Economics

An imagined natural disaster for St. Louis would be a flood of either the Missouri or Mississippi. The mechanics of such a flood are unimportant, but the economic consequences could be dire. A flood would wipe out entire sections of the city, which would need to be abandoned and subsequently rebuilt. All port activities would cease during the duration of the flood and the rebuilding of any port areas that suffered damage. This would disrupt the city's rail activities as well. Many other of the city's major industries would likely recover quickly from a flood scenario, unless specific plants were damaged.

Such a natural disaster would have an impact on both the demand for labor and the supply of labor. On the demand side, there would be an initial reduction in demand. The flood would create a significant disruption to economic activity in the area, in particular if the...
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