Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans, Louisiana, on the morning of August 29, 2005. The magnitude of the displacement that resulted was immense: the city's entire population of 455,000 was forced to leave the city and resettle, which some did temporarily and others permanently. The toll from the hurricane was enormous and continues to unfold. Many people had family members or friends who died or were injured, had homes that were severely damaged or destroyed, lost their jobs or businesses, and had their lives severely disrupted. Even though this event occurred over one-and-a-half years ago, research on many major topics of scientific and policy interest is only just beginning but is hampered by a lack of appropriate data. ? A critical need in assessing the impact of the hurricane and in planning a recovery is to obtain representative longitudinal data on the whereabouts, status, health, and well-being of displaced New Orleans residents. The dispersion of residents makes this an extremely challenging undertaking. However, the value of these data for researchers, policymakers, and the public is extraordinarily high. In this project, which responds to PA-06-452 """"""""Behavioral and Social Research on Disasters and Health,"""""""" we will complete a pilot study of displaced New Orleans residents and analyze the results. There are two specific aims. First, to field the second phase of the Displaced New Orleans Residents Pilot Study, focusing efforts on furthering initial fieldwork done as part of a pre-pilot by undertaking intensive field tracking and interviewing of sampled cases that could not be located using standard approaches. Second, to analyze the results of the pilot study, focusing on topics that would determine the feasibility and inform the design of a major longitudinal study of this population such as sources and patterns of nonresponse and the current locations of displaced residents. ? This project will make a number of important contributions. First, study results will inform the launch of large- scale longitudinal survey to study the medium- and long-term consequences of Hurricane Katrina on the health and well-being of children and families who lived in New Orleans at the time the hurricane struck. Second, by fielding this pilot survey and disseminating the results, we will be providing valuable information to policymakers, researchers, and the public interested in understanding the scope and consequences of Hurricane Katrina's effects on the population of New Orleans. Finally, this study will provide more general information regarding the scientific methods for studying populations that have undergone mass evacuations due to natural or man-made disasters. This project will complete a pilot study of New Orleans residents displaced by Hurricane Katrina and analyze the results. ? ? ? ?
| Fussell, Elizabeth; Sastry, Narayan; Vanlandingham, Mark (2010) Race, socioeconomic status, and return migration to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Popul Environ 31:20-42 |
| Sastry, Narayan (2009) Displaced New Orleans Residents in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina: Results from a Pilot Survey. Organ Environ 22:395-409 |
| Sastry, Narayan; VanLandingham, Mark (2009) One year later: mental illness prevalence and disparities among New Orleans residents displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Am J Public Health 99 Suppl 3:S725-31 |
| Sastry, Narayan (2009) Tracing the Effects of Hurricane Katrina on the Population of New Orleans: The Displaced New Orleans Residents Pilot Study. Sociol Methods Res 38:171-196 |
