Name of Article: Receding Colorado floodwaters reveal devastation, anger
Author(s): Associated Press
Publication: Foxnews.com
Date Published: 9/13/13
Summary of the Article:
The article outlines the vast damage done to parts of Colorado by the
floods. Not only are hundreds of people missing, but roads are washed
out and many people have lost their homes. Luckily, helicopters were
deployed to help rescue and evacuate some people.
However, despite warnings and pleading to evacuate, many people are
staying put, partially to avoid looters. The local officials have actually
gone around and shown pictures to the locals in order to convince them
to leave, telling the people that they will have to prepare for a winter
alone, without electricity, public services or utilities, and roads, if they
stay. The officials are asking if the people who stay have enough food,
water, and sources of heat for the long winter. In addition, there is a
fear of contamination in the water that is everywhere. Oil slicks can be
seen on the top of the water, and because sewage puopes leaked, there
is raw sevage floating in the water. All of the contaminants can cause
serious health issues, and the water alone can invite mosquitoes.
Three Questions for Additional
Information:
Answers to the Questions Listed
Above:
People are going to be without roads for a very long time, possibly a
few years, because hundreds of miles of roads have been destroyed.
Likiwise, much agriculture has been destroyed, which means that many
people lost their livelihood.
1. What are the risks of walking in raw sewage?
2. What rights do homeownders have after natural catastrophes
when looters are around?
3. Where are displaced people going?
4. What happened to Gerald Boland?
1. “Raw sewage can contain certain biological agents such as
bacteria, viruses, and parasites. The consequences can range
from diarrhea dna vomiting to contracting a disease like
Hepatitis. However, the risk of illness depends on the type and
the duration of exposure to the sewage. The most common
mode of infection is through oral contact. Skin contact alone
does not pose a health threat unless you have an open wound.
The risk of exposure when handling sewage can be reduced
significantly by effective and immediate clean-up and by taking
appropriate safety precautions.”
“http://www.tchd.org/pdfs/sewage_exposure.pdf
2. http://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/crime/item/15714looters-vs-armed-homeowners-after-tornado-other-naturaldisasters - after tornado
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2012/11/07/homeowners-issue-warningsto-looters-following-superstorm-sandy/ - after Sandy, with pictures
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/looters-arrested-tornadohit-neighborhood-article-1.1351404 - Oklahoma, with picture of guys
caught
sent e-mail – MC – no specific law, it is about threat
3. Pets in shelter
http://www.9news.com/news/article/355682/164/Coloradofloods-Animal-shelters-taking-evacuated-pets
26 shelters across the state
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/local-news/list-of-sheltersfor-colorado-families-evacuated-because-of-historic-flooding
4. Gerald Boland:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2013/09/19/coloradofloods-missing/2836725/ he and wife were separated
http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_24131875/larimercounty-adds-1-number-people-presumed-killed found body
My Opinion:
Extra: website set up to help people, has everything they could
need
http://topics.9news.com/coflood
What happened in Colorado is devastating. I am reminded of
hurricanes, tornadoes, and other disasters, including 9/11. I think I am
most sad knowing that people had to wait for their homes to be taken,
all the while hoping they would survive. In addition, I can’t help but
think of the animals. Colorado is a land of farms, of rugged families
with many pets, many of who were left and/or died.
In reading the article and doing the research to answer my questions, I
found myself impressed by how many agencies are involved,
something I think people overlook. I saw that Sheriff Departments, the
National Guard, Transportation officials, the Department of Health and
Public Safety, Clean Water Action, and Colorado Oil and Gas are all
involved. I am sure there are more agencies. The people who work for
these agencies must be tired and stressed, but they are no doubt
working their hardest. I remember when Sandy hit, and I was very
worried about my house in LBI, and that isn’t even my primary home!
Imagine if I were that worried about my house in Pearl River. It would
be terrible.
What I Learned:
In doing my research, I was very impressed by how quickly support
sprang up for the people in need. Again, I am struck by the good in
people, something we often overlook.
I learned that many more agencies that I could ever imagine are
involved in trying to protect people during times of struggle, and that
despite the efforts of some of these people, many citizens are afraid to
leave their homes and heed warnings. People all have different
priorities, and I can’t judge that.
Putting back together a community after a catastrophe like this will
take time, if it is even possible. People are probably going to move,
and the “landscape will change,” as New Orleans did after Katrina.
Connections to Our Studies:
The many agencies working together makes me think of Atticus,
standing up and doing the right thing despite being surrounded by
forces working against him. While the situation is not exactly the
same, the idea of man vs. something greater than himself is definitely at
work.
I am also reminded of the characters in Of Mice and Men, because just
as their lives have been affected by the Dust Bowl, so will people in
Colorado now be affected by their environment. People will have to
change their lives if they want to survive. Maybe they won’t travel
around like George and Lenny, but maybe they will have to
permanently move forever. I bet lots of these people wish they had a
dream ranch.
Connections to the World:
As for the people who stayed, I connect them to Oedipus and Romeo
and Juliet. Maybe there is some hubris involved in staying and
thinking that you can do more than Mother Nature, or that you can fight
her? And maybe there is also some blind passion? Whatever the case,
tragedy occurred, just as in the texts.
Almost every part of the country, and the world, faces its own dangers
in the face of Mother Nature. Parts of the US face avalanches, while
others face tornadoes, or drought, or hurricanes. Fire is also a problem,
as are earthquakes. This text connects to all these events, which people
see reported on the news every day. Some of these events change the
face of the US forever, and some overseas even have a major effect on
us. There was a huge influx of Haitians to the US a few years ago
because of a natural disaster.
The anniversary of 9/11 just passed, and we always see programs about
people who helped each other during the disaster. How people respond
to tragedy and catastrophe is very telling, and society often overlooks
the good and focuses only on the bad. The news media feed on the bad
information, but the good is out there. People need to remember that.
This is an election year in some cities and states. People need to watch
how their leaders react to this type of situation before they vote.
Class Discussion Questions:
1. The article talks about people staying despite the dangers. Why
might people stay? (fear, lack of ability to move, nowhere to
go, insanity, arrogance)
2. Are there any risks in leaving? (looters, animals)
3. Based upon our studies of the Dust Bowl and its effects on
America, can we predict any changes that these floods will
bring to the “landscape”? (farms ruined, people will have to
move)
4. The author writes “But at least 100 people in the town of
Pinewood Springs were ‘standing their ground,’ saying that
they will rely on gas-powered generation in a bid to protect
their homes from vandals, the Denver Post reports.” How does
the diction used in this sentence convey the intensity of the
situation? Find some other words used in the article that
suggest desperation. Let’s discuss how these words achieve an
5.
6.
7.
8.
effect. (“standing their ground” is a war phrase, “bid to protect”
used in times of crisis, image in the first sentence)
The article mentions all the roads damaged. In Weld County,
there are 654 roads ruined. How many miles of roads do you
think there are in Rockland? (199, 16% were ruined)
Several organizations are listed in the article, but many more
are involved that were not mentioned. Let’s make a list of all
the organizations that would have to be involved if such an
event happened around here. (police, fire, INS, ATF, water,
O&R, cable, telephone…)
The number of missing had dropped from 1200 to 200. Why
does the writer include as much information as he does about
Gerald Boland? (sympathy)
How can we connect the events here to our studies of texts last
year?