Running Head: DISASTER RECOVERY CHALLENGES FOR NEW IMMIGRANTS

Disaster Recovery Challenges and Solutions for New Immigrants
Melodie Hutmacher: #J0005871
ESMS4900-Capstone
JIBC
Instructor—Sarah Waring
Advisor—Beth Larcombe
April 8, 2017

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Abstract
New immigrants and refugees struggle with many challenges during their settlement in a
new country of residence. Often, such challenges include becoming acquainted with a foreign
country’s customs, cultures, official language, and overall environment. For some, they must
also struggle with mental health issues after suffering trauma in their homeland. With so many
challenges being faced on a daily basis, settling in can take several months, if not years.
If dealing with the stress and anxiety of settling into a new home in a new land is not
stressful enough, add to that the trauma experienced for those that must also deal with disaster
recovery. During this phase of a disaster event, new immigrants and refugees will experience
many barriers that create a slowed recovery period and increased anxiety level. The three main
categories under which barriers can be classified include financial barriers, cultural and linguistic
barriers, and mental health barriers. These barriers will not only significantly hinder the recovery
process for new immigrants and refugees, but also place extra stresses on themselves and their
families, as well as create an extended burden and strain upon available recovery resources (e.g.,
charitable, service, and government organizations). These barriers will also slow the
community’s recovery overall. To that end, this paper examines those barriers, as well as
solutions or recommendations to alleviate them, so that emergency managers can implement
workable strategies and solutions into disaster recovery plans.

Keywords: disaster recovery, immigrants, refugees, cultural barriers, language barriers

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Table of Contents
Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 2
Background and Purpose ................................................................................................................ 4
Methodology ................................................................................................................................... 5
List of Keywords and Subject Terms.......................................................................................... 6
Final Selection of Literature ....................................................................................................... 8
Discussion of Findings .................................................................................................................... 8
Financial Barriers ........................................................................................................................ 9
Cultural and Linguistic Barriers................................................................................................ 11
Mental Health Barriers and Fear ............................................................................................... 14
Evaluation and Recommendations for Corrective Action ............................................................ 15
Gaps .............................................................................................................................................. 20
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 22
References ..................................................................................................................................... 24

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Disaster Recovery Challenges and Solutions for New Immigrants
Background and Purpose
For new immigrants and refugees (those that have resided in their new country of
residence for five years or less), becoming acquainted with a foreign country’s customs, cultures,
official language, and overall environment can be a challenging and stressful experience,
especially when also dealing with discrimination and/or underemployment (Simich, 2010). For
some, there is the added disadvantage in dealing with mental health issues after suffering
traumas in the homeland due to war, torture, and organized violence (Lafreniere & Diallo, 2010).
Because of such challenges, it can take several months to settle into a new and foreign home; at
times, it can take years (Simich, 2010).
Adapting to such a wide range of changes and challenges in everyday life is stressful and
difficult enough, but imagine the added difficulties in attempting to navigate the process of
disaster recovery when significant barriers are encountered: the local language is barely
understood—if at all—local customs seem alien, finances are low, available resources are
unknown, and perceptions of government or authoritative officials may include fear and mistrust.
With such barriers in place, new immigrants or refugees will take longer to recover from
disaster, which places extra stresses on themselves and their families, as well as creates an
extended burden and a strain upon available recovery resources (e.g., charitable, service, and
government organizations). Such barriers also slow the community’s recovery overall. Given
this, what can emergency managers do to help prepare for and mitigate those challenges and
barriers experienced by new immigrants and refugees to facilitate a faster, and less stressful,
disaster recovery?

