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Living with disaster

Posted: Sunday, July 06, 2008 4:03 PM by Ian Sager

By Lester Holt, NBC News anchor

The big "Gap" fire burning near Santa Barbara is only about a quarter contained, and firefighters are working within a narrow window of opportunity. Hot, potentially record-breaking temperatures are forecasted to return to the region as early as Tuesday.

Meanwhile, 2,700 homes remain under an evacuation order and another 1,400 households have been warned they may be next. Between the fires that have consumed so much of California over the last week, and the floods that inundated parts of the Midwest last month, there have been so many homes lost and lives displaced.

The truth is, even after the flames are extinguished or the flood waters recede, the victims are still living with disaster. Tonight Peter Alexander reports from the California fire lines, but we will also turn our cameras back toward the flood zone.  City council member Brian Fagan of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, takes us on a tour of his city as it confronts rebuilding properties and resettling the thousands of residents whose lives were upended in the June floods that consumed 1,300 square blocks.

I'm glad you checked in, and hope you'll tune in later for tonight's edition of Nightly News.

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Good Evening Mr.Holt, Nice to see you this Sunday evening. Terrible situation out in California with all the massive fires consuming so many areas of the State. I agree that even after the fires are extinguished and the flood waters recede the problems are not easily solved right away. It will take a long time to recover completely. Looking forward to the broadcast Mr.Holt. Peace to you and to all!

Now since I am a HUGE Richard admirer and think the world of him I will be totally emersed in his documentary, "War Zone Diary 2008" after the broadcast! So I will have to write my comment about your broadcast after Richard's documentary. I cannot wait until 7:00pm this evening on MSNBC! I know it will be awesome! He is just wonderful!!

Lots of Love to Laurel,Jackie,Stephanie,Celine,Claudia,Anna and Matt!
Be Well Always!
XOXO  
Dear Lester,

I hope you finally get some rest, after tonight's broadcast!

Jackie:  Since you were in D.C. on the 4th, did you go down to the Mall, to watch the fireworks?  I watched them on TV.  

All:  I stumbled upon a really interesting report last night on C-SPAN.  It was filed by a freelance journalist named Doug Grindle, who was traveling with the troops in Afghanistan.  You can watch his reports online.  Here are the links:

http://www.c-spanarchives.org/library/index.php?main_page=product_video_info&products_id=202216-1

http://www.c-spanarchives.org/library/index.php?main_page=product_video_info&products_id=202519-1

Don't forget to watch War Zone Diary 2008 on MSNBC tonight at 7PM!

Happy returns to the work week!

XOXO Lisa, Jackie, Stephanie, Celine, Claudia, Anna, and Matt.
Encore, please, Mr. Holt

I really like the story both nights about
the man and his balloons.  It is said
a good marriage is when you both don't
go crazy at the same time.

Phyllis Kunz
Good Evening Mr.Holt, Another fine broadcast this evening. I decided to attempt to write my comment during the commercials. First of all the report by Mr.Maceda concerning the US Serviceman and the young Iraqi girl whose legs were lost because of an IED was very touching. The poor young girl was caught in the middle of the fighting and it is extremely sad. The US soldier wanting to help and getting a wheelchair, toys, school supplies certainly was wonderful, but getting her to a hospital and having her fitted for prosthetic legs was simply amazing. Seeing her taking her first steps with those legs gives her such hope for the future. Hearing she wants to study that field shows maybe someday she will get the chance to do that job. I certainly hope so for her. On another note the reports of the fires in California seemed devastating, but it was nice they receieved a break in the weather. Also the report from Cedar Rapids showing the city and hearing Brian Fagan from the city council speaking and giving a tour of the flood ridden city showed how a community can come together and help rebuild the town. Progress can be made one day at a time. Thank you for the broadcast Mr.Holt. You have done a GREAT JOB filling in for Mr.Williams and your Weekend Broadcasts! Peace to You and to All!

I just got finished watching "War Zone Diary 2008" and it was simply great! Much of the program was like the first version, yet the last twenty minutes or so showed many new things and information. It was nice to see Ali in Sweden although he seems to be having a difficult time adjusting to the country. Seeing him by the lake swimming with his friends was nice. I wish the best for him and hope he has success in life. Also for Zohair that he continues to feel better. The US Troops have been battling a war for over five years now and even thought violence has gone down I hope someday the Iraqi forces can take over more and the US troops can start to come home. They have suffered so much and been so brave and dedicated I really hope they can come back home soon.
Richard of course was awesome as always and I enjoyed the new footage Richard! You have done so much fine reporting now over five years of the war and have sacrificed so much too!
I will always support you and what you are doing over in Iraq and other places in the Middle East. You have accomplished so much and come so far in your field. You are the BEST reporter in the region! Always stay safe Richard! I always say a prayer for your safety! Take extra good care Richard! Stay Extra Safe! Peace to you and to all!
Lisa,

I loved the Richard Engel Documentary! It really gave me an inside perspective into his time there! Amazing reporting!
We are now over 6 million spent in taxpayer dollars fighting fires to protect property and homes that should never have been developed in these fire hazard areas to begin with. My sympathy goes out to those who have lost their lives and property, however may I add that we stop this insanity of developement infringing on natural habitats and natural fire hazard zones? fires have been burning in California Mtns. for millions of years. It's a natural way of re-seeding and survival of the various plant species indigineous to these areas. luxury homes, horse ranches and churches were never part of this natural cycle. Think what we could do in California with the now over 6 million dollars spent fighting theses fires? Not have to make cuts in education, or city worker layoffs, or closure of the many State parks announced recently. C'mon people you know I'm right here... Stop the greed of developers who line the pockets of city council members buying their votes for Pro- developement all over our state, and in our quickly disappearing natural habitats. Tax payer money should be spent developing education, and fighting crime instead of protecting the greed of the few...
I am a Bush Republican, but I agreed with
this sentence wholeheartedly which appeared
in this morning's Louisville Courier:

"This isn't about whether or not Barack
Obama wins, but the fact that he might win
is an incredible change for this country--
and recognizing the importance of the change
is to me, the very essence of patriotism."
(Eugene Robinson)  

Warm Regards,
Phyllis Kunz

Newest Scandal (Spoof?)  Obama Says "A" instead of
"An"  --  A historical challenge instead of an earlier phrase "an historical challenge"

"This is a major turnaround of great concern to
all voters" said Karl Rove.

Oh, please!!!

When I was a personell secretary many years
ago at General Electric, my manager and I
bickered over the use of "a" or "the" for months.
I lost 20 pounds and transferred to another building
at Appliance Park in Louisville, and he lost his
prestigous job, which was poetic justice.

In Revelation, Chapter 22, there is a warning about adding
and subtracting words, etc, but other texts, books,
articles, speeches and so forth should not be taken
this seriously by a writer or else he or she needs
get a life.

Have a nice evening, Mr. Holt.


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