Scientists urged to pull the plug on ‘bathtub modeling’ of flood risk

Recent decades have seen a rapid surge in damages and disruptions caused by flooding. In a commentary article published today in the American Geophysical Union journal Earth’s Future, researchers at the University of California, Irvine and the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom – the latter also executives of U.

A Q&A with Jeffrey Upperman, a national leader in pediatric trauma and disaster preparedness.

Jeffrey Upperman, MD, surgeon-in-chief at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, talks about why the U.S. needs a coordinated initiative to emphasize the impact of disasters on children to improve both future crisis responses and the care of children in the immediate aftermath and as they develop.

JMU expert available to discuss flooding impacts in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene

James Madison University Geomorphology professor L. Scott Eaton is available to discuss flooding impacts in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.   More than 100 people have died across six states and hundreds of roads remain closed, especially in the Carolinas.…

Nationwide flood models poorly capture risks to households and properties

Irvine, Calif., July 24, 2024 – Government agencies, insurance companies and disaster planners rely on national flood risk models from the private sector that aren’t reliable at smaller levels such as neighborhoods and individual properties, according to researchers at the University of California, Irvine. In a paper published recently in the American Geophysical Union journal Earth’s Future, experts in UC Irvine’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering caution that relatively new, nation-scale flood data provides an inadequate representation of local topography and infrastructure, factors known to control the spread of floods in urban areas.

UAlbany Expert Available to Discuss The Risks of Existential Terrorism and AI

ALBANY, N.Y. (Sept. 28, 2023) — Gary Ackerman, an associate professor and associate dean at the University at Albany’s College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity (CEHC), has spent decades studying terrorism around the world — from the motivations and capabilities…

Addressing justice in wildfire risk management

The unequal distribution of wildfire risk in our society is influenced by various factors, such as social vulnerabilities and intersecting forms of inequality, including gender, age, ethnicity, or disability. A new article calls for more integrated and inclusive wildfire risk management approaches and proposes a novel framework mapping different justice aspects.

UCI researcher gets NSF-backed grant to study wildfires’ effects on farmworkers

Michael Méndez of the University of California, Irvine has received a two-year, $400,000 grant from the National Center for Atmospheric Research’s Early Career Faculty Innovator Program. It will fund a joint project with researchers at NCAR – which is sponsored by the National Science Foundation – exploring the disparate treatment of undocumented Latino/Latina and Indigenous migrant farmworkers during extreme wildfire events in Sonoma County.

Trauma and kids:

As catastrophic bushfires continue to rage across New South Wales and Queensland, thousands of people are reeling from the devastation. It’s a shocking start to Australia’s fire season, but beyond the physical damage, the emotional scars persist, especially for Australia’s youngest citizens. Now, in new research from the University of South Australia, researchers have explored the growing uncertainty faced by children aged 0-8 years in disaster zones, finding that early childhood teachers hold a vital role in supporting children dealing with trauma.

Disaster Mental Health Resources Available Now for Hurricane Response and Recovery

Catastrophic natural disasters, such as hurricanes, cause extreme disruption and can be distressful for individuals, families and communities. Those receiving assistance as well as those involved in disaster management efforts can be affected. The Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences’ Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress has released 12 new resources to aid in the response and recovery efforts for affected communities.