Holy Crap! Take a look at this series of four photos http://tinyurl.com/AmazingReporter and be sure to read the caption. This is amazing. The reporter has "true grit". He obviously has passion for his job. Some may call him a fool, but are you a fool if you have complete dedication to your calling? Methinks not. Wow...
I would like to reassess my judgement here, based on the comments in my Facebook from an A-class reporter working for the Miami Herald who has been my good friend for a good many years... He said that a true class-act reporter would never actively put him/herself in such a dangerous situation, and would NEVER NEVER lose her/his camera.
Since a reporter feels that way, and you have to trust the specialist to provide a realistic assessment of a situation (just like you should trust nuclear specialists to give realistic assessments about a nuclear disaster), I admit that my opinion was not based on a realistic understanding of the situation, and I reassess!
So, thanks, JI. I appreciate you!
I love you!
Cam
he'd still have his camera if he'd have climbed the power pole
ReplyDeleteMy guess is the water took his hand, and pulled it out of his hand when he was trying to get away. --- He said it took 20 seconds for the water to rise from his knees to above his head ----- the time it took to write that one sentence. He didn't even have a chance to GET to the pole.
ReplyDeleteI just read in my Disaster book that they say DO NOT CROSS MOVING WATER as even SIX INCHES will sweep you off your feet. Imagine what 45 FEET will do as it comes in like a jumbo jet.
Yea we have a law for that here in AZ, as we are notorious for flash floods. It's called the "stupid motorist" law. If you somehow think you can get across a wash that might only have 3 inches of water and it sweeps you (as often the case) and you end up on the 6 o'clock news getting rescued as the brown muddy water rushes around your stranded self on top of your car (happens a lot here) that YOU are fined and must pay not only for the rescue workers who have to risk their lives to save your sorry ass, but also a ticket that hopefully will remind you to think again.
ReplyDeleteI have been sitting at a light in somewhat of a wash when it started to flow and my car moved sideways with only a tiny bit of water starting. Thankfully the car in front of me that was blocking me moved forward so that I could as well or else my car and I would have ended up in a ditch. I had no choice in that, but when I do I don't cross because it can go from 6 inches to 5 feet real fast.
Now as for this reporter, AMAZING and thankfully he survived by luck mostly. I would have hopped on top of one of the cars they seemed to have floated and bobbed. The SUV with the roof rack would have been ideal until you could get to something higher. (of course in 20 sec you don't have much time to think).
Sis - I bet he DID think, "I gotta get my ass outta here!" but that probably took a few seconds to register, think, realize the danger and then start to move. It looks like he also lost time holding up that vending machine which seems like it was thrown his way. My guess is that he just wanted to get in to get a little bit of video/camera, but the whole situation took over in a time that his mind couldn't even fathom.
ReplyDeletei'll run the 4 wheel pickup through the local creek to check on the oil well at 2 1/2 feet but not at 3...and i would be damn sure to check the local weather in a flash flood valley(that's nothing to mess with!!~and i did monitor that driving my semi while in texas)
ReplyDeletemy point was that if this particular gentleman had been paying closer attention,he would have 1.heard the alerts that had already gone out. 2.seen the sea recede prior to the incoming wave and judged the magnitude of the withdraw in order to guess how much higher he should be...
gone to safer ground and Still kept his camera and made his shots ;)
.....i'm glad he's ok :|