THE GREENSBURG tornado is a disaster by any definition. A community was leveled. Estimates of destruction range from 90 percent to 95 percent of the buildings in town.
The water tower is gone. All the power lines are down. The schools and hospital were destroyed. There are no jobs because there is no place left to work; the downtown looks as though every business was sheared off at ground level.
Most of the people survived, thanks to good work by the National Weather Service, which gave warning of the storm in plenty time for people to get the word and take shelter.
Townspeople, still in shock at seeing the rubble field that was once their comfortable prairie community, are divided on whether trying to rebuild the town is worth the effort and the money. In the end, the decision will probably depend on how much help is available and how soon it arrives.
The response from the state was immediate. National Guard troops were sent in to search for trapped survivors. The Red Cross showed up quickly, so did emergency workers and law officers from a wide area.
But they are there to help the injured, find the dead and assess the damage. If the town is to be rebuilt, much of the help will have to come from the federal government. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, serious questions remain about the ability of the federal government to be useful in the wake of a natural disaster. The failure of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to get timely help to New Orleans nearly destroyed the reputation of an agency that was once a model of efficiency.
Changes have been made at FEMA since the Katrina debacle, but the agency has not had a chance yet to show that the changes will return the agency to its former usefulness.
That was obviously on the mind of Sen. Pat Roberts when he toured Greensburg on Saturday.
“There isn’t going to be any Katrina here,” Roberts said.
His tone said, “There had better not be another Katrina here.”
The Kansas congressional delegation will be watching. So will the people of Greensburg and the rest of Kansas.
FEMA can either do its job in Greensburg or hang up its hard hats.
situveux1 (anonymous) says...
I can give an amen to that! While I don't think the sole responsibility of rebuilding is on the federal government, I agree that there had better not be a Katrina in Kansas.
What's great about Kansas is we really don't need the government to take care of ourselves. It's ultimately up to the people of Greensburg to rebuild. FEMA just needs to be there to help facilitate that.
May 7, 2007 at 3:53 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
daveedailey (anonymous) says...
Why FEMA??? They did not even show up until 24 or 36 hours ago. (announced on the radio). I believe the officials of
Greensburg were doing just fine. Why shouldn't they help rebuild? After all they helped NO. Also, will the people of Kansas small town also get the debit card that Katrina victims got? I believe that FEMA is a government joke that is paid for by our taxes. Remember they would not help Kansas or Colorado out in the snow storms because they do not think that ice and snow are debri. I think that KFDI radio out of Wichita deserve a BIG BIG THANK YOU from everyone around because of their contributions immediately after the tornado. They sent several pods to Greensburg full of supplies. (I wonder if FEMA stopped them from going in like they did several trucks in NO, two of the trucks being Dolly Madison.) I also wonder where is Dick Cheney and his companies to help rebuild.(After all, he needs all the contracts he can get,) just like NO.
May 8, 2007 at 8:17 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Lothar (anonymous) says...
Has anyone read the FEMA handbook on disaster prepardiness? According to their material, local areas are on their own for 48 to 72 hours. It can take time to get FEMA in gear, especially for something that is as un-predictable as a Tornado.
In the event of any emergency situation, it's up to you to be ready. Have at least a 72 hour kit ready to do, including food, 3 gallons of water per person, money, clothes, etc. Be responible for your own families needs, and don't rely on the government to take care of you.
May 9, 2007 at 2:31 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )