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Smoke and Ash
Nov. 13th, 2018 02:42 pmTwo years after 9/11, I was on the Red Cross "Go Team" for Onondaga County. Inspired by my daughter's work in the aftermath of the WTC catastrophe, I had joined the Red Cross chapter at the hotel where I worked and became a certified shelter worker.
Additionally, as a member of the "Go Team," I had committed to being on the road or in the air within so many hours of any regional or national emergency. It was kind of like being a "prepper," but on behalf of other people.
Now we have a disaster, of proportions as yet unknown, happening in the wooded hills and valleys of Northern California. Actually, there are currently three major wildfires raging on the West Coast, but that's the one "closest to home" for members of my own family.
It's also the one about which I've gleaned some first-hand information from friends on Dreamwidth and LiveJournal. And one of the most distressing pieces from this relates not simply to the horror of an entire town being turned to smoke and ash, but also to the demographic of so many of the victims.
While we know that human tragedy does not respect the social, cultural, and economic boundaries which may define our own lives and--unfortunately--our understanding of others, it's also true that the circumstances from which those perceived boundaries arise may substantially determine outcomes for those affected.
As noted by one of our LJ/DW friends, many of those affected by the utter devastation visited on the town of Paradise, CA are elderly and/or lower income residents with few if any resources to rebuild their lives. They are, in effect, refugees in their own country.
Which makes me wonder what's being done for them. What, in fact, CAN be done for them. After, you know, the tents in the Walmart parking lot--I think I read that--finally come down and all that's left for them is the devastation.
Anyway, after joining the Red Cross I was only at the hotel for about another year, having taken an early retirement due to the cumulative effects of multiple back injuries. Which also spelled the end of my "Go Team" and shelter work experience.
In the meantime, my daughter and son-in-law run a very tight, hope-for-the-best-but-prepare-for-the-worst kind of household for themselves and their four children in the hills north of Sacramento but south of the latest conflagration.
Which, in a way, is sort of what I'm doing here. In case of, you know, an influx of refugees...
LPK
Dreamwidth
11.13.2018
Additionally, as a member of the "Go Team," I had committed to being on the road or in the air within so many hours of any regional or national emergency. It was kind of like being a "prepper," but on behalf of other people.
Now we have a disaster, of proportions as yet unknown, happening in the wooded hills and valleys of Northern California. Actually, there are currently three major wildfires raging on the West Coast, but that's the one "closest to home" for members of my own family.
It's also the one about which I've gleaned some first-hand information from friends on Dreamwidth and LiveJournal. And one of the most distressing pieces from this relates not simply to the horror of an entire town being turned to smoke and ash, but also to the demographic of so many of the victims.
While we know that human tragedy does not respect the social, cultural, and economic boundaries which may define our own lives and--unfortunately--our understanding of others, it's also true that the circumstances from which those perceived boundaries arise may substantially determine outcomes for those affected.
As noted by one of our LJ/DW friends, many of those affected by the utter devastation visited on the town of Paradise, CA are elderly and/or lower income residents with few if any resources to rebuild their lives. They are, in effect, refugees in their own country.
Which makes me wonder what's being done for them. What, in fact, CAN be done for them. After, you know, the tents in the Walmart parking lot--I think I read that--finally come down and all that's left for them is the devastation.
Anyway, after joining the Red Cross I was only at the hotel for about another year, having taken an early retirement due to the cumulative effects of multiple back injuries. Which also spelled the end of my "Go Team" and shelter work experience.
In the meantime, my daughter and son-in-law run a very tight, hope-for-the-best-but-prepare-for-the-worst kind of household for themselves and their four children in the hills north of Sacramento but south of the latest conflagration.
Which, in a way, is sort of what I'm doing here. In case of, you know, an influx of refugees...
LPK
Dreamwidth
11.13.2018
