16 May
2011
Humanitarian Resource Institute
Phone: (203)
668-0282
Url: www.humanitarian.net
United
Nations Arts Initiative
Arts Integration Into Education
Url: www.unarts.org
Twitter: unarts
Apatow On U.S. Flood Relief Efforts to 45,000 Deaths a Month in the Congo
On February 28, 1993, the team began the Run Across America for Hunger,
Homelessness, Poverty and Community Service [1] in Washington, DC. The
first obstacle was the Storm of The Century [2] that moved through the Eastern
United States on March 13, 1993. This blizzard storm complex was massive,
affecting at least 26 U.S. states and much of eastern Canada. The Run
Across America teams schedule, 12-20 miles per day, per runner, youth and
community meetings with shelters, foodbanks and media scheduled every day,
no slack in a 133 day itinerary from Washington, DC to San Francisco, California.
A satellite image of the Storm of the Century on March
13, 1993.
As the team moved through the eastern and central United States, it was
faced with storm systems that contributed to the "Great Mississippi and
Missouri Rivers Flood of 1993."
"The flood was among the most costly and devastating to ever
occur in the United States, with $15 billion in damages. The hydrographic
basin affected cover around 745 miles (1200 km) in length and 435 miles
(700 km) in width, totaling about 320,000 square miles (840,000 km²).
Within this zone, the flooded area totaled around 30,000 square miles (80,000 km²)
and was the worst such U.S. disaster since the Great Mississippi Flood of
1927, as measured by duration, square miles inundated, persons displaced,
crop and property damage, and number of record river levels. In some categories,
the 1993 flood even surpassed the 1927 flood, at the time the largest flood
ever recorded on the Mississippi." -- [3]
Today, Country Music Association Artist H-II: Stephen Michael Apatow, Founder
of Humanitarian Resource Institute and the United Nations Arts Initiative,
who was the national coordinator and runner in the 1993 Run Across America
Project, is leading disaster relief contingency discussions associated with
the Great Mississippi and Missouri Rivers Flood of 2011. The
flood has already shattered river-stage level records set during during the
'27 and '37 floods in several cities from Cairo to Baton Rouge. In Memphis,
the unofficial crest Tuesday of 47.8 feet fell shy of the 1937 record of
48.7. [4]
Focused on household level needs analysis and relief initiatives for the
entire region of the disasters impact area, the focus is now on $15 Billion
($15,000 Million) cost of the 1993 floods, that represents a fraction of the
inflation adjusted projection in 2011. Stephen appreciates the recent
efforts by the music industry, specifically the "Music Builds: The CMT
Concert for Disaster Relief" where country music stars stepped up to the
plate to raise money for the cause. [5]
2010 marked the release of H-II Stephen Michael Apatow's first album
entitled "Country Goes Global." Reflecting upon "the cost
of putting your life on the line to help the needy, rich and poor," the
lead soundtrack is "The American Way." [6,7] All proceeds from this
project support the work of HRI and Arts Integration Into Education, through
the United Nations Arts Initiative.
On the international humanitarian relief front, the Foreign Policy magazine
spotlighted the"Democratic Republic of the Congo, the warzone that helps
make your iPhone." [8] Congo's riches, including enormous deposits
of gold, diamonds, copper, and cobalt, may not have initially instigated
that country's decades of war, but they definitely are keeping the battle
raging, 8 years after the war was officially declared over.
Abandoned by the international community, "5.4 million people died
due to fighting and humanitarian crisis in the Congo from 1998 to 2008, and
about 45,000 more are killed every month, according to the International
Rescue Committee. This is the highest death toll from a single conflict
since World War II." -- Blood and Gold. [8]
This humanitarian crisis has prompted contingency discussions regarding
UN "Special Protective Forces for Humanitarian Operations" [9] by
the HRI:UNArts Humanitarian Intervention Initiative (H-II). [10]
References:
1. 1993 National Campaign for Community Service: Url: www.runacrossamerica.org
2. 1993 Storm of the Century: Wickpedia. Url: www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993_Storm_of_the_Century
3. The Great Mississippi and Missouri Rivers Flood of 1993: Wickpedia.
Url: www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Flood_of_1993
4. Mississippi floods strain levee system; defy efforts to control
river: The Commercial Appeal, Memphis Tennessee, 15 May 2011. Url:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2011/may/15/mississippi-floods-strain-levee-system/
5. HOT DISH: Country Stars Still Helping Victims of Recent Tornadoes
and Floods: CMT, 16 May 2011. Url: www.cmt.com/news/hot-dish/1663859/hot-dish-country-stars-still-helping-victims-of-recent-tornadoes-and-floods.jhtml
6. Country Goes Global: AirPlay Direct for broadcast quality digital
access for television and radio. Url: www.airplaydirect.com/music/stephenmichaelapatow/
7. CDBaby: Digital album on iTunes. Url: www.cdbaby.com/cd/hiistephenmichaelapatow
8. Blood and Gold: Foreign Policy, 12 May 2011. Url: www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/05/12/blood_and_gold?page=0,0
9. Special Protective Forces for Humanitarian Operations: HRI: UNArts Humanitarian
Intervention Initiative (H-II), Url: http://www.unarts.org/H-II/ref/spf_deopressoliber.html
10: HRI: UNArts Humanitarian Intervention Initiative (H-II): Url: www.unarts.org/H-II
or www.H-II.org
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