High Levels of Anxiety are Found Among Children and Families in the Gulf Region Impacted by Oil Spill Disaster
August 3rd, 2010

Two months after the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion caused the oil spill now globally acknowledged as the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history, the residents of the Gulf region immediately impacted are exhibiting dramatically high levels of anxiety, both among adults and children, about the future health and well-being of the region.

The National Center for Disaster Preparedness / Children’s Health Fund survey reveals deep concerns about the entire region.

  • New York Times: Survey Finds Broad Anxiety Among Gulf Residents
  • Huffington Post: Oil Spill Media Access: Reporters Still Given The Runaround Even As Public Health Concerns Mount
  • CBS Evening News: Irwin Redlener, MD, conducts focus groups with Gulf Coast kids and discusses public health challenges with Katie Couric.
  • Assessing the Human Health Effects of the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill: An Institute of Medicine Workshop: New Orleans, LA: June 22, 2010:
    • – Irwin Redlener, MD speaks about the impact of health and vulnerabilities on children.
    • Panel discussion featuring Irwin Redlener, MD – ‘The Need to Know: What are the Potential Delayed and Long-term Effects on Human Health?’
    • David Abramson, PhD discusses strategies to engage the public and protect health.
    • Also featured in Time Magazine | Bloomberg News | PBS Newshour
  • Irwin Redlener, MD, interviewed on CNN’s the Situation Room, with Wolf Blitzer, May 27, 2010: Worst Oil Disaster in U.S. History? Click here for the transcript.
  • Professor Jeffrey Sachs: Obama’s Crude Awakening – The New York Daily News, June 6
  • Infrared Over the Oil Spill – CBS Evening News, May 28

To volunteer or report an oiled shoreline, call the Deepwater Horizon Response Volunteer Request Line at: 1-866-448-5816

Wildlife – to report and access care for impacted wildlife: 1-866-557-1401

Deepwater Horizon Response Contacts

The Gulf Coast’s Future:

The National Center for Disaster Preparedness is currently working with the Earth Institute of Columbia University to plan, convene and host a 2010 conference in New Orleans on the population impacts of the oil spill along with the impact of climate change and other factors on the stability of the region.

NCDP is also in the early stages of planning a population impact study of the oil spill on Gulf Coast communities, with an emphasis on children and families.

How big is the oil spill? Compare it to your own municipality.