The Rubble And Recovery Of U.S. Virgin Islands: 'Will We Survive The Aftermath?'

[highplainsdem]

From NPR late yesterda7 (this is a couple hours too late for LBN):

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/09/10/549981547/the-rubble-and-recovery-of-u-s-virgin-islands-will-we-survive-the-aftermath

Mapp said St. Croix, an island spared the worst of Irma's effects, has become the temporary staging area for delivering relief supplies to the rest of the U.S. and British Virgin Islands. On St. Croix are aircraft, troops — and residents such as Elizabeth Smith, who told NPR about the situation faced by the territory four days after the storm's departure.

The other two major islands in the U.S. territory, St. John and St. Thomas, are still "not safe," Smith wrote in an email Sunday.

"No power, no running water, no cell service. The only hospital on St John faced catastrophic failure during the storm. Patients with life threatening injuries were evacuated to hospitals in Puerto Rico and St. Croix."

-snip-

Retired NBA star Tim Duncan also pitched in, saying in a post on The Players Tribune he is donating $250,000 to "storm relief efforts in the U.S. Virgin Islands" — and promising to match other donations up to the first $1 million. He also noted he would charter a plane to help shuttle supplies to St. Croix, where the future Hall of Famer grew up.

-snip-

"The islanders are prevailing amazingly. Everybody is pitching in, and everybody is pulling out whatever they can — chainsaws, trucks, whatever they can to help get people out of houses, to get people into shelters, to get people food," she said.

Still, in listing her fears, Smith said this teamwork won't be enough on its own.

"We need help," she says. "We need the United States government to step up. We need military. We need security. We all survived this monster storm. But will we survive the aftermath?"

Video at the link, showing mostly the British Virgin Islands.

[RamblingRose]

1. Here is an article that was posted in The News of St. John blog (please share)

Sunday Update
September 10, 2017 • 35 Comments

I’m scared. Those are words I never thought I would write when referring to St. John. But I’m scared. We’re only four days into this mess, and we’re hearing some awful things. For starters, Joe’s Rum Hut was broken into the day after Irma hit. The ATM was stolen. They attempted to get cash out of the register, but it was empty as Joe’s closed for season earlier this month. The ATM next to Cruz Bay Landing was stolen. The ATM at the ferry dock was stolen. Scoops has been broken into. St. John Insurance has been broken into. They hold almost all of the insurance policies on this island. Makes you wonder the intentions of that burglary, doesn’t it? Dolphin Market in Coral Bay was looted the very first night. The very first night. We heard this morning that the Customs building in Cruz Bay was broken into and that guns were stolen. We heard that there was at least three robberies at gunpoint on Gifft Hill. This is not St. John anymore. I’m not sure what it is. What I do know is that I am scared. My friends are scared. And we don’t know what to do.

Last night I was able to go home. What I failed to mention was that we had to install a bar on the inside of our door so no one could break in. This is our new reality. Last night, for the first time since moving here, I was afraid to walk down the streets of Cruz Bay. And it was only 6:30 p.m. People are getting desperate, and desperate times call for desperate measures from some unfortunately. We are only on day four. What’s going to happen next?

I have seen absolutely no aid today except a few boxes of MREs walking down the street. I haven’t seen one helicopter land today. We hear help is on the way. Let’s hope so. We need the military. We need men and women guarding our streets with guns. Our police force does nothing. They sit in their cars and yell at people over the loudspeaker. I kid you not. They’re not even helping with traffic in areas where it’s needed. You know who is? Our homeless people. Our homeless people are directing traffic, and our police are not. Let that sink in for a minute. Several police officers can be seen constantly at Ronnie’s Pizza – our new cell phone spot – and they’re scrolling through Facebook rather than patrolling our streets. Im shocked they actually got out of their cars for that. I took pictures and I cannot wait until I have internet so I can share them with the world.

We need help. We need the United States government to step up. We need military. We need security. We all survived this monster storm. But will we survive the aftermath? No one knows. And that’s not me being dramatic at all. That, unfortunately, is the new reality of St. John. This is no longer paradise. This is no longer my happy place.

Please share this folks. Share away. Please get us help.

Jenn


http://newsofstjohn.com/