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Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management Crisis and Emergency Management Newsletter Website |
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November
2006
Volume 11 -
Number 2 |
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An Update on People Displaced by Hurricanes Katrina
and Rita
By Tay Johannes Approximately one year after Hurricanes
Katrina and Rita hit, most refugees from these storms have still not returned
to their homes. The refugees are spread across the entire country, and
according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) using data from
claims for assistance, this represents all 50 states. Serious debate
continues over exactly where these refugees are. This displacement is
one of the greatest in American history, and it even rivals the migrations
that occurred during the Civil War. The official government assessment
of the population migration was released in January 2006 by the US Census
Bureau, though this report has been heavily criticized. A report prepared
by Claritas, Inc. in July 2006 for MSNBC.com places Katrina and Rita migrants
(groups over 1000 people) in 54 counties across 10 states. The largest,
most notable locations include Maricopa County, Arizona, Los Angeles County,
California, and Cook County, Illinois.
The Census Bureau analyzed population data from the 117 counties in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama that were included in the federal disaster area. According to their before and after analysis (1 July 2005 to 1 January 2006), population in Alabama disaster counties remained relatively constant. In Louisiana counties, the populations reduced by about 345,000 and in the Mississippi counties the population reduced 42,000. In Texas declared disaster counties the population increased by 137,000 (most notably Harris County with about 91,000 additional people). In some cases, the migration was relatively short. Many refugees from New Orleans, Louisiana went to “commutable” locations such as St Tammany’s Parish or Baton Rouge. They are far enough away to be safe, but are still within a commutable distance to jobs and damaged homes. The local officials from St Tammany Parish have said their population grew from 200,000 to 270,000. This is in contrast to many of the New Orleans refugees that traveled a day or farther to places such as Houston, Texas. With both anniversaries in the past, demography experts such as Bill Frey from the Brookings Institute suggest the population shifts may become permanent. The reason perhaps may best be demonstrated by the example of Cameron Parish, Louisiana, which was devastated by Hurricane Rita. Only 30-40% of the 10,000 people have returned. Locals attribute the slow return to people not being able to afford to rebuild. Standards for new construction are too difficult and too costly for many—it’s certainly new construction rather than repair (impact of building code for new construction) when the only thing left of their home is the slab. Additionally, people who are not full-time residents or owned vacation homes will have trouble rebuilding. Homes outside of full-time residency do not qualify for federal assistance. References Bonisteel, Sara, “In the shadow of Hurricane Katrina, victims of Rita feel largely forgotten” http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,215442,00.html, September 24, 2006 Sullivan, Bob, “Impact of Katrina exodus felt far and wide,” http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14542913/ August 28, 2006 DHS info http://www.dhs.gov/xprepresp/programs/gc_1157649340100.shtm US Census info http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/emergencies/index.html |