Disaster and Preparedness

Disasters, natural or human-induced, can be the result of natural forces or intentional and unintentional human actions. Obtaining an accurate count of disaster-related deaths is typically challenging because of:

• Inconsistent reporting of disaster-related deaths
• Difficulty generating reliable and accurate mortality statistics
• Difficulty identifying the most frequent causes of death associated with a disaster incident
• Difficulty estimating the disaster-related death toll

To address this gap, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has developed several resources and materials to guide and support state, tribal, local, and territorial public health partners on disaster-related mortality surveillance.