Preventing post-disaster population losses and recovery policy

Abstract

Objective: On May 22, 2011, an EF-5 tornado struck Joplin, Missouri, leaving behind 161 fatalities and $2.8 billion in economic impacts. This case study of the 2011 disaster was an attempt at determining if and how economic recovery occurred following the disaster through the lived experiences of government officials, local policymakers, and business officials. Design: Case study using in-depth, semistructured, one-on-one interviews and a qualitative design and analysis.

Setting: Joplin, Missouri/2011 Joplin Tornado

Participants: Seven local government officials, policymakers, and business officials from the city of Joplin that were directly involved in the response and recovery from the 2011 tornado.

Interventions: N/A

Main outcome measure(s): N/A

Results: Policies and actions that were the most effective focused on housing, personal financial resources of the survivors, and ensuring that the recovery processes were expedited as much as prudently possible.

Conclusions: Specific policy measures are not recommended through the un-generalizable findings of this case study; however, this case study places a foundation for future research to develop specific policy measures related to disaster recovery.