Floods. Record water levels. Bloated waterways. Constant rain.
Deaths. Loss of homes. Destruction of businesses. Evacuations.
So many questions and not many answers.
Sadly this is reality for people living in the U.S. Midwest, Northern England and South America. We are seeing photos and images of highways swamped with water, homes floating down rivers, and water running down city streets.
It’s challenging to write about these natural disasters when people are right in the middle of them - literally fighting for their lives. In future weeks and months there will be lots of analysis and review to determine how people could have been better prepared for this record flooding.
But, right now today, the only thing that is important is ensuring that everyone is safe and secure. That people are aware of and following evacuation orders for their community. That people aren’t planning to “wait out” the storm.
Depending on where you live, you may not be fully aware of the devastation and loss so many people are facing. (Admittedly, I’ve been shovelling the 25 cm of snow that fell in one day that I wasn’t aware of the severity of this flooding…)
We’ve compiled a list of links that provide good coverage of what is happening in the U.S. Midwest, Northern England and South America. For all of you impacted by the floods, are thoughts are with you.
- Rivers rise to record levels in Midwest, flooding will be ‘major to historic’
- Midwest Flooding Might Make the Oil Glut Worse
- At Least 26 Dead After Texas Tornadoes and Midwest Flooding
- Missouri and a dozen other states deal with flooding
- North of England braced for further flooding as Storm Frank hits
- The devastation wreaked by a winter of floods - by numbers
- David Cameron Defends Flood Record as Northern England is Drenched
- 160,000 Flee Their Homes as Devastating Flooding Hits South America
- The Worst Flooding in Decades Has Displaced Thousands of People in South America
It is a new yearand we’d like to wish everyone a safe and healthy 2016.
(In coming weeks we’ll look at these floods in more depth and review the analysis and opinions on what can and needs to be done to be better prepared for such natural disasters.)
