This morning the family got an E-mail from our niece, who is serving in the Navy on the U.S.S. Blueridge. Ally is an electonics person, and she's with a detachment of sailors working with the town authorities trying to get local communications systems up and running again. Trying to get the fire/rescue/police/hospital all on their land lines again due to the damage to cell phone towers being wiped out. Cell phones are not working too well in some areas.
Anyways, she made mention of some points in her brief communication with family here, that are worth noting. First of witch is, she has never seen such a resilliant tough people like the Japanese. Amid the devastation and rubble, little make shift tent settlements have sprung up. People have gathered together to share a cooking fire, watch the children, and start making some kind of order in the ruble. Supplies that are valued are bottled water, instant Ramin packs, tea, and canned goods. Some kind of cover for your nose and mouth are needed, both from dust, and the stench from the flooded areas. Good heavy work gloves and boots are needed to navigate the ruble. A short D handle shovel is useful for not only digging, but to use as a pry tool. They have some kind of Japanese army service people working with them, and they are carrying short shovels, and getting a lot of use out of the mundane tool. There's a bit of a language problem, but not as much as we would think. Gestures seem to work pretty good.
Many people have set up little shelters from plastic sheeting and scrap lumber, around a communal fire. It's cold at night, and a warm blanket is valuable. Ally also saw people on their own, already piling the ruble and debris into neat little piles that can easily removed if and when the from loaders get there. She has not seen any kind of lawless behavior or the kind of stuff that went on here when Katrina hit new Orleans. Instead, the survivors seem to be all working together to make things better in their own little patch of turf.
We hope to hear more from Ally, will pass on anything we hear of importance.
Carl.
Anyways, she made mention of some points in her brief communication with family here, that are worth noting. First of witch is, she has never seen such a resilliant tough people like the Japanese. Amid the devastation and rubble, little make shift tent settlements have sprung up. People have gathered together to share a cooking fire, watch the children, and start making some kind of order in the ruble. Supplies that are valued are bottled water, instant Ramin packs, tea, and canned goods. Some kind of cover for your nose and mouth are needed, both from dust, and the stench from the flooded areas. Good heavy work gloves and boots are needed to navigate the ruble. A short D handle shovel is useful for not only digging, but to use as a pry tool. They have some kind of Japanese army service people working with them, and they are carrying short shovels, and getting a lot of use out of the mundane tool. There's a bit of a language problem, but not as much as we would think. Gestures seem to work pretty good.
Many people have set up little shelters from plastic sheeting and scrap lumber, around a communal fire. It's cold at night, and a warm blanket is valuable. Ally also saw people on their own, already piling the ruble and debris into neat little piles that can easily removed if and when the from loaders get there. She has not seen any kind of lawless behavior or the kind of stuff that went on here when Katrina hit new Orleans. Instead, the survivors seem to be all working together to make things better in their own little patch of turf.
We hope to hear more from Ally, will pass on anything we hear of importance.
Carl.
