[EVENT] Cold Winds Blowin'...

[ironwood]

Characters: All
Date: January 10-31, 2018
Location: Keeliai, all sectors
Situation: Hurricane and ensuing cleanup
Warnings/Rating: add warnings to headers as necessary, please.


Come late night on the 10th, carrying over into the wee hours of the 11th, the winds that have been on and off all month pick up, howling between buildings and rattling anything not nailed down. The worst of it comes over the next day, when the winds don't actually stop, sweeping through the city at high speeds and bringing rain and all kinds of debris with them.

The canals in Water are nearly impassable, making travel even more inadvisable than it would have been. In some places the wind takes out the power, too, leaving several people temporarily without much in the way of heat -- not good when the average temperature is hovering around 5°C (about 40°F). The rain comes heavier over the course of the day, and flooding both minor and major abounds; during the worst of the storm the canals are near to overflowing and there's a sincere -- and realized -- risk of drowning. As the flooding rises fast, some unprepared citizens may be caught by these rushing torrents and need rescue.

The storm settles down toward the end of the twelfth, leaving only brisk winds and a sullen drizzle as it finally passes the city by. In its wake, however, is a vast array of damage, and significant repairs to be made.

The high winds have knocked many trees down, some of which landed on homes and businesses -- in some cases, punching right through the roofs, rendering the buildings temporarily unlivable, and sending their occupants out into the storm to seek their nearest secondary shelter. Flooding is wide-scale, doing immeasurable amounts of property damage and putting many lives at risk. Many are left injured, homeless, or their businesses and livelihoods in ruins. Even more have lost personal possessions that are irreplaceable.

All told, the Merchant's Guild estimates that nearly 10% of the city's residential districts have suffered severe damage, meaning that the homes in those areas are not structurally safe to live in until repairs are made. This translates to about 6000 kedan across all Sectors in need of temporary housing. A further 20% (roughly 10,000) of the city has experienced moderate damage, so their homes are livable, but they may be without power, heat, or necessities like running water or adequate food stores.

The rest of the city takes light damage, mostly in the way of flooding and damaged goods. Volunteers are needed all over the place to remove storm debris to a growing mountain of wreckage outside the city walls. Everything from broken windows and furniture, to entire trees and large sections of rooftops need to be hauled away, and in some cases, the Foreigners' abilities will be much appreciated, since whatever left is going to be done with kirin-hauled carts and sledges.

Through the rest of the month, repairs are in progress, most of it taking place beneath a sapping cold rain, which impedes both repairs and volunteers' health, and many come down with walking pneumonia and flu-like afflictions. Usayi is among those organizing work crews for the clearing of large debris and urgent patches; he'll be spearheading those efforts as the month wears on as well. The Woodsmen also call for help from as many volunteers as possible, citing the loss of a great deal of growing and stored seeds, as well as the damage to their agricultural land plots, which are now littered with more debris.

Comments

Re: pitching in;

[isochrone]

Elizabeth has definitely overestimated her ability to keep this particular load balanced, and Kratos' timely intervention was what kept her from ending up in the mud. "Ah, thank you, si--" she began, before getting a good look at him.

"Goodness, you look... like you're not from around here."

[simulsimul]

Someone who knew Kratos well would recognise the faint head-tip as a vague sort of amusement. It didn't show on his face, however, so possibly it only looked like confusion. "Neither do you."

In this sort of society, people who move toward manual labour usually already know how to lift a beam without falling over. "Let me." Kratos reached out to take the weight of the whole beam, intending to take it from her unless she resisted the help that far. "Where is this going?"

It was a fairly solid piece of timber. Maybe they were reusing it.

[isochrone]

"I'm not," she answered easily. "I'm from Columbia."

Elizabeth pointed at a pile of lumber that was in fairly good condition; Kratos was right, they were definitely planning to reuse what they could. In light of him taking the large timber, she immediately went back and picked up one a little smaller, following him.

"Then you must have just arrived?"

[simulsimul]

"I'm not familiar with that place." From what some of the kedan had said, most Foreigners seemed to be from a common world called 'Earth', but the names and nations overheard were ones Kratos recognised.

Kratos took the beam over to the pile, laying it down and slotting it in with ease. The weight of it didn't seem to be a bother.

"A few days ago," Kratos said, straightening and stepping back to give her the space, and turning to return to the dusty pile of debris. "What happened? When I arrived the city was already in this state."

[isochrone]

"That's all right," she smiled, although her eyebrows ticked up in surprise at the ridiculous ease with which Kratos handled the heavy beam. "There was a hurricane," Elizabeth explained. "Quite severe, moreso than the city seemed to be used to. As evidenced by the buildings, I suppose."

[simulsimul]

"I see." Well, it's certainly left a lot of debris. Kratos pulls off his cloak and unbuckles his sword, laying both carefully aside, but within view, so he can more easily pick up another beam without them getting in the way. He goes for he largest, leaving the smaller and more manageable things for the young lady. "What's Columbia?"

It's small talk ... of a sort. One can learn a lot once people start talking.