Thinking Big During Big Disasters...

Posted April 1st, 2010 by Harmony Blakeway

CNN: Hudson River Plane Crash

As people across our state deal with flooding in our communities, I am reminded of the media response to the terrible Hudson River Airplane Crash just over a year ago.

Though the situation was clearly different - a very short-term, localized emergency event - the coverage seems familiar.

Nationwide coverage and popular response focused almost entirely on Chesley B.
"Sully" Sullenberger, the heroic pilot who landed the flight, but in large part, failed to fully-recognize the carefully-coordinated efforts of private and public employees working together to make sure the safe landing stayed a positive story.

Ferry drivers, Coast Guard and Fire Department members, paramedics, nurses and doctors all followed plans from emergency coordinators with practiced contingency plans - built in advance so that tragic events can go as smoothly as possible.

CNN: Northeast Flooding 2010

Reading through flood coverage - and seeing it covered on both local and nationwide news footage - I see a lot of the same reaction. People on every channel and in every publication are shocked by the road-rivers flowing past homes and are worried about losing power to pumps working hard in their basements. People are shown being rescued from homes and vehicles by emergency workers and checking into their flood insurance policies.

And while all of these are very important stories, not enough people are speaking publicly about the historic causes and long-term planning we need to do to protect our communities for future natural disaster such as these floods. How are we going to repair and maintain the structures in our cities and towns that keep us safe?

One example of someone who is talking about the short, medium, and long-term plans to avoid the worst effects of future flooding is State Representative Will Brownsberger:

"We need to look hard at ways to reduce the flow of waters into local rivers. That means a variety of detention and storage strategies. They have to be integrated into land use and development plans all over the watershed if they are to be meaningful. The amount of water involved in a big storm (flow equal to an acre-foot of storage every thirty seconds at the Aberjona in this storm) is such that local projects to increase storage will will not solve the problem. It may be more feasible to help local homeowners invest in measures to make their properties more storm resistant."

It is only by working together that we can build long-term, coordinated plans to build a safer, healthier state - plans that include not only water routes, but also the medical, financial, and educational well-being of everyone in our state.

Do you know of friends, neighbors, and elected officials working on these types of plans? Drop me a note at harmony@realclout.org, write us a tweet, or leave a comment on our Facebook page to share!

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