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Gathering places in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey

Mary M. Nelan (Department of Emergency Management and Disaster Science, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas, USA)
Ronald L. Schumann III (Department of Emergency Management and Disaster Science, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas, USA)

Disaster Prevention and Management

ISSN: 0965-3562

Article publication date: 10 August 2018

Issue publication date: 16 October 2018

458

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the concept of gathering places in disaster recovery, and describe types of active gathering places where residents and aid workers in Southern Texas, USA, came seeking resources, information and emotional support one month after Hurricane Harvey.

Design/methodology/approach

Semi-structured interviews in the field with 81 residents and 44 aid workers identified active gathering places and their functions. Researchers utilized a snowball sample design to identify and visit further gathering places until saturation. Field observations and a regional damage survey conducted by car add further context to interview data.

Findings

In total, 22 distinct types of gathering places were identified from the 123 unique gathering places documented. Overall, the displacement of residents created an obstacle to their recovery and access to resources and gathering places; residents characterized a lack of formalized emotional support centers – primarily relying on informal gatherings with friends and neighbors to meet their needs; and gathering places were limited in their ability to foster a communal recovery among the residents.

Originality/value

This study addresses a gap in the research, focusing on where and how individuals access resources, information and emotional support in the short-term recovery following a disaster event. This research combines two traditions, hazards geography and disaster sociology, to investigate what gathering places exist one month after a major disaster, where those places are located, and what purpose they serve.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors thank the Natural Hazards Center at the University of Colorado for funding this research though their Quick Response Grant Program.

Citation

Nelan, M.M. and Schumann III, R.L. (2018), "Gathering places in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey", Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol. 27 No. 5, pp. 508-522. https://doi.org/10.1108/DPM-05-2018-0169

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited

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