One Year Ago

One year ago today, the 8.0 magnitude earthquake shook central China, leaving 87,000 people either dead or missing and millions homeless. I remember watching the news and seeing the horrifying pictures that brought me to tears. So many families torn apart, and villages literally wiped off the map.

Millions of people around the world watched too. It was incredible to see how so many people came together to help. In this age of the internet and 24/7 news coverage, how closely we are now tied together and how connected to crisis we can feel. We don’t just see those in need in our backyard like we did 50 years ago, but now we see those who are thousands of miles away. We no longer see boundaries, but see people and needs globally.

How does watching the news of a major disaster affect how and when you help? With the way news comes to us now, with stories almost daily of people and places in need, do you feel like you help more often or in a different way than in the past? How were you personally moved by China’s earthquake?

On this first anniversary of the Sichuan quake, our thoughts are with everyone who lost someone they loved and with all of the people who had to completely rebuild their lives.

Karen LWB

Credit: U.S. Geological Survey
Department of the Interior/USGS
U.S. Geological Survey/photo by Sarah C. Behan