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Showing posts with label Disasters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Disasters. Show all posts

Monday, January 15, 2018

HAWAII MISSILE SCARE - USA wastes more than ONE TRILLION DOLLARS in Afghanistan but has no fallout shelters in America - Hawaii parents were dropping kids in storm drains after missile attack alert that turned out to be false

©http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/. Unauthorized duplication of this blog's material is prohibited.   Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full credit and link is given to Otters and Science News Blogspot.  Link to this post:  http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/2018/01/hawaii-missile-scare-usa-wastes-more.html - Thank you for visiting my blog.
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Video appears to show a family taking shelter in the sewer through a manhole cover after a false alert of an inbound ballistic missile sparked panic in Hawaii on Saturday morning
THIS IS AMERICA - Video appears to show a family taking shelter in the sewer through a manhole cover after a false alert of an inbound ballistic missile sparked panic in Hawaii on Saturday morning

  • You wouldn't know it from watching CNN and other media ongoing controversy over whether Trump said "shithole" or "shithouse" when referring to dysfunctional nations in Africa (the utterance of those words denied by Trump and other Republicans present at the meeting).
  • The media seem oblivious to the irony that the great USA itself cannot protect its citizens from nuclear fallout - or even have a decent system to warn citizens of an incoming attack, or to dismiss false alerts.  
  • In addition, American infrastructure is crumbling, and military veterans languish waiting for proper health care and housing, and end up committing suicide in the hundreds.  The country has a large homeless population.  Thousands of Americans of all ages are dying from opioid overdoses without a national plan to help them.  
  • Chicago's inner city is like a third world enclave, with rampant violent crime and the highest murder rate in the nation - almost all of it black-on-black violence.   Chicago, Illinois, is controlled by Democrat politicians who blame all minority shortcomings on white racism.
 
  • Trump promised to take care of America first, but Congress and leftist activist judges continuously anguish over the feelings and welfare of other nations, while sabotaging the agenda Trump was elected to implement. 
  • Then there is the ongoing threat of an EMP attack (electromagnetic pulse) that could occur as a result of a giant solar flare directed towards North America, or a nuclear bomb detonated in the atmosphere. 
  • Either way the electric grid and all electronics would be fried and the USA would turn within hours and days into a place of scarcity, savagery, and millions of casualties from violence and starvation.  Remember how during the Texas hurricane floods there were heroes saving lives, but there were also mobs looting homes and stores.   
  • Our entire lives now depend on computers, and once they are permanently out of commission there can be no transportation, no distribution of food, no hospital technology, no communication systems at all, other than smoke signals....
  • It would take years to rebuild the electric grid. But, believe it or not, Congress so far has refused to deal with this threat.   (See link to EMP related article on this page.) 
  • Congress and previous presidents have been more interested in sending trillions of taxpayers' money to Afghanistan, Palestinian terrorists, and other dysfunctional and violent nations all over the world.  
  • More than a trillion dollars have been wasted in Afghanistan alone, much of it mysteriously vanished due to Afghan and US contractors' corruption.  
  • Natural disasters wreaked havoc in 2017, showing how vulnerable we all are.    The following report on the Hawaii scare shows how unprepared we are for emergencies.  

Hawaii's 38-minutes of terror: How islanders were gripped by panic as phones and TV stations broadcast a false missile warning telling them to urgently seek shelter
 
  • Alert warned people of a missile heading towards Hawaii Saturday morning
  • Took 38 minutes for a second alert to be sent out explaining it was a false alarm
  • Families huddled together crying and praying while waiting for the missile to hit
  • Some people placed their children in storm drains, others messaged loved ones
  • 'I was sitting in the bathtub with my children, saying our prayers,' one said 
  • Local police were aware that a missile attack warning for Hawaii was false only five minutes after it was sent, but it took a full 38 minutes for authorities to correct the inaccurate information.  One police supervisor advised to continue evacuations until official channels reported back that the alert was an accidental release.
Continue reading and see more related articles and photos

Friday, January 5, 2018

POLAR BOMB CYCLONE GREETS THE 2018 NEW YEAR - Photos and cartoons of the New Year Megastorm

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A woman wears ski glasses as she walks through the snow toward the Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center subway station during the morning commute on Thursday in Brooklyn, New York
DARN, THIS GLOBAL WARMING IS JUST TOO MUCH!!!! 

