This Has Gone From Ridiculous to Tragic

This really getting ridiculous:  
Staten Island Borough President James Molinaro says the people of his community are in desperate need of fresh underwear.

"It's like a third-world nation," Molinaro said in a phone interview on Tuesday's Good Day New York.He says so much other clothing has been donated that they are not accepting anymore. "What we do need right now is underwear; undergarments for children and adults," Molinaro says.  "That we need desperately."...

He says a five foot storm surge could create new devastation. "The protection we had at the shoreline is all gone," Molinaro says.  "A lot of our berms are gone."

"The problem that we're having is that there are so many people without electric, in homes that are partially destroyed, they're afraid of looters and we have to reach them."

As for the election, he says that is not high on his list of priorities.

"I have not checked on the voting process.  I'm not concerned about it.  I'm not interested at all.  I got people that are still trapped in their houses.  Hundreds of people are without lights.  Hundreds and hundreds of people are without shelter and we have a major storm coming.  The furthest thing from my mind is the voting."

This is what the stores look like:
click to enlarge
The storm occurred more than a week ago. 

I have taken a lot of heat over my criticism of FEMA in Warnings: The True Story of How Science Tamed the Weather and in this blog. That was especially true immediately after the New York Times wrote its editorial supporting FEMA.

Now, FEMA's usual shortcomings have become obvious. As Rudy Giullani put it, "FEMA is as much a failure now as at the time of Katrina." He added,

Giuliani, a 2008 presidential candidate, said that he did not “understand” why New York was facing water, generators and gas shortages.

“It’s quite obvious they didn’t pre-plan for water, they didn’t pre-plan for the generators, they didn’t pre-plan for the gasoline,” he said.

I hesitate to write this now as the voting is not over. But, these people need our help and donations! That cannot wait. 

I'm sorry to report that FEMA has, as usual, lived down to my expectations. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Hilary's Forecast Path Shifts West; Updated 9:20am PDT

Dangerous Travel Conditions - People Reportedly Stranded

Dangerous Tornado Situation Developing Tuesday and Tuesday Night