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The Significance of Race and Class
<br />For many Hurricane Katrina survivors, issues of race
<br />and class were central to their evacuation experiences.
<br />Several evacuees noted that at both evacuation sites in
<br />New Orleans and at Reliant Park in Houston almost ninety
<br />percent of shelter residents were African Americans (ap-
<br />proximately two - thirds of New Orleans was African
<br />American when Katrina hit). This stood in stark contrast
<br />to the law enforcement, support, and volunteer staffs that
<br />were predominately white. Some evacuees reported feel-
<br />ings of discrimination throughout their evacuation and
<br />shelter experience. These feelings were based on incidents
<br />ranging from perceived discriminatory statements made
<br />by public officials to denial of service due to race.
<br />Statements concerning discrimination due to class
<br />were less often reported by evacuees. However, it is in-
<br />teresting to note that a Washington Post /Kaiser Family
<br />Foundation /Harvard University study of Houston shelter
<br />evacuees suggested an intersection between race and class:
<br />68 percent of respondents thought that the federal gov-
<br />ernment would have responded more quickly if more peo-
<br />ple trapped in the floodwaters were wealth and white
<br />rather than poor and black.'
<br />These perceptions of access and disparate treatment
<br />provide support to previous research highlighting both the
<br />perceived and actual benefits of white privilege in Ameri-
<br />can society.' In addition, the disproportionate number of
<br />working class evacuees in the shelters highlights issues of
<br />scarce financial resources. Evacuees frequently reported
<br />not having the necessary resources to evacuate prior to
<br />Hurricane Katrina and explained this was why they had
<br />been in the shelter for two weeks as opposed to living in a
<br />hotel in Houston like many middle -class or upper -class
<br />dislocated were able to do. Although race and class were
<br />significant issues for many evacuees, issues of age, gen-
<br />der, religion, physical and mental disability, previous dis-
<br />aster experience, and care for dependents were also forma-
<br />tive influences on evacuees' catastrophe experiences.
<br />"Looting" as Prosocial Behavior?
<br />Following Hurricane Katrina, there were many media
<br />reports of chaos, anarchy, and looting, particularly among
<br />the residents of New Orleans. Many of the evacuees in-
<br />terviewed in Houston reported observing, or in a few in-
<br />stances, admitted "finding," "taking," "borrowing,"
<br />"stealing," or "looting" things for functional purposes.
<br />Although there is a widespread public perception, which
<br />is portrayed by the media, that looting is an antisocial
<br />behavior that involves stealing expensive material posses-
<br />sions, such as televisions, stereos, video recorders, jew-
<br />elry, and clothing, few evacuees reported this type of be-
<br />havior occurring. Although a few individuals reported
<br />taking boats to assist in the evacuation process, the major-
<br />ity of the "looting" behavior involved taking essentials to
<br />survive in increasingly unsanitary and hazardous condi-
<br />tions. In contrast to the antisocial stereotype of looting
<br />and hoarding of scarce commodities, almost all of the
<br />individuals who reported that others were seen taking
<br />things or admitted taking things stated that "taken" goods
<br />were shared to help others survive as well. The recipients
<br />Natural Hazards Observer November 2005 12
<br />of these shared items were often told to conserve or ration
<br />them, particularly food and water, because of the uncer-
<br />tainty as to how long it would be before they were evacu-
<br />ated. These preliminary observations suggest a possible
<br />prosocial element in appropriating behavior.
<br />Evacuation
<br />Preliminary data from Hurricane Katrina survivors in
<br />Houston suggest at least three distinct, but not mutually
<br />exclusive types of evacuation: vertical, waterborne, and
<br />relocation. Several interviewees reported having evacu-
<br />ated to upper floors or to the roof of a dwelling unit due
<br />to the hurricane or the rising flood waters from the
<br />breeches in the New Orleans levee system. Most of the
<br />vertical evacuees reported that their houses or apartments
<br />filled with water in a matter of minutes and that they did
<br />not have time to take things with them, forcing them to
<br />use what was available to them on the upper floors.
<br />Evacuees reported kicking, pushing, sawing, or using a
<br />bed railing to break through a higher floor or attic to es-
<br />cape rising waters.
<br />Many individuals reported having to wade, swim, or
<br />boat through increasingly contaminated waters to reach
<br />safer locations. For many, this evacuation process was
<br />complicated by age, mental or physical disability, the
<br />need to care for dependents, or material possessions they
<br />were trying to take with them. Several individuals who
<br />reported "taking" boats first evacuated their own families
<br />to safer locations and then engaged in prosocial, altruistic
<br />behavior by repeatedly returning to the area to evacuate
<br />friends and neighbors. Preliminary observations suggest
<br />that similar to the waterborne evacuations of lower Man-
<br />hattan on September 11, 2001, the waterborne evacuees of
<br />New Orleans used their knowledge of the local area to
<br />locate elderly residents and people they knew would likely
<br />need assistance, often before transporting others.'
<br />Most Katrina survivors interviewed reported evacuat-
<br />ing to a site such as the New Orleans Convention Center,
<br />the Louisiana Superdome, or the Interstate 10 overpass
<br />before eventually being evacuated by bus, car, or helicop-
<br />ter to Houston. Although the time spent at the relocation
<br />site ranged from minutes to days, almost all interviewees
<br />described the site evacuation process as disorderly and
<br />disorganized, with minimal communication about where
<br />evacuees were heading and when the next transportation
<br />would arrive. This created a state of uncertainty and inse-
<br />curity, irrespective of evacuation site or law enforcement
<br />or military presence.
<br />Sheltering
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<br />Many evacuees reported spending time in the Louisi-
<br />ana Superdome before, during, and after the hurricane,
<br />and almost all found it to be an uncomfortable or miser-
<br />able experience. This was due in large part to holes in the
<br />roof pouring in storm water and the loss of basic electri-
<br />cal, water, and sewage services, which created rapidly
<br />deteriorating unsanitary living conditions inside the Su-
<br />perdome. Interestingly, many different evacuees "heard
<br />from other people" that fights, fires, rapes, shootings,
<br />suicides, murders, and more had occurred inside the Su-
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