SECONDARY TRAUMA OR SECONDARY DISASTER? INSIGHTS FROM HURRICANE KATRINA

Abstract

Hurricane Katrina is destined to become one of the most studied disasters in U.S. history. This manuscript offers a sociology of disaster framework in which to situate past, on-going, and future research on this event. By examining Katrina on a continuum of natural and technological disasters, we are able to gain insights into the different paths of impact and recovery taken by New Orleans and the rest of the disaster-stricken region. Specifically, this disaster has produced a series of secondary traumas that continue to thwart recovery efforts. Understanding these secondary traumas can lead to amelioration of their effects and development of responses to diminish their occurrence in future disasters.

This manuscript is a revision of the Presidential Address presented at the annual meeting of the Mid-South Sociological Association in Atlanta, Georgia, October 2005. The Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station (MIS–605270) and the Social Science Research Center at Mississippi State University have provided major support for my research on disasters since 1989. This manuscript was written in collaboration with Liesel A. Ritchie. I would also like to acknowledge the insights and support provided by J. Steven Picou, Anthony Ladd, and Arthur G. Cosby.

Notes

¹Throughout the remainder of this manuscript I will focus on distinctions between the Mississippi Gulf Coast and New Orleans. This is not intended to negate or minimize disaster experiences of Louisiana communities such as Slidell and Venice, or Alabama communities such as Mobile and Gulf Shores, but to date less is known about these communities from a social science research perspective.

²The “nightmare within a nightmare” reference came from a New Orleans resident interviewed on NBC Nightly News a few days after Hurricane Katrina struck and New Orleans flooded.