Quick winds, lasting effects? Using generalized differenced techniques to analyze the impact of hurricanes on crops, crime and education

Hurricanes are increasing in frequency and intensity. They have plagued a number of economies and are now possible threats to others whose climate history have not been marked by hurricane events. They affect people's lives in a variety of ways and generate significant economic damage. In this dissertation, I quantify the impact of hurricanes on crop production, crime and academic performance using generalized difference-in-difference techniques.;Firstly, I explore the economic impact of hurricanes on local crop production in Jamaica using quarterly 1999-2008 micro level data. I create an original dataset using data from published government documents and carefully examine the paths of hurricanes from interactive maps in order to generate the appropriate hurricane data for this analysis. I find, in general, that hurricanes will have a negative impact on production but not for crops grown below ground. The exceptions for underground crops being negatively affected are yams and potatoes for which water saturated soil reduces output. From these results, implications are obtained regarding issues such as food security and export expansion and earnings.;Secondly, I examine the economic impact of hurricanes on violent criminal activities in Florida using micro level data from 1976 - 2012. I find that hurricanes will increase crime per capita in counties that are directly hit while neighboring counties experience a decline. This study has implications for the allocation of resources and national security in the face of natural disasters.;Finally, I examine whether being in the classroom is important to learning. Identification is achieved by using hurricanes, which decreases days in school, to investigate the impact of classroom time on standardized test scores. The analysis uses a panel of nineteen Caribbean countries and over thirteen hundred schools for the period 1993 - 2010. In particular, the effect on subjects in the humanities and sciences are examined. The results show a negative and significant effect on performance in the sciences if hurricanes strike when school is in session and a positive or no effect when school is not in session. In addition, subjects in the humanities remain unaffected.