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UB experts react in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina
UB faculty members across the disciplines are applying their expertise in research to help the world prevent or better cope with the myriad problems that have occurred in Louisiana and Mississippi in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Here is a sampling of UB expertise. For other exerpts, go to www.buffalo.edu/news.
Anger beginning of untold grieving
While the victims of Hurricane Katrina have begun to grieve by expressing their anger at the shortcomings of relief efforts intended to help them, they cannot yet mourn the losses they have incurred because they themselves are still struggling to survive, says Thomas T. Frantz, associate professor and chair of the Department of Counseling, School and Educational Psychology in the Graduate School of Education, who is an expert on bereavement counseling and grief education
Anti-city policies contributed disaster
A federal policy of urban neglect is partly to blame for the extensive damage done to New Orleans by Katrina and the disastrous conditions left in its wake, according to Mark Gottdiener, professor of sociology and an expert on urban culture and policy.
Floodwaters carry diseases such as West Nile
Intestinal diseases like diarrhea and dysentery, along with outbreaks of West Nile virus, are likely to occur because of floodwaters affecting New Orleans and other areas along the Gulf Coast in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, according to microbiologist Iain Hay.
Disasters defy "adequate" response
Widespread devastation in the wake of Hurricane Katrina reminds Americans who are used to localized disasters being dealt with adequately that the U.S. is susceptible to catastrophes in which the ability to respond is itself severely damaged, says Ernest Sternberg, professor of urban and regional planning.
Nasty social behavior common after a disaster
"Nasty social behavior" is very common following the first 48 hours of a disaster, according to Charles Ebert, SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus in the Department of Geography, who teaches the course, "Disasters: analysis of natural and human-induced hazards."