美国国家公共电台 NPR Nearly 8 Months After Hurricane Michael, Florida Panhandle Feels Left Behind

 

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

The country is finally getting a break from severe weather today. Hundreds of tornadoes¹ touched down earlier this week in states from Texas to New Jersey². And record flooding is expected to continue along the Arkansas River throughout the weekend. But there are many places still recovering from disasters like hurricanes that happened months ago.

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

Natural disasters don't distinguish between places that have money to rebuild and those that don't. A big city like Miami or Houston has tools to bounce back from a hurricane. You just don't find those resources in a place like Parker, Fla. Rich Musgrave is the mayor of this small town in the Florida Panhandle, population 4,500.

RICH MUSGRAVE: A hundred percent of our structures were damaged in one way or another.

SHAPIRO: Back in October, the eye wall of Hurricane Michael passed right over Parker. It was a Category 5 storm, one of the strongest recorded storms ever to hit the continental³ U.S.

MUSGRAVE: In the days and weeks directly following the storm, it was difficult to drive around because you lost all your landmarks⁴. You'd pass by a street you used to turn on all the time and you find yourself, oh, I missed it. I have to turn and come back.

SHAPIRO: Now a new hurricane season starts tomorrow. So I visited the Panhandle to see how people are recovering. And one of the things that stood out was how much more difficult it is for small towns like Parker to rebuild.

MUSGRAVE: The level of change is just beyond comprehension.

SHAPIRO: Parker is only 2 square miles, right on the water near Panama City. It used to be known for its sprawling⁵ old shade trees. The storm knocked down around 80% of them. The way the system works is that FEMA pays for most of the cleanup costs after a natural disaster. Generally, local governments have to front the money and get reimbursed⁶. Long-term federal money for housing and other reconstruction⁷ projects is supposed to come from Congress, but partisan⁸ fighting has delayed the disaster relief bill. Meanwhile, the cleanup in Parker cost more than the annual budget. And Mayor Rich Musgrave says FEMA still hasn't reimbursed the town. In the meantime, he hasn't paid the cleanup crews.

MUSGRAVE: They have been very gracious and kind and not asking for or demanding payment of certain invoices⁹. So I'm just kind of holding back.

SHAPIRO: Yeah.

MUSGRAVE: But at some point, the chicken's going to come home to roost.

SHAPIRO: So you're saying that because the federal government has not reimbursed your town, your town has not been able to pay the companies that did the hauling. And they've just been gracious enough not to knock down your door and say, we deserve to be paid.

MUSGRAVE: Ari, you're exactly right. So the question I have is, at some point, we're going to have to lay out enough cash, and do we have enough ready cash left to pay the bills? I mean, it's a valid¹⁰ question. And I don't know the answer to that yet.

SHAPIRO: Parker has to fill out the same paperwork as a much bigger city, but they don't have as much staff to do it all - filling out project worksheets and writing grant applications. Parker has a few dozen city workers total. That includes librarians and firefighters. Local businesses in Parker are fighting to get back to normal too.

JULIA AHMED: I think those should be ready.

SHAPIRO: When most buildings are damaged and there isn't money to repair them, it's tough for business owners to find a place they can reopen. No local business means the city doesn't get as much income from utilities and taxes, which makes it even harder for a place like Parker to get back on its feet.

AHMED: Well, right now, I have no competition as far as restaurants. There's no restaurants in town. I mean, there's nothing.

SHAPIRO: Julia Ahmed reopened her Pizzeria Napoli, in a new location just last month.

AHMED: We make our dough¹¹ fresh every day. We make our own sauce. We use fresh ingredients.

SHAPIRO: The storm passed by in October.

AHMED: Yes.

SHAPIRO: The business reopened in April.

AHMED: Correct.

SHAPIRO: Did you ever imagine it would take that long?

AHMED: No. In fact, I kept posting on Facebook we'll be open at the end of January. We'll be at the end of February. And it just kept going on and on.

SHAPIRO: Here on the coast, there's tourism and an Air Force base that towns can lean on to help propel the economic recovery. Rural communities have even bigger challenges. So I drove 50 miles north from the coast.

Marianna is a small town of about 6,000 people about an hour's drive inland. A lot of people here work in farming, timber. When you walk down the main street, you can see buildings that are demolished¹² and others that have had the facades¹³ partially¹⁴ ripped off.

CINDY SMITH: To see that building in the street, this one down - there's one in the next block that literally¹⁵ fell into the street. That shook everybody up because, you know, these buildings are over a hundred years old. To see that kind of power humbles¹⁶ you, humbles you greatly.

SHAPIRO: Cindy Smith owns a few businesses on Marianna's Main Street, including Smith and Smith jewelers, where I met her.

SMITH: This county is not big money. It's not a rich county, you know. So you're fighting left and right for the money to get the cleanup.

SHAPIRO: Marianna's annual budget is 5 or $6 million a year. But one of the biggest industries is timber, and many of the trees have been knocked down. One of the biggest employers is a federal prison that's been closed since October.

JIM DEAN: When they moved all those inmates¹⁷ out, we provide all their services - water, sewer¹⁸ and natural gas. Well, you're talking about a million dollars in revenue that just kind of went out the door.

SHAPIRO: Marianna City Manager Jim Dean has had to make some tough financial decisions. If everything in town is damaged and tax revenue isn't coming in like it used to, what do you fix first?

