It was a pretty incredible story this past week when a US Airways Airbus had to make an emergency landing in the frigid Hudson River. Amazing that some wild geese could hit engines and take down a plane! Can you imagine being in a plane that now has no engines and your pilot says "brace for a rough landing"..? I get sick just hearing about it. The fact that the captain and copliot landed that thing so easily, it seems, and every single person got out and was safe, is just a feat beyond belief, and up there with a story that just sends chills down your spine.
As one newscaster said, "you think you are flying to North Carolina, minutes later you have an emergency landing in the Hudson River, besides being very cold and wet and quite in shock, you are rescued by a boat, and probably that night you are at home with your family watching it on the news"--what a day!
Stories like that always make me believe in the power of the US--the true care people show for their fellow human beings--the pilots, the staff, the rescuers, the way we have services to respond so quickly and save people. This does not exist around the globe. I remember being astounded that it took like 20+ minutes for an ambulance to get to the crash in the tunnel in France where Princess Diana lay dying. Apparently she said to them "please don't let me die."
But she did. If they had been faster in getting to her, could she have been saved? I don't know, and there is so much story around the whole story, who knows the truth of it all. But I remember being floored how long it took emergency services to get there.
In the US we are pretty lucky. There are emergency workers just standing by to be called by us and help us within minutes. For huge disasters like the plane landing in the Hudson River, there are many, many workers ready to risk their own lives to save ours. This is pretty incredible stuff.
Years ago I was in Baja, Mexico and visiting some park by the water. I don't recall the name of it, but there were these cliffs/rocks and trails going up through and around them. It was very poorly maintained as far as safety, and people were actually climbing the cliffs, like something you would not see in the US, where people would go beyond the warning signs and fences and decide to do something stupid--these people were just doing it, there were no warning signs that I recall, there sure were no fences. And I could not help but thinking if someone fell, how long would it take for emergency services...were there any?
So with all the complaints Americans have, and there are plenty, the emergency services just a phone call away for us, is simply astounding. And these people that arrive, want to help you, they want to save you, imagine that. And they are willing to put their own life at risk. Imagine that.
As one newscaster said, "you think you are flying to North Carolina, minutes later you have an emergency landing in the Hudson River, besides being very cold and wet and quite in shock, you are rescued by a boat, and probably that night you are at home with your family watching it on the news"--what a day!
Stories like that always make me believe in the power of the US--the true care people show for their fellow human beings--the pilots, the staff, the rescuers, the way we have services to respond so quickly and save people. This does not exist around the globe. I remember being astounded that it took like 20+ minutes for an ambulance to get to the crash in the tunnel in France where Princess Diana lay dying. Apparently she said to them "please don't let me die."
But she did. If they had been faster in getting to her, could she have been saved? I don't know, and there is so much story around the whole story, who knows the truth of it all. But I remember being floored how long it took emergency services to get there.
In the US we are pretty lucky. There are emergency workers just standing by to be called by us and help us within minutes. For huge disasters like the plane landing in the Hudson River, there are many, many workers ready to risk their own lives to save ours. This is pretty incredible stuff.
Years ago I was in Baja, Mexico and visiting some park by the water. I don't recall the name of it, but there were these cliffs/rocks and trails going up through and around them. It was very poorly maintained as far as safety, and people were actually climbing the cliffs, like something you would not see in the US, where people would go beyond the warning signs and fences and decide to do something stupid--these people were just doing it, there were no warning signs that I recall, there sure were no fences. And I could not help but thinking if someone fell, how long would it take for emergency services...were there any?
So with all the complaints Americans have, and there are plenty, the emergency services just a phone call away for us, is simply astounding. And these people that arrive, want to help you, they want to save you, imagine that. And they are willing to put their own life at risk. Imagine that.
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