A Few Thoughts On Disasters

As I write this on Sunday afternoon, I am on the outer fringes of what may become the defining disaster for Texas the way that Katrina became for Louisiana.  Harvey continues to stall, dumping inches of rain on the Houston area - before hopefully moving on (although we shall see).

Hopefully as my posts have indicated, this has been - in all ways - a non-event for us - frankly, we have had half day storms that have done more damage than what we have seen to date.  At least in our area, there is no flooding, no major trees down, and no power outages.  Other than a convenient chance to stay inside and catch up on reading, there has been little to report (and I am sure my reports, as mundane as they are, reflect that).

Beyond fortunate, there was some planning involved.  When last Thursday night came, we merely had to buy a few things and fill up the cars.  The important basics were covered - because I have made an effort to cover them (sadly, power is the one gaping hole in my preparations, but right now an emergency generator simply is not in the works).  Water, food, toilet paper, basic medical supplies - all of these things were taken care of.   But judging from the supermarket, not for everyone.

In reality, any significant weather event in the nearby area should be cause to look at one's preparations and be prepared.  As many have found in Houston, news reports and predictions about where a storm is supposed to go can quickly change with disastrous results.  And every event is a good excuse to go back and review the preparations you have made to see if there are holes or something needs to be redone.  Sometimes it is only the practical application of using an item or a system that will tell you where the disconnects are.

On a more macro scale, this is a single disaster in one (rather large) area.  Imagine now that this is multiplied in multiple areas, be they counties, regions, or entire states.  How well will the mechanisms most are counting on be able to function over time to sustain and develop?

And not just in the short term.  Pretty soon, things like fuel and food will be scarce in Houston and need to be brought in - which assumes passable roads, electricity to sustain refrigeration and economic activity (and remember, it is still summer here - last week it was well into the 90's F), and jobs for folks to earn income at.  All of this will take weeks or even months to fully bring back on-line.  And this with a modern society with resources readily available.

One of the best lines I read from this disaster about being prepared was not just the benefit to you and yours but to the fact that by being prepared, you help to reduce the requirements of emergency personnel and can perhaps even help those around you, giving the first responders the ability to turn to more desperate cases.  If ever there was a call to the true reason to be prepared - not just good sense, not just good practice, but good for each other and the society in which we live - this has to be it.