Pedestrians make their way across a plaza as strong winds blow the snow horizontally outside the National September 11 Memorial and Museum in New York, Thursday, Jan. 4, 2018
 

Pedestrians make their way across a plaza as strong winds blow the snow horizontally outside the National September 11 Memorial and Museum in New York, Thursday, Jan. 4, 2018 
A giant winter "bomb cyclone" walloped the US East Coast on Thursday with heavy snow and freezing cold that made for treacherous travel conditions and bone-chilling misery. 
Boston drowns in historic 15ft flood of ice water - trapping people in cars and homes - as 'bomb cyclone' storm causes travel chaos across the Northeast and kills 14 - with the aftermath looking even more deadly
NBC 6 reports “It’s so cold in Florida that iguanas are falling from their perches in suburban trees.” The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is also working to rescue sea turtles “found floating listlessly on the water or near shore” due to low temperatures.
 



 
Continue reading and see more related cartoons and more unforgettable photos of this megastorm.

Friday, December 22, 2017

HOW TO DRIVE AWAY FROM CATASTROPHE - Preparing a good bug out plan - And see list of the 50 BEST PREPPER WEBSITES

©http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/. Unauthorized duplication of this blog's material is prohibited.   Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full credit and link is given to Otters and Science News Blogspot.  Link to this post:  http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/2017/12/how-to-drive-away-from-catastrophe.html - Thank you for visiting my blog.
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  • 2017 was a year of one catastrophe after another in the USA - by floods, fire, hurricane winds, and more.   One common reoccurrence, particularly during wildfires, is the sight of motorists trapped in traffic jams, as everyone tries to escape disaster at the same time.  
  • The following article by The Survivalist Blog outlines preparations for alternative escape routes BEFORE disaster strikes, and the need for a dry run. 
  • One item you'll need that is rarely mentioned is a gun and plenty of ammunition to protect your family, whether you shelter in place or try to escape. 
  • Another item is plenty of cash.  In some types of disasters neither access to cash machines nor payment by credit card may be possible.
 
How to Develop a Bug Out Route
 
  • In order to decide when you need to bug out, where you’re bugging out to and all of the other considerations, you need to have a disaster plan. In the disaster plan you should have at least a few different bug out locations to choose from. If bug out location A is compromised, then go to bug out location B and so on.
  • The mock bug out (dry run) is so important to the overall planning and creation process. You can write a plan all day long, but until you’ve actually run the route to your bug out location(s) then you won’t know what you’re up against when the time comes to really bug out.
Continue reading

Friday, December 8, 2017

ANIMAL LIVES MATTER - PEOPLE CONTINUE TO ABANDON THEIR ANIMALS DURING DISASTERS - There is NO preparation, NO plan for rescue, NOTHING - Animals are left to die

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Ventura: In Ventura on Thursday morning, fire fighters continued to battle the ongoing Thomas fire which has so far covered 96,000 acres. Two fire fighters are pictured extinguishing its flames along the 101 Highway
Catastrophes happen several times a year,
but we have NO PLAN to save animals. 
  • It happens with heartbreaking regularity.  Whether floods or fires, people abandon their pets and other animals to their fate.  
  • This year alone there have been several hurricanes and major wildfires, and yet, there is no national plan to deal with the most helpless victims:  domestic animals.
  • If you live in a fire- or flood- or hurricane-prone zone, you know that the time may come when you'll only have seconds to get into your car and flee, not enough to get your pet or to release your horses and other animals.  
  • You may have an evacuation plan for you and your loved ones, but animals are often not even listed on emergency lists. 
  • While cats, dogs, and other small pets can be placed in carriers and taken along, larger animals face a more difficult challenge. 
  • I don't know what the cattle industry or horse owners think would be the best way to give animals a chance for survival, but SOMETHING MUST BE DONE!   
  • Some have suggested a dedicated organization that would operate regionally to evacuate and relocate animals as a precaution long before the danger to rescuers becomes insurmountable.   
  • They would have trucks and drivers available, with additional ones borrowed from non-affected regions, in order to transport the animals to safety.  
  • In the case of pets left behind, there could also be a reliable organization that could be tasked with rescuing those left behind by their panicked owners.  
  • Hundreds of horses and other domestic animals have died horrible deaths burning alive in these southern California fires because their owners left them locked in their barns.  See the horrible aftermath in images by the Daily Mail.   
 
Animal owners have the SACRED TASK of caring for animals in their charge. 
 
