Image by Official U.S. Navy Imagery via FlickrFrom Denny: The massive storm, Hurricane Irene, that came on land as a category 1 storm on Sunday, left behind billions of dollars in damage and plenty of clean-up headaches. The devastation is widespread because of the relentless 12 hours of rain that pummeled an already soaked landscape. The video clips tell the story: Rivers of water rushing through a Vermont town, mud-slimed furniture thrown out of houses during clean-up.
Those of us here in Louisiana know the pain of these people. We deal with flooding threats every year. We bear the brunt of extra unexpected financial worries that come from these disasters. We understand how difficult it is to keep your attitude positive and start over once again.
The only good news that may come out of this storm is that the rebuilding may stimulate the economy is these areas. To date this huge hurricane affected 66 million people in America, the largest ever in our history.
Current status of various areas
Power outrages in several states still exist for up to three million. In New Jersey yesterday, they were still sweating out nine rivers cresting as they are already past record flooding levels. It has affected the suburbs the worst. Yesterday, in New Jersey, there were 700 boat rescues as stranded homeowners were taken to higher ground. Today, many of those rivers finally crested and are going down - thankfully!
Folks in Pennsylvania still can't get to work because of downed trees and power lines. In Vermont the massive flooding has cut off eleven communities, down from the previous thirteen. In North Carolina, the Outer Banks coastline area is forever changed while they wait to rebuild the washed out roads. A ferry service is currently their only means of getting in and out of the area. In Connecticut, over a 1,000 roads still remain blocked.
Cost of Hurricane Irene damage
The guessed amount of damage continues to mount. What started as a $3 billion estimate has now climbed to well past $12 billion. The toughest news about this storm is how cash strapped the federal government is to help people.
The Republicans are already calling for cutting funds for emergencies just like this storm. They demand more budget cuts before releasing any funds to new disaster rebuilding or relief. Talk about heartless. Homeland Security is forced to take away funds from people still seeking funds from recent disasters like the tornadoes in Joplin, Missouri, and redirect it to help the current flood and hurricane victims.
For only a category 1 storm it sure did some serious damage up and along the Atlantic Coast. Certainly, Hurricane Irene is a name that will be long remembered - and retired from the weather service.
How FEMA responded during this crisis
The good news out of this situation is that FEMA is finally back as a reliable and helpful agency, though running out of funds. Remember how President Bush had dismantled the agency of 10,000 and gutted the budget? Incredibly stupid considering America is the only country in the world with consistently the most violent weather.
FEMA pre-positioned emergency supplies ahead of the storm is strategic areas, enabling them to get to the needy more efficiently and a lot faster. Both Democrat and Republican governors sang their praises for their efforts and constant communications.
Millennium Prophecy
After viewing the extreme flooding it does bring to mind those "Millennium Prophets" we heard on the news back in the late 1990's and early in 2000. Remember them? Better yet, remember the aerial maps depicting the flooding, showing much of the American Southeast under water and America split in two, divided by a widened Mississippi River?
We are definitely living in a time of geologic change. As a country we need to get serious about adapting to our changing world of melting polar ice caps, more severe weather, earthquakes and rivers changing course. Just this year alone the earthquakes have been so influential as to change the earth's axis by several degrees. That affects how water and weather moves across the planet.
Long Term Planning for America to Respond to Earth Changes
While the weather prophecy is coming true it will still take perhaps decades, even 100 years to fulfill to the level they depicted. That said, a couple of generations is really not much time to begin the process of moving millions of people to higher ground and evolve an economy to absorb the changes gracefully.
America - and its leaders - need to quit taking time off to play golf or go raise campaign monies - and get serious about addressing long term changes affecting humanity. At the snail's pace of our leaders - and constant bickering, we could very well end up fending for ourselves, living in a world so messed up it could take a couple of hundred years to work our way out of it like Europe's Dark Ages.
Do we really have to continue coddling greedy businessmen at the expense of our entire country's future? Let's put pressure on our representatives to get serious about long term planning to ensure the safety and security of the next generation. If we don't Mother Nature may not give us a second chance.
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