As citizens of New Jersey, when we all wished
death on cast of the recently popular Jersey Shore cast, we did not wish the
same on the rest of the Seaside area.
On Thursday, September 12, 2013 there was a ranging fire along the now
famous (or infamous) Seaside boardwalk.
In a news report, it was stated that the fire began in a Kohrs ice cream
shop and spread down the boardwalk from there. About 20 businesses were destroyed on the Seaside boardwalk
including Maruca's Pizza, the Carousel Arcade, Jack & Bill's,
Beachcomber, Sawmill and the Kohr's ice cream shop where the fire started. The fire raged on for hours and
continued to spread until 8pm. There
were between 300 and 400 firefighters who were sent on the job, many from not
only Ocean County, but surrounding New Jersey counties as well. Thankfully, to my knowledge no one was
killed or seriously injured.
This new
report, though tragic, interested me for one main reason. The report gave me the clear message
that in the year 2013, regardless of the technology we as humans have
discovered thus far, we cannot control Mother Nature. Yes, this fire was started in an ice cream shop, not by a
natural occurrence. However, the
fire spread across a huge amount of space, taking down buildings and other
structures that stood in its way.
I mention
Mother Nature for multiple reasons.
Last year, Seaside, along with many other areas along the east coast,
took a tremendous blow from Hurricane Sandy. The cost in damages skyrocketed into millions. Possessions, residences, and businesses
were lost forever due to the natural disaster. Rebuilding has still been taking place, and is nowhere near
complete. When I think about this,
the first thought that comes to mind is the fact that in disasters like these,
everyone in the affected area can only do one thing: leave. They must evacuate and hope for the
best. Instances like these really
put into perspective the power that the natural environment in which we live
has over us. Humans can now
communicate with each other across the globe in the blink of an eye, gather a
seemingly endless amount of data and information from the Internet, and heat up
leftover pizza in a single minute…
however, our surroundings in which we have no control over can render us
helpless in the blink of an eye.
As for the
Seaside fire: it was unnaturally started in a building. Then it spread out onto the
boardwalk. One of the main reasons
it traveled so quickly and did so much damage was due to the natural
environment in which it took place.
I am referring to of course ladies and gentlemen, the wind. Gusts of about 30 miles per hour fanned
the fire, breathing life into it. Hot
ambers were carried multiple blocks away, which continued to aid in the growth
of the blaze. In a news report it
stated that firemen on the scene struggled to supply enough water to contain the
fire. The first thought that
cropped up in my mind when I heard this was, “Seaside is next to the ocean.” Now, assessing the situation with more
knowledge of the event, it is evident that putting out fires and acquiring
water is not as simple as my first thought my have suggested. However, I am once again drawn back to
my initial notion that even though we as a race live on this planet with a
feeling of control and entitlement, something as seemingly blissful as the wind
can aid in bringing us to our knees in disaster. I leave off with this thought: how powerful as a
technological race are we really?
What happened in Seaside within the past year is just horrendous. It hasn't been a year since Sandy hit and already this, the Jersey Shore just can't catch a break. Of course, the Jersey shore wasn't the only place that got hit hard with Sandy. Staten Island for instance, still, to this day, is trying to fight through last year's storm. Driving on the Verazzano Bridge at night, if you look to the North Side of the island, you would notice that it is dark. That is because houses that were there a year ago have either been taken away by the storm, or are standing, but power has not yet been returned to most of the neighborhood. People are very slow to move back because the thought of their home demolished brings them to tears. Though progress is slow on that side of the island, everybody must go on with their lives, even though after all of the tragedy that has happened.
ReplyDeletePeople aren't doing this, this is Mother Nature. As good citizens of this world, we would never ever wish some horrendous act of treachery on even on our worst enemies. So why do we commit that kind of horrendous crime on people overseas. We may not know their side of the story; they have family, friends, and neighbors, why would we wish something horrible on them. They are still people, citizens of this world. Their views on life or religion might be different, but that is how they live. Why is this country, this civilization, trying to kill their own people of this world? And why would such a thought even come up, maybe because one society thinks they are higher and better then the next, and try to demolish one another, that is how war starts. If you ask me, I don’t understand why war goes on. It just doesn’t make sense. There are enough natural disasters in the world for people to cry about, why are we bringing more tears into the world that are caused by other people with guns?
After reading your blog post, the chronological order of my thoughts were: Fire in Seaside, Last year's sandy, many other places that were hit hard with Sandy, Mother Nature doing such deeds, natural disasters occur in the world, war is not a natural disaster, people cause grief to other people, unethical killing in wars. Your thoughts of Seaside and Sandy stirred my thoughts as well, and then they went in a different direction. I can’t control my thoughts, just like people can’t control Mother Nature, but then, people can one-hundred percent control their actions in war and things going on overseas today. Let's get to trying to control our actions.