Investigators from the University of Colorado-Denver (UCD), Inclusion Research Institute Inclusive Preparedness Center (IRI/IPC) and West Virginia University (WVU) were awarded a grant in 2009-2011 from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) to improve future planning and emergency preparedness activities by governmental and non-governmental organizations that provide assistance to persons with disabilities and their households during emergency and disaster evacuations.  

The purpose of this research is to collect data from people who have personal experience with disability, disaster and evacuation and to draft evidence-based guidance based on the findings of our research for use by emergency management, emergency responders, and disability providers from across the nation.  This study includes original survey and interview research with approximately 1200 persons with disabilities and members of their household and nearly 500 organizational representatives from disability provider organizations, faith-based groups, emergency management and responders in areas known to have recently experienced large-scale evacuation. 

Target hazard areas for this study have included wild fires in San Diego county, California (October 2007); a chemical industrial accident in Apex, North Carolina (October 2006); flooding in the St. Louis area in Missouri (March 2008) and several southern West Virginia counties (May 2009); hurricanes and flooding in Collier county, Florida (2004 and 2005), Orleans Parish, Louisiana (2005) and Jefferson county, Texas (2005). 

The outcomes of this study include:

• Individual-level findings on behaviors of people with disabilities in evacuation and disaster by geographic location, type of hazard, level and type of disability

• Organizational-level findings on behaviors of disability providers, faith-based, emergency management and responder organizations supporting evacuation and preparedness for persons with disabilities

• Promising practices from across the nation to support preparedness, response and recovery for persons with disabilities in evacuation and disaster

• GIS spatial mapping of disability needs and resources in areas vulnerable to large-scale disaster and evacuation

• Tabletops to test research findings in Washington, DC; West Virginia, Shreveport and New Orleans, Louisiana; and Oakland, California

• Guidance for disability providers, emergency management and emergency responders for supporting emergency preparedness and evacuation for persons with disabilities