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Methodology
Search criteria to identify relevant literature for study was difficult to pinpoint as there
are many ways to describe a person that has moved to a new country where the native language
differs from the language of origin, and therefore must adapt to a new culture. Phrases such as
new immigrant or refugee are the most direct; however, many articles reference such individuals
collectively within a group, or groups, specific to a region or to an area of study, thereby adding
an element of difficulty in locating relevant material for research. Examples of groupings
include:
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Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Communities: used most often used within
Australian or New Zealand literature to describe individuals that represent a variety of
cultures or backgrounds that differ from their respective regions;

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linguistically isolated populations: a subjective term used to describe a household where
no member over the age of fourteen is considered to speak English ‘very well’ in the
United States (Glick, Walker, & Luz, 2013);

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culturally diverse: used by many researchers to describe a group of individuals who
collectively represent various backgrounds or nationalities;

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ethnic or ethnicity: used loosely by various researchers to describe persons sharing
distinctive linguistic or cultural backgrounds;

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Non-English Speaking Background (NESB): used predominantly by Australian
researchers to describe those who come from culturally diverse backgrounds and do not
speak English as a first language (Ethics Community Council of Victoria, 2012); or,

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Immigrant, Refugee, Ethno-cultural, or Racialized (IRER) group: a phrase coined by
Canadian researchers McKenzie, Hansson, Tuck, & Lurie (2010) since no one term was
found by them to encompass all such groups.
Search terms to describe disaster recovery can also range disparately in description:

disaster recovery, post-disaster recovery, to simply recovery. Additionally, disaster recovery
netted results dealing strictly with information technology research; therefore, such terminology,
along with IT (case-sensitive), needed to be collectively excluded.
Exclusion of other terminology to narrow the focus was not practical. While the
combination of disaster recovery and immigrant resulted in many articles dealing solely with
immigrant workers hired to help rebuild communities during disaster recovery, it is not possible
to exclude terms such as immigrant worker or worker as this could potentially exclude relevant
literature. The same occurred for results that included articles that focused solely on heath care
issues; it was not possible to exclude health care, PTSD, trauma, or any other health-related
term, as these are commonly used within literature dealing with disaster recovery, and such
terminology was useful for locating literature dealing with the likely mental health statuses of
new immigrants or refugees pre-disaster to be used as background research.
Resources used for the search include Google Scholar, JIBC Library, and Google. Google
Scholar was used as the primary source as this netted many more relevant results, with the JIBC
Library mainly used to obtain articles found through Google Scholar, but required payment in
order to access them. Google was used strictly to search for well-known mainstream media
sources that may be relevant to the topic of interest.
List of Keywords and Subject Terms
Keywords: disaster recovery, immigrants, refugees, cultural barriers, language barriers

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The list below represents a sampling of subject terms used to narrow the focus of the
subject matter. The number represents the number of hits received through Google Scholar. The
quotation marks were used to ensure the complete term was used by the search engine instead of
searching for each word individually as this greatly narrowed the results. For example, a search
for linguistically isolated, disaster recovery returned 20,400 articles whereas “linguistically
isolated” “disaster recovery” returned 38 articles. After the first search, a publication date range
of 2007 or later was imposed to help reduce the number of subsequent results.
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problems for new immigrants during recovery from disaster (56,600)
problems for new immigrants during recovery from disaster (from 2007-present) (16,500)
language and cultural barriers in disaster recovery (16,800)
language and cultural barriers in “disaster recovery” (6,230)
"disaster recovery" immigrant communities (3,700)
“disaster recovery”, immigrants, barriers (1,870)
“disaster recovery”, immigrants, cultural barriers (1,690)
“disaster recovery”, immigrants, “cultural barriers” (85)
“disaster recovery”, refugee, “cultural barriers” (72)
“linguistically isolated” “disaster recovery” (38)
“linguistically isolated communities” “disaster recovery” (1)
barriers to “post-disaster recovery”, refugees (496)
barriers to “disaster recovery”, refugees (1,610)
“disaster recovery”, refugee (3,990)
"language barrier" "disaster recovery" Canada (88)
“culturally and linguistically diverse communities”, “disaster recovery” (27)
“CALD communities”, “disaster recovery” (38)
“non-english speaking”, "disaster recovery" (475)
NESB, “disaster recovery” (7)
For this literature review, 30+ articles were initially selected for abstract review. These

articles were chosen for either direct relevance (i.e., titles directly related to challenges
encountered by new immigrants or refugees during disaster recovery, or studies of challenges
encountered by persons whose language of origin differed from the language of residence), or for
keywords that matched the specified search criteria, or a combination thereof, such as immigrant

