Situation Report

submitted by John Carroll

As the chikungunya virus spreads through the Caribbean islands, travelers and even U.S. residents need to take precautions.

healthline.com - by Dana K. Cassell - May 7, 2014

Chikungunya (pronounced chik-en-gun-ye) is a viral disease transmitted to humans by the bites of infected Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes, which are found across the globe. .

. . . Originally believed to be a “tropical” disease, experts were surprised when an outbreak occurred in northeastern Italy in 2007. Now it has spread farther—to 14 Caribbean island countries since it was first detected on the island of St. Martin in December 2013.

Mosquitoes May Spread the Virus to the Southeastern U.S.

Because the Caribbean islands are close to the U.S., there is some concern that chikungunya will spread to the U.S., perhaps via Florida.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

CLICK HERE - CDC - Chikungunya in the Americas

A deluge last week destroyed a section of the Scenic Highway in Pensacola, Fla. Credit Brantly S. Keiek, via Associated Press

GlobalChange.gov

nytimes.com - by Justin Gillis - May 6, 2014

The effects of human-induced climate change are being felt in every corner of the United States, scientists reported Tuesday, with water growing scarcer in dry regions, torrential rains increasing in wet regions, heat waves becoming more common and more severe, wildfires growing worse, and forests dying under assault from heat-loving insects. . .

. . . “Climate change, once considered an issue for a distant future, has moved firmly into the present,” the scientists declared in a major new report assessing the situation in the United States.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

CLICK HERE - REPORT - Climate Change Impacts in the United States - U.S. National Climate Assessment

(THE U.S. RESILIENCE SYSTEM IS ASSISTING WITH RELIEF EFFORTS FOR THIS DISASTER THROUGH THE ADMINISTRATION OF A FACEBOOK PAGE TITLED "Mississippi Severe Weather Alerts & Disaster Resources".
CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE "Mississippi Severe Weather Alerts & Disaster Resources" FACEBOOK PAGE.)

Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) - News

FEMA - Resources - Mississippi - DR-4175

The proposed rules, drafted by Tom Wheeler, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, and his staff, would allow Internet service providers to charge companies different rates for faster connection speeds. Credit Daniel Rosenbaum for The New York Times

nytimes.com - by Edward Wyatt - April 23, 2014

WASHINGTON — The principle that all Internet content should be treated equally as it flows through cables and pipes to consumers looks all but dead.

The Federal Communications Commission said on Wednesday that it would propose new rules that allow companies like Disney, Google or Netflix to pay Internet service providers like Comcast and Verizon for special, faster lanes to send video and other content to their customers.