Storms Have Passed, But Health Consequences Remain

Chuck Norris
Thu, 24 Oct 2024 21:00:00 -0700
Lifestyle

According to USA Today, for the doctors and staff of Asheville North Carolina's Mission Hospital, the only designated trauma center in the western part of the state, "it's been a colossal undertaking to get clean water" since Hurricane Helene.

"Hospitals like Mission need potable water for staff to sanitize equipment, clean wounds and simply wash their hands with soap," the USA Today report reads. "The surrounding community has been battling an array of public health challenges in the aftermath of the historic deluge in late September."

Dr. Daniel Kuritzkes, chief of Brigham and Women's Hospital's infectious diseases division, in Boston, says the "lack of potable water is the area's biggest concern," according to the report. "Without it, residents are limited in their access to nutrition and sanitation and more likely to be exposed to disease and infections. ... Overwhelmed hospitals are struggling to treat new and existing patients as they cart in truckloads of water and dig new wells." In the interim, residents risk "being exposed to sewage, toxic industrial waste and mosquito-borne illnesses."
Updated: Fri Oct 25, 2024

According to USA Today, for the doctors and staff of Asheville North Carolina's Mission Hospital, the only designated trauma center in the western part of the state, "it's been a colossal undertaking to get clean water" since Hurricane Helene.

"Hospitals like Mission need potable water for staff to sanitize equipment, clean wounds and simply wash their hands with soap," the USA Today report reads. "The surrounding community has been battling an array of public health challenges in the aftermath of the historic deluge in late September."

Dr. Daniel Kuritzkes, chief of Brigham and Women's Hospital's infectious diseases division, in Boston, says the "lack of potable water is the area's biggest concern," according to the report. "Without it, residents are limited in their access to nutrition and sanitation and more likely to be exposed to disease and infections. ... Overwhelmed hospitals are struggling to treat new and existing patients as they cart in truckloads of water and dig new wells." In the interim, residents risk "being exposed to sewage, toxic industrial waste and mosquito-borne illnesses."

"The hospital and region are stymied because water pipes are damaged, and sewage and chemical toxins have contaminated the water supply, making residents vulnerable to diarrheal diseases, fever, dehydration and other ailments," the report continues. "Mold from floodwaters can flourish, triggering respiratory issues. Standing water fosters mosquito breeding, Kuritzkes said."

"You're going to have patients that have short-term injuries that end up being chronic issues, because they were not taken care of immediately, given the attention they deserve," says Marquita Lyons-Smith, a director in North Carolina Central University's nursing program. "Before the storm, many rural communities were already facing hospitals shuttering, putting care farther from reach, she said," according to USA Today.

What seems clear is that though a vicious set of storms may have passed, the repercussions to public health must now be assessed. More recent results may show that things may have improved, since I researched this report earlier in the week, but as NBC News reports, "The emotional strain of dealing with two major hurricanes and an unprecedented number of tornadoes in only a few weeks has left people in Florida reeling."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that "stress, anxiety, depression and other mental health problems often increase following natural disasters because of a phenomenon of 'common reactions to abnormal events,'" the report continues.

Says psychoanalyst Dr. Gail Saltz, associate attending physician at New York-Presbyterian Hospital, "These natural disasters are psychologically beyond the normal human experience, and this trauma often leads to ongoing mental health struggles."

"Michelle Chernicoff, 39, who lives in New Port Richey, Florida, fled Hurricane Milton ... with her husband and two young children," NBC News report. She returned to find her home undamaged, but "less than five miles away, there was complete devastation."

"You have this duality of being grateful that it's not you," Chernicoff said, "and being devastated that it's someone you know, that it's your neighbor down the street."

"More than 100 catastrophic hurricanes have slammed the Sunshine State's coastline in the past century," NBC News reports. "The constant exposure to hurricanes causes not only physical destruction, but can also cause harm to mental health. ... And it can be especially hard on children.

"It's natural to feel overwhelmed immediately after a hurricane, but it's a red flag when persistent symptoms of hopelessness or difficulty concentrating or being unable to think about anything else affect daily activities, experts say."

"High irritability is also a symptom, and anger and violence can follow if left untreated," adds Saltz.

Recent reports suggest that "the long-term health consequences (of Hurricane Milton) could be devastating," according to ABC News. "A recent study published in the journal Nature examining nearly 500 tropical cyclones from 1930 to 2015 in the U.S. suggested that big storms lead to thousands of extra deaths after the storms, and leave lasting impacts on public health."

"We find that there are elevated rates of mortality that extend far beyond that immediate aftermath of a storm, and it persists for up to 15 years," says Rachel Young, an environmental economist at University of California, Berkeley, and coauthor of the Nature study.

"Other studies have shown that tropical cyclones can increase hospitalizations by up to 10% for older adults, primarily for respiratory and infectious diseases," ABC News reports.

The number of fatalities from extreme weather events doesn't always square up with other reports. "A 2018 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association examined the aftermath of 2017's Hurricane Maria and noted 1,139 additional deaths reported, compared to the official count of 64 deaths officially attributed to the storm," according to ABC News.

"Storm surges are another phenomenon that could harm health long after a major weather event is over," the report continues. "After Hurricane Milton, the water surged as high as six feet in some areas of Florida. The risk of waterborne diseases can increase as much as 50% after such surges, which in turn can trigger respiratory illnesses due to mold, allergens and contaminated water, according to the (CDC).

"According to Young, the public health challenges that last far beyond clean-up and recovery are something that needs to be evaluated and considered when determining how to respond to natural disasters."

"We don't want to see people having significant delays in getting aid," Young says. "There's been a push for a more proactive disaster policy and less just responding in the aftermath of the event."