A Place-Based Analysis of Tornado Activity and Casualties in Shreveport, Louisiana

Abstract

Tornadoes are among the most violent hazards in the world capable of producing mass casualties. Much of what is known about the relationship between tornadoes and casualties—injuries and fatalities—is driven by quantitative methods that often omit individual community factors. In response, here we present a place-based analysis of tornado activity and casualties in Shreveport, Louisiana. Results show that tornado casualties are more likely in smooth and lower topography and in formally redlined neighborhoods. Results also indicate that areas around the local Barksdale Air Force Base have experienced fewer casualties than other parts of the city since the installation of a Doppler Radar in 1995 and that Shreveport has a greatly reduced casualty rate since the Super Outbreak of 2011. We argue that continued place-based approaches are necessary for an understanding of the multi-dimensional, structural, and historical legacies that produce disproportionate impacts to environmental hazards and that when combined with quantitative methods, place-based approaches have the potential to create regional-or-local intervention strategies that can reduce the loss of life.