Arlo and Janis by Jimmy Johnson for October 17, 2024

So true. Not much damage to our place so far this year. I pray for all of that have it so much worse.

Devastation is a fact of life?

So true! Jimmy’s been through this when Katrina wiped out Waveland. That’s how he’s explaining it so well. I would recommend the Hurricane Museum in Waveland to anyone who hasn’t been to it. It’s well worth a trip. It reflects Katrina and Camille.

I feel ashamed of myself for agreeing with Mary Lou’s statement in the last panel. I guess many of us suffer from a sort of guilt feeling about feeling glad some tragedy didn’t happen to us. It sounds like North Carolina in particular is suffering greatly.

I’ve never been through a tornado, but I’ve been through a flood. Our entire town was destroyed. For a year or longer when it rained, my wife and I would get really anxious.

Growing up in a small midwestern town that never experienced any kind of disaster, I was blind to the fact that once the “story” is over and the press moves on, the mess remains for years afterward.

On Father’s Day 2017 that small area experienced a major flood. Maybe a dozen homes were destroyed. There were a few roads washed out. There were a few hundred folks impacted in some way or other with everything from vehicles washed away to 10-foot ditches through their front yards. The local lakes were closed to swimming that summer due to broken sewer lines discharging into them the day of the flood. Unfortunately, two lives were lost.

Compared to a hurricane or major earthquake this flooding event was minor. Literally a drop in the bucket. The water was gone in a matter of hours. But it was an EYE OPENER.

The cameras love to show us two things: The devastation and the rescue teams helping (God bless them).

Once the rescue teams are gone and basic services are more-or-less restored, the cameras leave. That’s when the real work begins and it goes on for years.

Lessons this small-town-boy learned about this kind of thing:- There is a certain amount of help available from the State and Federal Government but it is VERY slow in coming.- Local governments in small towns have ZERO extra dollars for emergencies. Their hands are tied until Emergency funds are made available by the State or Federal governments.- While those hit hardest will receive a certain degree of financial support, many will have financially significant losses and need to take out loans to bring their property back to a useable standard.- Be wary of the groups and foundations going around collecting money. A foundation was formed that was supposed to be helping those who had flood damage. We never actually met anyone the foundation helped but that foundation has since become a permanent entity with a rather large, full time, governing board (for such a small town).- Insurance sucks.

Last panel, yeah. I live in a part of Florida that was brushed rather than hit. And while Helene and Milton were coming I kept finding myself praying not to get hit and then quickly praying, “or anyone else either, can’t it just stop?”

A sad thought but that second panel is a hoot.

The people of the North Carolina mountains are suffering much more than the news is reporting. The locals are working hard to restore what is salvageable. They are stepping up to help where the federal government is not.

21 years in the National Guard in South Carolina, 4 hurricane missions including ‘89 Hugo. Bluntly, if you could have left but didn’t, you’re a drag on the response resources.

Mary Lou / Jimmy has it right. People who have the resources to evacuate but insist on staying usually are only thinking of surviving the storm itself. They don’t think about the post-storm conditions. Your home may be unlivable; how’s that sixth night sleeping in the school gym working for you? Well, the car still runs and you could leave now, except there’s no gas in the pumps, no power to run them, no way to pay for it, and the roads they’ve managed to clear are limited to emergency traffic. All the wildlife was displaced too, and those gators, snakes, rats, roaches, etc. you don’t normally see are having to mingle with you. They don’t want to hang out in the sewage-contaminated water any more than you do. I hope the weather stays nice, since there may be no way to heat or cool where you’re sheltering. At least your phone works when you can charge it, but you’re competing with too many people for the reduced bandwidth.

It may be months before conditions reach a ‘new’ normal, years before they return to post-storm conditions. I’ve heard it compared to living in a third-world country or the 18th century. It’s worse than that. At least those conditions are normal for their setting and people knew how to manage them on a daily basis, how to maximize what was available.

Well-argued. One perceives Mr. Johnson has seen same.

Survivor’s guilt is indeed a very real challenge . .

You pick your poison and your trade-offs. Live where it’s warm and suffer hurricanes, live near water or flat land and suffer floods, live in “paradise” and suffer wildfires and earthquakes, live in the north and suffer snow and cold. Everywhere on this earth has a trade-off.

I’ve thought of moving from Northern Michigan, but can’t think of a single place that’s any better. So my trade-off is tolerating winter for 8 months of the year, the rare severe storm, and blistering cold and snow, for the “security” of unlimited fresh water and being 960 ft. above sea level.

The wife and I survived Hugo, a Cat 5 monster of a storm. I hope to never endure that again. Guess that’s why I wouldn’t ever consider living in Florida.

This is the way I felt for the people in Mayville, KY, struck by a tornado. Myself we were untouched living not all that far away from there. Grateful but sad.

