Persons with disabilities, including persons with Spinal Cord injury (SCI), are susceptible to disasters. In this point–counterpoint series, the concerns of persons with SCIs to hurricanes and the unique issues of persons with SCIs in relationship to corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are described. Professionals and consumers must be educated about these concerns to optimize the health and safety of persons with SCIs. Moreover, these concerns may be similar in persons with other etiology of disability and professionals must use this time accordingly as a learning experience for future events. SCI is one of the most profound disabilities that an individual can experience. SCI not only results in organ system changes, but it also impacts the person’s ability to perform activities of daily living and their mobility, which often results in dependence on equipment and the need for daily physical assistance from another individual. These concerns make persons with SCIs one of the most vulnerable groups in society to the impacts of disasters. In this timely point–counterpoint series we confront two of the major issues of our time: disasters related to the climate crisis [1] and the COVID-19 pandemic [2].

The climate crisis will increase the frequency of fires and extreme weather conditions such as droughts, excessive heat, storms, and floods, amongst other societal concerns. Shapiro et al. [1] provide information related to one of the most troublesome issues: the increasing threat of cyclones and hurricanes around the world. In this paper, the authors discuss ways to prepare for hurricanes, highlighting the concerns for persons living with SCI, their family members, and the professionals who care for them. The authors provide excellent tips that are worth review by all professionals, regardless of whether the area they live in is prone to hurricanes or cyclones. Moreover, this paper addresses the educational needs of health care professionals working in SCI where in a recent survey [3] 56% of respondents had acknowledged that climate change had already impacted their clients with SCIs and 85% were interested in further education.

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