ANIMALS LIVES MATTER


HORSES LEFT TO DIE AT PADILLA RANCH IN SYLMAR
  • The Padilla Ranch in Sylmar was torched by the Creek wildfire in the early hours of Tuesday morning
  • Almost half of the 60 horses which are boarded on the ranch perished as the flames took hold 
  • The ranch owners live nearby but were forced to evacuate their homes and leave the area.  The returned on Wednesday to find 29 carcasses and others which survived but were badly burned
  • Creek is just one of five devastating wildfires which continues to ravage Southern California

  • Continue reading, including PETA's tips for evacuating with pets

    Thursday, December 7, 2017

    VIDEO - HEROIC MAN SAVES WILD RABBIT FROM RAGING WILDFIRE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

    ©http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/. Unauthorized duplication of this blog's material is prohibited.   Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full credit and link is given to Otters and Science News Blogspot.  Link to this post:  http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/2017/12/video-heroic-man-saves-wild-rabbit-from.html - Thank you for visiting my blog.
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    The video of a man desperately trying to save a wild rabbit from dying in the wildfires near Highway 1 in Southern California is going viral.
    Man pulled over to save a wild rabbit from flames along Highway 1 in Southern California as the massive #ThomasFire spreads toward Santa Barbara County

    The video of the unknown young man was first captured by ABC News and shows him frantic that a small, wild rabbit was endangered by the flames.  The animal is seen in the video darting back and forth as it desperately tries to escape the flames burning all around.

    Continue reading and watch VIDEO

    Wednesday, October 25, 2017

    AN EMP WOULD KILL NINE IN TEN AMERICANS says Congressional report - The USA is unprepared for an ELECTROMAGNETIC PULSE EVENT (EMP) caused by an atmospheric NUKE or a giant SOLAR FLARE that would fry all electronics, starve people, and bring the USA down to the Stone Age - NORTH KOREA and IRAN would be among likely suspects

    ©http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/. Unauthorized duplication of this blog's material is prohibited.   Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full credit and link is given to Otters and Science News Blogspot.  Link to this post:  http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/2017/10/an-emp-would-kill-nine-in-ten-americans.html - Thank you for visiting my blog.
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    • Imagine you wake up one day without electric power.  None of your electronic devices works either.  You sense something is wrong, get dressed and head for your car to drive to the grocery store and stock up on essentials.  Your car, equipped as it is with electronic parts, won't start. 
    • You're lucky enough to live within walking distance of a grocery store.  Once you get there it's total mayhem, people are trampling over each other to grab whatever they can.  No way to call police.  You walk back home wondering what is going on. 
    • The days that follow are of pure savagery, with the country technically and culturally back in the Stone Age.  Bands of armed thugs loot stalled trucks containing food items, and roam cities stealing food and everything they can.  They kill whoever gets in their way. 
    • The sick, unable to get medical aid, would begin to die.  Non-nursing babies would starve without formula.   
    • Highways would be clogged with stalled vehicles.  Computers, phones, TVs, and radios would all be useless. 
    • Remember, there is no transportation, no distribution of food or medicine, no clean water, no working electronics, and no power to run any of the machines we count on to maintain civilization.  And no police presence.    
    • Along with social chaos, there is starvation.  Urban survivors not part of gangs of thugs would be reduced to eating their pets and wildlife.  Farmers would be unable to defend themselves against bands of thieves. 
    • Good citizens with guns would fare better than those without them, but only temporarily.  Resources would eventually dwindle to nothing.  Unless you are one of those preppers who have thought of everything and are well stocked, well armed, and well hidden and protected, your chances of survival are zilch.   And this is the prospect for 90% of people living in the USA.
    • Whether this EMP scenario is caused by a bomb detonated in the atmosphere by a foreign government or a fanatic, or by a giant solar flare directed at us, it does not matter.  An EMP catastrophe is not a matter of if, but of WHEN.  
    • Congress has been remiss in addressing this issue and providing funds to fortify the US electrical grid.  As it stands now, there are not enough spare parts in America, and they would have to be imported.  It would take many months to reconstruct the grid, but first social order would have to be restored and the mess cleaned up. 
    • Maybe coastal areas would start the rebirth, as they could more easily access supplies from overseas.  Maybe. 
    • A disturbing question is WHO would be in charge of the country's reconstruction.  It's not inconceivable that it would be a foreign power.  China - desperate as it is for land and resources - would perhaps come to the rescue, at a high price.    
    • So, dear American reader, when your President and Congressmen waste their time talking about marginal issues, ask them what exactly they are doing to  prepare the nation for an EMP catastrophe. 
    • The Obama administration and the Democrats have said that the worst threat to the USA - besides Trump - is CLIMATE CHANGE!!!!
    • The Climate Change campaign has been a ruse to divert attention away from real threats such as EMPs, nuclear power plants (NPPs), and overpopulation devouring ever shrinking natural resources while polluting the planet. 
    • Please keep in mind that without electrical power to operate their machines, nuclear power plants go into meltdown.  After an EMP there would be a series of nuclear power plant meltdowns across the USA contaminating land and killing people.  At present a single case of loss of electrical  power in an NPP can be dealt with, but not when the country is in complete chaos.  
    • The Trump administration appears not to have effective preparations for a solar-caused or man-made EMP that would  destroy the American civilization and kill 90% of the US population.  
    • ANOTHER IMPORTANT THING TO KEEP IN MIND is that the number one priority for government authorities at all levels - before, during, and after a disaster - is to avoid panic, and this is why an EMP catastrophe is almost never mentioned. 
    • This blog recently reported how Californian authorities decided not to warn residents of looming wild fires because they did not want to cause panic on the roads.  As a result dozens of people woke up as flames engulfed their property and they perished.  Read more on this failure to protect citizens HERE
     CONGRESSIONAL REPORT:  An EMP Attack Would Cause Mass U.S. Starvation and kill 9 in 10 Americans
     
