The Children of Sandy

                                                                            

There seems to be an assumption that some time around the end of August and the beginning of September there's likely to be a marked increase in births on the East Coast, nine months following Sandy. It wouldn't be a surprise, but that's not my primary interest today though it is worthy of mention. Rather I'd like to consider some of Sandy's other spawn.ⁱ   They have been devastating, although behind every cloud ...

Too often we must deal with an “act of nature”ⁱⁱ and from its consequences. We view these situations as unavoidable and, while some of the results are predictable and can at least be modified by proper preparations, they rarely are. We can often offer warnings of the impending danger and sometimes, but not always, persuade the threatened individuals to seek protection. Not everyone is persuaded however, and many people elect to “ride out” the danger.

A few weeks ago “super storm” Sandy attacked the east coast of the United States and left chaos in its wake. New Jersey and New York were the hardest hit, but other areas were involved as well. The term “super storm” is not hyperbole. Many lesser events, however, have resulted in similar, if less severe, damage, and I shall list some of it here, because if we are to prepare in the future, it will be important to know some of the threats we face, and how we might have lessened the risks.

The greatest tragedy, of course, is the human one. It is a difficult one to avoid. Deaths and injuries occur,ⁱⁱⁱ but the risk of rebuilding in dangerous areas^iv should be recognized and the act discouraged, however we, as a society, support it.^v We do so with insurance, FEMA, subsidies, loans, tax breaks, and the like. However admirable that kind of assistance is, it would be better for the government to declare such a location a “dangerous area,” off limits – certainly an area where a similar avoidable tragedy awaits those who choose to put themselves in harm's way. As for those who are determined^vi to remain where they are, of course, we are obligated to rescue those people – whether the threat results from a natural disaster or from a risk taken voluntarily by the particular individual. That category would include mountain climbers, boaters, or others who need to be rescued from their own machismo; they battled nature and lost. But it is reasonable to charge them for the service, not have it covered by other taxpayers, people who are too intelligent to try to prove their daring with death-defying feats – and that includes living in a demonstrably dangerous area.

The human toll may not all be direct or immediate. Loss of power and heat in hospitals^vii and nursing homes may be responsible for physical harm, or may require the risks of evacuation and relocation as well.^viii As will the emotional injuries involved in these situations and in separations.

But while deaths and injuries (including those of pets) may be the most newsworthy results of the event, the greatest impact on most people in our country is financial, consisting of property damage, including, among other things, environmental damage^ix and the destruction of homes, as well as damage to utilities with its repercussions and damage to businesses, leading not only to the physical damage but to loss of business income and the loss of jobs.

With the devastation just cited, there is going to be a huge fiscal burden that both those directly involved, and the rest of us as well, will have to bear. Some will be for property – replaceable and irreplaceable – that was damaged or lost. And some will result from service losses. Those related to power and heat^x have been mentioned, but others will come up – like thefts from homes that have been battered and are in need of repair – during which time the inhabitants may be living elsewhere.

Another category of thefts involves the scams perpetrated on the victims. There come in the form of prepaid costs of rebuilding that doesn't occur and loans that are never given. Those are only samples. Ingenious crooks will certainly find other ways to profit from the losses of others.

Others certainly do. Many existing business, like construction firms, get additional jobs which arise from the destruction. And most advertisers alter their text to make reference to the incident and tell how they have suffered too. And they declaim their desire to be part of the solution. So, for a limited time, they're lowering their prices, especially to victims.^xi After all, they're victims too and know how important it will be to act now. And there are lawyers, moneylenders, and insurance companies that want to help as well.

But every disaster – indeed, every challenge – presents some opportunities as well. First of all, there is the opportunity to consider our responses to disasters generally, including plans to deal with them and to give greater thought to the propriety and ethics of permitting rebuilding at government expense in unsafe areas. And with every rebuilding effort there is the need to employ people who are out of work and the opportunity to utilize newer standards and materials that will lessen the possibility and severity of future losses.

What is also very important, though, is how we have responded to Sandy and to prior disasters. People have contributed time, effort, and property to the recovery efforts. Indeed, people are usually faster at getting to the scene of a disaster than governmental agencies, they're more willing to offer their services, and they're less hindered by red tape. The cost of a bureaucracy need not be deducted from that of their effort. It's true charity, and includes, in addition to the wishes and moral support we offer, direct contributions of cash, housing, food, concerts and other fund raising efforts. It brings out the good in our fellow men. Their efforts contribute to the present and the future, both physically and spiritually. They are a critical accompaniment to the preparation for whatever may be anticipated.

And that is where we should be focusing our thoughts. However heartbreaking the losses and however the consequences traumatize the survivors – and all of us as well – the chance to adopt policies to minimize future disasters and their results should be the favored response. More than mourning the past, however important that is, we need to deal with the present and plan for the future. Such preparations will be the best of Sandy's children.

And next autumn we can rejoice in those opportunities with our future.

Next episode:  "It's Their Job" -- Picking and choosing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

i      I admit that I don't know if “Sandy” is a male or female name, and that “spawn” is really a female term, referring to strewn eggs, but the results of the storm are what is of interest, and they're the same irrespective of Sandy's sex.

ii     Acts of Man (generic) may cause some of the results described herein. Tragedies like that in Newtown, Connecticut, certainly led to deaths and there will be great psychological repercussions, as well as costs to the government and taxpayers, but they will be dealt with at another time.

iii     As does psychological damage, which may be devastating.

iv     That's a hard term to define, but after an area has suffered from a particular kind of disaster – fire, flood, tornado, mudslide, storm – a certain number of times, it might be prudent not to underwrite further rebuilding and habitation of an area where a repeat episode is predictable.

v      And when we aid in rebuilding in a place susceptible to a repeat of the disaster, we are encouraging that rebuilding, and the inevitable results in terms of the human, as well as the property loss, that are certain to occur.

vi     Some cannot afford to move and for them there should be assistance in relocation. FEMA and the Small Business Administration may help with immediate needs, but Government purchase of threatened land will often be a better start. Indeed, consideration should be given to condemnation and expropriation of property whose owner will not leave. Although the victims may not be enthusiastic about such a solution, compensation and relocation may be the least wrenching way of dealing with potential recurrences of both the calamity and of the pain they are currently enduring.

vii    And, of course, the loss of power and heat may result in illness as well as discomfort to homeowners, as well as food spoilage, which may cause further illness.

viii   Apart from the need to relocate those in threatened healthcare facilities both before and after the event, there are many healthy people who may need such services either before the event – to avoid death and injury-- and afterward who, because of damage to their homes or its destruction, are left homeless.

ix     For example, Sandy resulted in extensive beach and boardwalk damage.

x     Or anything else that eventuates in someone having to pay the costs of unanticipated transportation to the home of someone who was not directly involved in the problem, or the costs of other habitation, like a hotel. It also involves unexpected delays for those away from home and and unable to return because of the need to limit flights. That, by itself, may lead to loss of work days and the wages that would otherwise it. One more fiscal repercussion of the disaster would be the government's (the taxpayers' – your) contribution to rebuilding – especially public buildings like schools, whose students and staffs will lose classroom days.

xi     Previously advertised “sales” are forgotten and the disaster is now the reason for their magnanimity. It's often just a change in the text of their ads, not in the prices of their products.