I'm fliping heated about the Texas flooding deaths in Kerr County.
121 dead, many still missing. And for why.
Absolute failure. Ill prepared with no sirens and such for one of the most flash flooding potential areas in the country?
Comfort, TX had pretty much the same flooding (~32ft instead of ~35ft or something), but 0 deaths.
But they had sirens going since 10pm the night before. Instead of sleeping, they evacuated.
I looked up the costs of the sirens that Comfort installed? $40k each, or $70k for the entire town. The cost of a nice sedan or 1 fliping cop car.
Mismanagement, missed opportunities, and fliping politics are why so many are dead.
I kinda thought it was just "natural disaster" scenario, but the more I read into it, the more I realized how awful this was.
Since at least 2016, the Sheriff and other officials called for funds for a whole rework: sirens + gauges + remote activation systems, etc. Problem is, they asked for $1M in budget for it. The town and commissioners were not in agreement, some saying it was necessary, others saying it's "extravagant" and lavish.
Either way, they did apply for the $1M a few times:
- FEMA under Obama denied due to costs and justification.
- FEMA under Trump denied a slightly amended version due to funds going to Hurricane Harvey.
- They applied again to Texas gov't under Trump first term, State denied.
By now (2020) the Sheriff and others have retired and the county is more MAGA.
- 2022 - Biden grants the county $10.2M to use as they see fit for "community and safety improvement." The commissioners and residents refused to use it for sirens (instead using it for like internet, walking trails, and raises). Why? Because they didn't like Biden. This is bonkers to me.
Here's some quotes from the meetings on how to spend the money:
> “I’m here to ask this court today to send this money back to the Biden administration, which I consider to be the most criminal treasonous communist government ever to hold the White House.”
> “We don't want to be bought by the federal government, thank you very much.”
The solution was right there! And even if it wasn't, they could have done what Comfort did and bootstrapped it themselves.
And the governor in the response? Useless.
A reporter asked "Who's to blame for this?" And Greg Abbott said that "that's the question of losers" and went on some metaphor about football. It would have been so much easier to say, "First, our hearts are with the victims. As for the question, we're working out the details to see where our successes were and where our failures were. We can and will make Texas stronger by coming together." Idk, maybe empty words but still way better than calling everyone who doesn't suck it up a "loser." 121 people are dead. My coworker described as "it's like they're angry people are even asking and trying to hold them accountable" and I agree.
Trump admin? Also useless. They said it was bad "because it happened at night." Very cool that the richest country on earth can't handle an emergency because "it's nighttime."
Others blamed DEI, because we all know Texas is the bastion of DEI /s. Any DEI initiatives tied to the state are banned and have been banned for years.
A couple lessons to learn for sure.
1) Instead of asking for $1M and getting nothing, ask for $250k and just get some of it. Even $100k would have been plenty. Moral: "Don't let perfect be the enemy of good."
2) Sometimes you give people the resources and they won't use it for their benefit. Moral: "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink."
3) Just act. What can you work with of what you have. Comfort did it without a money influx. They also dedicated time to teaching what the sirens are for and working with the community. Moral: "Failing to plan is planning to fail."
Lol long post, but as always, I have lots of thoughts.
121 dead, many still missing. And for why.
Absolute failure. Ill prepared with no sirens and such for one of the most flash flooding potential areas in the country?
Comfort, TX had pretty much the same flooding (~32ft instead of ~35ft or something), but 0 deaths.
But they had sirens going since 10pm the night before. Instead of sleeping, they evacuated.
I looked up the costs of the sirens that Comfort installed? $40k each, or $70k for the entire town. The cost of a nice sedan or 1 fliping cop car.
Mismanagement, missed opportunities, and fliping politics are why so many are dead.
I kinda thought it was just "natural disaster" scenario, but the more I read into it, the more I realized how awful this was.
Since at least 2016, the Sheriff and other officials called for funds for a whole rework: sirens + gauges + remote activation systems, etc. Problem is, they asked for $1M in budget for it. The town and commissioners were not in agreement, some saying it was necessary, others saying it's "extravagant" and lavish.
Either way, they did apply for the $1M a few times:
- FEMA under Obama denied due to costs and justification.
- FEMA under Trump denied a slightly amended version due to funds going to Hurricane Harvey.
- They applied again to Texas gov't under Trump first term, State denied.
By now (2020) the Sheriff and others have retired and the county is more MAGA.
- 2022 - Biden grants the county $10.2M to use as they see fit for "community and safety improvement." The commissioners and residents refused to use it for sirens (instead using it for like internet, walking trails, and raises). Why? Because they didn't like Biden. This is bonkers to me.
Here's some quotes from the meetings on how to spend the money:
> “I’m here to ask this court today to send this money back to the Biden administration, which I consider to be the most criminal treasonous communist government ever to hold the White House.”
> “We don't want to be bought by the federal government, thank you very much.”
The solution was right there! And even if it wasn't, they could have done what Comfort did and bootstrapped it themselves.
And the governor in the response? Useless.
A reporter asked "Who's to blame for this?" And Greg Abbott said that "that's the question of losers" and went on some metaphor about football. It would have been so much easier to say, "First, our hearts are with the victims. As for the question, we're working out the details to see where our successes were and where our failures were. We can and will make Texas stronger by coming together." Idk, maybe empty words but still way better than calling everyone who doesn't suck it up a "loser." 121 people are dead. My coworker described as "it's like they're angry people are even asking and trying to hold them accountable" and I agree.
Trump admin? Also useless. They said it was bad "because it happened at night." Very cool that the richest country on earth can't handle an emergency because "it's nighttime."
Others blamed DEI, because we all know Texas is the bastion of DEI /s. Any DEI initiatives tied to the state are banned and have been banned for years.
A couple lessons to learn for sure.
1) Instead of asking for $1M and getting nothing, ask for $250k and just get some of it. Even $100k would have been plenty. Moral: "Don't let perfect be the enemy of good."
2) Sometimes you give people the resources and they won't use it for their benefit. Moral: "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink."
3) Just act. What can you work with of what you have. Comfort did it without a money influx. They also dedicated time to teaching what the sirens are for and working with the community. Moral: "Failing to plan is planning to fail."
Lol long post, but as always, I have lots of thoughts.
Please Login To Post
(These people are absolutely despicable.)