Evacuation intention on the Southern Chilean coast: a psychological and spatial study approach

Evacuation from tsunami hazards is a complex problem that requires a transdisciplinary approach, i.e., several topics must be interrelated (including the perspective of the population) to better understand the evacuation process. One of these involves the psychological response of people to the configuration and location of evacuation sites. This paper contributes to exploring the evacuation phenomenon by using social and spatial sciences, in order to test how psychological and spatial indicators influence intention to evacuate to designated sites in Puerto Saavedra, Chile. The methodology involved the assessment of photographs representing different tsunami evacuation scenarios for Puerto Saavedra: the current scenario, with evacuation sites in built areas and in natural environments without emergency facilities; and the hypothetical scenario, in the same sites but with emergency facilities in the natural sites. Photographs were evaluated using three psychological indicators and a Likert scale in a questionnaire. A multiple regression analysis was then performed using ten spatial indicators to explore the most significant spatial variables that explain perception in each scenario. Finally, a multi-criteria evaluation technique was used to model optimal evacuation site locations by integrating data from the questionnaire and the multiple regression analysis. Results show that perceived safety, place attachment and restorativeness vary between scenarios. Natural evacuation sites with facilities from the hypothetical scenario, located at higher elevations and far from the coastline, evacuation routes and emergency infrastructure received higher evaluation values for the psychological indicators. The discussion delves into the challenge of using these outcomes for resilient planning in Puerto Saavedra, and for improving evacuation research with knowledge about perception and real evacuation behavior of different community groups, as well as through studies considering the amount, location and qualities of evacuation routes and sites. This will deepen our understanding of evacuation processes and models in different contexts.