Hurricane Debby has made landfall in Steinhatchee, Florida as a category one hurricane. So far, more than 300,000 people are without power and over 1,200 flights have been canceled.
Forecasters are warning of a potentially deadly storm surge as hurricane Debby is expected to move slowly over land in Florida. Faculty experts at the George Washington University are available to offer insight, analysis and commentary on natural disasters, disaster management, climate change and the public health aspect. To schedule an interview with an expert, please contact GW Media Relations at gwmedia@gwu.edu.
Public Health
Carlos Santos-Burgoa, is a professor of global health and environmental and occupational health at the GW Milken Institute School of Public. His interest is in toxic chemicals risk analysis, management and control of their population and climate impacts, and public health approaches to crises in epidemics and disasters in developing economies. He was the lead researcher on the landmark report GW researchers released after Hurricane Maria.
Elizabeth Andrade, is an assistant professor of prevention and community health at the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health. She was part of a team of GW researchers who conducted the most comprehensive study of the impact of Hurricane Maria on Puerto Rico. She can talk about power outages associated with hurricanes and how they can be particularly deadly for older adults and people who are managing a chronic condition.
Climate Change & Resilience to Natural Disasters
Lisa Benton-Short, a professor of geography, is an expert on urban sustainability, environmental issues in cities, and cities and immigration. Benton-Short can discuss the impact of climate change in amplifying natural disasters and the underlying forces at play that exacerbate the impacts of natural disasters. She can also speak to the steps that can be taken to help make cities and communities more resilient to natural disasters, like hurricanes.
Housing, Insurance & Natural Disasters
Stephen O’Connor is a research professor of real estate at the GW School of Business and the chair of The Center for Real Estate and Urban Analysis at GW. O’Connor has 30 plus years of professional real estate experience with a background in planning and public policy. O’Connor can discuss how climate change is impacting the insurance industry, how communities are adapting to disaster-prone areas (i.e., some towns are trying to change their zoning to encourage development in less-prone areas), and how other places are implementing buy-back strategies.
Disaster Management
Joseph Barbera, an associate professor of engineering management and systems engineering, is a board-certified emergency physician with a 35-year history in developing emergency response systems and responding to local, national, and international emergencies and disasters. He has extensive experience participating in the management of response to earthquakes, tsunamis, and hurricanes, such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Through the GW Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management, he studies disaster response and recovery, risk management, and business continuity.
