One would have to have been living under a rock not to know that it was five years ago last Sunday that Katrina roared ashore onto the Gulf Coast. The network and local media coverage showed the recovery work done over the years and stated that there still was more work to do. That's true, but they also have to deal with the BP oil spill. So one crisis has been largely handled but there's another one simmering under the Gulf waters and the fat part of the hurricane season is upon them.
What's become clear to me over the last months is that these people are fighters. They have to be because life down here isn't that easy. It isn't easy anywhere but places are few where entire communities can have their houses ripped apart in a single day. Beginning August 30, 2005 Moss Point started rebuilding. So did Waveland and Pascagoula. Biloxi, Ocean Springs, Bay St. Louis and all the coastal towns and cities started the long march back to their new normal. They had help from individuals and groups of people who came down from around the country to help them rebuild. They are Phenomenal People, and there was a week-long celebration of that recovery that lead up to the anniversary. Although at first glance it doesn't seem like there's a connection, but there is. You see these people came back from an epic nightmare. Now they face another one with the oil spill and what they all really want is a break to catch their breath.
I'm including a video piece here because it shows the kind of people that live here and that they are going to fight through the oil spill and come out the other side whole. It's a different kind of fight than Katrina, and it will take different skills and talents to do it, but the brains and the talent are here. There's another thing here too... grit. Most of these people don't know anything about giving up.
They'll need that ability now because this spill will take years to play out.
Follow the link to ExposureRoom to watch in HD.
Showing posts with label hurricane. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hurricane. Show all posts
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Three Misses and Next, What?
Meet "Invest 98". That's weathergeek-speak for the next thing to watch in the tropics. This one looks like it could head into the Gulf, but it's still way to early to tell for sure. The National Weather Service currently only gives this a 20% chance of developing into a tropical storm, but that could change by the time you read this.
The Gulf doesn't need this for a host of reasons. Well, nobody does really. However, a tropical storm or hurricane in the Gulf will raise a bunch of new questions about all that missing oil. It will be interesting to see how this all plays out, both in the real world and in the press. Hopefully there won't be too much to talk about.
UPDATE: This is now tropical depression Gaston. It's still too early to know what it's going to be or where it's going to go, but if I was in Belize, I'd be nervous. This will bear watching to see if it turns north or barrels into the Yucatan.
Earl will play out its dance up the North American east coast by early Saturday.
FINAL UPDATE: Overnight, TD Gaston dissipated to the point where it's no longer being tracked by the National Weather Service. They are, however, tracking two more tropical waves moving west from the African coast.