Friday, September 02, 2005

Hurricane K....things I'm thinking about

Would a person still have to pay their mortgage on a house that no longer exists?

Think about the dignity that has been taken away from people who have not showered in days, had no food or water, can’t go back home, have no sanitary conditions to use the bathroom in and are living amongst human waste and dead bodies.

What if I was wading through water to seek higher ground and I spotted a shark swirling the waters around me, as was reported yesterday. Now that Lake Ponchartrain and the Gulf of Mexico have merged, New Orleans is now part of the ocean. Where one shark is more are sure to follow.

The US Postal Service has suspended mail to many zip’s in MS, LA and AL. Think about all the packages, bills, medical supplies and prescriptions that are lost and will never get to their destinations. The bills can be re-sent but think about all the wasted postage on bills sent that will never get a reply. Medical equipment/Prescriptions sent and never rec’d. Think about the impact on the medical community being out the monies for equipment and prescriptions that will never be recouped. Healthcare and prescription costs are sure to rise.

What if you died sitting in your wheelchair outside the Superdome and out of respect the only thing people could do was cover you up with a sheet.

What about making payments on a car that is now 20 ft. under water and that you will never drive again?

Insurance rates (home, life & auto) will inevitably have to go up substantially to cover the costs of this natural disaster.

I never in my wildest dreams would have thought about cholera, typhoid fever and other infectious diseases in our day and time with all of the vaccinations we get from childhood on.

Who would have thought that they would have to deliver their baby on a bridge overpass and cut the umbilical cord with a “sterile” knife (heated with a lighter) and tie off the cord with a shoe string until they could get medical help.

What do Diabetics do who have no electricity to their refrigerators to keep their insulin at sufficient temps.

I’ve always heard, “The Superdome is hurricane proof”. I guess that was like saying the Titanic was unsinkable.

Who would have thought police officers, fire officials and Medi-vac personnel would be fired upon while trying to restore law and order and evacuating those stranded on rooftops.

How would I get along for 5 days without water? Forget bathing, I just need a drink. Although there is an abundance of water in New Orleans now, I wouldn’t want to drink the contaminated sewage water or water ridden with toxic carcinogens from decomposing bodies floating in them.

How would I feel if my baby, that was just born during the hurricane was choppered out to a hospital in another state without me knowing when I would see him/her. Or furthermore, how I would even be recognized as the birth mother to actually claim him/her when I was finally able to be reunited.

What about all the relief workers who are volunteering their time, funds, resources and talents only to return home at some later date bringing infectious diseases that they will spread to their friends and family because of the unsanitary conditions they were subjected to while helping others. We’re looking at a health crisis all over the country.

Despite the fact that oil reserves are now being tapped into gas prices are soaring thru the roof. Price gouging is happening all over the country.

People are taking advantage of lawlessness with looting, raping and pillaging to get a “free” big screen t.v. that cannot be plugged in anywhere within a 50 miles radius of where they’re stranded.

Where do you bury the bodies of the deceased when the cemeteries are 20 ft. under water?

What would I do if I had ONLY the shirt on my back and my baby had no diapers or formula?

What if I had no shoes when I fled my home and I had to make shoes out of a cardboard box bottom and a couple of rubber bands.

How would I feel if I lost the grip of my spouse’s hand, which I was holding when the Hurricane ripped our house in half and they were swept away--never to be seen again.

How would I have decided what to flee my house with before the Hurricane hit? And how could I carry it all while wading through waist deep water.

What if I didn’t take out flood insurance on my home because the Army Corp of Engineers who designed the levee system in New Orleans were so confident in it’s ability to contain water during a hurricane that they didn’t consider most of the city of New Orleans a flood zone.

These are just a few of the many sad things I've thought about and continue to think about over the last few days. I cannot imagine the amount of anger, grief and sadness these poor people are feeling. May God bless their precious souls. I am so fortunate to be blessed with all I have. I do not take it for granted. We have to help our brothers and sisters in this time of need. We just have to! I'm proud to see Texas taking in 75,000 of the refugees.

3 comments:

Brooke said...

You could not be more right. WOW! What an outlook on it. Lots of those things I never thought about! Thank you for adding more prayers to my list!

Anonymous said...

You are quite a writer ms Heather...Have you considered being part of the Collin County Opinions page and from there to being a columnist???

We must always remember..."if you have done it for the leasts of these, you have done it for me."

Tina

I am Heather...creator of all things crafty! said...

Miss Tina--I've always enjoyed writing, journalism, marketing and PR. I think I got it from my father. He was great at all of the above.