There needs to be a better response than just evacuate

[tulipsandroses]

I am saddened to hear that there may be mass casualties in Lee County. Waiting to hear more from the Sheriff.
Many assume that people who stayed, were just stubborn and did not heed warnings to evacuate. Often overlooked, the many people who do not have the resources and are unable to leave.
I worked at a community mental health clinic when I lived in Fort Myers. Many of my former clients have limited to no resources. They relied on the clinic, a federally funded clinic that helped them to see mental health providers and get their medications for free or low cost.
Some clients had other disabilities, sight impaired, hearing impaired. Some relied on the very limited public transit system. They don’t have a car to “just leave”

General Honore was on MSNBC last night, he said he had fears, that just like Katrina, many of the casualties will be poor and disabled.
We need to do better than tell people to just evacuate.

[moonshinegnomie]

1. I think most of that pole that stay are able to leave and choose not to

I know there are some who just cant afford it but i personally know people who have the resources,are uber wealthy and still chose to stay.
I just dont understand why they stayed.

[Demsrule86]

2. Mostly the poor end up staying.

[tulipsandroses]

5. Sure many with resources are able to leave, what about the ones without resources?

One reason I left that job because the volume of clients was overwhelming. A lot of clients with limited staff.
People who would tell me that, they had no money and could not pay $5 to pick up their medications that day.
I read that there were record numbers of private planes that flew out of Lee County this week. I guarantee that the thousands of patients serviced at the clinic don’t have the same resources. Point being, there needs to be a much better response besides telling people they should leave.

General Honore mentioned that this weekend is the 1st of the month. When people that are on disability, or other programs get their funds. By the end of the month, many don’t have much left until that payment.
He is right. It’s what I used to hear from clients. I can’t pay for my meds until my next check next week.

[2naSalit]

8. Yup...

The money often runs out before the days of the month do. Living on

[Irish_Dem]

3. I dirty secret is that in any catastrophe, people on the margin die.

Even if power goes out for a week in a community, there are deaths.
People who need power or medicine and can't get it.

I agree, we should do better than that.
But we don't.

[hlthe2b]

4. Yes. Just as in Katrina. They had a week to prepare/evacuate, yes. But if they have no $$$

no car or not one reliable to travel long distance and no friends/family to take them in, what are their options? It takes transportation for an elderly disabled person to get to a shelter or to evacuate further and most can't bear to leave everything they own to possible destruction/looting. I think, on the whole, we do a good job responding to the aftermath, but not merely enough focus on the efforts needed before the disaster.

[iemanja]

6. In FL, evacuation generally means going to a shelter in town

Not leaving the city. That doesn't mean there aren't hardships, but they aren't as insurmountable as in New Orleans.

[lindysalsagal]

7. I just found this fla amtrak map: Couldn't we open the trains ahead of storms? Create some emergency

Stops for folks to escape to before the damage? That way, emergency services could easily attend to the evacuees where the lights are still on and the roads are still open.

[Mariana]

9. Lee County had public shelters available.

When Hurricane Frederic was heading for Mobile County in 1979, there was a rumor that the police and sheriff's department arrested everyone who wouldn't leave the mandatory evacuation zones, brought them in the county jail, and let them out once the storm had passed. I have no idea if this story is actually true. I do know there was an extraordinarily low number of deaths for a Category 4 hurricane.