DEAN: You know, you're going to have to be very selective at what you do or you're going to put yourself so far in debt that you're going to be paying off debt from this storm before you even begin to provide a baseball field for your kids to play baseball on, before you buy a new police car, before you buy a fire truck. I mean...

SHAPIRO: Just because you were picking up trees.

DEAN: Just because you're picking up trees.

SHAPIRO: So you feel like the system was not designed for a place like Marianna.

DEAN: It's just a bigger challenge for us.

SHAPIRO: Yeah.

DEAN: And the programs become more complex. And it just - it becomes a daunting¹⁹ task to try and meet some of the requirements.

SHAPIRO: Next week, Congress is expected to finally pass a disaster relief bill, and President Trump²⁰ says he'll sign it. But Jim Dean says the fact that it's taken more than 230 days only adds to his problems.

DEAN: That money could potentially have already been on the street. There could be projects underway. There could be projects that are in the design phase or being bid out right now. But we don't have applications because the money is just getting started. We don't have any design work done. And so we're sure not at a point where we can bid the project.

SHAPIRO: Yeah.

DEAN: So if we would have done this 200 days ago, we'd probably be in a lot better position but we're not.

SHAPIRO: That's Jim Dean, the city manager of Marianna, Fla.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

SHAPIRO: In another part of the program, we'll visit Tyndall Air Force Base just outside of Panama City. In a storm that caused $25 billion of damage almost, 5 billion was on this base alone.

1 tornadoes   

n.龙卷风，旋风( tornado的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Tornadoes, severe earthquakes, and plagues create wide spread havoc. 龙卷风、大地震和瘟疫成普遍的毁坏。 来自互联网
• Meteorologists are at odds over the working of tornadoes. 气象学者对龙卷风的运动方式看法不一。 来自互联网

2 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

3 continental   

adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的

参考例句：

• A continental climate is different from an insular one.大陆性气候不同于岛屿气候。
• The most ancient parts of the continental crust are 4000 million years old.大陆地壳最古老的部分有40亿年历史。

4 landmarks   

n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 )；目标；（标志重要阶段的）里程碑 ~ (in sth)；有历史意义的建筑物（或遗址）

参考例句：

• The book stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of modern science. 这部著作是现代科学发展史上著名的里程碑之一。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The baby was one of the big landmarks in our relationship. 孩子的出世是我们俩关系中的一个重要转折点。 来自辞典例句

5 sprawling   

adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着）

参考例句：

• He was sprawling in an armchair in front of the TV. 他伸开手脚坐在电视机前的一张扶手椅上。
• a modern sprawling town 一座杂乱无序拓展的现代城镇

6 reimbursed   

v.偿还，付还( reimburse的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Any out-of-pocket expenses incurred on the firm's business will be reimbursed. 由公司业务产生的开销都可以报销。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Employees are reimbursed for any legal fees incurred when they relocate. 员工调往异地工作时，他们可以报销由此产生的所有法律服务费用。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

8 partisan   

adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒

参考例句：

• In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中，他们忘掉一切党派之争。
• The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。

9 invoices   

发票( invoice的名词复数 )； （发货或服务）费用清单； 清单上货物的装运； 货物的托运

参考例句：

• Take the example of a purchasing clerk keying invoices into a system. 继续说录入员输入发票的例子，这个录入员是一个全职的数据输入人员。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Consular invoices are declarations made at the consulate of the importing country. 领事发票是进口国领事馆签发的一种申报书。

10 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

11 dough   

n.生面团；钱，现款

参考例句：

• She formed the dough into squares.她把生面团捏成四方块。
• The baker is kneading dough.那位面包师在揉面。

12 demolished   

v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光

参考例句：

• The factory is due to be demolished next year. 这个工厂定于明年拆除。
• They have been fighting a rearguard action for two years to stop their house being demolished. 两年来，为了不让拆除他们的房子，他们一直在进行最后的努力。

13 facades   

n.（房屋的）正面( facade的名词复数 )；假象，外观

参考例句：

• Terraces of asphalt are placed by the building's south and west facades. 沥青露台位于建筑的南面和西面。 来自互联网
• Preserving historic buildings or keeping only their facades (or fronts) grew common. 保存历史建筑或是保持它们普通的正面增长。 来自互联网

14 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

15 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

16 humbles   

v.使谦恭( humble的第三人称单数 )；轻松打败（尤指强大的对手）；低声下气

参考例句：

• The LORD sends poverty and wealth; he humbles and he exalts. 他使人贫穷、使人富足．人卑微、使人高贵。 来自互联网
• Do you see how Ahab humbles himself before Me? 29亚哈在我面前这样自卑，你看见了么？ 来自互联网

17 inmates   

n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• One of the inmates has escaped. 被收容的人中有一个逃跑了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The inmates were moved to an undisclosed location. 监狱里的囚犯被转移到一个秘密处所。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 sewer   

n.排水沟，下水道

参考例句：

• They are tearing up the street to repair a sewer. 他们正挖开马路修下水道。
• The boy kicked a stone into the sewer. 那个男孩把一石子踢进了下水道。

19 daunting   

adj.使人畏缩的

参考例句：

• They were faced with the daunting task of restoring the house.他们面临着修复房子的艰巨任务。
• Starting a new job can be a daunting prospect.开始一项新工作有时会让人望而却步。

20 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。