Tag Archives: Earthquake
The Big One
“The Big One” is a term used by those involved in emergency management to describe an inevitable cataclysmic event. A constant denial at a political level hampers efforts to protect lives and infrastructure against the worst imminent catastrophes. These events shape the national consciousness, but are often downplayed before on can truly learn its lessons. The USA’s most recent “Big One” was Hurricane Katrina, which was the costliest natural disaster and among the most deadliest in the history of the United States. At least 1,836 people died in the hurricane and subsequent floods and the total property damage was estimated at $81 billion. Continue reading
Kinda Late to Help Haiti
As everyone now knows, on January 12th Haiti had been struck by a devastating earthquake that killed thousands of people. According to the United States Agency for International Development, the estimated death toll is 100,000, and nearly 3 million people have been affected. Clearly, this is a terrible tragedy.
So, what was the U.S. response to this catastrophe? Surprisingly, America had a better response time to supporting Haiti than it did its own city of New Orleans during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Within a day, the U.S. sent over American soldiers, firefighters, paramedics, and humanitarian workers. In fact, President Barack Obama promised Haiti $100 million in hard earned taxpayer dollars, and has stated that much more aid is on the way. Continue reading