Disasters In Amanda Ripley's The Unthinkable

Now a days, with technology at our fingertips, people are able to hear about all sorts of different disasters going on around the world. We see in the news and on the internet the sad news of plane crashes, a home burning down, a city destroyed by an earth quake, or village flooded by a tsunami. Even with the knowledge of the horrible events occurring we still never think much of it because people feel so disconnected by them. When facing a major disaster many of us cannot comprehend how we would behave, or we would just assume that we would know what to do to survive. After reading Amanda Ripley’s book The Unthinkable, it encourages the reader to confront the typical human responses to the stress and life threatening disasters. The major
themes that Ripley laird before the read is that to increase their chances of surviving a disaster they need the do these four things: practice, be aware of surroundings, understand why they are reacting the way they are, and to have for social support. We have always heard the saying ‘practice makes perfect’. So it is no surprise that if people practice and prepare for the disaster before it happens, they increase their chances for survival when the time comes. The mentality that the disaster could never happen to them can be an excuse for not practicing. But it could, and practicing could help later when the disaster strikes. It’s important to know that practicing is more than just talking about having a plan, or a meeting spot. Physically running through how the disaster would happen and what you would do is much more helpful. The author of the book was able to go through a simulated plane crash, and fire and get a realistic but safe idea of what a true disaster would be like in the moment. However everyone does not have those opportunities, even if they would be very useful to everyone. So practicing the evacuation route and practicing the techniques that are to be used in specific disasters is the next best thing. One example used in the book was how before 9/11, a security office Rick Rescorla had all the employees at Morgan Stanley regularly practice and do evacuation drills. No exceptions. When the actual disaster struck 2,687 of the employees got out safe. “Rescorla taught the employees to save themselves,”(210). The employees had become very aware of the procedure that was to take place, and in doing so they were able to do it in less time. In many disaster evacuations time is of the essence. Langi is located on a small island in the Indiana Ocean.
When hit with a 45 foot tsunami, 100% of the community was able to survive. This was possible because every man, women, and child knew how to act proactively when a disaster is expected. If the ground shook, everyone went to the same high hill, and stayed there. They never considered a false evacuation a waste of time (138). This positive and accepting mentality that disasters can happen and the people have control over how the disaster affects their community is what lead to the communities continued success. In the town of Samoa, they also started creating the community mentality of practicing for a disaster. The CEO of a local company planned a community wide evacuation drill. He gave them a route and directions; the whole community was able to walk that route in 10 minutes. If this evacuation was for a true tsunami, the people of community would have been safe. The organizer of this drill is Troy Nicolini was stated saying that “he planned to do this drill once a year and wanted to expand it to other towns” and that “You have to practice the stuff that’s important, I hope that this will think less about the tsunami. You have a plan, and you don’t have to worry”
(223). Some individuals like Ronn Langford experienced first had the consequences that can happen if individuals are not equipped to handle disasters. His own daughter died in a car accident, and he was fully aware about the lack of practice and experience that is required for someone to get their license. So he took the issue into his own hands and started a driving course that teaches, and allows new drives to practice skills needed to successfully control a car in a potentially deadly situation, like crash avoidance techniques. In The Unthinkable novel he was quoted saying he wanted “to make people better survivors by rewiring their brains for the modern age” (214). It is talked about by biologists, psychologists, neuroscientists that the human species has evolved over the years to do incredible things, our brains are changing, however their still seems to be that instinct part of ourselves; our most basic reflexes from back in the Stone Age. These reflexes are not evolved to help use operate these fast moving heavy machinery simple by instinct. It is by skill, which is gain through practice. If it were a perfect world, everyone should have the opportunity to go through a stimulation of a fire or place crash. If they have previous opportunities to practice what to do during a disaster, hopefully they would be more likely to use Problem Based and Situation Based coping. Along with that, practicing how to survive a disaster in itself is proactive coping, coping that helps prevent the occurrence of stressors. However even if they were not able to have the realistic stimulation, just having an organized evacuation plan that everyone is aware of will be just as helpful. The next key to survival talked about in the book goes hand in hand with practicing. To aid in survival it is important that individuals be aware and learn about their surroundings and what surviving in that environment would be. The biggest and most prevalent example is in airplanes. Everyone who has ever been in an airplane knows this talk. Before every flight the flight attendants give a detailed speech about safety procedures and how safety equipment works and where to go if an emergency would occur. While many passengers may hear the talk, how many of them take it seriously and give it all their attention, how many people actually look when all their emergency exits are look when they are pointed out. How many workers or students know all the exits or stairways exits out of the buildings? It is the simple things like being aware of the layout, and what is in your environment that will be your assets and can cause problems. Flying on an airplane can cause people anxiety thinking of what to do during a plane crash. After hearing the safety procedures of what to do during a crash many people still don’t understand why they are doing something, so they don’t. The example in the book mentioned putting on your gas mask on yourself first before helping a child. Personally I never knew why they said that, I assumed since you are helped you are more able to help others. However I was not aware the little time a person actually has to put on their face mask. If parents knew they were helping their child more by helping themselves first they may be more likely to follow the rules. A flight attendant was quoted saying “Often flight attendants do not want to inform the passengers about an emergency for fear of upsetting them, so they let them sit in ignorance and when an accident does happen, no one knows what the hell is going on” (pg45). While if there is not an incident then everyone remains safe then there is no issue. But once the passengers are miles in the air, it is not the attendant’s choice to not tell them lifesaving information. But individuals are in charge of their own plans; sometimes there won’t be people to tell you what to do.
In the novel The Unthinkable Ripley was able to interview a survivor from 9/11 and they told her “Many people hesitated using the stairway because they did not know where they would end up” (20). Granted the workers of the world train center probably never took the stairs up from the 80th floor, but if they knew the floor plans they would have been more aware of the quickest way to leave the building. When in a situation where time is of the essence you don’t have time to be trying to figure out how to get out of the building, you just want to do it. Spending too much time thinking of what to do can be a horrible mistake.
With this helpful tip, the next step for us is to start being more aware. When we all walk on to a plane take notice where the emergency exits are, and take notice to how far away you are from there. The next time you go to work of school look at the evacuation plan and find the fastest route out of the building. During a disaster your senses will be heightened, but the more information you have when the secondary appraisal hits, the easier coping will be. Along with that, the more you know about your situation and the more comfortable you are with surrounds the more self-efficacy and positive internal locus of control you will have when it comes to surviving.
It is important for anyone who has been through a disaster and everyone else to understand that you can prepare yourself with routes and with knowledge, however biological reactions will always play a part in survival and coping. Coping is a complicated matter that looks different for everyone, and everyone brain works differently during a disaster. The biological reactions are controlled by the parasympathetic branch of the nervous system, a system where people have no control over what happens. The Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal