“The most common goal of the emergency agencies [during hurricanes] is to evacuate people from the affected region in the least amount of time,” says Eren Ozguven, director of the FSU RIDER Center. He and other FSU researchers concluded emergency managers should also consider mental and physical demands evacuees deal with.

"It’s important to think about the human factors of evacuation, especially in Florida, where many…evacuees may be older adults,” says psychologist Walter Boot, also of FSU. The researchers developed models to help emergency managers account for vulnerable populations’ needs. “Thinking about their particular needs can allow for less stressful evacuations, and that ultimately saves lives,” says Ozguven.

• Eren Ozguven