A Rice University study examining the social and political reactions of people in post-Hurricane Harvey Houston found that while first-time flood victims may still feel strong ties to their neighborhoods, this emotional attachment erodes after their neighborhoods repeatedly flood.
Nearly 20% of flood victims in the study reported post-flood PTSD, depression and anxiety, and more than 70% of survey respondents said the prospect of future flood events was a source of worry.
“Flooding, Recovery and Hydraulic Citizenship in Post-Harvey Houston” outlines the recovery process of residents living in the Brays Bayou and Greens Bayou watersheds. The research included 91 individual in-depth interviews and survey responses from another 180 people.
Lead researcher Dominic Boyer, a professor of anthropology at Rice and founding director of the university’s Center for Energy and Environmental Research in the Human Sciences, said he was interested in examining the human side of recovery — everything from housing decisions to community and political engagement – after Harvey and other recent 500-year flood events.
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Image via Air National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Daniel J. Martinez.