The convergence of materiel donations following disaster events is well documented in the literature. This influx of goods is often dubbed a "second disaster" with non-priority and unnecessary goods causing transportation and storage challenges to the community of survivors. Interviews were conducted following Hurricane Sandy in 2013 and two tornadoes outside of Oklahoma City in May 2013. Findings illustrate conflicting views about how to best achieve agility in disaster donation supply chains, although there was general agreement among interviewees that agility was desirable. From a broader perspective, the findings reveal that individuals involved in the supply chain differentially assign value in the donations process, including if they value donor needs over survivor needs, and hold different views on whether or not cash or goods are of greater value to the donors and survivors. Agility-the timing, flexibility, and reaction time in the supply chain-was viewed as necessary to a healthy supply chain; however, there was not a universal understanding of how to achieve an agile supply chain. This finding is consequential if relief operations hope to ultimately enhance agility in this process.KEY WORDS: emergency management and response, convergence behavior, humanitarian aidAgilidad en la ayuda para los desastres: Una aproximaci on de construcci on social La convergencia de donaciones materiales que suceden despu es de los desastres est a bien documentada en muchos textos. A esta afluencia de bienes se le llama "segundo desastre" con bienes innecesarios y de baja prioridad que causan desafíos de transporte y almacenamiento para la comunidad de sobrevivientes. Se llevaron a cabo entrevistas despu es de que sucedieran el hurac an Sandy en 2013 y dos tornados a las afueras de Oklahoma City en mayo de 2013. Los hallazgos ilustran opiniones contradictorias acerca de c omo lograr m as exitosamente la agilidad en las cadenas de distribuci on de las donaciones, aunque hubo un acuerdo general entre los que fueron entrevistados: que la agilidad era deseable. Desde una perspectiva m as amplia, los hallazgos revelan que los individuos involucrados en la cadena de distribuci on asignan valores diferentemente en el proceso de donaciones, incluyendo si le dan m as valor a los donantes que a los sobrevivientes, y si tienen diferentes opiniones acerca de si los bienes son de m as valor para los donantes que para los sobrevivientes. Los participantes opinaron que la agilidad-los tiempos, la flexibilidad y el tiempo de reacci on en la cadena de distribuci on-era necesaria para una cadena de distribuci on saludable; sin embargo, no hubo un entendimiento universal de c omo lograr una cadena de distribuci on agil. Este hallazgo es consecuencial si las operaciones de ayuda tienen alguna esperanza de mejorar la agilidad en este proceso.PALABRAS CLAVES: Gesti on de emergencias y respuesta, Comportamiento de convergencia, Ayuda humanitaria

Disaster relief involves a broad range of participants, which often results in a disjunction between actual disaster needs and the perception of appropriate strategies in relief provision. This research examines data collected through interviews with donation drive operators responding to Superstorm Sandy in 2012 and the May 2013 Oklahoma tornadoes. Using Weber's ideal types of social action to understand motivations for engaging in disaster relief, this article argues that motivations for participating in and organizing such drives influence donation strategies, and these motivations can be used to explain persistent donation of nonuseful materiel items. Findings indicate several different motivations for involvement and that donation type appeared linked to motivation. We suggest that motivation for engaging in social action is a valuable approach to better understanding donation behavior and, consequently, addressing the social problem of materiel convergence in the postdisaster environment.

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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to introduce the concept of gathering places in disaster recovery, and describe types of active gathering places where residents and aid workers in Southern Texas, USA, came seeking resources, information and emotional support one month after Hurricane Harvey. Design/methodology/approach Semi-structured interviews in the field with 81 residents and 44 aid workers identified active gathering places and their functions. Researchers utilized a snowball sample design to identify and visit further gathering places until saturation. Field observations and a regional damage survey conducted by car add further context to interview data. Findings In total, 22 distinct types of gathering places were identified from the 123 unique gathering places documented. Overall, the displacement of residents created an obstacle to their recovery and access to resources and gathering places; residents characterized a lack of formalized emotional support centers – primarily relying on informal gatherings with friends and neighbors to meet their needs; and gathering places were limited in their ability to foster a communal recovery among the residents. Originality/value This study addresses a gap in the research, focusing on where and how individuals access resources, information and emotional support in the short-term recovery following a disaster event. This research combines two traditions, hazards geography and disaster sociology, to investigate what gathering places exist one month after a major disaster, where those places are located, and what purpose they serve.

Following disasters, materiel convergence (the influx of materiel donations) can cause extreme negative impacts; it has been described as a “second disaster”. Non-priority goods and donations that exceed the need can negatively impact transportation into the area and create storage concerns for both distribution centers and survivors. A successful supply chain aligns the needs and interests of the actors involved. This paper focuses on how actors involved in the disaster donations supply chain construct and understand their own interests, and how those interests align between actor groups (i.e. donors, donation collectors, and distributors). Interviews were conducted following Hurricane Sandy in 2013 and two tornadoes outside of Oklahoma City in May 2013 with individual actors in the donation supply chain. These interviews were analyzed for how interviewees constructed the need for donations, and the alignment of their interests with other actors at different stages. Overall, a misalignment was observed between donors, donation collectors, and donations distributors. Future research should investigate the specific interests of survivors and how their interests align with other actors in the donation supply chain.