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and disaster recovery, or language barrier and disaster recovery (with each term used within
quotations to narrow the results).
Final Selection of Literature
After reviewing the initial collection based on abstracts, the number of articles selected
for final review totaled 19, which was further reduced to 16 after examining the content more
closely for relevance to the subject of study. The final articles selected for full review and use for
research included peer reviewed papers with content that supplied material directly relating to
challenges encountered by either new immigrants or refugees, or both, during disaster events
and/or during disaster recovery, as well as studies by field experts that focused on lessons
learned and best practices encountered in assisting new immigrants and refugees within their
present country of residence in disaster preparedness or recovery measures.
The articles were also selected for their focus on first world nations to keep relevance as
equal to Canadian culture as possible (such as, the United States of America and New Zealand),
and for a variety of disaster events (the 1995 Northridge Earthquake, Hurricane Katrina in 2005,
and the Canterbury earthquakes in 2010/2011 in New Zealand, to name a few). Content
involving recovery within Canadian disaster events was not located; however, substantial
Canadian literature involving mental health of immigrants and refugees was available and
selected for use.
Discussion of Findings
Examination of this writer’s first-hand experience obtained during disaster recovery
operations in Fort McMurray, Alberta, and research of the literature shows many issues exist for
new immigrants and refugees, and non-English speaking citizens during their disaster recovery.
Further analysis reveals three themes under which they could be categorized: financial barriers

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(Marlowe & Lou, 2013) (Nguyen & Salvesen, 2014); cultural and linguistic barriers; and,
mental health barriers, which include issues of fear (Hooks & Miller, 2006) (Loukaitou-Sideris
& Kamel, 2004). All issues within these barrier classifications leads to a hindered disaster
recovery for new immigrants and refugees, which extends their reliance upon financial aid and
mental health resources. Additionally, these barriers add further stress and frustration to the
trauma of disaster recovery, which, at times, manifests as anger, negative behaviours, and
negative outcomes (Marlowe & Lou, 2013). It is important that these issues and barriers be
clearly understood so that emergency managers can implement workable strategies and solutions
into disaster recovery plans.
Financial Barriers
Research reveals that immigrants and refugees, who have not yet acclimated to their new
country of residence, experience many challenges in learning new customs, learning a new
language, and learning to participate in a new society (Marlowe & Lou, 2013). These challenges
are compounded when also trying to provide financially for family—whether back home in the
country of origin or in the new country of residence—since new immigrants or refugees will
often earn less, and therefore live in lower-income, more hazard-prone areas as renters, instead
of in the more affluent areas as homeowners (Loukaitou-Sideris & Kamel, 2004). Further to this,
immigrants and refugees in low-income households with limited financial resources experience a
greater need for financial assistance in disaster recovery as they lack the capacity to prepare for,
and recover from, disasters (Nguyen & Salvesen, 2014). Hooks and Miller (2006) add by stating
there are “marked ethnic and racial inequalities in adequate insurance coverage” (p.35) due to a
lack of financial resources. They add that marginalized groups, such as new immigrants and
refugees, face significant barriers in their recovery processes. First-hand experience in Fort

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McMurray also shows that new immigrants and refugees experienced slowed recovery from the
Alberta wildfire event of 2016 due to lack of finances, which necessitated an extended reliance
upon financial aid provided by the Canadian Red Cross and government funding.
The financial barriers also span to the disaster recovery process itself when the inventory
of available low-income, post-disaster, replacement housing fails to become available due to a
rise in rental prices, and a loss of low-income or subsidized housing, leaving new immigrant,
refugee, and minority populations in a precarious position—especially if disaster recovery
assistance is delayed, or even denied, by recovery assistance organizations or programs (Hooks
& Miller, 2006). This leads to yet another type of financial barrier that can also exist within
federal recovery assistance programs. The Northridge, California earthquake response and
recovery operation in 1994 shows that federal disaster recovery programs were also partially to
blame for creating barriers to a timely recovery for new immigrants and refugees when the
program ranked the needs of upper-middle-class homeowners over the needs of renter, lowincome, and immigrant populations (Loukaitou-Sideris & Kamel, 2004). The research shows that
the needs of the immigrant/refugee, low-income or renter populaces were considered a lower
priority since housing was driven by market forces. These market forces drove a higher priority
for contractors to rebuild single-family homes in more affluent areas. When it came to multifamily rental buildings that required rebuilds or significant repairs, it was found that the process
was prone to complex bureaucratic procedures and political considerations. This again, resulted
in favouring large investors who looked towards rebuilding in more affluent areas first. The
result of this is hindered recovery “in places where poverty, multifamily rental units, absentee
landlords, and recent immigrants are concentrated” (Loukaitou-Sideris & Kamel, 2004, p.22).
The overall outcome was that lower-income immigrants and refugees with limited internal