    By Bruce Dorminey, Forbes Magazine

    A new congressional report contends that a North Korean electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack on the U.S. would ultimately wipe out 90% of the population.
     
    Continue reading this article, and one outlining how nuclear power plants go into meltdown after an EMP.

    Monday, October 16, 2017

    CALIFORNIA WILDFIRE VIDEOS - Postman delivers mail to razed communities, man drives through flames, woman saves her dog - The looming dangers of apocalyptic catastrophes in the USA - See list of best PREPPER SITES

    ©http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/. Unauthorized duplication of this blog's material is prohibited.   Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full credit and link is given to Otters and Science News Blogspot.  Link to this post:  http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/2017/10/california-wildfire-videos-postman.html - Thank you for visiting my blog.
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    Drone video captures USPS truck delivering mail to burned out communities in California.

    Back in 1985 science fiction author David Brin published The Postman, a story of a post-apocalyptic United States where a survivor takes on the uniform and the role of a postman to bring back some hope for the restoration of social order in the country.  It was later made into a movie with Kevin Kostner. 
     
    On this page watch surreal drone video of a postman delivering mail to California communities burnt to ashes  by wildfires.  It brings to mind that book, and also our silent fear of how close we are to natural and terror-caused disasters of continental proportions.  Here are some very likely scenarios:
    • The eruption of the Yellowstone mega volcano would render much of the United States into a disaster zone.   Agriculture, transportation, and much more would disappear for years to come.  Experts say this eruption could happen any day now.
    • sunA major solar flare hitting North America would cause an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) that would fry the power grid.  The USA would be unable to restore it for months, maybe years.  All electronics would be immediately inoperable.  Cars could not run since they have so many electronics.  No vehicles, no transportation, no food. 
    • A nuclear bomb detonated in the atmosphere above the USA would have the same result as a major solar flare:  an EMP that would paralyze the country and result in total social chaos.   IMPORTANT:  Without electric power to run their machinery, nuclear power plants go into meltdown, compounding the disaster.
    One fact that needs to be stressed is that California AUTHORITIES DECIDED NOT TO ALERT THE POPULATION AS WILDFIRES APPROACHED residential areas.  By the time many people saw the flames, it was too late to escape, thus the many casualties - Sonoma County officials made land-line phone calls but did not use the wireless emergency alert for cellphones, like the Amber Alerts for missing children.   Officials claim that they did not want to issue broad evacuation alerts that would panic residents and snarl traffic, preventing access for emergency vehicles.
     
     
    The following video is simple but powerful.  Don't miss it. 
     
