the Cuban people now must come to grips with the results of two intense natural disasters within a week: Hurricane Gustav AND Hurricane Ike. The following photos were taken last week after Gustav passed over the island. Imagine what it's like now that Ike nailed the entire island just yesterday.
A woman examines what remains of the interior of her house. Note that she only has an old TV and a destroyed chair to examine. That's all she had inside her house.
Total destruction. This woman's house is basically two rooms in a larger house. Nothing remains.
Destruction in the local barber shop.
In Cuba, rather than get excited when there are power outages, the people celebrate when there is an "alumbrón," a time when there IS electrical power. The hurricane has eliminated the possibility of occasional electrical service completely.I understand horrific natural disasters have occurred recently in many places across the planet...the cyclone in Myanmaar, the tsunami of a couple years back, the recent earthquake in Japan, Hurricane Katrina to name a few. It amazes me, however, that Cuba is so totally overlooked by the American press and people when it comes to the suffering that takes place on a daily basis there. Less than an hour's trip from Key West, Cubans endure life under a totalitarian regime that equals or surpasses the opression suffered by any other group of people on the planet. I am amazed at the lack of dialog / concern in our country about the plight of a nation so close to our own shore.
OK, I've vented...I'm now hopping off my soapbox to go mow.
1 comment:
You're right. There was absolutely nothing on the news about it. However, they did feature Haiti and children getting stuck in razorwire while waiting in line for food.
Tragedies like this really make my heart go out to the people effected. By your pictures, I can imagine that the Cuban people aren't doing much better. I can't imagine what that must be like.
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