A couple of clarifications:
22,000 square miles of Florida were affected by this storm, but the worst of Wilma went through one of the most heavily-populated areas of the state, the Dade/Broward/Palm Beach tri-county region.
I have lived in these regions for thirty-five years, until 2004, and I've talked to the people I can reach there all over the region today, but of course that's meaningless. So here are the fact links:
Two and a half million residents still have no power from FP&L, the power company that provides service to the South Florida area.
The estimated dates when power will be restored, also direct from FP&L. Note the date November 22nd -- that is a month from now. Even the people who stocked hurricane supplies in these areas will need relief in two to three weeks.
Damages, flooding, shortages and related problems I've heard about from friends are substantiated by Sun-Sentinel reporters in South Florida on their hurricane weblog.
The language statistics are pulled from articles in the Sun-Sentinel, Orlando Sentinel, and a U.S. English Foundation newsletter; the latter uses U.S. Census data. I pulled these statistics back in 2003 when we were trying to get our private school in South Florida to hire a Spanish language teacher, so they are two years old.
My comments on the elderly and donations to the Red Cross are my opinions, and should be treated as such.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Dade County is creepy as hell after dark these days. Fantasy Fest is going on in Key West even as we speak. All-in-all, as with most hurricanes, it sucked but it could have been much worse.
ReplyDelete