This book sheds new light on these dynamics, and gives disaster scholars and practitioners new and valuable lessons for management and planning in practice. The authors draw on methods across the social sciences to examine disaster response and recovery as viewed by those in positions of authority and the 'recipients' of operations. These first two sections examine cases from Hurricane Katrina, while the third part compares this to other international disasters to draw out general lessons and practical applications for disaster planning in any context. The authors also offer guidance for shaping institutional structures to better meet the needs of communities and residents.
Rachel A. Dowty is an assistant professor in the Department of Geography, Louisiana State University, USA
Barbara L. Allen is an associate professor and the director of the graduate program in Science, Technology and Society (STS) at Virginia Tech, USA