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May 16, 2007 -- A new poll shows most Americans are prepared to deal with a natural disaster and believe their local hospitals and emergency service providers are, too. But few put the same faith in the federal government should a flood, tornado, fire, or other disaster occur.
The Gallup poll shows six in 10 Americans say they’re personally ready to handle a natural disaster with the recommended emergency supplies stockpiled at home. A similar number also say their local hospital, fire departments, police, and other first responders are ready.
But only three in 10 say they believe the federal government would be prepared to deal with the effects of a natural disaster.
Researchers attribute this negative assessment to the memories of government’s poor response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and overall low approval ratings for the president and Congress.
The poll, conducted April 13-15 among a random sample of 1,007 American adults, shows people who live in areas where natural disasters frequently strike, such as the tornado-stricken Midwest and hurricane-prone South, are more likely to say they’re prepared for disaster.
Researchers found 67% of Southerners and 62% of Midwesterners said their families were ready to deal with a natural disaster in their local community, compared with 56% of those in the West and 54% of those in the Northeast.
Southerners were also more likely to report having each of the following six recommended emergency items on hand in case of disaster:
When it came to assessing the federal government’s ability to respond to disaster, only 20% of Democrats, 27% of Independents, and 49% of Republicans thought the national government was ready to deal with natural disasters.