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<br /> <br />4.3.1 People <br />People experience hazards through damage to buildings and interruption of infrastructure <br />services. While some people will be directly injured or killed by hazards, this is a small <br />portion of the impacts on people. The vast majority of impacts will be felt through a <br />person’s ability to manage the secondary impacts from the hazard. The character of San <br />Leandro residents is responsible for the strong community vitality, distinctive culture, and <br />its unique economy. San Leandro is especially diverse, showcasing many different <br />lifestyles, cultures, and languages that provide a wide variety of cultural experiences. <br />Longtime residents of the San Leandro have special knowledge, social networks, and <br />cultural memories that make them strong stewards for neighborhoods, parks, and trails. If <br />a disaster forces San Leandro residents from their homes, social networks will be broken, <br />and the diverse culture of the region will change. <br />San Leandro’s economy relies on service, labor, creative, and professional workers. The <br />Bay Area economy is unique in that it is home to one of the fastest growing and most <br />innovative economic sectors in the world. If a disaster impedes the ability of employees of <br />any sector to stay in the region or get to work, the impact will cascade beyond individual <br />businesses and be felt not just across the region, but globally. Employees from all sectors <br />are needed to support one of the strongest and most specialized economies in the world. <br />People are a critical asset for the functioning of a community and the economy; without <br />residents a jurisdiction loses its tax base and employers lose employees and customers. <br />More importantly, jurisdictions lose the culture, vibrancy, and sense of cohesiveness that <br />make it unique. People are the nexus of a resilient community, and many other assets are <br />designed to serve and support people. <br />4.3.2 Social Vulnerability <br />Social vulnerability describes characteristics that make people less able to adequately <br />withstand and adapt to a hazard, such as limited mobility, income, and educational <br />attainment. Social vulnerabilities are largely independent of the hazard type and can be <br />applied similarly to any type of disaster. <br />Unlike other asset classes like buildings and infrastructure, the vulnerability of people is <br />not just due to physical characteristics but rather social characteristics that make them less <br />able to adequately withstand and adapt to a hazard. People are also highly dependent upon <br />the physical environment that they are surrounded by; community members are much <br />more vulnerable if the buildings and infrastructure that they live in, work in, and rely upon <br />fail.