Handle: RePEc:wly:riskan:v:31:y:2011:i:5:p:787-804
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1539-6924.2010.01537.x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1539-6924.2010.01537.x
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/j.1539-6924.2010.01537.x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Eisenman, D.P. & Cordasco, K.M. & Asch, S. & Golden, J.F. & Glik, D., 2007. "Disaster planning and risk communication with vulnerable communities: lessons from Hurricane Katrina," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 97(S1), pages 109-115.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Laura Siebeneck & Ronald Schumann & Britt-Janet Kuenanz & Seungyoon Lee & Bailey C. Benedict & Caitlyn M. Jarvis & Satish V. Ukkusuri, 2020. "Returning home after Superstorm Sandy: phases in the return-entry process," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 101(1), pages 195-215, March.
    2. Kevin Fox Gotham & Richard Campanella & Katie Lauve‐Moon & Bradford Powers, 2018. "Hazard Experience, Geophysical Vulnerability, and Flood Risk Perceptions in a Postdisaster City, the Case of New Orleans," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 38(2), pages 345-356, February.
    3. Masahiro Shoji & Yoko Takafuji & Tetsuya Harada, 2020. "Formal education and disaster response of children: evidence from coastal villages in Indonesia," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 103(2), pages 2183-2205, September.
    4. D. J. Rasmussen & Scott Kulp & Robert E. Kopp & Michael Oppenheimer & Benjamin H. Strauss, 2022. "Popular extreme sea level metrics can better communicate impacts," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 170(3), pages 1-17, February.
    5. Burton, Cynthia & Ovadiya, Mirey, 2014. "Communication following a disaster," Social Protection Discussion Papers and Notes 91808, The World Bank.
    6. Anamaria Bukvic & Julia Gohlke & Aishwarya Borate & Jessica Suggs, 2018. "Aging in Flood-Prone Coastal Areas: Discerning the Health and Well-Being Risk for Older Residents," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-25, December.
    7. Morris, Katherine Ann & Deterding, Nicole M., 2016. "The emotional cost of distance: Geographic social network dispersion and post-traumatic stress among survivors of Hurricane Katrina," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 165(C), pages 56-65.
    8. Elizabeth A. Newnham & Satchit Balsari & Rex Pui Kin Lam & Shraddha Kashyap & Phuong Pham & Emily Y. Y. Chan & Kaylie Patrick & Jennifer Leaning, 2017. "Self-efficacy and barriers to disaster evacuation in Hong Kong," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 62(9), pages 1051-1058, December.
    9. Rebecca R. Thompson & Dana Rose Garfin & Roxane Cohen Silver, 2017. "Evacuation from Natural Disasters: A Systematic Review of the Literature," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 37(4), pages 812-839, April.
    10. Emily Ying Yang Chan & Asta Yi Tao Man & Holly Ching Yu Lam & Gloria Kwong Wai Chan & Brian J. Hall & Kevin Kei Ching Hung, 2019. "Is Urban Household Emergency Preparedness Associated with Short-Term Impact Reduction after a Super Typhoon in Subtropical City?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(4), pages 1-16, February.
    11. Renjie Zhao & Shihu Zhong & Aiping He, 2018. "Disaster Impact, National Aid, and Economic Growth: Evidence from the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-22, November.
    12. Laura Kuhl & Paul Kirshen & Matthias Ruth & Ellen Douglas, 2014. "Evacuation as a climate adaptation strategy for environmental justice communities," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 127(3), pages 493-504, December.
    13. Dongkwan Lee & Soyeon Yoon & Eun-Seon Park & Yuseung Kim & D.K. Yoon, 2018. "Factors Contributing to Disaster Evacuation: The Case of South Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-16, October.
    14. Johnson, Michael P. & Midgley, Gerald & Chichirau, George, 2018. "Emerging trends and new frontiers in community operational research," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 268(3), pages 1178-1191.
    15. Uttama Barua & Shahrin Mannan & Ishrat Islam & Mohammad Shakil Akther & Md. Aminul Islam & Tamanna Akter & Raquib Ahsan & Mehedy Ahmed Ansary, 2020. "People’s awareness, knowledge and perception influencing earthquake vulnerability of a community: A study on Ward no. 14, Mymensingh Municipality, Bangladesh," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 103(1), pages 1121-1181, August.
    16. Jenna Tyler & Abdul-Akeem Sadiq & Douglas S. Noonan, 2019. "A review of the community flood risk management literature in the USA: lessons for improving community resilience to floods," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 96(3), pages 1223-1248, April.
    17. Brielle Lillywhite & Gregor Wolbring, 2022. "Risk Narrative of Emergency and Disaster Management, Preparedness, and Planning (EDMPP): The Importance of the ‘Social’," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-36, December.
    18. Dian Sun & Jee Eun Kang & Rajan Batta & Yan Song, 2017. "Optimization of Evacuation Warnings Prior to a Hurricane Disaster," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(11), pages 1-29, November.
    19. Adele Houghton & Carlos Castillo-Salgado, 2017. "Health Co-Benefits of Green Building Design Strategies and Community Resilience to Urban Flooding: A Systematic Review of the Evidence," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-28, December.
    20. Chanrith Ngin & Jesse Hession Grayman & Andreas Neef & Nichapat Sanunsilp, 2020. "The role of faith-based institutions in urban disaster risk reduction for immigrant communities," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 103(1), pages 299-316, August.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:riskan:v:31:y:2011:i:5:p:787-804. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://doi.org/10.1111/(ISSN)1539-6924 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.