A New Study on Risk Perception and Communication Amongst Coastal Emergency Managers is Released by Moore, Jean, Korfmacher, Bostrom, Errett, and Co-authors

Posted: 5/31/2024 (CSDE Research)

CSDE Affiliates Ann Bostrom (Public Policy & Governance) and Nicole Errett (Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences) co-authored new research in the International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, titled “Coastal emergency managers’ risk perception and decision making for the Tonga distant tsunami“. This article was lead-authored by Ashley Moore, a PhD student in Environmental Health Sciences, and involved several other UW trainees including recent postdoctoral scholar Cassandra Jean (Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences) and master’s student Matias Korfmacher (Public Health, Urban Planning). This study looked at coastal emergency managers’ risk perception and communications surrounding the distant tsunami caused by the 2022 Tonga volcano eruption. While emergency managers perceived tsunami risk to be low, they took precautionary measures and alerted the public. Study findings show that their actions were driven by community characteristics and anticipated reactions, in addition to unique aspects of the tsunami risk.