Huh? FEMA, W.H. send storm victims to Internet

[LadyEagle]

Well, what if you have no electricity and no cell phones charged and no Internet?????

When President Barack Obama urged Americans under siege from Hurricane Sandy to stay inside and keep watch on ready.gov for the latest, he left out something pretty important — where to turn if the electricity goes out.

Despite the heightened expectation of widespread power and cable television failures, everyone from the president to local newscasters seem to expect the public to rely entirely on the Internet and their TVs for vital news and instructions.

None of the major cable or local news channels put emergency phone numbers or key radio station frequencies on their screens. The only phone-related instructions on the homepage of ready.gov is how to get monthly disaster-prep text messages. The Federal Emergency Management Agency told the public via Twitter to use texts and social media outlets to stay informed.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1012/83024.html#ixzz2ApdBgNzL

 

[ktn4eg]

Al Gore was way too busy single-handedly fending off the entire RVN & the Viet-Cong perched on board his chopper to have thought of all the little minor details of the internet he was in the process of inventing when those bad guys tried to run over us in 'Nam.

Oh....He REALLY did plan for that contingency, you say????!!!!???? :thumbsup:

Too bad that the prop wash from his chopper's take off during the start of Tet blew away the papers where he'd sketched that part of his proto-internet development!!!! :smilewinkgrin: :laugh: :wavey:

 

[NaasPreacher (C4K)]

Well, what if you have no electricity and no cell phones charged and no Internet?????



Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1012/83024.html#ixzz2ApdBgNzL

This article was sneakily worded. It only mentioned the homepage of ready.gov. Here is the 'contact us' page.

If they had gone to ready.gov before the storm hit they could have found the numbers there. If they had no power they could not have seen the broadcast anyway. A storm this size could have killed many hundreds (or thousands). Every death is tragic and it would be nice if every single death could have been avoided, but it looks like those in charge of dealing with the disaster did an amazing job.

I was in Alabama last year for the major tornado outbreak. When everything else went down (electricity, internet, landline service, mobile phone towers. etc) we dug out a radio and found batteries. We found a radio station that gave constant information. We didn't need FEMA or the White House to tell us where to go on the radio.

Trying to take advantage of a tragedy like this for political gain is sad.

 

[Revmitchell]

If they had gone to ready.gov before the storm hit they could have found the numbers there. If they had no power they could not have seen the broadcast anyway. A storm this size could have killed many hundreds (or thousands). Every death is tragic and it would be nice if every single death could have been avoided, but it looks like those in charge of dealing with the disaster did an amazing job.

I was in Alabama last year for the major tornado outbreak. When everything else went down (electricity, internet, landline service, mobile phone towers. etc) we dug out a radio and found batteries. We found a radio station that gave constant information. We didn't need FEMA or the White House to tell us where to go on the radio.

Trying to take advantage of a tragedy like this for political gain is sad.

It is sad. To bad Obama has do do such a thing.

 

[Oldtimer]

Well, what if you have no electricity and no cell phones charged and no Internet?????



Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1012/83024.html#ixzz2ApdBgNzL

Reminds me of our local TV stations during a major power outage event. Listening to them on a battery powered radio.........

"See the scroll at the bottom of the screen for school and business closings."

"Go to our webpage for the latest information on closings, traffic conditions, etc."

Plus....

From the Whitehouse on down, they seem to forget the thousands without Internet access in the first place. And, in all likelyhood those are the folks who will most need the information they can't access. :BangHead:

 

[NaasPreacher (C4K)]

Are people so stupid they don't know how to turn on a radio?

 

[Oldtimer]

Are people so stupid they don't know how to turn on a radio?

That isn't the point.

If I'm listening to a radio because the power is out, how can I check the bottom of the screen to view information I need or look it up on a website? Especially, if I don't have a computer in the first place. A lot of elderly people around here don't have computers. Unemployed people have had to give up paying for Internet access in order to put food on the table.

Yes, a battery powered radio (along with plenty of batteries and possibly a solar battery charger) should be a must in every "prepared" home. However, I know, from experience -- hurricanes and ice storms -- the limitations they have when information suppliers ASSUME I still have visual access to information.

 

[NaasPreacher (C4K)]

That isn't the point.

If I'm listening to a radio because the power is out, how can I check the bottom of the screen to view information I need or look it up on a website? Especially, if I don't have a computer in the first place. A lot of elderly people around here don't have computers. Unemployed people have had to give up paying for Internet access in order to put food on the table.

Yes, a battery powered radio (along with plenty of batteries and possibly a solar battery charger) should be a must in every "prepared" home. However, I know, from experience -- hurricanes and ice storms -- the limitations they have when information suppliers ASSUME I still have visual access to information.

That is simply their best feed in emergency. It covers both those who have TV and those who don't. Local media are severely strained in these situations. Maybe the stations you listened to were just not good enough to handle it. We went through all of this in Alabama in April 2011. I was amazed at how well FEMA and the other agencies and media and general populace did. WDRM radio was a lifeline for 3-4 days. WDRM carried a local TV station's feed but the TV people would say something like 'If you still have power or internet access the information is on screen. If not we will update you at quarter past' or something like that. They also did not run the TV feed constantly.

But maybe Alabama is just superior to other parts of the country .

It looks like politico was just looking for an excuse to be critical.

BTW, I agree that everyone should have an emergency radio of some sort. We found a wind up radio what was brilliant.

 

[Mexdeaf]

It looks like politico was just looking for an excuse to be critical.

I would agree. However as the old saying goes, "What's good for the goose is good for the gander."

Or better- "All's fair in politics and war.":smilewinkgrin:

 

[NaasPreacher (C4K)]

I would agree. However as the old saying goes, "What's good for the goose is good for the gander."

Or better- "All's fair in politics and war.":smilewinkgrin:

When you are right you shouldn't lower yourself to that level.

 

[Mexdeaf]

When you are right you shouldn't lower yourself to that level.

'Tis true. Unfortunately the populace has become conditioned to expect our parties and leaders to play these little 'one-upmanship' games- hence this thread. Sad commentary on the state of the BB, eh?

 

[exscentric]

"Are people so stupid they don't know how to turn on a radio?" But if you rely on satellite radio and your car is floating in the front yard ....

 

[Oldtimer]

But maybe Alabama is just superior to other parts of the country .

It looks like politico was just looking for an excuse to be critical.

BTW, I agree that everyone should have an emergency radio of some sort. We found a wind up radio what was brilliant.

Maybe so, for some parts of the country. Perhaps Alabama is indeed superior.

So far, I haven't heard local TV (over radio) do anything more than assume listeners still have access to visual representation of the news. One, in particular, heavily promotes how advanced they are in electronic communications. Another, is copying the first, just at a slower pace. (sigh)

We also found a windup radio to backup battery powered ones. And, we also have a couple of windup flashlights for the same reason. I like to keep one of those in my shop for times I need a flashlight and the batteries in a traditional version are deal. (Easier to wind-up than walk to the house to get fresh batteries. )