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resources, were hindered in their disaster recovery by limited or slow external assistance, and
their redevelopments were under-funded by the federal programs compared to other construction
projects that withstood similar or less damage (Loukaitou-Sideris & Kamel, 2004).
Cultural and Linguistic Barriers
In addition to financial barriers, research shows that new immigrants and refugees also
experience substantial cultural and linguistic barriers to accessing post-disaster benefits, which
reduces the speed of disaster recovery and creates further tension (Hooks & Miller, 2006).
Cultural differences between a new immigrant’s homeland and the newly adopted country of
residence can be significant, thereby creating an environment of confusion and frustration,
leading to angry outbursts and inappropriate behaviour when interacting with recovery workers.
This writer concurs; such outbursts were noted within Fort McMurray when new immigrants
lashed out in fear and confusion when frustration set in after trying to comprehend the recovery
process expected of them, in a language with which they were unfamiliar. With stresses already
heightened while working hard to adapt to a new country and its customs, as well as learning a
new language during a disaster event, introducing more frustration and confusion only creates
further obstacles that slows the recovery process.
Cultural barriers also existed during the disaster recovery phase of the Canterbury
earthquakes in 2010/2011. A study by Christchurch Migrant Inter-Agency Group (2011) notes
that Maori wardens, who visited the Christchurch Recovery Centre daily, reported witnessing
numerous occurrences of cultural blunders between centre staff and the Muslim community. Due
to these blunders and faux pas, Muslims found it difficult to deal with centre’s practices, which
slowed the Muslims’ rate of disaster recovery as they shied away from using the available
resources offered. Such mishaps were also observed during this writer’s time as a Case

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Management Supervisor with the Canadian Red Cross while on deployment in Fort McMurray to
assist with the recovery operations of the Alberta Wildfires in 2016. During this time, it was
found that case workers frequently made cultural errors due to a lack of cultural sensitivity and
awareness training, which made it necessary to educate the case workers on avoiding certain
behaviours, especially when dealing with the Muslim community. Corrected blunders included:
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Preventing male workers from touching Muslim women, such as placing a hand on her
shoulder in a gesture of comfort;

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Making it known that asking a Muslim man about his wife or a female family member
can be considered insulting or rude, therefore such a practice should be avoided; and,

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Eliminating the practice of pointing a finger or object (i.e., pen) at a Muslim person as it
is considered rude or possibly a threat (30 Days, 2017).
Mathew and Kelly (2008) make note that the provision of community liaisons who both

understand the cultures and speak the languages representative of the immigrant community is
“integral to community safety and confidence” (p.12). Going further to say that new immigrants
and refugees, who, during the Hurricane Katrina recovery, expressed a desire to have
information made available to them from a “higher” source than that of the media. Such sources
include religious leaders, parish officials, and even police and fire representatives despite some
having fear of uniformed personnel. Yet, despite this wish, such leaders, reportedly, did not
reach out to the immigrant and refugee community in either a cultural or linguistic capacity,
leaving them feeling abandoned and left out until outreach services were finally provided to the
immigrant communities in the form of cultural liaison and translator services.
Along with cultural barriers preventing a timely disaster recovery for new immigrants
and refugees, there are also considerable linguistic barriers presenting further challenges to this

