I was a bit surprised to see the Times Free Press article: “Bermuda prepares for hits by hurricanes Humberto, Imelda.” I grew up on the island of Bermuda, and preparing for hurricanes at this time of year was the norm. But American newspapers don’t often talk about how Bermuda withstands these storms: “Bermuda is a wealthy British territory with strong concrete structures capable of withstanding serious storms,” the story reported.
In reality, wealth has little to do with the island’s design for withstanding storms, which go beyond family preparations for loss of electricity and water. And it goes far beyond the use of concrete structures. For centuries, Bermuda’s homes and roads were built away from ocean banks to avoid flooding and destruction. Compare that to news reports of five homes lost to Hurricane Humberto in the Outer Banks of North Carolina and more homes lost soon after because of Hurricane Imelda.
Bermuda’s newspaper, The Royal Gazette, described island preparations, using Hurricane Humberto as a dress rehearsal for the more severe storm, Imelda. “Bermuda is beginning to “… batten down the hatches …” The minister of national security, the Hon. Michael Weeks, offered the following, “We are a resilient people. Bermuda has weathered many storms, and we will weather this one too. Let our strength be in our unity, our safety in our preparation, and our hope in the calm that always follows the storm.” The island took action and closed down schools, the airport, roads, public transportation, government buildings and beaches.
North Carolina also declared a state of emergency, but it largely consisted of post-crisis actions: deploying water rescue teams, National Guard and law enforcement in case of dangerous flooding. Families were left to do actual preparations like forming emergency plans, assembling emergency supply kits, and paying attention to weather alerts. But none of that prevented homes from falling into the ocean, and I bet they hope to rebuild on that shore where homes were swept away.
There is huge passion for having homes on the shore line despite rising oceans, huge waves crashing ashore, mud slides or flooding from torrents of rain. I was recently asked why would people do this. Stupidity. That’s the only answer I could up with.