US Military Veterans: An Untapped Resource as Disaster Volunteers

An important early component of planning for future crises and increasing local disaster preparedness and response capabilities is identifying potential disaster volunteers in the community who are willing and able to be recruited and trained. Disaster volunteer organizations are critical, particularly during the initial hours and days after major crises. Therefore, identifying potentially underused sources of appropriate disaster volunteers is essential to increasing the capacity of local communities to effectively respond when disasters strike.

One group that has not been investigated as a potential source of skilled disaster volunteers is US military veterans. To our knowledge, there are no data on the extent to which US military veterans serve as disaster volunteers. Similarly, the involvement of veterans in existing emergency response programs, such as community emergency response teams, the Medical Reserve Corps, and the American Red Cross, is unreported.

One disaster relief organization that has a large representation of veteran volunteers and thus provides an example of how to effectively engage veterans in disaster response is Team Rubicon. Established in 2010 by military veterans, Team Rubicon deploys humanitarian aid teams to areas acutely affected by major disasters and consists of more than 25 000 volunteers. In addition, the Disaster Emergency Medical Personnel System (DEMPS) program in the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) draws from employees who volunteer to support VA medical facilities and the nation during national emergencies and disasters.¹ In 2011, there were 8250 DEMPS volunteers. Although the proportion of veteran DEMPS volunteers is unknown, it is reasonable to assume that a substantial number of them are veterans because in 2010, 30% of all VA employees were US military veterans,² and this figure increased to 33% between 2014 and 2016.

UNIQUE TRAITS AND SKILLS OF VETERANS

Between March 2016 and October 2017, we conducted six semistructured, moderated, 90-minute focus groups with 38 veterans at three VA medical centers (two urban, one rural) in the United States. We found that, in the opinion of the participants, many veterans possess characteristics that would be valuable during disaster response, such as being action oriented, self-sufficient, prepared, able to stay calm during times of crisis, and highly flexible and adaptable. Study participants also believed that many veterans have communication and leadership skills, comfort working in teams, and a can-do attitude toward tasks, all of which make them ideal candidates to be disaster volunteers.

Focus group interviewees also shared that they believe there are many veterans who are untapped resources and willing to serve their communities to prepare for disasters or during response and recovery. More importantly, they felt that volunteering is familiar to veterans because many chose to join the military and recent (post-Vietnam War era) enlistment is on a voluntary basis. Therefore, it is not surprising that participants indicated a willingness to assist during disasters and other crises. Participants did note certain limitations to veteran engagement, suggesting that some veterans, whether from functional or access limitations, physical or psychological disorders, or other competing personal obligations, would not or possibly could not be involved in disaster preparedness, response, and recovery.

In the field of disaster management and volunteerism, Srandh and Ekland³ argue that in the past (1960s and 1970s), disaster volunteerism was contextualized in highly organized search and response operations. In more recent decades, however, with the increased frequency of disasters, there has been evidence of a greater involvement of emergent groups, such as spontaneous volunteers, and disaster volunteerism has developed into a more complex and diversified role.³ Many veterans have great familiarity with highly organized disaster operations, which they obtained during their military service, and they embody the flexibility and adaptability needed to engage in the fluid activities necessary to bolster resilience during major crises. For example, the National Guard is typically the first military force to respond to emergencies and disaster situations, and is often called on by governors to assist with domestic disasters such as Hurricanes Katrina (2005) and Florence (2018) and the wildfires that have affected California and other Western states in recent years.

Similarly, the Army was mobilized to assist with the Mendocino Complex Fire of 2018, the largest wildfire in California’s history, and with Hurricane Florence, among other disasters. Moreover, during their active duty military service, many veterans participated in disaster response efforts overseas, such as the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake (2010) and Typhoon Yutu (2018). Many veterans are familiar with search and rescue operations, disaster medical operations, hazardous material and terrorist incidents, and fire safety, among other skill sets, from their training. However, more research is needed to study the experiences of both veteran and nonveteran disaster volunteers and to examine the value of the identified traits and skills in actual disasters. Additional research is also needed to understand and assess the effectiveness of these traits and skills in civilian disaster response organizations with different organizational structures and missions.

DISASTER VOLUNTEERISM AND REINTEGRATION

A growing body of research on US veteran reintegration has found that feeling a loss of purpose and experiencing difficulties transferring military skills and training into civilian work are two challenges, among many others, that many veterans confront upon transitioning to civilian life.⁴ Some researchers have argued that volunteering provides veterans with a sense of satisfaction and camaraderie that may help them with readjusting to civilian life.⁵ In a study with Team Rubicon volunteers, Kranke et al. found that “providing disaster relief afforded [veterans] the opportunity to continue serving others after having served in the military.”^6(p500) Furthermore, by applying their specialized skills in the context of disasters, veterans can find a new sense of purpose and a renewed connection to their respective communities. Their unique skill set, combined with additional training, could provide opportunities for engagement and active involvement in local communities, a necessary step for reinforcing positive reintegration of a veteran into her or his community. Additional research, however, is needed to examine the effects of disaster volunteerism on successful readjustment of veterans to civilian life after returning from military service.

CONCLUSIONS

As the frequency and severity of extreme weather events is expected to grow, more emphasis should be placed on opportunities at the local and national levels to recruit, prepare, and train members of the community who are willing and able to volunteer and help their communities better prepare for and respond to disasters. Military training and experiences provide veterans with unique characteristics and a skill set that can be naturally transferred to disaster management, positioning them to be effective disaster volunteers in their local communities. Indeed, previous research has shown that veterans are better prepared for disasters than are members of the general community.⁷ Efforts to include veterans in community preparedness and response could bolster resilience during disasters by more fully incorporating the untapped resources of veterans’ existing skills and knowledge. Furthermore, communities can, in turn, help veterans by providing them with opportunities to support their successful reintegration into civilian life. Therefore, disaster volunteerism could provide US military veterans with opportunities that foster an enhanced sense of belonging in their local communities.

Future studies should identify opportunities to engage veterans in community preparedness, response, and recovery and assess both the importance of their contributions to disaster resilience and the impact of their volunteerism on readapting to civilian life. Local and national disaster volunteer organizations, such as the Medical Reserve Corps serving as community emergency response teams and the American Red Cross, should actively recruit veteran volunteers through organizations such as the VA or veterans services organizations, as many veterans could be effective disaster volunteers with little additional training.