Hurricane Irene

I’ve been talking with people on the east coast about the approaching hurricane. It amazes me how complacent some of them are. Here we have a potentially devastating storm bearing down on them and still they won’t take steps to prepare. It wasn’t that long ago that Katrina unleashed its wrath, killing over 1,800 people and leaving countless homeless. Katrina was a category 3 hurricane when it made landfall. Irene is expected to be a category 4 hurricane with some speculation that it could reach category 5. Most of the east coast of the United States is threatened, but still, they won’t prepare. Wake up and smell the roses people!

• This is what we can expect to see If Irene does not dissipate:
• People will wait until the day before it hits them to try to buy supplies. There will be runs on stores and many people will not be able to get what they need.
• Evacuation orders will come too late and will be ignored by many.
• Power outages will occur.
• Cell phone service will be interrupted.
• Flooding will occur.
• People will lose their homes.
• Lives will be lost.
• FEMA will take longer than expected to effectively respond.
• Those people who are in need of rescue will find that the recommended three days worth of emergency food and water was not nearly enough.
• Emergency shelters will be set up but they will be short supplied.
• The list goes on.

Hurricane Irene has the potential to be one of the worst to ever hit the U.S. So many people are gambling that it won’t be that bad and I am praying that they are right. But, personally, I would rather not depend on luck when a little action could have a huge effect. Prepare Now!

Good luck and be safe