We are living in very
precarious times where anything can happen, the likes of which I have never
seen. No longer can I take it for granted that some things are just “sayings” or “Old wives tales” and have no bearing on actual events or are impossible
to occur. Remember when you used to say things like, “May God/lightning strike me down if I am
lying” or “I was so embraced I wish
the ground would open up and swallow me”?
Can’t really say that stuff anymore without crossing your fingers,
right? Just last week it was reported that a large sinkhole opened up under a
house in Florida and swallowed up a guy who was asleep in his bed. According to
news sources, “Rescue workers had given
up the search for Jeff Bush, a 37-year-old landscaper, on Saturday. He was
presumed dead after disappearing into the hole, which opened up under his
bedroom Thursday night. Sinkholes are common in Florida due to the state's
geology and they are virtually impossible to predict.” My thoughts and
prayers go out to Jeff Bush’s family.
I’m not an avid
follower of the news, but this is the first time I have ever heard of such an
incident. I don’t dispute that sinkholes are common, but I wonder about how
many people have been pulled in as a result. It seems to me that the
possibility of people being hit by lighting is much more common than of those
being swallowed up by sinkholes. I mean ever since I've moved to Georgia, I have
heard a few stories about people being hit by lightning, but nothing about
sinkholes. You don’t hear much about people being hit by lighting on my island mostly
because we are taught very early in life that you don’t stand under a tree when
it is raining. Nor have we ever had any incidents of sinkholes.
The worst natural
disaster I can remember was Hurricane Hugo back in September 1989 on St. Croix.
I remember it like it was just yesterday. I spent the night holding a sheet
over a broken window as my then 7-year old daughter slept in her bed. The hurricane
itself would claim 6 lives, but there were reports of other deaths that occurred
as a result of the aftermath of the storm as it took months for things to
return to any type of normalcy, i.e., restoration of electricity, running
water, etc.
The worst natural
disaster I can remember was Hurricane Hugo back in September 1989 on St. Croix.
I remember it like it was just yesterday. I spent the night holding a sheet
over a broken window as my then 7-year old daughter slept in her bed. The hurricane
itself would claim 6 lives, but there were reports of other deaths that occurred
as a result of the aftermath of the storm as it took months for things to
return to any type of normalcy, i.e., restoration of electricity, running
water, etc.
So after hearing about
this sinkhole incident in Florida I got a little curious and decided to look
into what natural disasters have occurred so far this year that could account for sinkholes. Imagine my surprise
to learn that there has been quite a bit that has happened across the globe so
far. From earthquakes in January which was felt by people in Mindanao, Philippines, Madagascar, Northern
Italy, Western Iran, San Juan Islands Region, Washington, Eastern Texas, and Offshore
Oregon; and on March 5th & 6th felt by people in Offshore Guerrero, Mexico, Oklahoma, Spain and
Romania; 
to heavy rains which contributes to ongoing river flooding, i.e., Afghanistan (Amu Darya), Australia
(Darling), Bolivia (Madre de Dios), Brazil (Tocantins), Chad (N Djamena), China
(Mekong and Huang He), Democratic Republic of the Congo (Ubangi), Dominican
Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq (Shatt al Arab and Tigris), Kenya
(Tana), Philippines, Sudan (Blue Nile, White Nile), Syria (Euphrates), Tanzania.
Continued heavy rains are also responsible for the increase in land/mudslides
which has claimed hundreds of lives. This list is only a limited representation
of the events that has transpired since the onset of this year.
So it turns out sinkholes are a lot more common than I thought and I'm convinced more now than before that there is a direct correlation between them and the weather. I don’t know for sure
what is responsible for the change in the weather or the increase in natural disasters,
but I suspect it has a lot to do with changes in the earth’s environment, which
occur every time we send a shuttle into space. Whatever the reasons for the
changes, the effects are far reaching and warrants closer investigation. I’m
just saying – I got issues. What about you?)i(© Copyrights All Right Reserved
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