Disasters not the time to play politics with aid

Watching natural disasters unfold among people un-used to earthquakes and hurricanes is fascinating for those of us who have come up against such events.

No strangers to fierce storms, terra unfirm and its companion tsunamis, most island residents know what to expect and what to do if things get hairy.

When Washington, D.C., office workers fled glass-walled buildings to stand outside just a few yards away, oblivious to the potential danger from falling shards, I’m certain local seismic safety officials were shaking their heads.

When some New York City residents blew off orders to evacuate, secure in the belief that their towering concrete condos would withstand Irene’s winds, Kauai residents who experienced Iniki were thinking otherwise.

I was amazed when a woman remarked that she was snug in her Manhattan apartment because whatever flooding might occur would surely never reach her seventh-floor abode, unaware that wind funneling through urban canyons could create a bigger danger.

A Brooklyn man also declared himself safe in his second-floor walkup. Trees outside his windows would buffer the gales, he said, without considering that their branches might become projectiles instead. Power loss? “No problem,” he said. He would simply open the windows and fire up the Weber.

For every numbskull, however, there were people who understood the need to prepare. Some had good tips. A Carolina-coast woman commented that whenever a hurricane approached, she would put a big, old ham in the oven that could remain unrefrigerated and provide many hearty meals.

Irene largely spared the metropolitan areas of the East, but really messed up other regions. Seeing photos of covered bridges thrown off kilter by floodwater, particularly like one I’d walked through in Vermont, was distressing.

Far more disturbing is an attempt to turn disaster aid for devastated towns and cities into a political exhibition by tea party types in Congress who want any increase in the mere $800 million now available in federal emergency funds to be offset by spending decreases elsewhere.

With Irene’s preliminary damage estimates at $7 billion, the funds need replenishing, but House Republicans are balking. They propose, among other things, that an unrelated program for fuel-efficient vehicle production be sliced, not only to impair the Obama administration for political gain, but to reverse its environmental policies.

State and local governments have not been able to rebuild infrastructure and businesses have not gotten help to recover from recent tornadoes, floods and other disasters because of the cash shortfall.

The tea party notion is that they should not expect handouts from federal government. Disaster aid isn’t a handout. Without the funds, local economies that support the national economy will be harmed.

Rebuilding a historic bridge might seem silly, but the town and its businesses depend on such tourist attractions, just as Hawaii does, for revenue.

We are a union of states and people. We help each other when there is need for support and for advice for staying safe. Tying helping hands with political strings is as much of a disaster as quakes and storms.

———

Cynthia Oi can be reached at coi@staradvertiser.com.