During times of disaster or crisis, people’s stress levels will rise dramatically. Unfortunately, some people will turn violent. Learning the warning signs that a person may pose a threat to your safety and security is important, and there are many verbal and physical cues to be on the lookout for.

When someone appears to be in an extreme state of agitation, there are two choices: leave or try to calm the person down. Sometimes, if the other person is angry or scared enough, he or she may not let you leave easily. In the following section, we briefly discuss how to calm rising tensions.