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vulnerable group. Research shows that the language barrier issue was enormous during the
Christchurch earthquake disaster recovery; persons with English as a second language needed
interpretation of official communications as they were only provided in English, yet it took
several weeks before any consideration was given to producing materials in other languages, and
several weeks still before the information was disseminated (Christchurch Migrant Inter-Agency
Group, 2011). The Christchurch Migrant Inter-Agency Group (2011) also states that once
communications were translated, they were of poor quality and incomprehensible, making them
of little use. Such an issue was also observed by this writer while in Fort McMurray, Alberta
where the Canadian Red Cross provided disaster recovery information, and all signage, in
English with only two brochures translated to French, despite community leaders and Canadian
Red Cross officials being made aware of the large population of French-speaking immigrants,
and a very large Arabic-speaking population. Literature by Purtle, Siddiqui, and Andrulis (2011)
supports this with similar experiences noted during several disaster events in the United States,
including the 1995 Northridge earthquake, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, and the 2007
Southern California wildfires. The researchers state that such language barriers “inhibit disaster
victims from being aware of recovery assistance and pose difficulties to completing paperwork
and navigating administrative structures in order to receive aid” (p.4). Further, their research
shows that the limited-English proficient (LEP) communities are also affected by various
challenges within the response and recovery stages, as the immigrants and refugees face
communication barriers with first responders, as well as being unaware of, or unable to obtain,
disaster recovery aid due to information being distributed only in English. They conclude that the
effectiveness of post-disaster recovery information is dependent upon the related material being
delivered in a linguistically appropriate format for the community.

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Mental Health Barriers and Fear
Along with confusion and misunderstanding due to a lack of information available in a
language that can be understood, many new immigrants and refugees also need to contend with
mental health issues, including fear, when trying to access recovery assistance. These mental
health issues, and issues of fear, are often experienced by immigrants and refugees who are
survivors of war, torture, organized violence, and oppressive cultural practices. Such individuals
have faced various forms of trauma, including torture by military or armed persons, forced
marriages, unjust imprisonment, rape and sexual harassment, witnessing the deaths of others, as
well as experienced trauma due to unsafe living conditions in refugee camps; all of which leads
to extreme fear of authoritative figures, PTSD, and other mental illnesses (Lafreniere & Diallo,
2010) resulting in emotional distress, angry outbursts, violence, and negative behaviours (Abe,
Zane, & Chun, 1994).
Due to past traumas, especially those involving authoritative or uniformed figures, it is
understandable how a fear of officials—who are often encountered throughout the disaster
recovery process—can present a seemingly impassable barrier to new immigrants or refugees
who were previously traumatized in their homeland. This writer witnessed similar behaviour
during the 2016 wildfire recovery operations in Fort McMurray, Alberta, when some new
immigrants and refugees seeking assistance from the Canadian Red Cross expressed
apprehension in dealing with the security officials who were present in the recovery centres; a
few commented on the reminder of political unrest in their homeland. Given the past histories of
some, it can be expected that the sight of a uniformed presence could incite memories of traumas
incurred at the hands of military or government officials. The sight of fencing or tents at
emergency shelter locations could also pose reminder of refugee camps, or worse, death camps,

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which would cause reluctance in seeking out disaster recovery assistance (Fothergill, Maestas, &
Darlington, 1999). Loukaitou-Sideris and Kamel (2004) also provide an example of how
vulnerable immigrants and refugees were fearful of utilizing available federal assistance in the
United States during the Northridge, California earthquake recovery; when the new immigrants
heard rumour the government was tracking down undocumented immigrants and deporting them,
the immigrants refused to access recovery aid in fear of possible deportation. While the
immigrants or refugees might have been documented citizens, family members and friends may
not have been, and even if all documentation was in order, according to Purtle, et al. (2011),
there is simply an overall fear of immigration officials.
Evaluation and Recommendations for Corrective Action
With an understanding in place of what immigrants and refugees experience as the most
commonly encountered barriers to a fast and effective disaster recovery, emergency managers
can work towards implementing countermeasures into emergency plans for both preparedness
and recovery. Research of the available literature shows there are many ways in which financial
barriers, cultural and linguistic barriers, and mental health barriers can be addressed ahead of
time to reduce anxiety and frustration for new immigrants and refugees in an already stressful
situation, which will aid in an expedient disaster recovery process (Hooks & Miller, 2006)
(Mathew & Kelly, 2008).
While emergency managers are unable to directly assist new immigrants and refugees
with better financial outcomes, they can assist in aiding them to be better prepared for disaster
despite having a lack of finances to fund preparedness measures. Such measures can come from
providing preparedness information in the various languages most often spoken within the
community, partnering with immigration agencies and service organizations to explain low-cost

