Civil infrastructure construction sites including incomplete structures and unsecured resources are among the most vulnerable environments to hurricane conditions. Hurricane driven damages cause disruption of construction sites and considerable schedule delays, and thus negatively impact the efficiency of the construction projects. This research aims to study current best practices on securing construction sites from hurricane conditions and evaluate the performance of the preparedness plan. To do that, first, an interview-survey is conducted with key project personnel from multiple construction companies. Then, the insight from the interviews serves to do a Micro and Macro Environmental Analysis. For further analysis, a Balanced Scorecard is used to suggest metrics to measure and improve the performance of the Hurricane Preparedness Plan. The findings from this research improves the organizational processes and enhances the assessment of disaster preparedness, which ultimately generates new and highly specific knowledge on disaster mitigation and preparedness guidelines for construction sites.

With evidence of increasing hurricane risks in Georgia Coastal Area (GCA) and Virginia in the U.S. Southeast and elsewhere, understanding intended evacuation behavior is becoming more and more important for community planners. My research investigates intended evacuation behavior due to hurricane risks, a behavioral survey of the six counties in GCA under the direction of two social scientists with extensive experience in survey research related to citizen and household response to emergencies and disasters. Respondents gave answers whether they would evacuate under both voluntary and mandatory evacuation orders. Bivariate probit models are used to investigate the subjective belief structure of whether or not the respondents are concerned about the hurricane, and the intended probability of evacuating as a function of risk perception, and a lot of demographic and socioeconomic variables (e.g., gender, military, age, length of residence, owning vehicles).

The Public Hurricane Model developed at FIU by a team of scientists has to be certified by the Florida Commission on Hurricane Loss Projection Methodology. The commission ensures that all hurricane loss models meet certain standards, as models are used extensively by regulators and insurance firms to produce inputs used in the homeowner insurance rate making process. The focus of this thesis is to conduct sensitivity and uncertainty analysis through the calculation of standardized regression coefficients and expected percentage reductions in expected loss costs in order to meet the commission standards. The commission approved the model after very extensive and rigorous review by a panel of experts. The results generated for sensitivity and uncertainty, form S-6, showed the importance of the Holland B parameter regardless of hurricane category, with the radius of maximum winds increasing in importance for stronger hurricanes.

This PhD dissertation examines the relationships between cultural heritage and the environment, focusing specifically on the devastation and rebuilding of New Orleans, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Departing from conventional approaches to the natural world (such as documentation- and conservation-based approaches), this thesis adopts a developmental-systems based approach to cultural heritage in order to construct a new way of interpreting it, within the specific context of natural disaster. This new approach, termed 'heritage ecology', reinterprets cultural heritage in two ways: first, as a physical assemblage of sites, materials, traditions, beliefs, and practices that are constructed in significant ways by their natural environments; and second, as a metaphorical ecosystem which impacts back on the assessment and construction of that natural environment in turn. In order to construct this approach, the thesis poses three interrelated questions: how is cultural heritage transformed as a result of disaster, how do societies rebuild their heritage after disaster, and how does heritage contribute to the rebuilding process? Examining a rebuilding process in real-time provides a unique window on these processes; events and developments in New Orleans taken from the first four years of recovery (2005-2009) suggest that prior understandings of how societies rebuild themselves after disaster have neglected crucial aspects of cultural heritage that are integral to that process. The examination of data from the case study - data of diverse forms, such as historiography, the culinary arts, music, the built environment, and memorial sites and landscapes - reveals the limitations of traditional approaches to heritage and prompts a reassessment of a range of issues central to heritage research, issues such as materiality, authenticity, and commodification. This study moreover incorporates into heritage research concepts previously unconsidered, such as infrastructure and policy. In the coming century of global climate change and increased environmental hazards, this last theme will become increasingly central to heritage policy and research; the dissertation concludes accordingly, with a reflection on contingency and future disaster.

This thesis examines the problem of impact of catastrophic natural events on insurance and reinsurance markets, with special focus on 2005 hurricane Katrina. It aims to analyze and evaluate the consequences of large scale economic loss on global insurance market. First part of the thesis describes the event and its implications. Impact on oil and gas industry and others is discussed. Main section is focused on repercussions of this event for both local and global insurance markets. Influence on selected subjects and new trends observable after Katrina are considered. Changes to alternative risk transfer instruments after 2005 are investigated.

