The destruction of Florida by two almost simultaneous hurricanes marks the start of this dystopian novel. One Category Five would be bad enough, two proved to be one storm too many for the low-lying state.
Galveston Herald
14 September 2035,
Florida Devastated
In the early hours of yesterday morning, Hurricanes Gregory and Helen both made landfall in Florida. The Category five storm Gregory tracked up from the eastern Caribbean along the Atlantic seaboard. The equally violent Helen swept in from the Gulf making landfall just hours after Gregory. The proximity of the two storms gave rise to massive tidal surges and winds in excess of 180 mph, the so-called Fujiwhara Effect.
The last reports from the State Governor’s Office, at 2:15 yesterday, were of huge areas being inundated with seawater and massive wind damage to infrastructure in major population centers. Since that time there has been no official communication. Private messages from the northern parts of the Sunshine State speak of seeing the surfaces of roads being torn up by the wind and hurled into lines of fleeing cars. Other accounts report cars full of desperate people being blown off the carriageways.
In Washington, the President has declared a State of Emergency, promising a response like no other. “Until the storm has abated and we can get people on the ground,” she concluded, “We offer our thoughts and prayers to all those struggling to survive the great storm.”
A spokeswoman later repeated the President’s words, adding, “The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has sent mobilization messages to every organization in its database and is poised, ready to launch the biggest civilian operation in history.”
The combined storm has continued to track north towards Georgia and the Carolinas leaving a trail of destruction.
In the words of the President, the Editor and Staff of the great paper offer our thoughts and prayers to the people of Florida.
After that things can only get better … or can they get worse?
Was it just One Storm Too Many or is it just the start?
When do we meet the naturists? … It is a Ted Bun book … of course there are naturist at the centre of the story.