Comments/Questions:

-During the deadly heat wave in Chicago, it was reported that Latinos had a sense of communal support and living. If someone needed assistance it was given. As a result, the causalities among the Latino community were far less severe than with the black and white population. After Hurricane Sandy was the same the case for the Chinese community living in Chinatown? If an elderly Chinese person wasn’t able to go up and down the stairs to get necessities, did someone offer assistance? Did the community based organizations for Asian Americans aid in any major way? If so, how did the community aid compare to that which was given by national organizations? Did the two amplify the efforts of the other or did one have to compensate for the lack of the other? What were they major organizations? Did people in the community know about these agencies before the lethal Hurricane Sandy hit?

-Although the government shouldn’t be entirely to blame for the aftermath of natural disasters such as heat waves, I find it ironic how the results change when the government is proactive instead of pointing a finger. For example, when another heat wave hit, by implementing an emergency plan, there were only two heat related deaths. The subtle simply acts of opening more cooling centers, extending beach hours and assigning police to check on seniors made a world of a difference.

-Following Hurricane Irene, the hurricane from the year before although not nearly as devastating as Hurricane Sandy, did the government take any steps to better prepare the city? If not, why not, didn’t it become obvious that New York is now susceptible to Hurricanes and that we need to be prepared? Has any new changes been made now after quite some time has passed since Hurricane Sandy? If not, has the city’s officials been blind to their surroundings?