DRC in the Media

The University of Delaware’s Disaster Research Center is home to renowned experts who share insights from their research to better understand breaking news, developing events, and the complex conditions that lead to disaster. Offering a broad range of disciplinary perspectives and expertise, they have been cited in such outlets as the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times. Discover what our experts have to say:

DRC in the Media

FEATURED DRC MEDIA PLACEMENTS

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Health Risks Are Rising in Mountain Areas Flooded by Hurricane Helene and Cut Off From Clean Water, Power and Hospitals

EXPERT: Sarabeth Baxter Lowe
 
FEATURED IN: The Conversation — Tuesday, October 1, 2024
 
OVERVIEW: Hurricane Helene’s flooding has subsided, but health risks are growing in hard-hit regions of the North Carolina mountains, where many people lost . . . access to power and clean water. …
 
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Planning Now for the Disasters of Tomorrow

EXPERT: Jennifer M Trivedi
 
FEATURED IN: UDaily — Saturday, August 10, 2024
 
OVERVIEW: “Disasters know no boundary lines. Floods, earthquakes, wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes, drought, conflict — they happen anywhere and everywhere on . . . our planet. It’s why the University of Delaware’s Disaster Research Center (DRC) has a global reach, and it’s why that reach has global impact. You could see both DRC’s reach and impact during a daylong workshop for graduate students, held during its 60th anniversary celebration earlier this year. The study and work those students were doing will help policy makers and leaders around the world prepare for disasters of the future.”…
 
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How heat and a hurricane combined for misery in Houston

EXPERT: Jennifer M Trivedi
 
FEATURED IN: E&E News by Politico — Friday, July 19, 2024
 
OVERVIEW: “Compound disasters such as hurricanes and heat waves are increasingly testing Texas and other states along the Gulf of Mexico, said Jennifer Trivedi, . . . an expert on disaster vulnerability at the University of Delaware. […]”

“‘There’s a phrase people use: “There’s’ no such thing as a natural disaster,”‘ Trivedi said. ‘Really what we mean by that is there is always some sort of human intervention, human decision-making, human structures that are shaping the systems that really ramp a hazard into a disaster.’ […]”

“At the same time, experts say equitable citywide access to cooling centers and other emergency resources is crucial for protecting vulnerable populations when the lights do go out. And, in the long term, building up climate resilience in socially vulnerable communities is key to better outcomes when disasters strike. ‘It really is an equity question,’ Trivedi said. ‘That’s something that has to be part of these conversations.’ […]”
 
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Journalists interested in interviewing our experts?
Call 1-302-NEWS or email us at mediarelations@udel.edu

DRC MEDIA PLACEMENTS: 233


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Delaware officials on lookout as variant invades U.S.

EXPERT: Jennifer Horney
FEATURED IN: Bay to Bay News — Monday, January 25, 2021
OVERVIEW:
 
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Advocacy groups call for including Type 1 diabetes among prioritized vaccine recipients

EXPERT: Jennifer Horney
FEATURED IN: The Hill — Thursday, January 21, 2021
OVERVIEW: Jennifer Horney, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Delaware, said a reason why Type 1 diabetes may not have been initially considered as an underlying condition is because of the other health effects of Type 2 that have garnered more attention from the medical community.
 
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EXPERT: Tricia Wachtendorf
FEATURED IN: Florida News Station: My News 13 — Wednesday, January 13, 2021
OVERVIEW: “You gain trust in drops and lose it in buckets,” – DRC director Tricia Wachtendorf on COIVD-19 missteps on communication and the challenges that lie ahead when another disaster strikes.
 
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Older and less healthy

EXPERT: Tricia Wachtendorf
FEATURED IN: Healthline — Wednesday, January 13, 2021
OVERVIEW: “Less dense areas might be at an advantage compared to geographic areas that are more densely populated, and they may also be less connected to some areas where there’s a concentrated case,” Wachtendorf said. …
 
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Local response to chaos at the capitol

EXPERT: Tricia Wachtendorf
FEATURED IN: ABC 6 Action News — Tuesday, January 12, 2021
OVERVIEW: Matt O’ Donnell spoke with Tricia Wachtendorf University of Delaware’s Director of Disaster Research and Professor of Sociology & Criminal Justice. They discuss how major catastrophes (COVID, weather events, insurgence,) expose other major issues & can spur tremendous change in society.
 
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Genie Chance Alaska Earthquake

EXPERT: Tricia Wachtendorf
FEATURED IN: The New York Times — Thursday, December 31, 2020
OVERVIEW:
 
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Genie Chance and the Great Alaska Earthquake: An Update

EXPERT: Tricia Wachtendorf
FEATURED IN: The New York Times: The Daily — Thursday, December 31, 2020
OVERVIEW:
 
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Eliminate Billion-Dollar Disasters: Equitable Science-Based Disaster Policy for a Resilient Future

EXPERT: A.R. Siders
FEATURED IN: dayoneproject.org — Thursday, December 3, 2020
OVERVIEW: Dr. A.R. Siders’s has been working with two faculty at the University of Maryland to write up a short policy brief on how the Biden Administration could overhaul disaster policy in the US to make it more equitable and transparent. Their recommendations are being released online and are in the short document available for download on the website.
 