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mitigation measures that can be undertaken ahead of time, and conducting seminars and sessions
that explain insurance policies and how to reduce premiums. Hooks and Miller (2006) also
recommend the running of free legal clinics during recovery operations to educate new
immigrants and refugees about their rights and aid them in applying for recovery assistance. By
providing free advice and information, the gained knowledge and understanding can encourage
new immigrants and refugees to implement mitigation and preparedness measures with little or
no budget so they can be more resilient post-disaster. It should be noted, however, that in order
to achieve this outcome, emergency managers will need to establish solid working relationships
and partnerships with the various community organizations and immigration services.
When it comes to developing relationships, the Christchurch Migrant Inter-Agency
Group (2011) explain how this development starts from the top; having strong and trusted
leadership in place is crucial to gaining compliance, particularly with respect to immigrants and
refugees, as this can assist in alleviating fear by adding trust. The researchers explain that good
leaders can “connect immediately into wider community decision-making and thereby ensure
that their constituents have improved access to important information and processes” (p.5). In
knowing this, emergency managers can prepare ahead of time to ensure strong recovery
leadership is in place, and that good relationships with immigration organizations are proactively
established to create collaborative community-based strategies. Purtle, et al. (2011) add that such
strategies created with new immigrants and refugees in mind have proven to be most effective in
reducing language barriers and gaps in disaster recovery outcomes.
Literature from the Canadian Red Cross (2007) concurs, saying that in an aim to reach
new immigrants and refugees, emergency managers should develop a good relationship with
local, low-income immigrants who are trustworthy as they can assist with translating local

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languages, act as informal opinion leaders, and assist other immigrants and refugees through
government bureaucracies. This can only be accomplished with a strong emergency management
leadership team.
Reducing language barriers in disaster recovery is another task emergency managers need
to recognize and address throughout the recovery process. Mathew and Kelly (2008) state that
this reduction can be achieved by ensuring all information distributed, whether verbal or printed,
is in languages that are representative of those most often spoken in the community. While most
organizations are now stating they are committed to providing information in different
languages, history has shown why this is important: during the Hurricane Katrina response and
recovery in 2005, Mathew and Kelly report that emergency managers claimed there was not
enough time to develop the appropriate translations that were needed, leaving non-English
speaking persons in the lurch. Had the emergency managers understood and addressed this need
ahead of time, by creating documentation with key messages in the various languages needed to
reach the community’s demographic, it would have alleviated anxiety and frustration
experienced by the new immigrants and refugees, who failed to understand what resources were
available to them, and how to access them. This language barrier only served to slow the
recovery process of non-English-speaking citizens. Purtle, et al. (2011) further adds to this by
stating that community‐based strategies that “define, locate, and partner with linguistically
diverse populations have proved to be most successful in ameliorating language barriers and
disparities in disaster outcomes” (p.1).
Additionally, Purtle, et al. (2011) recommend hiring bilingual staff to provide in-person
translator services in addition to translated printed and online materials. During the Hurricane
Katrina earthquake response and recovery operation, the disaster areas went weeks without

