Living out of a duffel bag or suitcase in an evacuation center is disruptive, stressful and depressing. Riding out a deadly storm amid screaming winds, pounding waves and rising waters, or escaping as danger closes in is terrifying and traumatic. “There’s times when there are these little glimmers or slivers of hope. On Pine Island, just off the Florida mainland where Ian first struck, an emotional Alan Bickford said he was trying to take a longer view because what lay before him was bleak: the floors of his home were coated in stinky muck and his yard was littered with framed photos, furniture and other items he'd hauled outside. The vast majority of people, though, were still assessing damage, trying to retrieve and dry out possessions worth keeping and drag what couldn't be saved to growing trash heaps by the side of the road.
Hatch’s organization was going to some homes in hard-hit areas to check on clients with mental illness. The state of Florida was setting up support centers and the federal government has a 24-hour disaster distress helpline to provide counseling and crisis support. Those with existing mental disorders are at greater risk of having those conditions exacerbated by the trauma.Ī variety of help is available as additional resources are sent to the area.
Post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety rise along with substance abuse. Research has shown that between a third and half of those who survive a disaster develop some type of mental distress, said Jennifer Horney, an epidemiology professor at the University of Delaware who studies natural disaster impacts on public health. The storm knocked out power to 2.6 million and caused billions of dollars in damage. Even a week after it passed through, officials warned that more victims could yet be found as they continued to inspect the damage. It killed more than 100 people, the majority of victims in Florida, making it the third-deadliest storm to hit the U.S. It later cut a watery and wind-battered swath across the Florida peninsula before turning out to sea to regain strength and pummel South Carolina. With sustained winds of 150 mph (240 kph), it was one of the strongest hurricanes to ever hit southwest Florida. Hurricane Ian hammered Florida with such ferocity that it wiped out whole neighborhoods, tossed boats onto highways, swept away beaches and swamped homes in roof-deep waters. “They need that hand-holding and they need to know that there’s so many people here to help them.” “When someone’s in a state of trauma that so many are in, they don’t know where to begin,” said Beth Hatch, CEO of the Collier County, Florida, branch of the National Alliance of Mental Illness. More pressing needs for food, shelter and clothing often take priority to seeking counseling, which is in short supply even in good times. The emotional toll in the days, weeks and months after a hurricane, flood or wildfire can be crippling.