Beyond rural: A time-based measure for urban, rural, remote, and geographically isolated response

In disaster doctrine, urban and rural definitions are typically based on population size and distance (kilometers or miles) from urban, road-accessible locations. Associated guidelines and assumptions are challenging to apply for islands and off-the-road locations. Disaster response models have become stagnant despite advances in transportation modes and climate change adaptations. With no consistent definition of rural, a gap exists on what is considered remote and the reality of being geographically isolated. Proposed here are time-based guidelines on four geographic settings correlated to the arrival of the initial disaster emergency response at a location deemed "urban" as under 10 minutes, "rural" under an hour, "remote" under 24 hours, and "geographically isolated" over 24 hours.