Facing South Florida: Poor Communities Dealing With Hurricane Irma

WHEN HURRICANE IRMA KNOCKED
THE POWER OUT OF MY HOUSE FOR
FOUR DAYS, I CHECKED INTO A
HOTEL AND HAD POWER AND AIR-
CONDITIONING.
I AM LUCKY.
I HAD THE MONEY TO DO THAT.
FOR THOSE ON THE ECONOMIC EDGE
OF SOCIETY, THE RAMIFICATIONS
OF A STORM CAN BE DRASTIC.
HERE TO EXPLORE THIS WITH ME IS
THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE
NEW FLORIDA MAJORITY.
THANK YOU FOR COMING IN.
THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.
I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT THIS
FOR A COUPLE OF REASONS.
THE POST STORM PHASE, EVERYBODY
ANALYZES DIFFERENT THINGS.
YOU APPEARED DURING THE COUNTY
COMMISSION AND TALK ABOUT THIS
VERY ISSUE AND DURING THE
COURSE OF IT, YOU WERE
CRITIQUING THE MAYOR AND THE
CHAIRMAN CUT OFF YOUR
MICROPHONE AND SAID BASICALLY
BE QUIET, STOP IT.
SO, I FIGURED, TURN OFF ONE
MICROPHONE, WE WILL TURN ON A
BIGGER MICROPHONE.
WHAT WAS THE POINT YOU WERE
TRYING TO MAKE?
I THINK AS YOU WERE IF PLANNING
IN THE INTRODUCTION --
EXPLAINING IN THE INTRODUCTION,
PEOPLE EXPERIENCE THE STORM
DIFFERENTLY AND FORCE
VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES BEING
WITHOUT ELECTRICITY IS AN
EXTREME HARDSHIP.
AS A COMMUNITY BASED
ORGANIZATION WITH MANY OTHERS,
WE FANNED OUT ACROSS SOME OF
THE MOST VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES
WITH NO ELECTRICITY AND WENT
DOOR TO DOOR TO TALK TO PEOPLE,
SEE HOW THEY WERE DOING AND
WHAT THEY NEEDED.
WE FOUND TIME AND TIME AGAIN
FAMILIES THAT DIDN'T HAVE FOOD,
HADN'T EATEN IN DAYS.
SENIORS SUFFERING FROM THE
HEAT.
PEOPLE THAT NEEDED DESPERATELY
ICE FOR INSULIN.
SO, WE STARTED SETTING UP THESE
BOB UP BARBECUES IN COMMUNITIES
ACROSS -- NOT ONLY ACROSS MIAMI-
DADE BUT BROWARD COUNTY AND THE
WHOLE STATE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
OTHER COMMUNITY BASED
ORGANIZATIONS.
WHAT WE REALIZED PROFOUNDLY IS
THAT OUR PLANS ARE NOT ENOUGH
AND THAT WHILE COUNTY WORKERS
WERE OUT THERE WORKING AROUND
THE CLOCK AND WE APPRECIATE
THOSE EFFORTS, WE MUST DO MORE
TO BE BETTER PREPARED.
THE LEVEL OF SUFFERING AND
HARDSHIP THAT WE SAW IS NOT
ACCEPTABLE.
THE MAYOR WOULD ARGUE THAT
HE OPENED UP 45 SHELTERS, 48
SHELTERS FOR MORE THAN 100,000
PEOPLE TO GO INTO THEM.
WHY DIDN'T THE PEOPLE GO INTO
SHELTERS?
WONG IS MANY FAMILIES WHO
STRUGGLE TO PAY THEIR BILLS
COULDN'T AFFORD TO EVACUATE OR
COULDN'T AFFORD TO PURCHASE THE
SUPPLIES THEY NEEDED.
THE SHELTERS ARE ONLY OPEN FOR
THE DURATION OF THE STORM.
THEY WEREN'T OPEN THROUGHOUT
THE EIGHT DAYS PEOPLE ARE
WITHOUT POWER.
AS YOU SAID, MANY DIDN'T HAVE A
HOTEL THAT THEY COULD CHECK IN
TO, THE RESOURCES FOR THAT OR
PEOPLE WHO LIVED IN OTHER
AREAS.
MANY FAMILIES DON'T HAVE CARS.
THE TRANSIT SYSTEM WAS NOT
OPERATING.
YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO COME TO
THE SHELTER WITH YOUR OWN FOOD
AND WATER.
ABSOLUTELY.
ONE OF THE POINTS THAT WAS
MADE, GOES TO A LARGER ISSUE,
THE LACK OF SUPER MARKETS IN
SOME OF THESE COMMUNITIES.
SO, AS A RESULT, YOU KNOCK OUT
ONE SUPERMARKET, IT'S NOT LIKE
WE WILL GO TO THIS ONE OR THAT
ONE INSTEAD.
THERE ARE MANY POOR
COMMUNITIES THAT ARE CALLED
FOOD DESERTS.
THEY DON'T HAVE A SUPERMARKET.
YOU COULD ONLY PAY IN CASH.
IF YOU DIDN'T HAVE CASH, THE
CREDIT CARD MACHINES WERE DOWN.
