Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/320503 
Year of Publication: 
2025
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 17909
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
Over the past decades, Latin America and the Caribbean have experienced a significant increase in natural disasters, posing significant threats to infrastructure and economic activity, particularly in regions with poor infrastructure. Understanding the patterns in recovery time after disasters is key to designing accurate responses to natural hazards. In this paper, we develop a methodological approach and use Hurricane Odile, which struck Baja California Sur, Mexico, in September 2014, as a case study to understand the recovery paths following such disasters. We rely on nighttime lights data to capture the initial impact and eventual recovery of electricity service and economic activity in the area of impact of the hurricane. We find that the average luminosity dropped to 78% of pre-hurricane levels immediately after the event and did not fully recover within a year. Impacts are heterogeneous, with localities such as Cabo San Lucas and San José del Cabo experiencing more severe impacts and slower recovery compared to La Paz, which recovered faster. These results suggest that disaster evaluation, mitigation policies, and preventive measures against disaster impacts should be tailored to local realities.
Subjects: 
nighttime light
economic activity recovery
electricity service
natural disasters
resilience
hurricane
Mexico
JEL: 
O13
Q54
R11
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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