I was watching the news on TV last night and crying! Hurricane Harvey had passed thru Houston, Texas. They were showing rescues, of some of the residents of Port Arthur, Texas and from local towns and communities outside of Houston, as well. Some of the people who had lost their homes, were financially well off. Some were less fortunate. Hurricanes do not discriminate. They hit anyone and everyone in their path, to include the rich and the poor! Unfortunately, some people don’t have the money to replace, what they have lost. Some have flood insurance and can rebuild, others are simply “out of luck”, and at the mercy of FEMA and the Red Cross.
I am grieving over the loss of life, resulting from this disaster! Two young men with a boat, who volunteered to help rescue victims, became stranded by flood waters! They were, inadvertently swept into an area , with downed power lines. They were electrocuted!!!!! There was an additional report , about a young mother who drowned, while trying to save her toddler! It was an image, that I will never be able to erase, from my mind. The three-year old , was found clinging to her mother’s body, as the two floated down a river! These are , but a few of the countless reports of deaths, resulting from Hurricane Harvey! It’s a disaster of epic heartbreak!
A scientist was shown testing the flood waters, by collecting a random sample of water, in the street. The water, the people on TV are shown wading in, is full of bacteria, feces and chemicals. There are mass quantities of refineries, in the Houston area…leeching out GOD KNOWS WHAT! They’re not just releasing toxins into the air, but now contaminating the flood waters, as well!
The water has entered their homes and saturated their chairs, couches, beds, etc.. The walls of their apartments and homes, the floors, the ceilings, their kitchen cabinets, their appliances ….all ruined! I feel so bad, for the loss of everyone’s irreplaceable, sentimental possessions, and photos, as well. It’s all, so incomprehensibly sad!
There are snakes, alligators, fire ants and all kinds of bugs in the water, too! You’d think it was something out of a Science Fiction film, except it’s real!!!!! It’s an absolute, alarming health concern, not just a question of material loss!
Unfortunately, it’s not over! They are still having to let more water out of the reservoirs , to avoid collapse of the local dams. Another hurricane is brewing out in the ocean, It’s a looming threat, which would wreck more havoc and destruction, upon those in its path!
One of the main problems, is overpopulation and over development of homes and businesses, in Houston. The traffic in Houston is horrendous, because there are just too many people, living there! When you have more people, you have more construction, thus taking away the natural ground and replacing it with cement and pavement, which does not absorb water. Add to that, the fact that beneath the top soil is clay!!!! The water that fell to the ground, had no place to go!!!!!
This problem was partially created by the government, too! The State regulators did away with the laws, that would have protected the environment. Everyone is out to make money!!!!! They deny Global Warming and turn their backs on preserving our natural habitats, in favor of high rises and money-making businesses! “They paved paradise and put up a parking lot”! Joni Mitchell was spot on!!!!!
Global Warming is a reality! The glaciers are melting and there is more flooding occurring than ever before, all over the world…. not just in the United States. I am just
so sad, sad for the wildlife, sad for us and sad for the future of our planet!!!!! And now, they are doing away with even more regulations, allowing corporations to dump their waste and by products, back into our lakes and rivers, thus contaminating our water supplies!!!!!
We need Captain Kirk!!!!! We need The Federation!!!!!
We need to try and Save Our Planet, before it’s too late!
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Photo by Kevin Demmer.
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