MEMPHIS—Residents of Memphisare continuing to recover in the aftermath of power outages resulting from severe storms. “We had no idea a storm of this magnitude was coming,” said Memphis Light, Gas & Water (MLGW) CEO and President Doug McGowen, during an Aug. 23 press conference in conjunction with newly re-elected Mayor Paul Young.
What began as a severe thunderstorm in Arkansas on the evening of Aug. 22, unexpectedly intensified into a “bow echo” storm over the Mississippi River as it blew into Memphis from a westerly direction, producing hurricane-like straight line winds in excess of over 80 miles per hour and torrential rain.
A bow echo storm is so named because it resembles an archer’s bow on a radar and produces fast-moving winds that generally cause severe damage. Though only about 45 minutes in duration, the intensity of the storm caused flash flooding, uprooted trees and downed power lines, leaving over 140,000 without power amid a potent heat advisory.
In this writer’s home, the power loss resulted in an internal temperature of 90 degrees within hours of the power outage.
MLGW, the sole provider of utilities and waste removal services to the city, quickly issued a notice to prepare for a multi-day recovery period. Additional electrical crews and tree workers were brought in from surrounding areas to aid in the clean-up and restoration efforts.
The city is also working to provide relief for those who needed safe spaces to go and loss of groceries due to the ongoing outages.
Mr. McGowen encouraged residents to temporarily lower their water consumption as water treatment facilities were also affected, and while they were back in operation by Aug. 23, time was still needed for the reservoirs and wells to recover.
On Aug. 26, outgoing Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, declared a state of emergency. Memphis is located in Shelby County. Schools were slated to re-open Aug 27.
During the press conference Mayor Young was questioned about the utilization of the National Guard, already in Memphis, as a result of the President Donald Trump appointed Safe Task Force last September, in the recovery efforts.
According to the National Guard’s official website, a description of one of their primary functions is “When disaster strikes in the homeland, the National Guard stands ready to deploy and serve at a moment’s notice to protect life and property in our communities.”
In response, Mayor Young stated that recovery was “an all-hands on deck effort” and said that assistance would be requested, however, as of Aug. 27, the Tennessee National Guard Facebook page shows no mention of the storm or relief efforts in Memphis, but highlights, instead, training efforts from the previous week to “Strengthen(ing) communication and building trust will ensure our teams are ready to respond quickly when Tennesseans need us most.”
The Memphis Safe Task Force does not have an official website page; updates are given through the City of Memphis website. National Guard involvement in recovery efforts has not been reflected there either. As of Aug. 27, MLGW said a little over 1,500 customers were still without power.
These increasing weather-related disasters are not happening in a vacuum.
Over 50 years ago, the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, Eternal Leader of the Nation of Islam, warned of the danger of such times in His book, “The Fall of America.”
In Chapter 36, he wrote, “To be plagued with too much rain will destroy property and lives. It swells the rivers and creeks. Too much rain floods cities and towns. … Rain makes the atmosphere too heavy with moisture causing sickness.
Wind with rain can bring destruction to towns and cities, bringing various germs, causing sickness to the people. It produces unclean water by the swelling of streams and destroying reservoirs of pure drinking water used for the health of the people. Rain is a destructive army within itself. Hail stones are also a property and life destroyer.”
For years, the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, National Representative of the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, has continued to issue the warning, “watch the weather.”
In Part 8 of “The Time and What Must Be Done” lecture series delivered by Min. Farrakhan in 2013, he explains the extreme weather in relationship to America’s historical actions.
“Let us see how ‘The Law of Justice’ is working in America: Have not you, America, destroyed the cities and the towns, and the people, of other nations? Well, look at your own cities and towns, America: Some will be ravaged by fire; others, by water.
Towns destroyed by tornadoes, hurricanes and floods. And soon, great earthquakes will be tearing down cities. The Chastisement of God has begun. The Grace Period is over,” Minister Farrakhan said.
“Can’t you see what is happening to America,” he implored in part two of the series. “One-third of the American people say they believe that the change in the weather is fulfilling Biblical prophecy of ‘end times.’ So, America, you must—if you are to survive: You must make a serious change to give America hope for an ‘extension of time,’ and even a ‘future.’”
At Final Call press time, thousands were still without power, as temperatures continue to hover above 90 degrees with heat indices forecasted to reach up to 104, and isolated thunderstorms to come.
