Controlled chaos: Examining collaborative response to the 2017 Hattiesburg Tornado

Area of Science:

• Disaster Management
• Community Resilience
• Organizational Networks

Background:

• Hattiesburg, Mississippi faced two tornadoes between 2013 and 2017.
• Understanding inter-organizational coordination in disaster response is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine changes in coordination between disaster events.
• To understand how collaborative management networks influence disaster response.

Main Methods:

• Purposive sampling of community members involved in both disaster responses.
• Interviews with representatives from diverse organizations.

Main Results:

• Four key findings on the use of collaborative management networks.
• Importance of coordination, communication facilitation, identification, and experience highlighted.
• Lessons learned from the 2013 tornado were retained and integrated into routine responses for 2017.

Conclusions:

• Collaborative networks enhance disaster response effectiveness.
• Retaining institutional memory and established networks improves crisis management.
• Experience and established coordination mechanisms lead to more efficient disaster recovery.