There is growing evidence that technological disasters can be triggered by natural disasters, and that these conjoint events (also known as na-techs) may pose tremendous risks to regions which are unprepared for such disasters. Steinberg and Cruz (2001) report on the August 17, 1999 earthquake in Turkey that resulted in the collapse of a concrete stack that, in turn, triggered an immense fire at an oil refinery. World-wide attention focused on the fire that burned for four days, necessitating the evacuation of thousands of residents living near the plant and threatening to spread to a nearby fertilizer plant. 200 metric tons of ammonia had to be intentionally released from a pressurized vessel in order to prevent an explosion at the fertilizer plant.

Due to urban sprawl there are many instances in the United States in which industrial plants, once located far from population centers, are now within close proximity to entire communities. As a result,  hazardous materials released from an industrial facility can now threaten the lives and health of large numbers of people.  While safety techniques have been developed and implemented to prevent or contain hazardous materials releases, they are typically not designed to accommodate releases that are triggered by, and are simultaneous with, natural disasters. The public safety concerns, therefore, posed by the juxtaposition of industry with urbanized areas are particularly problematic when the co-mingling occurs in geographic zones that are subject to natural hazards.

Recognizing the growing concern, the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana is conducting a national study to investigate the incidence of hazardous materials releases triggered by natural disasters, including their causes, consequences and emergency response efforts required to contain the releases. These releases are also known as "natech" disasters.

In a previous NSF study conducted by Drs. Pamela S. Showalter and Mary F. Myers of the Natural Hazards Research and Applications Center at the University of Colorado in Boulder, the occurrence of natechs in the 50 states between 1980-1989 was investigated. You are cordially invited to visit the following URL where there is a link to the entire report in PDF format:

http://www.colorado.edu/hazards/wp/wp78/wp78.html

The present survey will follow up on the work done by Showalter and Myers. The results of the survey will provide current data which can be used to design appropriate policy options to prepare and mitigate against natechs. The results of the study will be posted at this website (URL http://www.tulane.edu/%7Ecivil/hazards/index.html) when the study is completed.

The survey has four sections. Please pay particular attention to Section 1, as this is the core of the study. In this section, we ask you to provide data regarding natechs which have occurred in your state since 1990. Section 2 asks about how your state records information about natechs; Section 3 asks how your state seeks to prevent and mitigate natechs; and Section 4 asks you to identify those factors which you believe limit state-wide prevention and preparedness activities for natechs.

Thank you for taking the time to respond.

For additional information you can contact:

Dr. Laura J. Steinberg                                       Dr. Ana Maria Cruz
lauras@tulane.edu                                            acruz@tulane.edu