Philippines Landslide Kills Many
By: Lance Winslow
Many people fear Earthquakes, Hurricanes and Volcanoes, but the truth is that more people die in natural disasters from drowning than in any other way. We lost over 3,000 people in the Katrina Hurricane, not from winds or flying debris, but rather from drowning. The Hurricane in Mexico killed 3,000 in landslides and another killed nearly that many in Guatemala weeks later. We all know the Indonesia Tsunami, which killed almost 200,000 people.
Recently the very earliest reports of the mudslide in the Philippines in February the Red Cross estimated that 200 people dead even with over 1,500 missing in landslide. The death toll could easily be as high as 2500 local media reports said. In the last twenty-four months floods have killed people in over 138 countries and it is the number one cause of death from natural disasters. Mother Nature continually reminds us that we are merely guests living on the surface of the planet and are not in control.
When we plan for natural disasters and set up teams of first responders we must always consider the need for rescue boats, helicopter rescue and shelters, which are out of flood zones and well above sea level. When planning to help our citizens of the World in their time of need, which could easily be our time of need; we must be thinking of flooding and preventing the unnecessary loss of life from drowning. Consider this in 2006.
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