Mike, I was referring to an actual disaster (or two) here in the USA.
The vast majority of our disasters have been met with responsible behavior by the folks involved- at least at the start. Yet, you can't have a country as large as ours without there being pretty significant regional differences.
When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans a decade ago, the social meltdown started even before the rain stopped. There are news team films of uniformed police pushing carts of loot amidst the other looters.
When Hurricane Hugo hit Florida nearly two decades ago, in the immediate aftermath armed gang formed and began systematically victimizing others. These gangs were stopped dead in their tracks by other survivors - thanks to our 'right to bear arms.' "You loot, we shoot" signs became common.
As Scott observed, our most recent few quakes have been met with responsible behavior by the locals. As have many other quakes, blizzards, mudslides, tornados, wildfires, etc.
Yet Hugo and Katrina showed that the outcome can be different.
