And, fortunately, (unfortunately?) that information hasn't been hard to retrieve. My grandparents live in Clear Lake City, right outside of Houston, and were forced to evacuate last week. They are staying with my aunt in northern Texas, but even there the winds are over 50 mph. The power is out for more than 4 and a half million Texans, so it has been hard to find out what damage the hurricane is doing. And because the areas like Galveston are so dangerous, reporters aren't allowed to enter Galveston, or else they are facing "certain death." Head of FEMA states in this video the many dangers that one would face if they chose to stay home.
But if the reporters aren't allowed in Galveston, how am I seeing streaming footage of Galveston on the news every morning? Did some research, and turns out there are some pretty crazy storm chasers, Mark Sudduth and partner Mike Watkins, who made the dangerous decision to stay behind. They aren't worried, saying there is "zero risk to human life" and that the only thing they are worried about is the "safety of their Chevy." Check out the article, these hurricane chasers are pretty nuts, but they are helping all of the evacuated see the devastation that is happening to some of their homes. Better to know what is going on with your house than be waiting to find out though, right?
5 comments:
I can't believe how many people in Texas and the other states down there - even here - were affected by the hurricane. I also don't understand how there are people who would just go chasing these storms for the fun of it! It must be a pretty insane adventure; the videos and pictures shown on the news and websites, etc. prove it.
Oh, wow. I didn't realize how seriously people were being affected by Hurricane Ike. I hope everything is okay and will soon be back to normal with your grandparents and aunt! And those storm chasers are crazy...but I also feel like it would be pretty cool!
Think its very interesting, and wonder why the big TV stations cant use helicopters? - maybe because they have people who do it for them.
The damages were estimated at like 6-16 billion. On top of our already very large trade deficit, this kills. Hope your family is good.
I totally understand your aggravation. I asked my dad after the hurricane hit if it was better or worse than Katrina, and he said it was way worse. So why is it hardly being broadcasted at all? There are areas that are completely ruined, and no one is very concerned. It's not on the news, and like you said, there are hardly any videos. People made such a big deal over Katrina, so why isn't anyone making a fuss over Ike and Gustav? I'm glad there are at least a few people out there who care.
Wow! Those storm chasers are fearless! I think it is good to know/see what is going on back home for Texans, but at the same time I don't think the footage is worth the loss of human life. I hope the storm chasers are fine, but despite their courage I fear that they are not. When you put in into terms of life and death, are those memorable videos and snapshots worth it? I really don't think so.
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