title: Monitoring unmet needs: using 2-1-1 during natural disasters.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck the Gulf Coast forcing unprecedented mass evacuation and devastation. Texas 2-1-1 is a disaster communication hub between callers with unmet needs and community services at disaster sites and evacuation destinations.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To describe the location and timing of unmet disaster needs collected in real-time through Katrina-Rita disaster phases.
  
  
  METHODS
  In 2008-2010, a total of 25 data sets of Texas 2-1-1 calls from August-December 2005 were recoded and merged. In 2011-2012, analysis was performed of unmet need types, with comparisons over time and location; mapping was adjusted by population size.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of 635,983 total 2-1-1 calls during the study period, 65% included primary disaster unmet needs: housing/shelter (28%); health/safety (18%); food/water (15%); transportation/fuel (4%). Caller demand spiked on Mondays, decreasing to a precipitous drop on weekends and holidays. Unmet needs surged during evacuation and immediate disaster response, remaining at higher threshold through recovery. Unmet need volume was concentrated in metropolitan areas. After adjusting for population size, "hot-spots" showed in smaller evacuation destinations and along evacuation routes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  New disaster management strategies and policies are needed for evacuation destinations to support extended evacuation and temporary or permanent relocation. Planning and monitoring disaster resources for unmet needs over time and location could be targeted effectively using real-time 2-1-1 call patterns. Smaller evacuation communities were more vulnerable, exhausting their limited resources more quickly. Emergency managers should devise systems to more quickly authorize vouchers and reimbursements. As 2-1-1s expand and coordinate disaster roles nationwide, opportunities exist for analysis of unmet disaster needs to improve disaster management and enhance community resiliency.
authors.affiliation: Department of Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-3137, USA. sbame@tamu.edu
authors.forename: Sherry I
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Bame
authors.forename: Kay
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Parker
authors.forename: Jee Young
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Alexandria
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Norman
authors.forename: Dayna
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Finley
authors.forename: Atmaja
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Desai
authors.forename: Abha
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Grover
authors.forename: Courtney
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Payne
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Garza
authors.forename: Ashley
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shaw
authors.forename: Robyn
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bell-Shaw
authors.forename: Tasha
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Harrison
authors.forename: Rhonda
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dunn
authors.forename: Pratik
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mhatre
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Shaw
authors.forename: Chester
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Robinson
mesh_terms: D001566:Benzocaine; D003142:Communication; D004189:Disaster Planning / Q000458:organization & administration*; D004190:Disasters; D060447:Emergency Shelter / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006801:Humans; D007255:Information Services / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013689:Telephone; D013781:Texas; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D001566:Benzocaine