Demographic effects of natural disasters : A case study of hurricane Andrew

Many studies have considered the economic, social, and psychological effects of hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, tornadoes, and other natural disasters, but few have considered their demographic effects. In this paper we describe and evaluate a method for measuring the effects of hurricane Andrew on the housing stock and population distribution in Dade County, Florida. Using information collected through sample surveys and from other data sources, we investigate the extent of housing damages, the number of people forced out of their homes, where they went, how long they stayed, and whether they returned to their prehurricane residences. We conclude that more than half the housing units in Dade County were damaged by Hurricane Andrew; that more than 353,000 people were forced to leave their homes, at least temporarily; and that almost 40,000 people left the county permanently as a direct result of the hurricane. We delieve that this study will provide methodological guidance to analysis studying the demographic effects of other large-scale natural disasters.(AU)

Significance of Caribbean and regional earthquake events in the determination of seismic attenuation and hazard assessments in Florida

More than seventy-five percent of seismic events recorded by the University of Florida Seismic network (UFL) originate in the circum-Caribbean tectonic region. The proximity of the Florida Plateau to the tectonic features in the circum-Caribbean region demands that earthquake events from this region be incorporated in assessments of seismic hazard for Florida. Data from the recently completed 6-station network, as well as that from an extensivereview of record archives from station GAI, have yielded preliminary models of seismic attenuation for the Florida Plateau. Ground motion measurements from more than twenty events originating from the Caribbean, Central America and South America yield an attenuation coefficient approaching 0.22 deg-1. This coefficient supports the idea that seismic attenuation in the Florida Plateau exceeds that of the Eastern United States. These results have further implications for the seismic hazard assessments in Florida and may be indicative of the unique lithospheric identy of the Florida basement as a exotic terrane. This study, in conjunction with a study of the tectonics of the circum-Caribbean region, contributes to an analysis of attenuation within the Caribbean. Seismic data obtained by the University of Florida Seismic Network characterizes the northern perimeter of this important region.(AU)