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power, meaning translated up-to-date information made available only online was not received
by non-English-speaking persons; there were no translators available to deliver updated
messages in languages other than English. The Canadian Red Cross (2007) also add that
translation of materials is not enough and recommend an information exchange by networking
with other agencies and actively consulting with them ahead of time would be very beneficial,
which circles back to the importance of a strong leadership.
Along with reducing language barriers, it is also recommended that cultural barriers that
may exist within the community be addressed ahead of time. Research by the Christchurch
Migrant Inter-Agency Group (2011) show the importance of ensuring emergency managers and
staff are educated to identify and understand cultural barriers, and are provided with appropriate
cultural awareness training in dealing with the limited English proficient (LEP) community. The
group state that if the new immigrant and refugee communities are to receive adequate and
appropriate support during disaster recovery, identifying and addressing cultural barriers is
crucial. Mathew and Kelly (2008) also address the importance of cultural awareness and state “it
is integral to community safety and confidence that community liaisons who understand the
cultures and languages of LEP groups are engaged” (p.12). By addressing both linguistic and
cultural barriers and implementing solutions into emergency plans, this will assist in aiding new
immigrants and refugees in navigating a speedy disaster recovery and greatly reduce the stress
while doing so.
Strategic partnerships also offer a solution for dealing with mental health barriers
experienced by new immigrants and refugees. Creating partnerships between emergency
managers and mental health professions prior to a disaster can help to create programs or policies
that expose immigrants to available mental health resources and how to access them, thereby

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giving them an opportunity to treat and control mental health issues prior to disaster events
occurring. This will also assist in alleviating some fear when dealing with government or other
officials as the immigrants will become more comfortable in navigating such systems making
disaster recovery assistance seem less alien. Recommendations to achieve this include: the
development of public education campaigns for immigrants and refugees explaining the mental
health system and how to access the most appropriate services; creation of standardized
education to cultural interpreters; and, creation of unified community-based mental health
services that address the challenges of diverse groups of new immigrants and refugees (Khanlou,
2010). Such provision of services can extend to the post-disaster and recovery phases so that
specialized and targeted resources are available based on known requirements of the immigrant
community, which will assist in reducing anxiety and fear due during disaster recovery.
Another fear reducing recommendation is to develop solid relationships with local ethnic
organizations, immigration agencies, and faith-based organizations. Marlowe and Lou (2013)
explain that learning about new immigrant and refugee groups, and what may create fear and
therefore hinder or stall disaster recovery, will help to create strategies within emergency
recovery plans. They state that such understandings are important for identifying psychological
vulnerabilities created by past trauma, and for providing a source of indigenous knowledge,
which can be used within cultural awareness, and psychosocial training. This writer observed the
benefits of cultural awareness and psychosocial training for new immigrants and refugees during
the Alberta wildfire recovery operations in Fort McMurray while working as a Case
Management Supervisor for the Canadian Red Cross. In understanding the possible origins of
fear for new immigrants, and how it can manifest as angry outbursts, defensive posturing, and
aggressive behaviour, it was possible to calm and assure clients in a respectful and meaningful

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manner using psychosocial first aid techniques learned prior to deployment. In doing so, it not
only alleviated fear, but reduced stress and anxiety for the new immigrants and provided them
with a better understanding of Canadian culture, which contributed to reducing delays in gaining
recovery assistance.
Gaps
As with all studies, regardless of how well-researched they are, there are always gaps that
need to be addressed until a full understanding is achieved. Even subjects that have garnered
much attention over the years will eventually encounter new gaps as subject knowledge changes
with the times and new information is revealed. In dealing with the subject of what emergency
managers can do to assist new immigrants and refugees in effectively navigating the disaster
recovery process in a timely manner, the literature is scant. While much exists on the topic of
vulnerable populations within disasters, it is mostly aimed towards preparedness and not
recovery.
Additionally, there is little devoted strictly to the one topic of challenges encountered by
new immigrants and refugees who are dealing with learning a new culture and new language in a
new country all the while struggling through the disaster recovery experience—quite possibly for
the second time. This observation has also been noted by Marlowe and Lou (2013), who stated
“there has been relatively little literature examining the experiences, perspectives and responses
of refugee communities impacted by natural disasters” (p.59). They also stated that this gap in
research makes it difficult to ascertain the best way to create and implement effective approaches
for dealing with new immigrants and refugees in addressing their needs.
It should also be noted that there needs to be some question regarding whether location
(i.e., city or country) and disaster event type (hurricane, earthquake, flood, wildfire, terrorist, or

