Let’s consider a hypothetical scenario. Experts warn that a big, dangerous disaster is coming. But a large segment of the population decides to disregard it because, people reason, it surely will not affect them. But the problem arrives and hits the community anyway, causing widespread calamity, fear and anxiety. The situation seems to have no end in sight. Due to the nature of the disaster, it also causes isolation, which only perpetuates the fear, anxiety and frustration.
There are helpers working tirelessly to aid the community. The workers are so tired, they’re not sure if they can keep working. Even high-ranking elected officials are affected by this adversity. There is no one person to blame and no single person who can solve the problem. The infrastructure in place is too overwhelmed with the numbers of people needing assistance. Fatigue and exhaustion set in. People begin to cast judgment on one another, questioning why their fellow citizens had voluntarily put themselves in such conditions.
Some readers might have assumed that I was speaking of the coronavirus pandemic. I was actually referring to the situation where drivers were stranded on Interstate 95 in Virginia for more than 24 hours in the freezing cold. As I read stories about the ordeal motorists experienced, I easily replaced the words in my head about the pandemic. Replace being stuck in a car and isolated with being stuck at home. In both those cases, a person may be stuck in a situation without the necessary supplies or with someone who could wind up carelessly inflicting harm on others.
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam called the highway backup “an incredibly unusual event” after about a foot of snow blanketed the area around Fredericksburg. Department of Transportation officials said the winter weather started with rain, which would have washed away any treatment spread on roadways to prevent icing. The rain was followed by more than a foot of snow.
Consider how easily we could replace the term “meteorologist” with “public health expert.” AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter said in a statement: “It was very unfortunate to see … the suffering, anxiety and fear that so many people affected felt, especially when you consider it could have been avoided by more proactive responses based on the AccuWeather forecast that highlighted this very concern.” Public health experts have been encouraging the proactive measures of getting vaccinated and boosted, yet people, for a variety of reasons, have ignored the advice.
Marcie Parker, a Virginia Department of Transportation engineer, was quoted as saying, “That was entirely too much for us to keep up with.” Her sentence could have easily been said by a health care worker. Parker stated the department was quickly overwhelmed when accidents and ice led to blockages that prevented clearance crews from unclogging the highway.
That is exactly what is happening to our health care system. Road crews in Virginia worked through the day and night and day again, in ice and snow, to free up the roughly 50-mile traffic jam. I imagine very few of those stuck in their cars even gave those rescue workers a second thought. Hospital workers continue to staff our hospitals despite feeling exhausted and burned out. The days of treating our health care workers as heroes have long expired. They are now being taken for granted.
NBC news correspondent Josh Lederman was also one of the helpless on the highway. “Nobody knows how long we’re going to be here or how we are going to get out.”
He added, “This is scary. You don’t plan for a situation like this.”
Two years ago there were probably very few of us who ever planned for a pandemic. As we enter our third year, people are asking how much longer we will be affected by this public health crisis.
It has become commonplace to judge one another during this pandemic. Just like the fact that we have no way to know why those hundreds of drivers were on I-95 as a huge storm loomed. Does it matter if they were on their way to work, picking up their child from day care, trying to get to a sick loved one, or just going on vacation? Of course not.
Positive stories from the disaster are trickling out as well. Drivers sharing food and water. Truck drivers showing kindness by sharing their heated cabs. These stories of resilience and generosity are examples of how societies can best cope with adversity.
Of course, the situations are markedly different, but we can certainly learn from one to help us cope with the other. Here are just a few of those lessons: Heed the warnings of experts. Be prepared, which in this context, means to get vaccinated and boosted. Be kind and generous. Stop being judgmental. Understand that there are people working tirelessly to get us unstuck. Finally, know that at some point, we’ll all be on our way again.
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