Thursday, May 20, 2010

Once again the citizens of Camden County have answered the call for help and, on behalf of the St. Marys EarthKeepers and our city, I thank you.

The Tribune & Georgian article can be found at http://ping.fm/J8KQz

We now have over 100 volunteers who have signed on to pitch in if needed (some of whom are willing to go to the Gulf should we be called to do so). In the next week or so, the GaVOAD will supply us with the necessary HAZWOPER information - and the Gulf agencies with whom we are registered as volunteers are in constant contact as they assess the situation and set up training camps.

Oceanographic and meteorological experts can only "guesstimate" as to the possibility of the slick entering the Gulf Loop current...
http://ping.fm/IPyqm

Many experts maintain that it is not an "if" scenario, but "when"...
"If the slick contacts the so-called Loop sea current, the oily sheen could eventually be carried to Miami in southern Florida, or as far as North Carolina's barrier islands, warned Robert Weisberg, a physical oceanographer at the University of South Florida. "Exactly when the oil will enter the Loop Current at the surface is unknown, but it appears to be imminent," Weisberg said, referring to the prevailing current in the Gulf."

http://ping.fm/iRS8a

Should the worse happen - the oil and disperants become caught in the Gulf Loop - it will be an "all hands on deck" situation for Cumberland Island and the most pressing need at that point will be to clear the 17 miles of beaches of all man-made and natural debris (in order to facilitate more effective clean-up). But we, as a community, are blessed by willing hands and we will be as prepared as it is possible to be.

I thank you...and ask for your patience and prayers. I know that so many are aching to help in some way now, but we must let nature dictate our actions and wait for the knowledgeable agencies in the Gulf (and our own state) to direct us. I shan't burden your inboxes with up-dates as we all watch and wait but I will, most assuredly, contact you all if the "worst-case-scenario" occurs.

Alex

Alex Kearns
Chair
St. Marys EarthKeepers, Inc.
Office: 912-673-6120
Cell: 912-322-7367
Email: alexkearns1@msn.com
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1 comment:

  1. Alex KearnsMay 20, 2010 at 2:11 PM

    This letter was written early last week and sent out to the many who have contacted me, expressing their desire to help in any way possible. The oil has now become entrained in the Loop Current - and we have over 300 volunteers at the ready (some from as far away as New York for the Island is a cherished national treasure and has been visited by so many citizens throughout the United States).

    I am posting up-dates and information on www.alexkearns.com (along with, I must warn you, a fair amount of personal commentary) and I continue to be in touch with all local and State agencies who will be involved when the time comes to do what we can for Cumberland Island. This is an environmental disaster the likes of which we have never witnessed and my heart aches for us all: wildlife and mankind alike.

    Alex Kearns

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