Unrelenting rains and savage winds, which accompany hurricanes, produce devastating mudslides and sustained flooding. In the wake of hurricanes, thousands of inhabitants face the plight of a greatly diminished capacity to go about their daily lives as a result of destroyed or severely-damaged homes, deteriorated living conditions, and increased health risks. Hurricanes inevitably aggravate the frail health of an already vulnerable segment of the population living both in and outside its destructive path.