Researchers at Old Dominion University have sought for years to understand the many ways repeated flooding affects residents of Hampton Roads, Virginia.
They’ve homed in on how increased flooding impacts quality of life, traffic, the sinking of land and more.
Now a pair of ODU researchers has set out to focus on Portsmouth. And after interviewing households across the city, they say one of the most concerning patterns to emerge is a likely connection between chronic flooding and childhood asthma.
“We were really shocked at the prevalence of asthma in Portsmouth, in certain populations, in certain geographies,” said Joshua Behr, a research associate professor with ODU’s Virginia Modelling, Analysis and Simulation Center.
The trend is particularly bad among renters and those in low-income neighbourhoods.
Virginia’s asthma rates are already above the national average but they’re even higher in Hampton Roads, and more so in Portsmouth, Behr said.
“Then you get down to particular (Portsmouth) neighbourhoods and look at paediatric asthma and it’s just off the charts—five- or sixfold what it should be.”
