Elderly Americans & Natural Disasters
Elderly Americans & Natural Disasters by Rob Gaudet
The convergence of an aging population and increasing weather disasters is a unique unfolding humanitarian crisis in the United States. Our country has more citizens than any time in history with the baby boomer generation and the silent generation representing over 100 million people in our country today. 50% of American citizens with homes damaged after a disaster will be at serious risk of experiencing a long term crisis. This is a 30 year problem as Generation X is the second largest generation with 65 million Americans.
Disaster impact is not equal.
The elderly experience unique challenges with recovery that younger generations and the American public take for granted. The elderly experience social isolation, chronic health conditions, fixed incomes, technology challenges and decreased mobility that leave them with little hope for a speedy recovery. Local social safety nets, community organizations, churches and nonprofits are seldom the solution. Infrastructure for these organizations are often also damaged so they cannot help quickly. Employees or members of the organizations have often never dealt with a weather disaster and can find themselves recovering or helping their own existing community. And among these groups, there is little appetite for adopting the long term work required when the visceral reality of the grueling ongoing work of helping others recover from the tragedy unfolding in their community takes them away from their families, careers and pursuits.
The social isolation factor alone is the most troubling consideration preventing fast help and ongoing relief.
When we’re in trouble, who shows up to help?
Help usually comes from our friends. A strong network of friends and their acquaintances is one of the most predictable factors for a fast recovery. Unfortunately, the elderly have far fewer, if any close friends and few have communities of support. Social isolation is societal and mother nature induced. It’s caused by their friends or spouses aging or passing away and their own chronic health problems which keeps them home. The elderly are often no longer employed, so no co-workers, families often live far away or don’t have means to help. Reduced mobility is also a problem as driving or walking is difficult is a large aspect that significantly decreases human interactions.
Two factors are bringing the problem into focus today.
Quickly growing number of aging citizens. From 1980 to 2023 citizens over age 65 grew by 184% percent. Billion dollar weather events have increased 667% percent since 1980.
Citizens over age 65 from 1980 to 2023.In 1980 – 25.5 million elderlyIn 2023 – 72.6 million elderly | Count of billion dollar disasters from 1980 to 2023.In 1980 – there were 3 billion dollar disastersIn 2023 – there were 23 billion dollar disasters |
*Citizen and disaster growth numbers from Census.gov and Climate.gov from 1980 to today.
Disaster recovery is bottom up, you are in charge of your own recovery.
Disaster recovery requires complete involvement from the victim. We each manage our own relief efforts. When homes are damaged and citizens have to take on a whole new set of problems such as dealing with insurance, FEMA or looking for handouts from non-profits while living in a tent, car, hotel or in the spare bedroom of a family member, elderly are left with little hope.
What is the Solution?
An organized movement of good citizens ready to help and programs for effectively engaging large numbers of volunteers.
Cajun Navy Ground Force has developed five programs to address these problems. These programs easily scale when called for and can deliver a massive movement of relief.
- SAFE Camp – Swift Action Force Emergency Camp. A safe place to provide human services.
- Community Caretaking – Outreach teams delivering a countless range of creative vital services.
- Data Driven Remote Team – Managed oversight to everything that’s happening on the ground.
- Visual Storytelling – Drives efficiency through volunteer engagement and donation requests.
- Swift Intervention Training – Leaders are trained and ready to direct large numbers of volunteers.
Vision: To be a data-driven action oriented 501c3 non-profit that swiftly intervenes and delivers sustained long term relief by creating a massive community response organized to protect and stabilize elderly and disabled victims living in communities impacted by natural disaster.
Mission: Develop a trained core team that manages large numbers of volunteers with appropriate skills to provide a full range of physical and emotional care for citizens in distress.
Goals:
- Drive efficiency that turns $1 into $12 through massive volunteer engagement and in-kind product donations.
- Swift intervention by evaluating and tracking every victim for shelter in place and into case management within two weeks after a disaster.
- Sustained relief by reducing the human impact quickly and pre-staging engaged volunteers through a committed volunteer movement.
You can get behind our mission by volunteering or supporting us.