Hurricane Harvey

[Kurtr]

I have to disagree with this statement in the long run, yes in the present they must deal with what's there and take care of the people as best possible in the moment. When things actually get caught up in the future they must look and at end review the situations and reactions to the situation. You had a HURRICANE coming at New Orleans during Katrina and Mayor Nagon could have used school buses to help evacuate people and choose to let the entire city buses become flood victims when by using them to evacuate it would have helped the people and had buses out of the flood zone also. Things like this that can be learned from otherwise the cycle of stupid and repeated mistakes will continue to happen. In the military it is called an AAR After Action Review and was used to hopefully improve your tactics and response the next time you face the same type of challenge. The only way this worked is if upper leadership also listened and heeded lessons learned, if not the same stupid mistakes were made by the lower ranking on the ground because of stupid order from leadership from above. You cannot let a situation like this just pass without finding a way to learn and improve from it dukgnfsn

Absolutely nothing was learned from Katrina.

 

[martinslanding]

You can’t compare 2 separate cities and 2 separate hurricanes each one is unique in topography, infrastructure, land fall , wind speeds, storm surge and rain totals…and while Houston has been hit before the hurricane it’s self wasn’t the damage it’s the way this system has sit and spun over the region for days dropping feet of rain which nobody predicted, Katrina which hit New Orleans which sits below sea level was mostly storm surge…dams that were built in the 40’s have been opened for the first time ever. Ya’ll can sit back and critique all you want but not one interview I have seen from a local survivor have they been pissed off…they all are extremely grateful for being alive…they all knew what to expect this one just was a little more than expected… all of the coulda-shoulda-woulda's is the outsiders looking in

 

[JayKay]

Finger pointing and blame-laying is already in full-swing. Was listening to a radio show last night, and the "reporter" (I use that term very loosely) was TRYING to pin blame on a judge who did not order immediate evacuation. The judge (I am sure that most judges are intelligent) was calmly making his case, and the reporter was really trying hard, to paint him into a corner.

Questions like "If more people show up at the emergency shelters, will there be enough food and beds for them?".

What a candy-ass question.. What an open-ended question, for which there can be no real answer. These "reporters" and the epidemic of fake news, are really stirring up more sentiment and emotion and anger, than I can believe.

This jackass was doing his level-best to take an already tough situation, and fan the flames, pointing the finger (after the fact) at a man who was doing his best in a difficult situation. The judge pointed out, as people on this site have, that evacuation 5 or 6 or 7 million people would have been a nightmare, and more people would have died stuck in traffic, than will die in the flood.

And yet this reporter pretty much wanted guarantees to open-ended questions. "Do you think it will be alright?".

What a turd...

 

[Allen]

It's scary how many people in the USA live check to check with huge debt, mostly CC. Anything that comes up that you need a few extra bucks and they're effed

Kinda like our government!

 

[MathewsZman]

I'm sure BLM activists will be there any moment now to help out their brothers !!!

 

[fnznfwl]

[h=1] [/h]

:;:stirthepot

 

[Allen]

[h=1]Key flood insurance underwriter sinks further into debt as Harvey slams Texas[/h] FoxBusiness.com,Fox Business 7 minutes ago

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As responders across the country move into areas of Texas inundated by Tropical Storm Harvey, one federal flood insurance program is sinking further into debt.
The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), the singular source of flood insurance for most Americans, is already $23 billion in debt after servicing prior natural disasters, including Hurricanes Sandy and Katrina. Costs from Harvey are expected to increase that debt by billions of dollars. The NFIP, which is overseen by FEMA, has borrowed money from the U.S. Treasury, and thus from taxpayers, in order to keep itself running. That debt is due next month, when the program is also up for reauthorization in Congress.
The government has already said it would be impossible for the flood program to repay such a staggering amount of dues, causing some to believe the program needs a major overhaul to prevent structural debt accumulations every time there is a disaster situation.
The Government Accountability Office has included the program on its “High-Risk List” since 2006, finding flaws with its fundamental structure.
“[The] lack of sufficient [NFIP] revenue highlights what have been structural weaknesses in how the program is funded,” a recent GAO report said. “Since the program offers rates that do not fully reflect the risk of flooding, NFIP’s overall rate-setting structure was not designed to be actuarially sound in the aggregate, nor was it intended to generate sufficient funds to fully cover all losses.”
However, the urgency and gravity of the situations in Texas and Louisiana could pressure lawmakers into pushing through a quick reauthorization before the program before its September 30 expiration. Others are hopeful lawmakers may pass a temporary reauthorization while working on longer-term reforms, including potentially updating zoning maps and expanding coverage options to private insurance companies.
FEMA estimates that the damage from just one inch of water can exceed $20,000. In the coastal areas of Texas, rainfall was expected to reach up to 50 inches before the storm completely cleared out of the region.
Fifty-two percent of Houston’s residential and commercial properties are located outside of FEMA-designated Special Flood Hazard Areas, according to global property analytics firm CoreLogic. Only individuals with properties located within flood hazard areas are required to purchase flood insurance. This could leave many people in the area with serious financial challenges after the storm clears out.
Overall, 20% of flood claims tend to come from properties outside the high risk flood zone, according to FEMA.

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Just in case anyone was wondering if Flood Insurance was a "good deal".

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Note, it was primarily realtors, developers, local governments, and existing homeowners in high risk areas that have kept flood insurance rates below the actuarial risk. Generally because it was believed that if people had to pay the actual cost for flood insurance that it would be too damaging to property values. Existing property values would plummet, a lot fewer new home starts in flood prone areas, and an overall loss in property tax revenue to local governments.

 

[Bfishn]

Note, it was primarily realtors, developers, local governments, and existing homeowners in high risk areas that have kept flood insurance rates below the actuarial risk. Generally because it was believed that if people had to pay the actual cost for flood insurance that it would be too damaging to property values. Existing property values would plummet, a lot fewer new home starts in flood prone areas, and an overall loss in property tax revenue to local governments.

Kinda sounds like Bismarck. Developers literally suing the ACOE to allow riverfront development. And then nobody carrying flood insurance because its "too expensive"

San Francisco is no different with its earthquake insurance. Nobody carries it becasue its "too expensive" They just assume somebody will bail them out if the big one hits.

 

[SDMF]

Went through the '97 flood in Grand Forks. I left when I was told to, but everything I owned that was worth anything easily fit in my truck.

Been through a few rounds of lots of sandbagging and temp dikes in Fargo since. In '10 I plugged all the basement water drain sources to protect against sewer backup but stayed in place.

I've never been through a hurricane. I wonder if the above experiences would strengthen my resolve to stay, or realize that with welcoming and very helpful extended family is the place to sit something like this out?

I honestly don't know if there is a "right" answer to what the folks should've done but I do know there sure as heck aren't any easy answers.

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:;:stirthepot

Only think I'd be expecting the gov't to do would be to bring infrastructure back on line as soon as it's safe to do so. Other than that, I'll take care of myself.

 

[BDub]

51 inches of rain. What a disaster.

 

[Joe]

There is no common sense, and then when you throw work obligations on top of the decision of should you stay or flee, the decision becomes even more difficult. Even in North Dakota during the winter, we had a day where every highway was closed, and I still got a phone call asking why I wasn't at work. Two days later when I could finally get through, I'm greeted with all sorts of stories of people destroying their 50 grand trucks, for that 200/day check. And all I said, is that is the reason I decided to heed the warning. Betting 30 grand for 200 seems a bit foolish. Risking the life of you and your family over a couple grand in lost wages and traveling expense, also seems like a foolish bet.