Our Vulnerability to
the Elements
Brooke Warner
PHS 100A-
Environmental Studies
Dr. Terrell
Warner Pacific
College
November 13, 2013
Our Vulnerability to
the Elements
Humans have so much power. We have the power to create and destroy. We can make choices in our lives; where we
want to go, who we want to be. The
opportunities are nearly limitless.
There are only a few things in this world that we have absolutely no
control over. No matter of technology we
create can cage the power and destruction that is a natural hazard. Only God has control over these elements, and
we can only try to predict and prepare for the power of the weather and the
environment.
Natural
disasters have taken their toll on our environment since the beginning of time. As far back as when God commanded Noah to
build the arc, because he was going to flood the Earth. How we as a society can learn from these
vulnerabilities is the key to advancing the knowledge of our environment
(Slingo. 2012). Natural hazards are
deadly, but they do not necessarily have to be something we fear so long as we
understand their power.
Hurricanes
are one of the great forces of nature that can destroy miles of a populated
environment in a matter of minutes. Beginning
as a tropical disturbance in warm ocean waters with surface temperatures of at
least 80 degrees, a hurricane is fed by the energy from the warm sea. Once the storm reaches speeds of 38 miles an hour, it becomes known as a tropical depression (Withgott & Brennan. 2011). A tropical depression becomes a tropical storm, and is given a name, when its sustained wind speeds top 39 miles an hour. When a storm’s sustained wind speeds reach 74 miles an hour it becomes a hurricane. Hurricanes can be up to 600
miles across at speeds up to 200 miles per hour. They are a massive storm that can last for
weeks wreaking havoc on everything it touches. We have the technology to predict when a
storm is developing, and the ability to know approximately when it will reach
land (National Geographic. 2013).
My personal
experience with hurricanes was over eight years ago in New Orleans,
Louisiana. Prior to Katrina, I spent a
lot of my time in the “Big Easy.” I was
a flight attendant for America West Airlines, and my residency often changed due
to where I was based. I spent close to a
year in New Orleans, and witnessed firsthand the power of these storms. The fear that overwhelms you and the quick
reactions and decisions that are required for safety and survival.
While home
over a long weekend, the news alerted the area of a tropical storm that was
building in the Gulf of Mexico.
Meteorologists and Storm experts feared that this storm would develop
into a full blown hurricane within a matter of hours and advised all local
residents to evacuate their homes to a safer location. Fearing for my life I gathered the items that
I knew were the things I could not live without. Family photos and heirlooms that could not be
replaced, leaving behind my home and belongings, I began the drive up to
Arkansas. Fortunately the storm did not
do the damage that was anticipated and only minor tree fallings and cosmetic
damage were reported to homes and businesses.
Shortly after the storm I was relocated to Phoenix, Arizona. A few months later, in August of 2005, hurricane
Katrina hit New Orleans, doing un-repairable damage, which is still evident
today.
The
evidence of these massive storms shows just how vulnerable our society is to
the power of nature. Understanding the
effects we have on our environment, as well as the effects it has on us, is
crucial to the protection against these hazards.
References
Hurricanes, Engines of Destruction. (2013). National Geographic. Retrieved From:
Slingo, J.
(2012). Society's Growing
Vulnerability to Natural Hazards. Environmental Science Institute. University of Texas at Austin. Retrieved From:
Withgott, J., & Brennan, S. (2011). Environment: The Science Behind The Stories. San
Francisco: Pearson Benjamin Cummings.
