Natural disasters are more likely to destroy the Earth than Man-made disasters. Any kind of disaster to one’s life can be detrimental, but the effects of natural disasters are very severe and can be hard to evaluate. “The effects of any natural disaster, particularly on the mental health of individuals and communities, may not be apparent for years” (Pizzi). For example, hurricane Sandy was a category 3 hurricane that delivered heavy, long term damage to the North Eastern coastline in 2012.
Hurricane Sandy hit the north eastern coast in very urbanized areas like New York City where most people live in close quarter, tall buildings not made to withstand the power of hurricanes.
New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut were the main states affected by the storm. Hurricane Sandy became a tropical storm on the 22nd of October in 2012 and the aftermath and effects of the storm have lasted through today. It started as a depression in lower Gulf of Mexico and once it pasted Cuba it quickly grew into the category 3 hurricane that would change the lives of thousands.
It all started in October of 2012 in the middle of North America’s hurricane season. It would start in the Gulf riveting many small islands in and around Cuba and eventually end up annihilating the United States north eastern coastline. This hurricane quite simply involved mother nature and millions of unsuspecting, innocent people. At the very beginning of the fourth week in October of 2012, a tropical storm watch was issued for Sandy.
Two days later it became a hurricane after its eye passed through Cuba. On October 28th President Obama declared a state of emergency for multiple north eastern coastline states. Hurricane Sandy made landfall on the 29th of that month, 7 days after being discovered by meteorologists in the Gulf. A week is simply not give enough time to prepare for disasters like hurricanes, and this was only when it first started as a depression. Hurricane Sandy went on to become the second costliest hurricane in United States History.
Hurricane Sandy “left a 500-mile trail of damage along the Atlantic coast, and railroads were not spared from the worst of it” (Schmidt). “After the lights and power came back on, she left an aftermath of debilitating damage with a price tag of $82 billion sought in federal aid by New York, New Jersey and Connecticut” (Real Estate Weekly). “Over 145 lives were directly lost, businesses disrupted or destroyed, and homes and communities” (Pizzi), primarily those in the New York and New Jersey regions, were completely wrecked. During the storm many local waterways rose “which could have carried sediment contaminated with cancer-causing chemicals, overtopped the banks and reached as far as a city block in all directions” (Russell). “It was the second largest and costliest hurricane to pummel multiple states and communities in U.S. history” (Pizzi). “The House eventually passed two bills totaling $60 billion in Sandy aid. The Senate must now approve the bill to provide $51 billion in aid” (Long Island Business News).
Natural disasters are overall more costly to the Earth’s state of well being than man-made disasters. Hurricane Sandy is a prime example of this claim because super storms like her are nearly impossible to predict. We must educate the general public on the severity of these storms and that they must be taken seriously no matter what the situation. We can’t stop or predict natural disasters but we can learn from the past and lessen the effects by always be prepared for anything.
Land Destruction Hurricane Sandy. (2022, Feb 26). Retrieved from https://paperap.com/land-destruction-hurricane-sandy/