NZ cyclone update and more pics-skip if not your thing

[Bettybuckets]

so many sad stories of orchards farms and vineyards being under newly formed lakes…houses filling up with mud. Still many without power and small towns with no passable roads in to them. Our new young PM who took over from Jacinda is doing a good job.. Navy steaming towards Napier to help and lots of rescue helicopters.. this fellow didn’t make it sadly…many animals no doubt swept away. 8 people known to have died and a few thousand missing.. but with no internet and power we are hopeful the the whole country is frantic to find their relatives.

[Bettybuckets]

the poor horse fell through the roof before a rescue could be organized. That family will be so sad.

This farm devastated by the floods from cyclone Gabrielle

[13plus in reply to Bettybuckets]

Oh no How incredibly tragic

[SeattleMom]

My God! What a tragedy! Why aren’t we hearing about this in US? 😢😢🙏🏻🙏🏻

[AvidBooklover in reply to SeattleMom]

I am thinking the same thing!!!

[kearnan in reply to SeattleMom]

Possibly because the sheer magnitude of the Turkey/Syria region where an estimate of 60,000 people have died and thousands of people (who did not have much to begin with it have lost everything. An earthquake of that size is devastating. Although I understand Cyclone Gabrielle did counting the number of souls now departed. So I believe focused the news on that because of half of it being destroyed and the sad amount of human life lost, babies, children, etc.

Not that I am stating under the lady's post in her country less heartbreaking for them was much as the reporting of continued on the news or of a new story due to the sheer number of people that are assumed dead in Turkey/Syria.

I did cry last night a few days ago the rescuers who them flew from various countries to help. It indeed was a miracle, they found a young girl about 7 under the heavy weight of Heavy concrete and holding on to his 2 years brother hand. He was also rescued. I cried bc it was so uplifting and gave the searchers a renewed source of energy to not just think about covering for (what they assumed) would now get an extra boost of energy in the hopes of finding a person when they expected now to just be recovering bodies.

But then I read yesterday, I think, that are turkey/syria had another earthquake a few days ago and again large by the equipment. I thought OMG, Shame on me. I was feeling pretty down depressing that day and when I seen the people crying, people that have lost 20 members of one family. It stopped me in my tracks and thought OMG...my medical is nothing compared to be what these innocent adults, children, mothers have went through after seeing the photos. So I apologized to God for feeling so sorry for myself whole thousands losing everything, including their families. Sometimes I need a good kick in the butt to understand that in a way I was blessed with getting it at age 57.

I am now 63. I see and read stories all the time about young children with cancer and chemo and think at least I got to grow up, traveled extensively, enjoyed a happy childhood (all outdoors)

So it brought me right back to remember that so many people are suffering more than me.

[13plus]

I sought out video of the floods online (because US media can only fixate on a couple of things at a time and there didn’t seem to be much talk about it!). Absolutely heartbreaking. All those orchards and vines will take years to be regrown. Not to mention so much property loss, disrupted land from the landslides, infrastructure etc. And then all those missing people! Hoping that most of them are safe but I’m sure the death toll will end up being higher . NZ is going to need a lot of help from other countries I suspect, to recover from this

[Bettybuckets in reply to 13plus]

I am on a small island of 8k people and I also haven’t been getting much news.. but talking to friends they all have family in areas thT are cut off and are trying to get there to help.

[Pachira]

Terrible news! We were just saying the same thing that we haven’t heard about it here. The US is very poor at giving international news. I wonder if an appeal to Musk for his Star link would be any good. Haven’t heard about the successor to Jacinda but not an easy transition with all that’s going on. My heart breaks for the people and the animals. Stay safe! Chris

[Bettybuckets in reply to Pachira]

hi Chris- the new PM is a youngish man who took over a few weeks ago. Trial by fire but seems to be handling to. all well. For a small country this is a huge diaster. People have houses full of mud… list all crops… terrible!

