When great disaster threatens, why do people stay?

Because of many reasons. It is their home. May have been for generations. Only home they have ever known. Many have no where else to go. And, yes, some are just down right demented. Maybe they just don't take it terribly seriously. And, it is our own right to chose when we die and how.

I would stay because unless I can move Every single record and VHS I own with me , I rather go down with the house! As for self preservation instinct? I don't have it in huge supply. I always thought it was cute that I could die naturally and not by my own hand! Now I'm a little better.I take care of myself because of my guy. But I still wouldn't want to leave all my stuff.

There will always be the thrillseakers and we sane ones just have to roll our eyes and shake our heads at them. LOL. But some people don't have anywhere to go, or the money to go, or are unwilling to leave everything they've ever known until they see for themselves how bad the threat is.

I would think that with property owners, they are afraid that looters would come and steal the stuff while they are away. They also think that if they are not there, and one of the windows was open, or the storm caused breakage like the window breaking and the rain coming in, that they would not get insurance. As for the photographers, could they not get in touch with a news agency who would make sure they are put in a place where there is less danger? Doing it just to put oneself in danger is not that good. I can understand the property owner, but not the thrill seeker or the photographer. There are such things as telescopic lens and the professionals have the proper equipment.

In my hometown, the Qiantang bore kill people very year. It is a natural phenomenon not a disaster, but sad things are always happen. Local people have set up a group to call people out of the river before the bore come. If the local people in the river, they will go out, but people who come from other place, in most case, do not listen to the call, and stay where they like. The bore is very strong, sometimes it may stronger than tunami. So when you find the bore comes, it is too late for you to escape. Also, some people will take photos for the bore, but most of them will choose a save place to do that. I think to many people, when great disaster threaten, because lack of knowledge about it, they choose to stay.

Well there are a lot of reasons why people stay despite the fact that they face the danger of losing their lives. In our place most people that stay not because they are not afraid about the disaster but rather they do not have anywhere else to go. They also fear of losing their valuable property. We are a poor country and many people here are suffering. The last they want to do is lose their valuable positions. Some would even risk their lives just to recover certain items.

You'd think so, heh? People are interesting. I don't want to leave my home. I REALLY do not want to leave my home. Hurricane Irene is supposed to be hitting where I'm at in less than 2 hours. So far, we have not been ordered to evacuate. I'm hoping that we won't have to. I think I'm far enough inland that we may get a lot of very high winds and possibly some flooding. I'm not going anywhere but I'll tell you if they ordered us or even told us we should evacuate, I'd be finding another place to go regardless. My daughter who is down the road from me , lives right on the river. She is so so stubborn. I stopped there and asked her to please come to my place which is on a hill and we were safe during the last flood. She doesn't believe it'll be that bad. I hope she's right. She'll call me when the river is moving toward her house.

People don't always have the means to leave. I think that this is the number one reason. They may not have money or transportation to just up and leave and if they did, they may not have any place to stay. Not everyone has family they can stay with and hotels can be very costly, especially when all your stuff gets ruined by a natural disaster. "You would think the self preservation instinct would factor in there somewhere." Ironically, I think that this instinct may be the very thing that leads people to stay in a lot of cases. People are scared and they don't know what to do; don't know where to go; so they stay. We are all very attached to our houses and belongings. We have build our entire lives on physical possessions. Not only do we want to protect our belongings, but also our city, our neighborhood. People care about these things deeply, and we protect what we care about. Some people not only have their home, but a business, farmland, etc. If we lose our source of income, then our entire life changes. These physical things that aren't truly important when compared to our life, are very important when we realize that it means a huge change and shift into the unknown. Change is scary. I would say that the self-preservation instinct is definitely coming into play here. Another possible reason is that they may be staying with the intention of helping others who have chosen to stay. The cases you mentioned in staying for the thrills are pretty extreme and this is probably the last thing on most people's minds. However, it makes a bit of sense. We all are constantly seeking a thrill. It's really just the intensity that differs. In the case of the surfer, I guess that he has decided that if he's gonna die, he's gonna go out having the time of his life. Whether he makes it or not, he could be a legend.

Well it's because they don't want to miss the thrill of overcoming and actually seeing such phenomenon. Probably they have not yet experienced loosing a loved one from a disaster, others because they have worked so hard for the things they posses right now. Saving and preserving once life should be the most important thing to consider right now.

People have a deep connection with the land and the place they live in. It's because of the thrill or the excitement. They actually think that they'll be okay. Also, there are those who have seen these things before and know that because they're still alive and well, they'll be okay. There are a lot of reasons and stories behind why people want to stay. I've never had to evacuate, I'm thankful for that, and ultimately, I know I'll be safe.

I am also curious why other people are so willing to brace the dangers and ignore calls for evacuation and concerns of their fellow people. The local thing to do is evacuate and escape becuase any means of damage and casualty is possible. However, people do stay for a lot of reasons. Perhaps it is money or the unyielding faith that everything in the end will be fine. That, in my opinion, will be somewhat outrageous positive thinking since not everything will be - there are still chances of mishaps and danger. I agree with the property angle, However, there should be a fine line for a person when he is considering his living and his existence. Everything can be built from scratch except the loss of a human life. If people manage to temp fate and live, it's good. But a lost of human life is another story. The situation of great disasters bring the best and worst in people. Some of them might include perseverance or stupidity but we all make our decisions as an individual.

The guy going to the beach because of the big waves is quite imprudent. Also the people which want to take photos and videos are like so. They have no idea how dangerous could be such events. Maybe I would have more comprehension about people who stay because of their houses. On the other hand much people have not option to go somewhere because of the lack of mediums. Of course, if the land will be flooded you need to go away as soon as possible.

I'm not sure but when the typhoon "ondoy" hits Philippines our subdivision was soaked in heavy flood.. we remain because our house stood still we just have to climb in our roof and some of our valuables are still inside.. taking picture or videos are for remembrance hahaha.. for us to remember the event