2019_KittitasCountyHMP_Volume 1_For Adoption

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CHAPTER 4. KITTITAS COUNTY PROFILE 4-16 4.6.2 Income In the United States, individual households are expected to use private resources to prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters to some extent. This means that households living in pove rty are automatically disadvantaged when confronting hazards. Additionally, the poor typically occupy more poorly built and inadequately maintained housing. Mobile or modular homes, for example, are more susceptible to damage in earthquakes and floods than other types of housing. In urban areas, the poor often live in older houses and apartment complexes, which are more likely to be made of un-reinforced masonry, a building type that is particularly susceptible to damage during earthquakes. Furthermore, residents below the poverty level are less likely to have insurance to compensate for losses incurred from natural disasters. This means that residents below the poverty level have a great deal to lose during an event and are the least prepared to deal with potential losses. The events following Hurricane Katrina in 2005 illustrated that personal household economics significantly impact people’s decisions on evacuation. Individuals who cannot afford gas for their cars will likely decide not to evacuate. Based on the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) estimates for 2012-2016, per capita income in Kittitas County in 2016 was $25,147, and the median household income was $47,898. It is estimated that about 11.8 percent of households receive an income between $100,000 and $149,999 per year and 3.8 percent of the county’s household incomes are above $150,000 annually. About 30 percent of the households in Kittitas County make less than $25,000 per year and are therefore below the poverty level. 4.6.3 Age Distribution As a group, the elderly are more apt to lack the physical and economic resources necessary for response to hazard events and are more likely to suffer health-related consequences making recovery slower. They are more likely to be vision, hearing, and/or mobility impaired, and more likely to experience mental impairment or dementia. Additionally, the elderly are more likely to live in assisted-living facilities where emergency preparedness occurs at the discretion of facility operators. These facilities are typically identified as “critical facilities” by emergency managers because they require extra notice to implement evacuation. Elderly residents living in their own homes may have more difficulty evacuating their homes and could be stranded in dangerous situations. This population group is more likely to need special medical attention, which may not be readily available during natural disasters due to isolation caused by the event. Specific planning attention for the elderly is an important consideration given the current aging of the American population. Children under 14 are particularly vulnerable to disaster events because of their young age and dependence on others for basic necessities. Very young children may additionally be vulnerable to injury or sickness; this vulnerability can be worsened during a natural disaster because they may not understand the measures that need to be taken to protect themselves from hazards. The overall age distribution for Kittitas County is illustrated in Figure 4-7. Based on U.S. Census estimates, 12.8 percent of Kittitas County’s population is 65 or older, compared to the state average of 12.3 percent. Of the county’s over-65 population, 38.1 percent has disabilities of some kind and 6.3 percent have incomes below the poverty line. It is also estimated that 15.2 percent of the county’s population is 14 or younger, compared to the state average of 19.4 percent. Children under 18 account for 18.2 percent of individuals who are below the poverty line.