title: The public health impact of industrial disasters.
abstract: The recent Deepwater Horizon oil spill and Japanese earthquake/tsunami radiation disaster have increased public concerns regarding the public health impact of industrial disasters. Industrial disasters are known to impose a unique set of challenges for public health emergency response. There are critical gaps in scientific knowledge regarding assessment and control of public health disasters related to industrial releases of hazardous materials. There is also a fundamental lack of familiarity regarding industrial disasters among the public health and medical communities, in general. There are few sources in the current public health literature that review this disaster phenomenon in a comprehensive manner. This article offers a review of the public health impact and unique considerations related to industrial disasters.
authors.affiliation: Office of Terrorism Preparedness and Emergency Response, National Center of Environmental Health, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
authors.forename: Mark E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Keim
mesh_terms: D004190:Disasters; D004632:Emergency Medical Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D015386:Hazardous Substances / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D007221:Industry; D011634:Public Health
chemical_list: D015386:Hazardous Substances