Photo: Houston, Texas
Interstate highway 45 is submerged from the effects of Hurricane Harvey seen during widespread flooding in Houston, Texas, Aug. 27, 2017. (Photo: Richard Carson/Reuters)
Photo: Houston, Texas
Texas Army National Guard members Sergio Esquivel, left, and Ernest Barmore carry 81-year-old Ramona Bennett after she and other residents were rescued from their Pine Forest Village neighborhood due to high water from Hurricane Harvey August 29, 2017 in Houston, Texas. Harvey, which made landfall north of Corpus Christi late Friday evening, is expected to dump upwards to 40 inches of rain in areas of Texas over the next couple of days. (Photo: Erich Schlegel/Getty Images)
Visiting assistant professor Ken Storey at The University of Tampa has supposedly retracted going online and saying that the residents of Houston and surrounding areas deserved #hurricaneharvey for voting for Trump in the election. Of course the ensuing outrage was overwhelming, with many calling his employers at the University of Tampa and demanding his firing. The tweets were deleted and his account was locked down due to the tremendous bipartisan push back against his vitriolic hate speech which thankfully ended up with him being relieved of his teaching duties, according to a statement released today by The University of Tampa.
Photo: Houston, Texas
Houston Police SWAT officer Daryl Hudeck carries Catherine Pham and her 13-month-old son Aiden after rescuing them from their home surrounded by floodwaters from Tropical Storm Harvey Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017, in Houston, Texas. (Photo: David J. Phillip/AP)
It all started on Sunday afternoon, when Storey tweeted:
And then, just to assure everyone he really did mean what he was saying, he again tweeted moments later, wishing a similar calamity upon the people of Florida who voted for Trump. That makes it rather difficult to take his “apology” sincerely.
The University of Tampa’s Director of Public Information Eric Cardenas issued a statement to Fox News, saying the university “stands in solidarity with the people impacted by Hurricane Harvey, and our thoughts and prayers are with all involved.”
“The comments made by Kenneth Storey were made via his private social media account. They were not made within his capacity as a faculty member, and they don’t represent the University’s views. The University of Tampa condemns these comments and the sentiment behind them. Storey has publicly apologized for his comments,” Cardenas said.
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the country. It’s home to massive refineries and complexes. The economic impact of this ferocious hurricane will be enormous. Not only that, it’s already claimed far too many victims.
Photo: Houston, Texas
A child makes his way through floodwaters from Tropical Storm Harvey while checking on neighbors at his apartment complex in Houston, Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017. (Photo: LM Otero/AP)
As of yesterday, August 28, 2017, the death toll had risen to 15 people, including a family of six. According to Fox News:
The four children and their great-grandparents died Sunday afternoon when Samuel Saldivar, the driver of the van, attempted to pick them up amid the flooding, his sister-in-law Virginia Saldivar told the Associated Press. At one point, a strong current swept the van away and into the Greens Bayou.
“Sam calls my husband and tells him, ‘they’re gone,'” Saldivar said. “That’s when my husband dropped the phone and started screaming.”
The driver – the children’s great-uncle – managed to escape. He told everyone to get out of the van using the back door, but the van quickly sank, KHOU reported.
The victims include Manuel Saldivar, 84, and his wife Belia, 81; Daisy Saldivar, 6; Xavier Saldivar, 8; Dominic Saldivar, 14; Devy Saldivar, 16.
Another of those killed was a Houston police officer, Sergeant Steve Perez, who drowned after becoming trapped in his patrol car after taking a wrong turn and driving down a flooded street. According to the Independent:
Mr Perez had worked for the department for more than 30 years, and was just two days shy of his 60th birthday when he died. Mr Acevedo said the officer’s wife and father-in-law had tried to stop him from going to work, but he persisted.
“I’ve got work to do,” he reportedly told them.
Officials said Mr Perez drove around for more than two hours trying to find a path to his work station. When he couldn’t find one, he called his command centre and asked to report to the closest station instead. But the officer never reported for duty.
Photo: Houston, Texas
Wilford Martinez, right, is rescued from his flooded car by Harris County Sheriff’s Department Richard Wagner along Interstate 610 in floodwaters from Tropical Storm Harvey on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017, in Houston, Texas. (Photo: David J. Phillip/AP)
Hurricane Harvey is also expected to leave about $40 billion dollars in lost revenue or property damages. The last hurricane that hit the coast of Texas, Hurricane Ike, was only a category 2 storm and it cost $30 billion in damages and the loss of 37 lives. The death toll for Hurricane Harvey is expected to be much higher after the waters eventually recede and the (now tropical storm) abates. At any rate, celebrating or enjoying this tragic loss of life and property is ridiculously insensitive, downright disgusting, and should be collectively condemned.
Perhaps what’s most alarming is that this person was responsible for teaching our youth.