WE HAD VOLUNTEERS FANNING OUT
TO STORES ACROSS THE REGION TO
BUY WHATEVER THEY COULD FIND.
PEOPLE WERE BUYING 50 HOT DOGS
IN ONE SUPERMARKET AND HOT DOG
BUNS IN ANOTHER AND KETCHUP
SOMEWHERE ELSE TRYING TO PULL
TOGETHER WHATEVER WE COULD TO
BRING THEM INTO SOME OF OUR
LOWEST INCOME COMMUNITIES WHERE
WE WERE FINDING MOTHERS THAT
ONLY HAD BREAD TO GIVE THEIR
CHILDREN.
HEART-BREAKING TO SEE THE LEVEL
OF NEED IN THE DAYS AFTER THE
STORM.
I BELIEVE WE CAN DO BETTER.
THERE IS SOME CULPABILITY ON
THE MEDIA'S PART AS WELL.
WE TEND TO GO TO PINECREST,
CORAL GABLES, WE GET THE IMAGES
OF THE TREES DOWN AND THE REST
OF IT AND WE THINK THOSE ARE
MORE IMPORTANT COMMUNITIES BUT
THEY DON'T GO TO THE HOUSING
PROJECTS, THE PUBLIC HOUSING
PLACES OR THE INNER CITIES OR
FOLKS AFFECTED THAT WAY.
IT'S SOMETHING THAT THE MEDIA
HAS TO DO.
I THOUGHT DESMOND DID AMAZING
REPORTING DURING THIS TIME.
SO, YOUR MIC WAS TURNED OFF.
WHAT WAS THE MESSAGE YOU WANTED
TO GIVE TO THE MAYOR AT THAT
POINT.
WE HAVE TO HAVE A MUCH MORE
EXTENSIVE PLAN TO CARE FOR THE
MOST VULNERABLE.
PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES,
SENIORS, POOR COMMUNITIES AND
THERE HAS TO BE ANOTHER LEVEL
OF COOPERATION BETWEEN
COMMUNITY BASED ORGANIZATIONS
AND COUNTY GOVERNMENT.
COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS ARE IN
THESE COMMUNITIES DAY AFTER
DAY, YEAR AFTER YEAR.
IN MANY WAYS CAN FUNCTION AS
FIRST RESPONDERS BEFORE THE
BIG, YOU KNOW, RED CROSS OR
FEMA COMES.
WE WERE THERE THE DAY THAT IT
STOPPED -- WHEN THE STORM
STOPPED PEOPLE WERE GATHERING.
THERE IS THE BUDGET CUTS TO
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION.
DURING THE STORM WE SAW HOW
NECESSARY PUBLIC TRANSIT IS TO
EVACUATE PEOPLE.
IT'S A CRITICAL PART OF THE
INFRASTRUCTURE.
I THINK WE NEED TO LOOK AT THE
COUNTY BUDGET AND WHAT IS BEING
PROPOSED THERE WITH SOME REAL
THOUGHTFULNESS ABOUT WHAT WE
DID NOT HAVE AND THIS STORM AND
WHAT WE NEED TO BE PREPARED FOR
WHEN THE NEXT ONE HITS.
DID YOU GET A SENSE THAT FPL
DIDN'T PRIORITIZE THESE
COMMUNITIES AS OTHERS?
WE ARE STILL DOING THE
ASSESSMENT, THE ANALYSIS OF THE
DATA AND OF WHAT COMMUNITY
MEMBERS EXPERIENCED IN
DOCUMENTING THAT.
BUT, YOU KNOW, FPL, WE REALLY
DO HAVE TO HOLD THE COMPANY
ACCOUNTABLE.
THEY MAKE MILLIONS
CONTRIBUTIONS, THEY LOBBY FOR
ALTERNATIVES LIKE SOLAR.
THEY COULD DO MUCH MORE TO PUT
MORE POWER LINES UNDERGROUND,
NOT JUST IN WEALTHY COMMUNITIES
BUT LOW INCOME COMMUNITIES AND
REALLY THINK ABOUT HOW WE ARE
STARTING COOLING CENTERS IN
SOME OF OUR MORE VULNERABLE
COMMUNITIES.
IT'S FASCINATING TO SEE WHAT
THE RESULT OF THE STORM WAS.
YOU SAW THE ELDERLY AT RISK IN
THE NURSING HOME SITUATION AND
NURSING HOMES ACROSS THE STATE.
AND YOU SAW THE POOREST IN OUR
COMMUNITY VULNERABLE, TWO
GROUPS THAT WERE OFTEN
FORGOTTEN ABOUT, NOT TALKED
ABOUT FORGOTTEN DURING THE
STORM.
STORMS HAVE A TENDENCY TO
UNMASK DEEPER SYSTEMIC ISSUES.
WE HAVE SEEN THAT TIME AGAIN
AFTER HURRICANE ANDREW,
HURRICANE KATRINA, HURRICANE
HARVEY AND THERE ARE DEEPER
STRUCTURAL ISSUES THAT WE HAVE
TO RECKON WITH.
I GOT TO CUT YOU OFF.
FOLKS WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT
YOUR INFORMATION.
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Facing South Florida: Poor Communities Dealing With Hurricane Irma

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