    DRONE VIDEO - USPS Postman Delivers Mail to Santa Rosa burned homes  - By Douglas Thron

    More videos by Douglas Thron
     
    WATCH MORE VIDEOS of man driving through fire, of woman who cycles to safety carrying her 70 pound dog in a duffel bag on her back, and another drone video by Douglas Thron, and see links to 50 best SURVIVAL BLOGS

    Saturday, October 14, 2017

    CALIFORNIA DEADLY WILDFIRES AND THE HEROIC FIREFIGHTERS - ALL MEN - We're still waiting for feminists to demand an equal share of these jobs

    ©http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/. Unauthorized duplication of this blog's material is prohibited.   Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full credit and link is given to Otters and Science News Blogspot.  Link to this post:  http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/2017/10/california-deadly-wildfires-and-heroic.html - Thank you for visiting my blog.
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    See more photos

    Wednesday, October 11, 2017

    CAUGHT IN CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES - The USA has technology to talk to astronauts in space, but nothing to send timely warning of approaching wildfire to helpless communities

    ©http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/. Unauthorized duplication of this blog's material is prohibited.   Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full credit and link is given to Otters and Science News Blogspot.  Link to this post:  http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/2017/10/caught-in-california-wildfires-usa-has.html   Thank you for visiting my blog.
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    • Some coastal communities in the Canadian west coast that are vulnerable to tsunamis have set up a rather low-tech means of alerting the population of an impending tidal wave:  a siren. 
    • The United States has the most sophisticated means of communication in the world, and yet people living in areas prone to wildfires go to sleep at night not knowing whether they will awake when it's too late and the fire is at their door.
    • That is what happened to a large number of people in California, caught completely unawares as rapidly moving wildfires engulfed their homes and their lives. 
    • At the time of posting this article the number of fatalities is 23 but it's expected to rise dramatically.  The number of unaccounted for is in the hundreds.  Thousands have been forced to evacuate their homes.  An additional heartbreak is the number of animals that panicked people left behind to burn and die.   
    • We can never be fully prepared for all eventualities.  There were instances when people fleeing in their vehicles found that one escape route after another was blocked by fire.  
    • What makes the following images so eerie is the fairy tale nature of many of those luxurious homes, once a dream come true for families and retirees.  The horror of this fire is how it is now devouring those beautiful dreams, sometimes along with the people who built them.    
    Anaheim Hills was among the worst affected areas on Monday, with Santa Rosa also suffering heavy damage
     
    A family home in Fountaingrove, California, is consumed by fire on Monday night

    The smoke from an Anaheim Hills brush fire turned the sky into a pumpkin orange. It is seen above Disneyland's California Adventure park
    The incongruent contrast of Disneyland - the Happiest Place on Earth - and the ominous orange and smoky sky of out-of-control wildfires in nearby areas.

    Do you recognize this adorable, albeit slightly charred face?  The photo, which was posted to Facebook on Oct. 9 by the Sonoma Humane Society, has gone viral with over 11,650 shares to date. A message about the cat, lost during the North Bay fires, indicates the sweet survivor with the singed whiskers was found underneath a car. He is microchipped and in the Humane Society’s care until an owner comes forward.

    UPDATE OCTOBER 13:

    Breitbart News:  As the situation worsens ... Criticism is beginning to boil that local safety officials gave no warning of the coming fires, resulting in panicked residents who smelled the smoke and realized that flames were approaching. Sonoma County officials made land-line phone calls but did not use the wireless emergency alert for cellphones, like the Amber Alerts for missing children.   Officials claim that they did not want to issue broad evacuation alerts that would panic residents and snarl traffic, preventing access for emergency vehicles.

    See more images

    Monday, September 4, 2017

    DEMOCRAT MAYOR OF HOUSTON DELIBERATELY IGNORED FED WARNINGS AND HID VITAL SAFETY INFO FROM POPULATION prior to Hurricane Harvey as HE REFUSED TO EVACUATE THE CITY - City authorities dismissed as FAKE NEWS leaked projected losses of property and life

    ©http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/. Unauthorized duplication of this blog's material is prohibited.   Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full credit and link is given to Otters and Science News Blogspot.  Link to this post:  http://ottersandsciencenews.blogspot.ca/2017/09/democrat-mayor-of-houston-deliberately.html - Thank you for visiting my blog.
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    • Harris County, where Houston is located, is heavily Democrat. It voted overwhelmingly for Hillary Clinton.  The population loves and trusts their Democrats.  They trusted their Democrat mayor. 
    • But he did not tell them the truth at a time of life-threatening crisis.  He had been informed ahead of time by federal government experts about the projected damage but he kept this information away from the public, so as not to panic them. 
    • And when one woman leaked information  about the expected severity of the storm (which eventually turned out to be very accurate), city officials and the media attacked her as purveyor of fake news.  Here is the story.
    TurnerSylvester.pngFederal and State authorities warned Houston's mayor and city council  of the expected damage from Hurricane Harvey and advised an evacuation, but the mayor chose to withhold that information from the public and told the population to "shelter in place".

