AS WE went to press last night the island appeared to have been spared a direct hit from the full force of Hurricane Dennis. Much the same happened last September when the eye of Hurricane Ivan skirted the southern coast of the island even while the outer bands did extensive damage to southern and western parishes.
This time the west-northwest track of what has become a major hurricane veered toward a northwestern direction early Thursday afternoon, in effect skirting the northeast of the island and pointing toward western Cuba and the Gulf of Mexico beyond. The eastern parishes of St. Thomas and Portland, however, had begun to feel the onslaught of heavy showers and consequential flooding.
But even amid the preparations to guard against potential disaster a negative note has emerged. Dr. Barbara Carby, director general of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management, told a television audience Wednesday night that a number of volunteer managers of hurricane shelters had withdrawn from participation this time because of vandalism and rowdy conduct of refugees in the post-Ivan period.
It is a sad commentary on the character of those who have been sheltered during disaster to "bite the hands that feed them". It is part of the dependency syndrome taken to extremes and is inexcusable even in acute distress.
Even worse of course is the criminal activity of looting shuttered business places at the height of a hurricane. There were even reports during Ivan of raids on homes whose residents had to be evacuated - a factor which is said to contribute to the reluctance of some evacuees this time around.
These negative aspects of a natural disaster must be guarded against by the security forces. The remnants of recovery from the impact of Ivan are fresh enough in the public mind to help shape whatever must be done when Hurricane Dennis moves away.
It is sobering to keep in mind, as the meteorologists have been stressing, that already there have been four named storms, including a major hurricane, this early in the season.
Dealing with Dennis may, therefore, be a dress rehearsal for more to come in the remaining months of the season which ends in November. Disaster preparedness must be given the resources to ensure speedy and efficient recovery by all the relevant agencies.
Concurrently, all citizens must maintain a state of readiness and not postpone emergency measures until the last moments of frenzied shopping.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
