Hurricane Katrina

It has been one week now since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast. It is so amazing what nature can do. No matter how advanced we are as a society and no matter what technological advances we have made, mother nature rules over everything. If Katrina caused this much damage to the United States of America just think about what it would have done if it struck Cuba, Mexico or another "poor" country. It is amazing what the power of weather can do. It is so sad to think of all the lives that have been lost and will be lost. I never would have thought that hundreds of people could be killed in this country due to a natural disaster. The bad thing is that there will probably be thousands of people killed when the final tally is known. I always thought that the Galveston, Texas hurricane that killed an estimated 12,000 people would be the worst disaster ever. I am starting to think that Katrina may come close to those numbers. No one is talking about the death toll being that high, but I fear that it may reach numbers close to that. My heart goes out to all the people who lost love ones and homes. I could not imagine losing my home or family and having to move to another state and start over. I wish I could help each and everyone of the victims. I haven't watched this much news since the 9/11 tragedy. Katrina is going to prove to be more costly when all is said and done. I know one thing that will come out of this is a greater respect for nature and the destruction it can cause. There is also going to be a major change in the way the local, state and federal government handles future disasters. Hopefully this will also highlight the need for all people, regardless of where they live, to be prepared for an emergency situation. I know that I am going to protect my family by becoming more prepared. It will be interesting and terribly sad to see how this disaster unfolds over the next few months and what changes will be implemented in future catastrophes. I hope everyone makes a disaster plan and stocks up emergency food and water and supplies for their families.