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Darwin Cyclone: An Exploration of Disaster Behaviour
Author(s) -
Webber D. L.
Publication year - 1976
Publication title -
australian journal of social issues
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.417
H-Index - 30
eISSN - 1839-4655
pISSN - 0157-6321
DOI - 10.1002/j.1839-4655.1976.tb01254.x
Subject(s) - cyclone (programming language) , darwin (adl) , project commissioning , publishing , history , criminology , forensic engineering , psychology , engineering , political science , law , systems engineering , field programmable gate array , embedded system
Events associated with the Cyclone Tracy strike at Darwin on 25 December 1974 are described. With the loss of 49 lives, a further 16 persons missing and presumed dead, and hundreds injured, this became Australia's greatest national disaster to date. A total breakdown in facilities occurred. The responses of people before, during and after the cyclone are examined. Problems associated with social breakdown, spontaneous community efforts to deal with this and individual emotional problems are highlighted. A distinction between the trauma of the cyclone and that of the evacuation is made. The apparent inability of Australians to concede that disasters have emotional as well as social and physical consequences is looked at.