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While Europe goes on vacation
While Europe goes on vacation in the sun Stingy'' Americans ship first of tons of supplies to devastated flood victims.
Please note: American plane, American companies American medicine, American airport, American workers and most of all American money.Why are Americans so stingy/stupid.
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Wasteful Tsunami Efforts part 1
Experts Fear Wasteful Tsunami Efforts part 1
Some public health experts watching the aftermath of the tsunami disaster fear the outpouring of emergency relief supplies and the rush to head off outbreaks of disease will prove misguided or wasteful in some respects.
Many useless donations of food and clothing may pile up, and public health authorities may devote too much time right now to vaccination drives, overestimate the danger of diseases like malaria, and underestimate more desperate needs, such as counseling for those suffering from mental anguish, they say.
''Not uncommonly, do-good countries will send in all kinds of supplies that have no value, like tons and tons of clothing, food that people can't eat because it's not their custom, even hospital-style equipment that they can't possibly use,'' said Dr. Philip Brachman, at Emory University, in Atlanta. He used to oversee mass disease fighting at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (news - web sites).
In one of the worst natural disasters in history, last weekend's earthquake and tsunami killed more than an estimated 110,000 people and forced up to 5 million from their homes.
The disaster has also made conditions rife for outbreaks of disease. Human sewage, rotting animals, trash and other contaminants washed into drinking wells and reservoirs. Toilets and places to clean up were ruined. Crops, cooking equipment and refrigeration were lost, making safe food scarcer. Survivors are weakened by cuts and broken bones and huddled together in shelters where germs can easily spread in the heat.
The World Health Organization (news - web sites) had detected no sign of an outbreak of disease so far, agency spokesman Oliver Rosenbauer said Thursday at the U.N. agency's Geneva offices. But it may yet come within days, most specialists agree, and WHO has asked for $40 million for initial relief.
The agency has predicted that deaths from disease could eventually reach those caused by the quake and the floods themselves. Some American health experts agree, but others are skeptical.
Deaths from disease have generally fallen short of that mark in past tidal waves, floods and earthquakes, said Brachman at Emory University.
While acknowledging many deaths from disease are possible, some public health experts said there are factors that could hold down the death toll:
_ Unlike hurricane flooding familiar to Americans, the tsunamis generally washed over a thin band of coastline and retreated quickly.
Saltwater does not breed the nastiest disease-spreading mosquitoes, such as the ones that carry malaria. Where clean water, food and shelter can be supplied quickly, the dangers of disease will diminish, some experts say.
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Part 2
Disease germs soon die in a human corpse, so bodies probably will not spread much disease, especially away from water.
Many survivors in poor regions already have some immunity to diseases likely to proliferate in a natural disaster, and some stricken areas already vaccinate heavily. As a result, some experts say vaccination drives this early could prove a waste of time and energy.
''You have to be very efficient. You have to think like a rifleman, not somebody who comes in with a shotgun,'' says Dr. William Schaffner, the head of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tenn.
The worst immediate threats probably stem from a range of diarrheal diseases like cholera and dysentery, especially where pure water fails to reach survivors quickly, the specialists say. Other big worries include respiratory diseases, like measles and pneumonia, within about a week of the disaster. In a month or so, outbreaks are likely from food- or water-carried ailments, like salmonella and hepatitis.
The experts say clean water ?— along with water-purifying tablets and equipment ?— are urgent priorities.
Several health specialists also appealed for more attention to mental health counseling, which tends to be overlooked in undeveloped areas.
Though many survivors in such places have known misery, storms and natural horrors before, this catastrophe struck with extraordinary suddenness and intensity and took many children. Depression will probably prevent some survivors from joining in the rebuilding, some specialists say.
''I can't even imagine how they would do that, if you're mourning the loss of your loved ones,'' said Michael Osterholm, a public health expert at the University of Minnesota. ''How do you begin recovery?''
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watch the U.N.jump on money
bandwagon.don't send supplies,send lots of money you cheapskates America.
The World Health Organization had detected no sign of an outbreak of disease so far, agency spokesman Oliver Rosenbauer said Thursday at the U.N. agency's Geneva offices. But it may yet come within days, most specialists agree, and WHO has asked for $40 million for initial relief.
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