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Persons
with Disabilities Speak
Out (1) |
One
in five Americans lives with a disability. 1
Each month one or more communities, which include residents with disabilities
are working to recover from a natural or man-made disaster.
2
“Each
disaster compounds the day-to-day difficulties of seniors, people with
disabilities, and people with special needs,” says the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) 3.
“With every disaster, persons with disabilities are overlooked,” states
Mike Collins, Executive Director, California State Independent Living
Council. “Disaster planning is something we talk about, but never plan
for regarding persons with disabilities,” agrees Marcie Davis, President
Davis Innovations, and wheelchair user. Now is the time for persons
with disabilities to Speak Out!
Survey
Respondents
| 
Andrea Booher/FEMA |
All across the U.S., persons with mobility limitations are speaking
out about their personal experiences with disasters via an
on-line survey http://www.nobodyleftbehind.org/survey/.
The goal of this effort is to help shape the future of disaster
and emergency planning and response! |
The
following stories have been gathered from the survey participants:
“The able-bodied community MUST get the message that it is critical
to think through and develop a plan to evacuate people with disabilities.”-
New York,
NY
“It is really difficult to get the utility company to understand power
is a need, if disabled.” – Severe Storms, Knoxville, TN
“We had to move out of our house for several weeks to have it repaired.
All the places that people referred us to were not accessible to me
in my scooter.” – Earthquake,
Los Angeles, CA
“I ambulate with forearm crutches and my leg stamina is limited. As
a social service provider in NYC, I am in tall buildings often and one
in particular they had an evacuation drill. There were no plans or equipment
to assist me. They told me to ignore the drill. I felt very vulnerable
because I attend regular work meetings in this building.” – New
York City
After
a hurricane, “I did not use the shelters, because they were not wheelchair
accessible, and had no provisions for my service dog.” – Miami,
FL
 |
“I
have Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis and use a wheel chair.
We had a bomb threat at work, which was very scary. Everyone
evacuated, but I was still left on the 3rd floor by
the stairwell for the firefighters to come get me. But, no one
came. Finally, I just struggled, and I used pure fear to
get myself down the stairs and outside. It was scary just to
realize that there are not really any procedures in place to help
someone like me in an emergency.” |
My
wheelchair ramp washed away in a flood and my house was left with three
feet of mud everywhere. It was hard to use my electric wheelchair.
I had money to pay for a ramp, but couldn’t hire any one, as they were
busy elsewhere.” – Texas
“We
had a fire at work and the evacuation plan didn’t work to get me out.
Even so, management refused to change the plan” - Oklahoma
At
the temporary shelter I couldn’t get to the bathrooms, as you had to
walk up stairs. – Northridge,
CA
“The disaster volunteer was not trained on accessibility issues. He
said that the shelters should be accessible since the law requires it.
He didn't understand the impact of me getting there only to discover
that they were in violation of the law”- Hurricane, Alexandria, VA
“My
only accessible route was on fire at my home. I had to escape via a
non-accessible route. The fire destroyed our home.”- Hagerstown,
VA
“Disabled persons have the same freedom of choice as any other American.
The paternalistic attitude was frightening beyond belief that I experienced
[while trying to access after disaster services and information].” –
Earthquake,
Glendora, CA
California
SILC Wildfire Forums
| 
Paul S. Grupp |
At
public forums in California persons with disabilities and seniors
who had experienced the worst wildfire disaster in our nation’s
history in 2003 shared their stories. |
The
following excerpt from the California forums report describe the shortcomings
in preparation, notification, evacuation, sheltering and recovery that
adversely impacted persons with disabilities. For purposes of
this web page, only the issues impacting persons with mobility impairments
are listed. The report titled, “Issue
Brief: The Impact of 2003 Wildfires on People with Disabilities” is
published by the California State Independent Living Council, and
can be obtained at www.calsilc.org.
“The final toll
on the state and the people who live here was horrendous. During
the fires, which totaled 19 throughout the state, more than 730,000
acres were burned, over 36,000 homes were destroyed, 22 people were
killed, more than 200 more were injured, and over 500 farms and commercial
properties were significantly damaged. Many pets and livestock also
perished in the fires, and those loss estimates vary from hundreds to
the thousands.”4
 “People
with disabilities were especially hard hit by these disasters as many
of those individuals were unable to evacuate themselves, see approaching
danger, or hear announcements to evacuate.”
“People
who relied on specialized medication and who did not have prescriptions
or a supply with them were placed in danger due to medical conditions.”
“Many
individuals who require mobility aids to walk or move themselves were
evacuated without those items.” For residents of two skilled nursing
facilities who were transferred to a shelter setting, they were restricted
to their beds until volunteers could carry them to the restrooms when
needed.
“Evacuation
plans did not include vehicles that could also transport wheelchairs
and walkers so evacuees with disabilities could maneuver in whatever
environment they were placed in, without assistance.”
| 
Paul S. Grupp |
“The
local Red Cross volunteers received praise for their efforts in
this disaster, but in many cases the shelters were inaccessible
to people with mobility disabilities and those who use service
animals were not initially allowed to bring their animals with
them into the shelters.” |
“Emergency
telephone access was provided through prior arrangements with a vendor
that utilized a special trailer that had no telephones located within
the reach ranges of people using wheelchairs, …”
“Limited
availability of contractors to make home repairs or construct new homes
has been especially difficult for people who require different levels
of accessibility. Specialized contractors may not be available,
and their work backlog could extend for months or years. For the
person who is unable to access most of the available stock of housing
due to a mobility impairment, this is a critical issue.”
Footnotes:
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