Katrina
We took the kids to the Science center today, and we could smell this amazing smell. Food! They were hosting some sort of event so dh asked an employee what was happening. Nosy guy! Turns out they were have the members only premier of the new Imax movie, "Hurricane on the Bayou." That yummy smell was jambalaya, mmmmm. So we went and bought some tickets and ate some yummy food and watched the film.
The film did not start out as a 'Katrina' film. It was a film about the wetlands and conservation. There is a beautiful young fiddle prodigy that they were filming and her and her fellow musicians were promoting wetlands protection. The hurricane just happened while they were filming. Turns out that the way they built the levees and canals back in the thirties, greatly impacted the wetlands. Add to that the pollution and development of the last 70 years and the wetlands are disappearing at an enormous pace.
Apparently the wetlands would have offered great protection from the flooding that absolutely devastated New Orleans. They of course absorb huge amounts of water and offer physical protection from the storms as well. If the wetlands were not so depleted, the effects of 'Katrina' would have been greatly reduced. I had never heard of this before now, all the coverage I watched, nothing was said about the effect of the missing wetlands. It was so interesting.
Watching the effects of the flooding on the city of New Orleans was so heart-wrenching. The devastation was so complete. Neighborhoods washed away. Livelihoods completely taken away. Homes, businesses were completely gone and the emotional devastation on the people there will take years to fade. I had to keep washing away tears as I watched this. I can't imagine how hard this must be for those who live there.
We learned so much and I can't wait to learn more about weather and the environment with the boys this year. This sparked an interest for all of us so I am anxious to kindle that.
The film did not start out as a 'Katrina' film. It was a film about the wetlands and conservation. There is a beautiful young fiddle prodigy that they were filming and her and her fellow musicians were promoting wetlands protection. The hurricane just happened while they were filming. Turns out that the way they built the levees and canals back in the thirties, greatly impacted the wetlands. Add to that the pollution and development of the last 70 years and the wetlands are disappearing at an enormous pace.
Apparently the wetlands would have offered great protection from the flooding that absolutely devastated New Orleans. They of course absorb huge amounts of water and offer physical protection from the storms as well. If the wetlands were not so depleted, the effects of 'Katrina' would have been greatly reduced. I had never heard of this before now, all the coverage I watched, nothing was said about the effect of the missing wetlands. It was so interesting.
Watching the effects of the flooding on the city of New Orleans was so heart-wrenching. The devastation was so complete. Neighborhoods washed away. Livelihoods completely taken away. Homes, businesses were completely gone and the emotional devastation on the people there will take years to fade. I had to keep washing away tears as I watched this. I can't imagine how hard this must be for those who live there.
We learned so much and I can't wait to learn more about weather and the environment with the boys this year. This sparked an interest for all of us so I am anxious to kindle that.
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