DISASTER RECOVERY CHALLENGES FOR NEW IMMIGRANTS

21

manmade disaster event) play any sort of role in possible differences in the way disaster recovery
programs are delivered. Since current literature is limited on the specific topic of barriers to a
quick and effective disaster recovery for new immigrants or refugees, further studies will need to
be conducted before such a question is truly answered. Given that there are numerous historical
events from which to draw, and the likelihood of new disaster events occurring in the near future
within first-world countries is great, conducting such research is possible. This would provide a
great opportunity to learn how new immigrants and refugees adapt within the recovery process
based upon the specific circumstances in which they are living, and the type of event
experienced, in order to create targeted assistance in both the preparedness and recovery phases.
Another gap that exists is the scarcity of studies involving Canadian disaster events, and
Canadian disaster recovery research that deal with addressing the specific needs of new
immigrants or refugees. The Canadian Red Cross (2007) concurs and explains that this obvious
gap demonstrates how such vulnerable groups still “fall through the cracks of emergency
planning, response and recovery” (p.18). This writer’s experience in Fort McMurray, Alberta
during the wildfire disaster recovery of 2016 furthers the Red Cross’ findings of 2007; new
immigrants and refugees were observed having problems understanding what was expected of
them, not understanding the English instructions provided, some were afraid to ask questions
until prompted, and some were wary about accessing government assistance, which produced a
slower recovery and did nothing to strengthen resiliency. In short, they fell through the gaps of
available assistance. By researching their specific needs, new emergency management
approaches can be created for assisting the new immigrants and refugees using better
communication methods in languages they can understand, and in a manner respectful to their
culture, as well as ways to provide advocacy support to help guide them through recovery.

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22

Furthermore, there also exists gaps in the initial understanding and provision of care for
mental health issues and services for new immigrants and refugees within Canada. Such a gap is,
according to McKenzie, et al. (2010), a result of services not embracing the diversity that
abounds within Canadian borders, in addition to the challenge of new immigrants and refugees
having “poorer access to care and poorer treatment” (p.65). Studies of the mental health status’
of new immigrants and refugees before and after Canadian disaster events that involved regional
evacuations—such as the Eastern Canada ice storms of 1998, the British Columbia wildfire
events in 2009, the Southern Alberta floods in 2013, and the Alberta wildfire event in 2016—can
serve as a backbone for further research and analysis of mental health challenges experienced by
new immigrants and refugees during disaster recovery. The results of that research can then be
analyzed to determine if common approaches to mental health assistance can be adopted, or if
more specific methods of assistance need to be applied towards disaster type and community
composition.
Conclusion
Research and first-hand experience has shown that new immigrants and refugees
experience multiple barriers and challenges while navigating the disaster recovery process. These
barriers add an extra element of stress and frustration to an already taxing and traumatic
experience and slow their recovery process. In slowing their recovery from disaster, this creates
an extended dependence on social service and government organizations to provide financial aid
and mental health assistance. In order to help new immigrants and refugees break down the
financial, cultural and linguistic, and mental health barriers that keep this vulnerable population
from accessing help and adequately navigate the recovery process, emergency managers need to

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23

learn what those barriers are, why they exist, and how to overcome them in order to create and
implement effective strategies for recovery planning.
Research has shown that some solutions exist in the form of:
•

developing strong leadership;

•

creating solid partnerships with community organizations and immigrant agencies to
collaborate on appropriate strategies for the community;

•

translating important disaster recovery materials so that immigrants can learn of available
resources and how to access them in a language they comprehend;

•

providing free workshops on low-cost mitigation and preparedness measures, as well as
seminars during recovery to help explain how to deal with bureaucracies;

•

providing in-person translators;

•

partnering with organizations to educate and make available mental health resources; and,

•

providing cultural awareness training for all leadership, to help provide aid in the most
respectful manner possible to help alleviate fear.
While some solutions do exist, there has not yet been enough research strictly on the

topic of the experiences of new immigrants and refugees in disaster recovery. This gap will need
to be addressed in depth before the most appropriate strategies can be discovered and
implemented into disaster recovery plans.

DISASTER RECOVERY CHALLENGES FOR NEW IMMIGRANTS

24

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