Survey finds many in La. reject evacuation option for hurricane

• By SANDY DAVIS
• Advocate staff writer
• Published: Jul 25, 2008 - Page: 1A - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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Despite the devastation hurricanes Katrina and Rita wrought on Louisiana in 2005, a large number of coastal residents still say they would refuse to evacuate if another hurricane zeroes in on the state, a Harvard University survey shows.

“Even though the percentages of people not prepared or who wouldn’t evacuate are small, those numbers add up to the thousands in a metropolitan area like New Orleans,” said Tami Buhr of Harvard’s School of Public Health and one of the survey’s researchers. “That’s a lot of people still at risk.”

The survey was conducted between May 27 and June 23 when researchers called 5,055 people who live in a county or parish within 20 miles of the coast in eight states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Texas.

This is the third year Harvard has conducted the survey.

“I think what we find most surprising is the results haven’t changed much in the three years we’ve been doing this,” Buhr said. “That tells me that the behaviors and attitudes are pretty ingrained.”

The survey shows that in most areas, Louisiana residents are better prepared than the residents of the other seven states.

At the same time, the survey shows that Louisiana’s residents are also more worried than the respondents in the other seven states about problems they might have during and after another hurricane.

Those problems include: not enough gasoline, food, water, medical care, cash on hand as well as the threat of injuries, violence, and heat exhaustion.

“There is no doubt that these worries are the result of Hurricane Katrina and the personal experiences they’ve had,” Buhr said. “Their worries are based on reality.”

In Louisiana, 17 percent of the respondents said they would not evacuate if the government said they had to because another major hurricane was headed toward the state.

And 15 percent said they believe they would be safer if they stayed in their homes rather than evacuate.

“This is the No. 1 reason people give for not evacuating,” Buhr said of people believing their homes are safe. “If Hurricane Katrina didn’t change that view, it’s pretty discouraging.”

Another 19 percent said if they had to evacuate, they would need help, but 41 percent of those said they had not yet lined up anyone to help them.