Examining the Potential Impacts of Social Vulnerability on Damage Levels in Areas Affected by Hurricane Harvey

Abstract To our knowledge, this is one of the pioneering studies that examined the associations between changes in different dimensions of social vulnerability from 2000 to 2016 on damage levels resulting from Hurricane Harvey. The empirical work was based on data obtained from the FEMA Modeled Building Damage Assessments Harvey 20170829 and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR)’s Geospatial Research, Analysis & Services Program (GRASP). Results from linear mixed effects modeling and the spatial error and CAR models suggested that damage level was determined by certain aspects of social vulnerability; the level of damage increased with inundation depth, population aging, and the proportion of minority population. Efforts to promote resilience in natural disasters should focus on individuals living in areas characterized by increases in population aging and minority population. Results also revealed that certain processes associated with economic growth and urban development might affect an area’s resilience and susceptibility to natural disasters and the processes associated with disaster response and mitigation.