Floods Part 1

As I sit here, about fifteen miles east of the Delaware River in central New Jersey, the Delaware River is cresting. The third time in less than two years. Around here, the flood that every other flood is compared to is the 1955 flood. It doesn't look like the flooding will be as bad as 1955. And perhaps it won't be as bad as the floods of April 2005. And New Jersey is not alone. Other areas have been hit hard by flooding from the rains of the last few days - Maryland, New York, Pennsylvannia to name a few. Earler this year there was Massachusetts. And then there was New Hampshire last fall.

As I was reflecting on the floods and following news reports and flood reports, I found myself thinking about the latest round of floods and wondering about the reprecussions of these floods.

No, I don't mean the financial and emotional reprecussions of the areas impacted and the people who are impacted. I do want to say that I by no means diminish what they are going through. I can't even imagine it. Here in the NYC and Philadelphia media market, the floods are the leading story, as they probably are elsewhere. There are the arguments that we are all so familiar with about global warming leading to more frequent storms.

As a planner, and no I am not a "town planner", I find myself wondering if there is a better way to plan and prepare for floods and other natural disasters. Yes, we can have workable evacuation plans, shelters, good communications, financial help for cleaning up, etc. etc. But all the best plans and preparations won't make the floods go somewhere else. And people will die.

But I found myself thinking about the larger picture. And I come back to global warming. I don't have any answers. Just these incomplete thoughts that I am sharing here.

Of course, the people living along the Delaware probably don't give squat about global warming right now. And what I write isn't going to help them. But it helps me to express these thoughts here.