Thursday, September 15, 2005

Hiding from Nature's Wrath: SFNE

According to a mildly scientific study conducted by Slate.com, when it comes to avoiding and surviving natural disasters, the safest area of the United States is, you (may not have) guessed it: New England.

After combing through a variety of data about hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, floods--and the accompanying death toll--on a state-by-state basis (and eliminating some states outright for their sheer proximity to danger, such as volcanoes), three New England states came out on top in terms of safety, at least when it comes to natural disaster:
Of the 18 states, only three had a fatality rate lower than 0.01 per thousand for the last decade: Connecticut (0.00587 per thousand), Massachusetts (0.00299), and Rhode Island (0.00286). These figures are somewhat surprising, given that all three of these New England states have ample coastlines and are thus susceptible to fierce storms. But they are also more immune to hurricanes than their southerly counterparts, virtually free of tornadoes, and blessed with relatively cool summers and winters that, although cold, aren't quite North Dakota cold. They're also affluent—all three boast family median incomes above the national average—and, as Hurricane Katrina reminded us, socioeconomics matter when it comes to preserving life during natural disasters.
And what area of the country turned out to be safest of all? Huskies unite: none other than Storrs, Connecticut:
It's a safe 50 miles from the sound and not close to any rivers. It also has relatively easy access to a major city (Hartford) in the event an evacuation or hospitalization becomes necessary.
Thanks to Michele for the link.

6 Comments:

Blogger Rebecca said...

My parents recently moved down to Florida and my mom was absolutely traumatized by the hurricanes and tornados that are plaguing the area. I said to her that I never understand why one would ever leave New England. Sure - the snow can be a pain, and the cold weather can last longer than we like, but nothing happens here that can kill you! We don't have tornados (once in a blue moon), our hurricanes are a joke - we don't have major fires, mudslides, volcanos, earthquakes - and snow certainly won't hurt you, although it's often inconvenient. My desperate attempts in trying to have her and my dad move back home when weather strikes their area aren't working though... Thanks for the post - I'm going to forward it to her for additional ammunition!

3:45 PM  
Blogger Rebecca said...

My parents recently moved down to Florida and my mom was absolutely traumatized by the hurricanes and tornados that are plaguing the area. I said to her that I never understand why one would ever leave New England. Sure - the snow can be a pain, and the cold weather can last longer than we like, but nothing happens here that can kill you! We don't have tornados (once in a blue moon), our hurricanes are a joke - we don't have major fires, mudslides, volcanos, earthquakes - and snow certainly won't hurt you, although it's often inconvenient. My desperate attempts in trying to have her and my dad move back home when weather strikes their area aren't working though... Thanks for the post - I'm going to forward it to her for additional ammunition!

3:45 PM  
Blogger Rebecca said...

My parents recently moved down to Florida and my mom was absolutely traumatized by the hurricanes and tornados that are plaguing the area. I said to her that I never understand why one would ever leave New England. Sure - the snow can be a pain, and the cold weather can last longer than we like, but nothing happens here that can kill you! We don't have tornados (once in a blue moon), our hurricanes are a joke - we don't have major fires, mudslides, volcanos, earthquakes - and snow certainly won't hurt you, although it's often inconvenient. My desperate attempts in trying to have her and my dad move back home when weather strikes their area aren't working though... Thanks for the post - I'm going to forward it to her for additional ammunition!

3:45 PM  
Blogger Tish Grier said...

I can tell you a little more about why Storrs, CT is such a safe place. To put it in simple terms, there's no there there! Zip, zero, nada, nothing! There are no cool people, there's nothing really to do, and the UConn campus is bloody awful to negotiate! Hartford is the most boring city on the Face of the Earth(next to Springfield, MA, which, as a city, really doesn't count.) If you look on Craigslist for Hartford, there is so much NOT going on in Hartford. It's an unbelievable bastion of boredom.

Unless you sell insurance.

It makes me wonder if a more tumultuous climate (or geography--think San Francisco) makes for more exciting people. I'm getting to where I'm ready to test the hypothesis.

10:59 AM  
Blogger Rebecca said...

I'm sorry - I don't know why my post showed up so many times on your site!!! :( How rude of my PC to hiccup on you like that!!!

7:59 AM  
Blogger Alison Rose said...

Rebecca--don't worry about it. That happens to the best of PCs!

Tish--don't leave Massachusetts! Just move east to the Boston area. We can be pretty exciting, let me tell ya!

10:08 AM  

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