Be grateful it’s not you.

What a thoughtful way to address others’ pain and loss.

I’m astounded by this last storm. You don’t expect communities in the mountains to be demolished by floods.

I have to admit that I’m glad the last two didn’t hit here…

Don’t feel guilty because you were lucky enough to live where nothing happened. You’re human!

Lived in areas brushed by tornadoes and hurricanes (ungodly amounts of rain) but never a direct hit. Have been through 100 mph+ windstorms, damaging enough. That anticipation is bad enough. Studies have shown very negative health effects for years afterwards on the residents hit by these storms.

Location, location, location?

Until airconditioning was invented most people didn’t live in the Southern tier of states; the heat made it untenable to run a business down there. Once Carrier started producing commercial air, the massive exodus from the winter cold northern states began. I don’t think people even thought about hurricanes, drought and sand storms in their zeal to be warm all year long

All we have to worry about is The Big One – the Cascadia subduction zone cutting loose.

There used to be a joke circulating down South about the difference between Yankees and Damm Yankees. The former: “they come down hee-yah’, spend their munny an’ go home” whilst the latter “they come down hee-yah an’ stay.”

We ALL have our crosses to bear! Some earthquakes , floods, tornados, wars, while others have disease and infirmities, etc. We ALL should count our blessings, and are grateful for what we have.

What is even more tragic is that the Loonies in NC, are going out “FEMA Hunting.” I would not blame FEMA from pulling completely out of the State. Yes I know that the innocent would suffer, but there are also things called consequences. I see no reason to put federal employees who are trying to help in harm’s way. Perhaps if the consequences are hard enough the people in NC will correct the situation and FEMA can return to their mission.

Good points all, but those people are in Florida, so…eh.

I encourage everyone reading to make a donation to a hurricane relief organization. It is going to take a long time for those people to put their lives back together, they need our help.

Cooperate with FEMA folks. Let the people whose job it is to help you, help you.

Thank you JJ for your compassion and truth.

many that have not seen one in Tampa got their first in 103 years, and many were spared this time, as were my wife and I in Florida, I have seen many and gone through Andrew, that one was a lifetime’s worth of hurricanes, and I still remember the hundreds of twisters that that storm had, it takes time and in most cases the rest of the world forgets you as they forgot Homestead Florida, only to tell of each anniversary, as if it were a milestone.

SO DON’T LIVE IN FLORIDA. Build your neighborhoods out of concrete. Install your wiring underground. Just don’t complain when Nature is Nature.

if we’re supposed to accept school shootings and dead children as a fact of life, why not natural disasters?

Hasn’t he been living there for 10 years or so? What about the hurricanes 2 years back?

We lived through 5 major CAT 5 Typhoons in Okinawa when we lived there. Of course those folks are smart. All the houses are built of concrete and rebar. We had some minor flooding, but the houses stood.

Thank you Jimmy.

Remember, Jimmy Johnson’s town (Pass Christian) was leveled by Katrina.

Well put Jimmy

I have family who are going through that, both in North Carolina and in Florida. We live in the midwest where we “just” have flooding and tornados. We’re always thankful when it isn’t us. BTW, my cousins in NC are some of the fortunate ones. They’re working with those providing aid getting to those needing it. The ones in Florida were also fortunate. No major damage.

Why do people live where the do because we have not figured how to move off earth, and when we do, there will be more disasters there also. Welcome to life, the game of survival and recovery.

The last one we had in Rockport Texas they took the wide (100’) center median of the major north/south highway for two miles and piled up debris from destroyed buildings three stories high. Thats the reminder you drove past every day for more than a year.

Sympathy LIKE.

I have lived, worked and been educated all around the world but spent the major portion of my life on the west coast of North America. Drought for many years and too much water in others. Biggest natural disaster was the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Now, having moved northward, it’s just a bit colder and wetter during the slightly longer winter. And we do get some snow.

So true.

It’s natural to be relieved to have missed the disaster. All we can do is volunteer to help , whether in person if possible or any other support you can give. Many great organizations can always use your donations.

amen

I totally get the whole sad/glad thing… it is a struggle.

Today’s strip is especially meaningful to me. I’ve lived on both coasts of Florida for the past 20 plus years. I’ve been extremely fortunate, but have suffered my share of financial hardships from hurricanes. I never lost my home or life and for this I’m so grateful. I’m also ashamed after each storm when I feel relieved at getting so lucky. Great strip today! Something wet in my eyes.

Then why make the choice to live there?

I think we all feel some degree of that MaryLou !

Been in both States of Being.

A hurricane threatened us and Mexico. My son said he hoped it hit us instead.

“Why?”

“We have communication and people who will help us. We’ll be okay. It would kill lots of them.”

I still didn’t want to get hit but appreciated his care for strangers.