An Exploration of Consumers’ Experiences During and after a Natural Disaster: A Case Study in Central Florida

Disasters are often associated with property-related challenges and loss by individuals and communities. Yet a review of literature reveals that close examination of consumers’ connections to their material possessions during and after disasters has been lacking. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore and gain a phenomenological understanding of consumers’ property-related experiences during and after the 1998 Florida Firestorm (Thompson, Locander, and Pollio 1989). This event was selected because we experienced it firsthand and despite its tragic circumstances, it provided a unique research opportunity (Sayre 1994). From May to July of 1998 Florida experienced the “worst wildfires in the state’s history” (Roy 1999, p. G-1). More than 2,300 wildfires burned 500,000 acres. Thousands of firefighters from across the U.S. and from other countries united in force against the flames (Minshew and Towle 1999). Fortunately, there were no casualties. However, one hundred thirty thousand people were forced to evacuate, 368 homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed, and timber losses reached almost $400 million (Call 1998). We believe that gaining an in-depth understanding of property-related firestorm experiences from empirically derived first-person accounts should contribute to theoretical development in consumer behavior and disaster research as well as practical improvements in emergency preparedness, management, and recovery programs.