Disasters are an ever increasing phenomena in our society, resulting in many people being adversely affected. the social vulnerability paradigm explores the social, economic and political factors which contribute to certain populations being disproportionately affected by disasters. However, the paradigm has not yet begun to investigate the cultural or religious ideologies which may affect a population's behavior in disaster. This study is an exploratory investigation into whether religious ideologies may impact a person's decision to prepare, or not, in the event of a disaster. Specifically, it seeks to investigate whether a person who holds a belief that natural disasters are under God's control will prepare for the hazard? the study undertaken five years after Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans show that religious ideology is closely linked with one's capacity to prepare for the hazard which is closely tied in with social structure. It may appear that a person's 'fatalistic' attitude is tied to economic inability to prepare for a hazard. This does not mean that they will not prepare but that preparation may include prayer as their initial attempt to mitigate.

Natural disasters often result in large-scale power outages. Real-time tracking of the extent, distribution, and timelines of electrical service loss and recovery can play an important role in minimizing disaster impacts. Using NASA's Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) Day/Night Band (DNB), the extent and duration of disrupted electric utility infrastructure in the Florida Panhandle following Hurricane Michael were estimated. The percent loss of electrical service was downscaled to a neighborhood level using the 2013-2017 American Community Survey (ACS) data at the block group level. Two ordinary least square models were estimated to examine the association between socioeconomic characteristics and the extent and duration of the power outages as well as recovery rates. The study found that block groups with higher percent minorities, multi-family housing units, rural areas, and a higher percentage of households receiving public assistance were experiencing slower power restoration rates than urban and more affluent neighborhoods. The findings have implications for disaster preparedness and recovery planning. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (MURP)--Florida Atlantic University, 2021. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Following Hurricane Katrina in 2005, numerous groups emerged to address recovery related needs in Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes. The phenomenon of emergent groups is widely noted in the disaster literature, but there has been little empirical research focusing on these groups. And, the existing literature discusses emergent groups primarily in the context of response. This study sought to explore the factors related to formation of emergent recovery groups (ERGs) and allow ERGs to have an extended lifespan. Data was gathered through in-depth interviews with founders of twenty ERGs that formed to work in Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes. It was found that the factors related to group formation were the same factors that contributed to the continued existence of the ERG including post-event community situational context, unmet needs, a group driver/leader, ability to network, level of integration, and resources.

The purpose of this study was to determine evacuation decisions of residents in Pinellas County, a vulnerable area in Florida, during Hurricane Irma in 2017, and whether those decisions will impact their future decisions to evacuate. This study also examines the resident’s perception of storm surge flooding during a hurricane. To understand evacuation decisions and storm surge perceptions a survey was conducted on residents in vulnerable areas of Pinellas County. The survey examined multiple aspects including the role of media, relationships, and sociodemographic status on decision making. Another aspect examined if their decision to evacuate for Hurricane Irma will impact their decision for the future. Residents were also asked to rate how different aspects of the storm influenced their decision, including flooding from storm surge. It was concluded that their decision to evacuate for Hurricane Irma will significantly impact their decision to evacuate for the next hurricane, with many residents claiming they would leave their local area. Storm surge was not perceived as the greatest threat, instead wind speed and size of storm were determined to be the greater threat. Better understanding of evacuation decisions and perceptions about storm surge can be used to update emergency management preparations and planning for the next hurricane.

In September of 2017, Hurricane Irma and Hurricane Maria, both category 5 hurricanes, swept across the Caribbean, including the U.S. Territory island of Puerto Rico. These two storms, particularly Hurricane Maria, caused catastrophic damages from high winds and flooding to the island paradise. This research investigates the direct effects that Hurricane Maria had on the residential construction industry within Puerto Rico and evaluates how to better prioritize and manage these types of efforts in the future. This research was initiated to identify challenges and opportunities that have been encountered within the Puerto Rican construction industry during the first year of reconstruction, post-Hurricane Maria. Residential structures that were built using current building codes experienced minimal storm damage. Many of the damaged residential structures, on the other hand, were made up of informal construction, predominantly using light wood framing methods. Unfortunately, homes built using informal construction practices were not insured nor eligible for government rebuilding assistance. Therefore, these damaged structures will more than likely be rebuilt using informal building practices again. Other immediate challenges faced by the construction industry included finding skilled labor and creating access to resources. The results of this research can be used to help prioritize reconstruction efforts and provide best practices following other similar disasters that will inevitably occur in the future. This research is unique in that it specifically targets the construction industry's experience and ultimately the ability to increase the effectiveness of the critical role the construction industry plays in rebuilding efforts.