Preparing children for hurricanes

USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), May, 1993 by Fred Seligman

Invoking such a strategy before a hurricane strikes can provide for the following preventive mental health measures: Communities facing such a potential hit may counteract psychological denial that will tend to take place in the 48 hours prior to a potential direct hit by using media stars, politicians, and other people the specific population looks up to. Public service announcements with a heavy local flavor should saturate the airways. Personal videos and audio messages by the President prior to the hurricane would help reduce people's denial of the threat and allow them to take more effective action.

Every family should be encouraged to set up a buddy system with a family 250-300 miles away. Computer networks to match families can be developed and maintained by governmental agencies similar to organ donor networks. This buddy system can remain in effect after the hurricane, thus having people of several nearby communities involved in post-disaster support.

More organized efforts can be made to bring the reality of the hurricane's intensity to the public. A nation that can place astronauts on the moon and deploy troops quickly can do a better job of getting vehicles, specially equipped personnel, and remote-controlled high-tech cameras to regions prior to being hit, rather than relying on a local TV correspondent standing on a beach with an umbrella reporting the beginning fury of a storm.

Moreover, psychological aftereffects can be reduced in persons who choose to leave the storm area by providing them with ongoing information of the damage and effects of the storm. During Hurricane Andrew, although private radio and TV stations in Tampa and Atlanta carried live hookups with Miami, this was on a hit-and-miss basis and should be developed, fostered, and publicized as part of a community's psychological plan and not be left to chance.

As the hurricane season approaches, the family can begin discussing the pros and cons of making advanced hurricane arrangements. This is not always the obvious course of action, especially so when last year's efforts seem unnecessary in hindsight since its hurricanes veered off course. This is a good time to complete old business and close out unresolved feelings regarding the activities of the previous year. A child still may feel guilty because he or she did not handle his task well or harbor an unresolved fear or memory of a scary dream. Talking about such a feeling with others usually is sufficient to put it to final rest. This also may be the time to discuss the reasons why people respond in the strange ways they do. No planning at all may be a reaction to overwhelming overload and fear, similar to stage fright. Celebration can be likened to the psychological response of behaving exactly opposite to how one feels, such as people laughing and giggling when they are very nervous.

Planning for a hurricane can serve as a stepping stone to discussions of the broad scope of emergencies in general. In them, parents should be attentive to the fact that kids learn by example. Disciplined action tends to reduce anxiety and long-term guilt. The very act of parents trying to thwart potential peril gives children the important message that coping with risk best is dealt with by facing threats, not by denying their existence. Parents can point out that it is very common for people to handle danger by denying that it may take place. They can emphasize that, although it may be healthy to deal initially with an overwhelming danger in this way, it would be self-defeating to maintain this position indefinitely.