    The alarming projected details leaked online, but city officials officially declared them to be "fake news".  Only now, after all the unnecessary distress suffered by the most vulnerable victims, we realize that city authorities lied to the population.

    Mayor Sylvester Turner's decision not to call for Houston's evacuation has been criticized by experts and victims, but the media itself has kept itself away from the controversy.  Turner is a black Democrat, after all. 

    Turner's argument has been that it is risky to evacuate millions of people all at once.  Highways get clogged, people run out of gas.  It has happened before. 
     
    However, between a full evacuation and none, there is a more rational alternative:  Evacuate the vulnerable:  the elderly, the sick, pregnant women, those living on a ground floor.  There does not seem to have been even a mention of this possibility.

    Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner defied Federal and State authorities' recommendations for an evacuation and ignored their scientific projections for damage and losses from such a big storm.  The Federal Government made it clear to Turner and city council:
     
    Houston and Harris county’s four commissioners were briefed on Thursday morning, August 24 after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers warned officials that Hurricane Harvey, which at that point had not made landfall, was shaping up to impact the region even worse than Hurricane Allison in 2001. That storm killed 22 in Houston, left 30,000 residents stranded, and damaged over $5 billion of property.

    City officials were given ample time to evacuate the city, federal officials and correspondences examined by True Pundit confirmed.
     
    According to sources familiar with the federal briefing, county and Houston officials were specifically warned that there was a high probability the storm event would be catastrophic, including the following intelligence provided to Houston and county officials the morning of Thursday, August 24:
  • Hurricane Harvey would impact the county and surrounding Texas counties far beyond what weather forecasts predicted.
  • A minimum projection of 10,000 homes would be underwater and at least 100,000 more homes would be flooded in Houston.
  • Houston is expected to be hit with five days of rain and at least three days without electricity.
  • The hurricane was projected to impact the “heart of Houston.” Harris County would see 30 inches of rain with a possibility of 50 inches of rain which was likewise projected for Colorado County. That county sits west of Harris. The storm turned east and impacted Houston, as was warned.
  • Homes and properties south and near Katy, Texas would be severely impacted, possibly flooded out. Houston is on a parallel with nearby Katy.
  • Despite this information, provided two days before the hurricane, officials did not call for a mandatory evacuation of the area and Houston. In fact, the Mayor of Houston Sylvester Turner defiantly told residents to ignore weather warnings and to “think twice” before evacuating the city, often referring to the threatening hurricane as a “rain event” and implying residents were not in any real danger until the city issued an evacuation mandate

  •  

    The mayor, other city authorities, and the mainstream media dismissed as "fake" reports alerting the population of the true details of the upcoming disaster   Not to evacuate was not just a bad decision on the part of the mayor.  There was outright the misleading and the withholding of key life-and-death information.    
     
    Prior to Hurricane Harvey hitting Houston, Texan Rebecca Reisig posted a warning on her Facebook page that went viral.  She projected specific details that have been proven accurate with the official announcement that 100,000 homes have been seriously damaged after more than 50 inches of rain fell during the storm.
     
    Ms. Reisig charged that the Houston City Council knew Hurricane Harvey was expected to do far greater destruction than was being reported to the public – and she forecasted precise data that was subsequently officially confirmed on all counts.  Her predictions proved right, but city officials and the media strongly dismissed them as fake news.


     
    The mainstream media, along with Mayor Turner and fellow officials, launched an immediate smear campaign against Ms. Reisig and “false forecasts and irresponsible rumors on social media.
     
    Continue reading

    Friday, September 1, 2017

    Hurricane Harvey: SCHOOLS SHOULD TEACH LIFE SAVING SKILLS instead of sexual depravity in the name of political correctness - Harvey's collateral damage: infectious diseases, mold, and more

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    There is an ongoing controversy over how leftist educators are indoctrinating children as young as six years old in human sexuality and all its variants, including details about intimate acts that past generations characterized as depraved.  All that is done in the name of inclusivity, so that children will not only learn to accept such behavior as normal, but will,  in the minds of leftist educators, embrace it too at some point.
     
