Our thoughts are with Houston, but don't forget Eastern Iowa
September 11, 2008
The
path of Hurricane Ike looks like it's going to cause the worst possible situation for Houston, where
evacuations are already in effect and
gasoline prices have soared. The storm surge from a big hurricane landing near where they predict Ike's landfall now
would be much worse for flooding than if the storm hit Houston directly. But we worry that if Houston takes on serious damage from this storm, few people will remember the thousands of people in Eastern Iowa still trying to recover from June's catastrophic flooding. Many
water and
wastewater plants were hit hard by the flooding, and many
iconic businesses and homes were destroyed or damaged beyond repair. The wastewater treatment system in Cedar Rapids alone
sustained $100 million in damage. The recovery in Eastern Iowa is going to be expensive and will take considerable time. Contributions are still being accepted by
Corridor Recovery, the community group set up to coordinate the rebuilding effort.
last revised September 2008