One other (I think) important factor is that experience of a natural disaster actually reduces the likelihood people will prepare for future disasters. I have a working paper right now examining the sociospatial distribution of disaster preparedness and it is something that is fairly consistent across the US (in and of itself perhaps surprising). Whether the channel driving it is overconfidence or apathy in the face of inevitable destruction, it is something I find concerning. It seems we are missing opportunities at a national level to strengthen communities post-disaster.
I was right on the edge of including the costs associated with disaster preparation, but left it off for space considerations. I know from my own personal experience that we often were unprepared for hurricanes growing up because "we'd been through it before."
One other (I think) important factor is that experience of a natural disaster actually reduces the likelihood people will prepare for future disasters. I have a working paper right now examining the sociospatial distribution of disaster preparedness and it is something that is fairly consistent across the US (in and of itself perhaps surprising). Whether the channel driving it is overconfidence or apathy in the face of inevitable destruction, it is something I find concerning. It seems we are missing opportunities at a national level to strengthen communities post-disaster.
I was right on the edge of including the costs associated with disaster preparation, but left it off for space considerations. I know from my own personal experience that we often were unprepared for hurricanes growing up because "we'd been through it before."