The term disaster refers to one-time or ongoing events resulting from natural or human causes and may include events such as earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, terrorist attacks, or accidents.

According to world expert on disaster Fran H. Norris of Dartmouth University, what disasters have in common is their spontaneous nature, their ability to simultaneously impact many persons, and their ability to induce a variety of stressors to the individuals and communities they impact. Research from disasters has concluded that many disasters qualify as traumatic events, and victims of disasters have increased vulnerability for short-term or long-lasting mental health difficulties. Although disasters may impact anyone, with over 100 million individuals identified as member of ethnic and racial minority groups in the United States, ethnicity, race, and ...

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