Question

at what point does natural or technological/ human- induced event become a disaster?

Answer 1

Answer:

Technological disasters such as the Deepwater Horizon/BP oil spill, chemical spills, or radiation leaks can be stressful. This publication reports on the impacts of technological disasters and offers some guidelines for families that are dealing with stress related to a technological disaster.

What is a technological disaster?

A technological disaster is an event caused by a malfunction of a technological structure and/or some human error in controlling or handling the technology. Technological disasters can be considered a man-made disaster meaning there is an “identifiable cause” characteristic. Due to this characteristic, impact on communities can often be more detrimental (Goldsteen & Schorr 1982). The effects of a disaster on families and individuals may be long lasting and can endure for years. However, symptoms may appear gradually, and impacts may not be seen immediately.

All types of disasters are challenging, but technological disasters tend to be even more difficult for the following reasons:

The threat cannot be anticipated. A technological disaster is sudden, unexpected, and unpredictable.

People are responsible. Victims of technological disasters tend to feel anger toward people who were responsible for accidents that may have been prevented.

Community breakdowns and conflict may result. Technological disasters can create disputes within communities.

Longer Recovery—Community members tend to concentrate on litigation and blame and less on cleanup and recovery (Picou, Marshall, & Gall 2004)

Media Exposure—Media covering a technological disaster can be constant adding to already heightened stress levels (Morris, Grattat, Mayer & Blackburn 2013)

Technological disasters tend to affect specific occupational groups. In the case of the Deepwater Horizon/BP oil spill, the fishing and tourism industries were severely impacted as damaged renewable natural resources were destroyed (Grattan et al. 2017). In addition, the social and economic impact from this disaster was wide spread, impacting communities in five coastal states. Many communities experienced effects, even if they did not have oil on their coast (Morris et al. 2013).

Explanation:

credits to google and University of Florida.