Plane crash crisis intervention: a preliminary report from the Bijlmermeer, Amsterdam

Abstract

Psychological adjustment following airline disasters shares many characteristics with adjustments following other disasters, both human and natural. On October 4, 1992, an El Al Boeing 747-F crashed into two apartment buildings in an Amsterdam suburb called the Bijlmermeer (The Netherlands). This paper gives a first impression of some of the postdisaster reactions in the affected population. It also describes the crisis intervention program (Aftercare Plan Bijlmermeer), which will be evaluated by the Bijlmer Research Project. In the Aftercare Plan for the Bijlmermeer, the organization and delivery of material aid and of medical and mental health aid was outlined. The primary goal of crisis intervention in this context is symptom relief. It is important that such programs are not looked upon as services for the mentally ill. The authors of this article plead for a better interaction between intervention and research. We need studies that can give us a better idea of the psychological effects of disaster and the effectiveness of various ways of providing postdisaster services to the public.