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Blackout: Stranded overnight
Blackout a peek into homeless life
Did they write that headline? Or did somebody just leave it at the top of the page?
By Giles Hewitt in New York 15aug03
THE huge power outage gave New Yorkers a glimpse into the world of the homeless today as tens of thousands found themselves stranded in the streets with no shelter for the night.
I feel so bad for the New Yorkers, they’ve been through so much in the last couple of years. But look how maturely they’ve handled it: no riots, no destroying and looting. I hope the Iraqis are watching that... watch and learn how civilised people do things.
Many who had joked their way through the early hours of what turned out to be the nation’s worst blackout quickly lost their sense of humour when struck with the reality that there was no way to get home.
Many, of course, didn't. There are always a certain number of sour-tempered people in any significant population, just as there are those whose temper is downright angelic. Giles seems to have been seeking out the grousers...
Public benches became premium beds and covered doorways were turned into mini-shelters. Many borrowed a page from the homeless survival guide and simply laid out sheets of newspaper on the sidewalks for a mattress.
Under normal conditions there aren't thousands of stranded people on the streets. Giles is confusing the ordinary with the extraordinary...
Main hotels such as the Grand Hyatt posted guards at their doors and barred entry to anyone not already registered. "No room key, no entry," said one doorman.
hmmm that’s not so nice: i’d expect him to open the gates in an orderly fashion and military-style make as many beds as they have space and linen. After all, it’s an emergency!
Outside the cavernous Grand Central Station at 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue, American Red Cross Volunteers supplied drinking water to hundreds of people who, like the Oyamas, were pinning their hopes on resumption of train service.
GO the red cross!
"Basically, we’re trying to keep people from getting dehydrated," volunteer Danielle Dietrich said. "We’ve had a couple of elderly people with heart trouble but we managed to get them police help."
If i were there, I’d want to go and direct traffic at the nearest intersection and get some of those people moving. Does NY have a volunteer organisation of citizens who help in emergencies who can cover the major intersections, freeing up police/fireys for more important jobs? Australia has the State Emergency Services/Territory Emergency Services: hundreds of unpaid volunteers who train every week to help out in situations such as this.
The Grand Hyatt did open a small area of its ground floor, a sort of mini-mall lined with chic shops, to about 100 people who were trying to grab a few winks on the hard marble floor. "At least they have some lighting here" Corine Sanders said. "That makes me feel safer than sleeping in the streets." The Hyatt, like many such establishments, has back-up emergency generators.
Yes... backup generators all round. Preferably ones that run on ethanol and not Saudi Black Slag. Incidentally, apparently some nuclear facilities were having trouble with their backup power. Hate to see a terrorist take advantage of that loophole in the future. All it takes is for the coolant pumps to break down for a couple of hours.
Get better soon, NY!

I'm rather proud of our country at the moment. We've got a power outage that's having an effect on 50 million people. Despite Giles' search for the grousers, people seem to be taking it without panic and in good form. Anon1, there was footage on FoxNews this morning of a young fellow in civvies with a backpack, directing traffic in Noo Yawk. Mayor Lindsay Bloomberg was on the teevee, saying the right things, as were mayors from Cleveland and Detroit. There aren't reports of looters and that sort of thing, not that they should be publicizing any there are.

When things are back to normal, of course, there will be all sorts of ugly recriminations, with many if not most of the usual suspects trying to make political mileage out of it. I expect to see the pols do terrible things to some power companies, if not to the entire industry. But that's for the future.

At the moment, I really like New York. Again.

Posted by: Anon1 2003-08-15
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=17652