MSNBC interviewed a woman saying they have no food

[itsrobert]

Says they are not getting any help. The camera pans around the kitchen and the house has suffer major damage. However, the camera panning around the kitchen shows a good supply of dry goods sitting on the counters.

[sadbear]

1. What's the drinking water situation there?

I've never been in a disaster situation, but my understanding is that if water is running, it's not necessarily safe to drink.

[Floyd_Gondolli]

5. That is correct

Often after floods, municipalities will urge people to boil water for a few days after the event.

[brooklynite]

12. There have been no reports of water risks

NYC water doesn't come from the local water table, it comes from reservoirs about 50 miles N

[Floyd_Gondolli]

20. I didn't say there were reports

My point was that is sometimes necessary after floods, and it is depending on locale.

[msrizzo]

2. I saw that.

Hard to tell if they were damaged or not. But to me the main take away is what a state of denial she was in. Talking about kids having to go to school on Monday! It hasn't really sunk in to them that this can't be fixed quickly.

[Ian David]

3. She's saving that for company. n/t

[elleng]

4. Meaning?

They have 6 or 8 kids, right, and 'dry goods,= what? Rice? Beans? cereal? Water available? Milk?

[liberal N proud]

6. Those dry goods could be contaminated

maybe they were under water during the storm surge.

But I suspect there are some that are just complaining to complain too.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

8. You're right. The food may be contaminated,

and without a means to cook them if they were not (i.e. potable water, electricity) then they're just dried goods.

You're also right that some are just complaining to complain too.

[RebelOne]

7. Maybe those dry goods needed to be cooked.

And maybe she does not have the means to cook them, such as electric or gas.

[The Blue Flower]

9. Grew up in central Florida

The first thing I learned about hurricanes as a child (my first one was Donna in '60) was that you fill the tub with water before the storm hits. It doesn't cost anything, it's easy, and it's simply common sense. I just wonder what all these complainers were doing with their brains for all those days they were getting warnings.

[HappyMe]

14. Thank you.

This was only my 2nd hurricane, and even I knew this. I had every available container filled with water. A couple of cases of bottled water, canned goods, crackers and other things at the ready. I even had a bag packed with stuff we would need in case we had to leave.

[HooptieWagon]

17. Exactly! You were smart.

Those doing the complaining now are the ones who ignored the warnings and instructions for preparation, because they thought they knew better than gov't officials.

[lapislzi]

16. Great point

Something everyone should know how to do. We filled every available container with water: tub, buckets, plastic jugs, spaghetti pots. Even if you don't have a bathtub, you can load up on tap water using any containers you have handy.

Since I am on a well, no electric power = no water = no potty.

The only thing that has kept me from losing my mind during the past week is the ability to do a "gravity flush" with a bucket of water.

And I am a WHOLE LOT better off than most of the people who went through this storm.

I'm not going to complain about having no shoes as long as there are people with no feet.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

21. Google Composting toilets

There are videos on YouTube showing you how to make your own.

[frazzled]

10. If MSNBC can interview her, why can't they bring her some food?

I mean, honestly, there's a camera in this woman's kitchen ... but they couldn't bring some macaroni and cheese or anything?

Cable news: part of the problem, not the solution.

[Fearless]

11. Exactly what I was thinking.

[okwmember]

13. Unfortunately this is going to be one of those situations where

people are learning what it means to be prepared for a disaster of this nature.
If told to evacuate do so. Gas up before the storm. If not evacuating have a 3 or 4 days worth
of water stored up in case of boil water orders (That's a gallon per person for drinking and cooking and an additional gallon per person for bathing, hygiene and washing dishes). Have propane or charcoal on hand to use grill after storm (for god sake don't use grill indoors). If there's a boil water order and you don't have the means to do so, have bleach on hand 8 drops of water per gallon of water. Etc.

I know a lot of these people never faced this type of situation. God knows as a native Floridian I wouldn't know what to if I was stuck in a blizzard or caught in an earthquake. But as I've told people for years, If I have to deal with a natural disaster a hurricane is my choice simply because we have so much warning ahead of time to get prepared. And given the current state of our environment, hese things are only going to become more common for places that have never experienced them.

All we can do is get those in need, the help they need. And really hope that people do learn the lessons of how to be prepared. And while I want to strangle idiots who pull guns in gas lines after the storm. I just try to keep my mind on helping those that are scared because they now have little control over their lives and are doing the best they can to push through the overwhelming situation they are in.

Rant Over. Thanks.

[HooptieWagon]

15. Maybe she should have pooled resources with neighbors who had cooking facilities, but no food.

Maybe she should have been prepared, as she was instructed. Maybe she should have taken tbe free busses to the free hurricane shelters, as she was told.

I am on FL west coast, far from the hurricane projected cone. Even still, I kept abreast of the storm track, and had several days worth of food, water, gas for the grill, and gas in my truck. If storm had made an unpredicted change of course, I was ready on short notice.. I called friends in Philly, NY, and NJ, made sure they knew about the storm (the one in Philly didn't), and urged them to be prepared. All are well.

As a society, just how far should we go to protect stupid people from themselves? When storm warnings are issued, should stupid people be rounded up for detention? If an idiot at the zoo decides to climb the fence into the lion's den, should we risk our life to drag them out?

[EmeraldCityGrl]

18. Is this that same hysterical Staten Island woman?

Someone buy her a bucket of chicken and tell her she's in a disaster zone.

She needs to get out like they told her to before the storm hit. Call her
insurance company, do some home schooling until her community is livable
if that's a priority for her right now. The insurance company will let her know
what they cover to make her life more comfortable outside of the disaster zone.

It will be months before her life feels normal and it will be a new normal. Things
will never be the same as they were prior to the disaster. Her lack of coping skills
are going to make her life far worse than it needs to be.

[Wellstone ruled]

19. It's Obama's

fault. That is the image MSNBC is trying to portray. Really folks,if you can't do a little to prepare for a storm event,I just give up. There are some whom really and honestly need help due to circumstances beyond their control. Notice how civil they are.

[RichGirl]

22. So...previous to the hurricane....

She didn't hear endless...store up on food, drinking water, batteries, candles....etc???

I live in central Virginia and we weren't even touched yet days before the storm the shelves at stores were empty. I don't get people who are right in line to be hit with a hurricance and do next to nothing to prepare. What are they thinking???

[Jennicut]

23. She is going through denial because what happened to her sucks. Normal human emotions.

She will either get it together and deal with the reality or be totally useless for her family.

I know these type of people. I grew up around them my entire life with family in NYC and Long Island. I live in CT and we are similar but it is more like this the closer you get to NYC. They are used to life being in order and not inconvenienced. Not bad people but the style of life in the tri-state area is very fast paced and people are not used to waiting for anything. Probably one of the fastest paced areas of the entire United States. Reality will sink in eventually.

Many of these people will realize Irene was a warning for Sandy. And Sandy is a warning to be better prepared for the next northeastern storm.

The thing is, I am a type 1 diabetic so I really would be screwed with limited food and my insulin going bad. So I prepare but I could do more. It's a wake up call.