    There was a time when schools were meant to educate children, make them better citizens, better human beings.  These days they are used as centers of indoctrination for the cult of political correctness as defined by left wing educators and politicians.  Inclusivity, for example, now automatically excludes conservative views.  Tolerance is extolled, except for people with traditional values.   
     
    And the latest environmental tragedy in Texas reminds us once again how schools have utterly failed to prepare individuals to save themselves.  We have watched hours of TV reporting on the tragedy affecting Houston and other localities submerged under water.   Although there is no denying the personal suffering of thousands of people, you may have felt curious about a few issues that the media chooses not to discuss.
     
    There was too much blind trust on authorities, not enough independent thinking. 
    Harvey was expected to be huge, that much we knew, and even worse than it actually turned out to be.  However, people chose to obey instructions that told them "to shelter in place" regardless of where they were.  The mayor of Houston said it would have been impossible to evacuate six million people.  However, it would have made good sense to evacuate a few thousand, particularly vulnerable folks such as people in nursing homes.
     
    If you live on a third floor or higher, have plenty of food and supplies, and are well acquainted with survival skills, then it makes sense to shelter in place.  But if you live on a first or second floor, if you are fragile due to old age or a medical condition, if you are pregnant, if you have children with serious health issues, and if you don't have the money to purchase essential supplies for at least a couple of weeks, then it makes sense to evacuate ahead of time. 
     
    There were many cases of people who were perfectly safe but had to be rescued because they ran out of food on the third day of the storm.  Even under normal conditions we should have enough food supplies for two weeks or more.  Not items that will spoil in case the power goes off, but canned food, crackers, peanut butter, health bars, and such.   And lots of drinking water.
     
    People had not prepared a BUG OUT BAG
    Time and again you would see people carrying nothing with them as they were being rescued.  Nothing!   A bug out bag is essential and should be ready at all times.  Some items can be left there permanently, such as extra clothes, while others should be on a list to include before departure, such as medications, pet food, health bars, important documentation, money, credit cards, and so on.  There are websites that specialize on bug out bags, and how to prepare for a disaster in general.  
     
    Some people drowned or risked their lives because they did not know how to swim.
    Swimming lessons should be mandatory for all able school children.   No one should lose his life because of the lack of such a basic skill.  But then educators are told to spend time teaching about kinky sex instead.
     
    Warnings about water infections should have been given from the start. 
    People wading in water should have been aware of the many germs lurking in that water, and how dangerous they are if you happen to have a scratch on your skin.
     
    Texas had at least two weeks to prepare but there was no well organized plan to save pets and other animals.
    Some loyal pet owners made sure that their pets went with them no matter what, but many others left them behind, to maybe drown or starve.  This is a situation that unfortunately repeats itself in every single disaster.
     
    Washington Post:  Experts talk about the flood's collateral damage
     
    Excerpts:   
     
    Short term -  Water injuries
     
    The majority of people who die during floods drown: About 75 percent of the fatalities are drownings, per the World Health Organization. Two feet of rapid floodwater will sweep away an SUV. Just six inches of water, if it moves quickly enough, can knock over an adult, according to the National Weather Service.
     
    Floodwaters can also draw out unwelcome wild animals. Images of stinging fire ants clumped together as large floating rafts set social media abuzz on Monday. Snakes, too, are a concern.   Storm activity definitely increases the potential for snakebite as the snakes get flooded out and seek higher ground.
     
    Short term: Infectious diseases
     
    A flood contains more than rain. Sewage systems spill their guts. And the water can dredge up things more disturbing, if less infectious, than human waste. In New Orleans in 2005, the flooding from Hurricane Katrina exhumed corpses, sending coffins afloat through neighborhoods.
     
    It is not easy to predict the nasty microbes that will strike. But Hurricane Katrina, which hit land at the same time of the year as Harvey, could offer some lessons.   In September 2005, the CDC reported 30 cases of MRSA, an antibiotic-resistant staphylococcus bacterium, among a group of New Orleans evacuees sent to Dallas.
     
    And Vibrio pathogens, bacteria popularly described as “flesh-eating," sickened two dozen people and killed six. There were also scattered reports of skin rashes, from infections and heat, as well as red marks blamed on biting mites.  Texas health officials are urging people to get tetanus booster shots to protect themselves against the disease, which enters the body through cuts. 
     
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