The Day After Tomorrow

Are we seeing the day after tomorrow today? On January 12^th the world’s eyes were glued to the news, watching the devastation that had wreaked through Haiti after the earthquake. The earthquake was a catastrophic 7 on the Richter scale and over 200,000 peoples’ lives were taken away. While the world was still talking about Haiti, on February 27^th another huge earthquake hit Chile, reaching a colossal 8.8 on the Richter scale. This earthquake was on such a scale that scientists have said how the axis of the earth has shifted and the day has been shortened by 1.76 macroseconds (a macrosecond is a millionth of a second). Despite the magnitude of this earthquake, it has been relatively overlooked even though over 700 people have been announced dead and over 1.5 million people have been displaced.

It is not just the earthquake in Chile that has had little coverage. On March 2^nd 2010, a cyclonic storm combined with a spring tide and 100 mile per hour winds bought waves 25 foot high crashing down on homes along the Atlantic coast of France. Over 50 people died, many who drowned whilst sleeping. The floods were the worst France has seen since 1993. The night before these tidal waves hit France’s coast, a landslide hit eastern Uganda during the night on March 1^st devastating a village. 88 people were killed, 270 are still missing and 1500 people have lost their homes. This landslide is not the only slide to happen this year to take innocent people’s lives. Earlier in January one killed ten tourists and their guide while hiking to Machu Picchu. 1500 people remained stranded until they could be rescued.

We are only into the 3^rd month of the year yet we keep seeing disaster after disaster. Can our minds as human beings cope with horrific news of fellow human suffering, or do we switch off after a while? Maybe it is true to say that the day after tomorrow is closer than it has ever been before. Natural disasters are becoming more frequent and more deadly as each year goes by. In 2005, 27 hurricanes occurred, the most famous being Katrina occurring just a few weeks after the Tsunami hit Asia. Each year there is a pre-approved list of names for hurricanes and tropical storms. However in 2005 the list of 21 names was exhausted that they used the letters of the Greek alphabet to name six of them.

We can no longer ignore these disasters and shut them out of our minds because we feel too distraught after a one that has already occured. They are a consequence of human action and so it is us that needs to do something to prevent the constant occurrence happening over and over again in the future. So what can you do? Turn off your lights, walk and cycle don’t drive, spread the message to five friends, be more aware about the impact we are having, and do not turn a blind eye to the innocent lives that are being lost these disasters that have been caused by humankind. Do not let the day after tomorrow creep any closer than it already is.