Why disasters happen: Cultural framings from the Diamond Island stampede in Cambodia

The purpose of this study is to identify the emic construction of disaster in Cambodia and thus enable a cultural framing. The case study is the 2010 human stampede at Diamond Island in Phnom Penh, which resulted in the deaths of 347 people.

The Diamond Island stampede powerfully illustrates how people confronted by mass disaster draw on cultural and religious explanations for misfortune, and it is woven into a wider narrative about the national tragedy of the Khmer Rouge era. It is proposed that an emic understanding of the ontology of disaster that is grounded in local knowledge can strengthen cultural responsiveness to disaster prevention and management.