The COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the important roles that public health agencies play in disaster preparedness and response. However, information about the health impacts of specific hazards needed to guide planning is often inaccessible (e.g., behind paywalls) or difficult to understand. These factsheets synthesize information about the health impacts of six natural hazards of particular concern to the Pacific Northwest region of the U.S.—earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides, volcanoes, flooding, and wildfire smoke. An additional factsheet covers the mental health impacts of all disasters. We hope they will serve as a convenient, evidence-informed reference tool for practitioners and others planning for or responding to natural hazards.
METHODS
To produce the factsheets, we compiled both peer-reviewed and gray literature to identify the key health consequences of each natural hazard. For peer-reviewed articles, we conducted keyword searches in PubMed and Google Scholar. We identified relevant gray literature through governmental, non-governmental, and academic organization websites. Then we developed narrative text to explain key themes.
We recruited subject matter experts to review the text and provide feedback, which we systematically incorporated or resolved before formatting the text into our factsheets.
AUTHORS
Matias Kormacher, Ashley Moore, Naomi Cutler, Anna Kirchhoff, Sarah Fellbaum, and Nicole Errett
This work was supported by the Cascadia Coastlines and Peoples Hazards Research Hub Research Coordination Network Award #1940034, the National Science Foundation Award #2103713, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Award #NH78TU000003 and National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences Grant #P30ES007033.
Factsheets
The Health Effects of Wildfire Smoke
Download Wildfire Smoke Factsheet
The Health Effects of Tsunamis
Download Tsunami Factsheet
The Health Effects of Earthquakes
Download Earthquake Factsheet
The Mental Health Effects of Natural Hazards
Download Natural Hazards Factsheet
The Health Effects of Landslides
Download Landslides Factsheet
The Health Effects of Flooding
Download Flooding Factsheet
The Health Effects of Volcanoes
Download Volcanoes Factsheet