Health Impacts of Flooding

Flooding worldwide accounted for four of the top ¥ve deadliest natural disasters in 2007 (Subbarao, Bostick, and James, 2008). The aggregate impact of Ÿooding has a very wide scope and can affect food supplies and the economy months later, and subsequently can have a long-term impact on health (Subbarao et al., 2008). The potential for Ÿooding to cause harm to human lives and health is great. Recent events remind us that harm occurred within England and Wales during the 2007 Ÿoods (Pitt, 2008), and 5.1 Introduction. ……………………………………………………………………………………… 53 5.2 De¥nitions of Flooding for Health Use. ………………………………………………… 55 5.3 Epidemiology of the Health Impacts of Flooding. ………………………………….. 56 5.4 Health Impacts. ………………………………………………………………………………….. 57 5.4.1 Mortality. ……………………………………………………………………………….. 57 5.4.2 Injury. ……………………………………………………………………………………. 59 5.4.3 Infections. ………………………………………………………………………………. 61 5.4.3.1 Vector-Borne Disease. ………………………………………………… 61 5.4.3.2 Water-Borne Disease. …………………………………………………. 61 5.4.3.3 Food-Borne Disease. …………………………………………………… 62 5.4.4 Chemical Hazards……………………………………………………………………. 62 5.4.4.1 Carbon Monoxide. ……………………………………………………… 62 5.4.4.2 Chemical Pollution in Floodwater. ……………………………….. 62 5.4.5 Mental Health. …………………………………………………………………………64 5.5 Vulnerability and Speci¥c Groups Focusing on Chronic Disease Sufferers. ……………………………………………………………………………………………65 5.5.1 Vulnerability. …………………………………………………………………………..66 5.5.2 Speci¥c Groups Focusing on Chronic Disease Sufferers. ……………… 67 5.6 Health Facilities and Services. ……………………………………………………………..68 5.7 Public Health and Emergencies. ……………………………………………………………69 5.8 Conclusions. ………………………………………………………………………………………. 70 References. ………………………………………………………………………………………………… 71 more recently at Cockermouth, in northwestern England, in November 2009-and at the time of writing, already in 2010, in France and in many other areas of the world including the United States, Brazil, India, Czech Republic, and Pakistan.