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Entangled Roots and Otherwise Possibilities: An Anthropology of Disasters COVID-19 Research Agenda

EXPERT: Jennifer Trivedi
FEATURED IN: — Wednesday, December 2, 2020
OVERVIEW:
 
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Disasters Leave a Rise in Suicides in Their Wake: Study

EXPERT: Jennifer Horney
FEATURED IN: U.S. News — Friday, November 20, 2020
OVERVIEW: Researchers found that the severe emotional distress and anxiety for those who have lived through major disasters can also lead to suicide. “That finding is important, I think, because those could be preventable deaths with better disaster preparedness and response,” said study author Jennifer Horney, founding director of the epidemiology program in the College of Health Sciences at the University of Delaware.
 
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DRC MEDIA PLACEMENTS: 233

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Southbridge residents call for equal investment in $100M Riverfront East plan

EXPERT: Victor Perez
FEATURED IN: The News Journal — Tuesday, August 3, 2021
OVERVIEW:
 
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As workers move back into the office, dogs are left alone and anxious, but there are ways to ease the transition

EXPERT: Sarah Elizabeth DeYoung
FEATURED IN: UDaily — Wednesday, July 21, 2021
OVERVIEW: When the coronavirus pandemic upended the United States, among other nations, a silver lining emerged: America’s dogs were really, really happy. Seeking connection during an isolating time, people rescued so many homeless mutts, shelters began running out. With their guardians homebound, these pooches experienced regular snuggling, belly rubbing and behind-the-ear scratching. …
 
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EXPERT:
FEATURED IN: Opinion Guest Essay | The New York Times — Friday, July 16, 2021
OVERVIEW:
 
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Highly contagious COVID Delta variant in NJ: What you need to know

EXPERT: Jennifer Horney
FEATURED IN: northjersey.com — Friday, June 25, 2021
OVERVIEW: “Delta is not much of a risk for those who are fully vaccinated,” said Jennifer Horney, director of the epidemiology program at the University of Delaware. “However, if we consider only the unvaccinated population, they will certainly see an increase in infections and hospitalizations.”
 
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How many people in PA got vaccinated and still got COVID-19? The state isn’t counting

EXPERT: Jennifer Horney
FEATURED IN: The Philadelphia Inquirer — Friday, June 25, 2021
OVERVIEW: Philadelphia Inquirer, How many people in PA got vaccinated and still got COVID-19? The state isn’t counting, June 25, 2021 …
 
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EXPERT: Jennifer Horney
FEATURED IN: Philadelphia Inquirer — Thursday, June 24, 2021
OVERVIEW:
 
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Will state reach 70% vaccination benchmark?: As of Sunday, 68.9% have received at least one dose

EXPERT: Jennifer Horney
FEATURED IN: The News Journal — Tuesday, June 22, 2021
OVERVIEW: “I think COVID will very much still be with us, and it will particularly be high risk for those who are unvaccinated,” said Dr. Jennifer Horney, founding director of the University of Delaware’s epidemiology program. Delawareans hospitalized with COVID-19 are overwhelmingly unvaccinated, according to Division of Public Health data. Through Friday, the agency reported 383 COVID-19 cases among the state’s more than 400,000 fully vaccinated individuals. Of those cases, 18 were hospitalized.
 
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How natural immunity plays a role

EXPERT: Jennifer Horney
FEATURED IN: Healthline.com — Thursday, May 13, 2021
OVERVIEW: The inflection point will vary per state and even county depending on the level of natural immunity in the area, Gandhi said. In areas that were hit hard by COVID-19 and therefore have higher natural immunity levels, fewer people need to get vaccinated to reach an inflection point. In areas mostly spared by COVID-19, more people will need to get vaccinated to hit that infection point.

Also, there may have been many asymptomatic cases of COVID-19, says Jennifer Horney, PhD, a disaster epidemiologist and founding director of the University of Delaware’s epidemiology program. “We don’t know exactly what our total coverage is, it could be higher than we think,” she said.
 
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Suicide Rates May Rise After Natural Disasters

EXPERT: Jennifer Horney
FEATURED IN: Eos — Tuesday, January 26, 2021
OVERVIEW:
 
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Suicide Rates May Rise After Natural Disasters

EXPERT: Jennifer Horney
FEATURED IN: EOS Science News by AGU — Tuesday, January 26, 2021
OVERVIEW: Natural disasters can continue to cause pain long after homes have been rebuilt and businesses reopened. According to a recent U.S.-based study, rates of suicide increase somewhat during the first 3 years postdisaster. …
 
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