Say a Prayer for the People of Jamaica

[star2city]

Hurricane Dean needs to wobble from its path toward a direct hit on Jamaica, otherwise the human toll will be horrible.

Hurricane Blog

[GeauxSioux]

As a Gulf Coast resident, we watch each tropical wave with interest and understand the impact these storms can have as they materialize into tropical storms and hurricanes. We prayed for the people of Jamaica tonight before the kids went to sleep.

[The Sicatoka]

A blizzard or that thing.

North Dakota ain't so bad.

[Goon]

Actuall you might want to pray that it fizzles out and doesn't hit anything or the price of gas is going to go through the roof again.

[jimdahl]

I've been watching this with fascination, as Jamaica is one of our favorite vacation spots (we go every other year, or so, and were actually considering going this weekend as recently as a week or two ago).

Having been there shortly after the devastation of a glancing blow from Ivan, I can say with some certainty that Jamaica is not prepared for a direct hit. They simply don't have the infrastructure and everything is built to minimum necessary standards.

I'm somewhat disappointed in the news coverage so far. No one seems to have cameras on the ground in Jamaica.

[nodakvindy]

I'm somewhat disappointed in the news coverage so far. No one seems to have cameras on the ground in Jamaica.

I fear that may be telling you something. I don't think people really understand how devastating these things are. I sure wouldn't want to be on an island with a CAT 5 coming my way. The CNNing of news has created this expectation that reporters should throw all caution to the wind and put their lives on the line to cover stories. As someone who works with the media and more specifically works disasters, that is crazy. All too often, they get in the way of response efforts and sometimes require saving themselves. It's another case of trying to make the story rather than reporting it.

That said, this storm also appears likely to hit the beleaguered Yucatan Peninsula. And the remnants of Tropical Storm Erin are still pounding Oklahoma. As we are moving into the peak of Tropical Storm season, it appears this could be a bad one.