[Sharon0122 in reply to Pachira]

I lived in London for six years. And after living there for a while I always felt the US need only tells us what they thjvk we should know. I read Sky News fits in the morning on my phone, but then the first I’ve heard of it from Betty when she started posting on it. Not even sky news is covering it. Thanks Betty and be safe and glad to know you are

[Pachira in reply to Sharon0122]

If I want to know what’s happening, I go to the Daily Mail on my phone. The AU section had nothing about NZ but described the weather pattern hitting their coast. We’ve watched Sky on the tv but after your comment I downloaded Sky on my phone. I did find an article on NZ under the world events, and also lots of other articles that were interesting. I have friends in Scotland and London that send me videos etc but they’ve mostly been about Sturgeon and JK. Thank you for the tip it’s much appreciated. Terrible disasters around the world! Chris

[DDIL1]

This is awful. My heart also breaks for everyone and the animals. I pray they find many survivors.

[Bettybuckets in reply to DDIL1]

I pray too… hopefully that they are just completely cut off in many small villages snd not swept away.

[kearnan]

This is awful. Especially when someone has family and is desperate to know their outcome. Lately, it seems non-stop.

I was crying the other day watching the news of the earthquake in Turkey and Syria. Over 46,000 estimated to be dead. It is hard to wrap one's mind around that fact.

Entire blocks destroyed. They did find a young girl alive after 10 days which is miraculous. The rescue supporters were clapping. Hopefully, it gave them some hope and renewed energy that they may find others alive. I feel for all these countries that suffer from tragedies like this.

[Bettybuckets in reply to kearnan]

beibg on a tiny island of 8k people I hadn’t heard that Syrian and Turkey till had soared to double what it was when I left the USA a few weeks ago. I pray that it doesn’t keep climbing!

[kearnan in reply to Bettybuckets]

There were many alive but hidden from all the buildings that collapsed, and many died bc they could not get to them. Turkey/Syria is not as wealthy as the US and other countries and thus they did not have the equipment that is needed. (I revised my post bc as of today there are 60,000 souls that have left this world. Now it is more of a recovery mission. Lately, it seems earthquakes and cyclones have been hitting the world so many times and it always seems to be the poorest of the poor nation suffer the most.

But we live in a empathic country and the US and many other first world countries have sent people over to help with equipment. Even during the worst times, we see the best in some other people.

[mariootsi in reply to kearnan]

I know it's heartbreaking.

[Liessie2014]

O MG , it is so sad , I really feel for the devastating night mare that people are going through, It is heartbreaking , I am in the Uk , I have family in QLD Australia, I can’t imagine how I would feel if that was my family going through that, it’s so sad

[Bettybuckets]

it really has been so hard for the whole country.

[Mumberly]

the devastation is unimaginable. It’s such a long road ahead for everyone, on top of the panic everyone must feel right now.

We’re all glad that you’re in a safe place.

Kim

[Totheriver]

So very sad😢

[mariootsi]

Omg what a horrible situation . Hope it turns around somehow.

[RLN-overcomer]

🙏🙏🙏

[kearnan]

So sorry. I think the main reason we did not see in on the US news bc Turkey/Syria had one of the largest earthquakes and they now estimate 46,000 people are dead and whole towns and homes just a wasteland now. Plus, just the other day I see they had another earthquake but the damage was done.

I feel for anybody has to go through this. But I think the Turkey/Syria, due to the sheer number of deaths so they are tracking that. Thank God we are a country, that is poor or do not have the specific training that most other countries have, nor the machinery cleaning up to do. Besides USA, there are several other countries sending out rescue also.

It is times like these that make me even prouder to be an American. I get disappointed when you see remarks like "They need to take of their own rather than be helping other countries." Nope, this is what the USA is.

As our pledge to allegiance, the section that states: "One nation under GOD, ...." basically says it all.

I hope you and your family are well.