Home » The Archives » Chapter 9 » Regrouping and Recouperation
| Re: Regrouping and Recouperation [message #142 is a reply to message #141] |
Sun, 22 July 2012 19:18   |
artisticrainey
Messages: 1228
Registered: July 2012
Location: Northern Ireland
Karma:
|
Field Commander
Switzerland |
|
|
Gordon was with Dom, in his apartment. He'd gone over to help him with Joshua and to watch the retrospective. The little boy seemed to sense that his father wasn't as able to take care of -- and play with -- him as he usually was. He'd squealed with glee to see Gordon, whom he considered to be another playmate.
He was sitting on the floor at Gordon's feet, playing with some of his toys as they watched. During the commercials, Gordon would lean over and play with him, usually making Joshua chortle with delight, while Dom observed their antics with amusement.
Although immersed in the game, the redhead's attention was caught by the next segment.
"On the afternoon of the twenty-fourth of March, an earthquake hit Argentina," Ned said, as the show continued. "The epicenter was located five miles south of the city of Mendoza, much of which was seriously damaged -- so much so, that the local rescue organizations were swamped. The mayor of that city called International Rescue to help. And, as usual, they responded. Here is Reuters reporter, Maritza Rosales, in Mendoza."
At first there was a brief video of the city after the earthquake. A female voice said, "In this footage, taken the morning after the earthquake hit, you can see that there was great damage." The picture switched to a young woman with dark wavy hair. Behind her were buildings under construction. As she spoke, the same female voice translated her words. "As you can see behind me, the city is in the middle of a rebuilding process. All of the damaged or destroyed buildings were removed, and are being replaced with ones that will be better able to withstand another earthquake."
She walked to the viewer's right as she finished, and an older, distinguished looking man came into view. Behind him were a few other people. Maritza stopped beside him and continued. "Here with me is the Alcalde -- the mayor of Mendoza. Alcalde," she asked as she turned to face the man, "will you tell the viewers how you felt when you saw International Rescue's vehicles arrive?"
The mayor - identified as Mayor Juan Arroyo - spoke and a male voice translated. "Maritza, I fell to my knees and thanked God for them. The damage and destruction was so widespread throughout the city, I was totally overwhelmed. Fires were raging, people were screaming for help, and our own rescue people couldn't be in all the places they were needed.
"International Rescue worked tirelessly to find victims, so they could be treated for their injuries. Without them, the death toll would have risen significantly. These people behind me are just a few of the ones rescued by that fine organization."
The two separated and gestured for the others to come forward. "These people do not speak English, but wanted to express their thanks for their rescue." As she questioned the first person in Spanish, there was both a voice over, translating the words to English, and closed captioning as well. "Can you tell the viewers what happened"? she said to a man in his mid-twenties, who was with a pregnant woman his age, holding a child about four. At the bottom of the screen, they were identified as David and Angelina Medina.
"I was working not far from here. My wife," he answered, indicating the woman beside him, "was just returning to our apartment from the park a few blocks away. She and my son, Pablo, were both knocked to the ground. I wanted to go to them, but I couldn't get out of the building I was in for a long time. She told me later that she and Pablo had become separated by debris, but she found him by following his cries. He was so afraid, it was difficult to comfort him. And she was also afraid for the baby to come.
"But when the first vehicle from International Rescue showed up, Pablo's eyes got big, and he stopped crying." David smiled. "When the second one arrived -- the big green one -- his eyes nearly popped out of his head, Angelina told me. Then the green vehicle landed and raised up, leaving part of itself on the ground. Out of it came other vehicles and people to help get victims out of the damaged buildings. By this time, I had arrived, and found my family."
An older man and his wife, who were identified as Jose and Maria Paloma, took up the story. "We were trapped in our apartment," Maria said, as the translation continued. "My husband and I are both frail, and we can't go up and down the stairs like we used to. The people from that wonderful International Rescue helped both of us out and were so very nice, and patient with us."
Jose added, "They would lift us if there was an obstruction we couldn't possibly get over, and support us as we walked. I am ninety three and my wife is ninety, so it was slow going, but not once did they try to make us hurry."
"They made sure everyone in the area where they were working was out of danger," Mayor Arroyo continued. He suddenly smiled. "Whether they wanted to be or not."
A look of amusement showed in Maritza's face as she said, "You mean the man who was hit by one of IR's people?"
"Yes, Maritza. The man wanted to sue, but when we investigated, we found out that he had become violent when they tried to get him to leave his apartment, which was in grave danger of collapsing. It was a last resort act by the person who knocked him out with a right cross, as I understand it. And I also have heard that it was a woman who did it."
He chuckled and turned to look directly into the camera. "If the woman is watching, I salute you. It is better to have a bruised jaw for a few days than to be buried alive under a pile of stone. Doing whatever it takes to save lives is commendable."
They heard a commotion off camera. They turned to see a young man rushing toward them, followed by another man and two people in uniform. They reached him and stopped him when he was just a few feet away from the others. The mayor was heard to quietly say something to the reporter, and the translator, in an amused voice, repeated it: "Speak of the. . ."
The man began shouting something in Spanish, very angrily, which wasn't translated. Maritza and the Mayor listened to him for about ten seconds, before he was dragged away. The man with him who wasn't in uniform was arguing with him loudly as they moved off.
Maritza turned back to the camera. "That, obviously, was the man who had been knocked out. Most of what he said shouldn't be translated; it would probably be censored. But his friend who stopped him told him, as they left, that he should be glad the woman did what she did, as the building he was in collapsed less than thirty minutes later."
"He was the last one to be taken out of that building, or so I was informed," the mayor added. "Why he is still acting this way, I cannot say. I believe we will have to investigate further." He turned and looked directly into the camera. "I think that I speak for the people of Mendoza when I say 'Long Live International Rescue'! May they be around for as long as they are needed."
"Thank you, mayor. I agree with that sentiment, and believe that most of the people in the world do, too." She shook hands with him and turned once again to the camera. "There you have it, Ned. Back to you."
Gordon looked over at Dom, as the scene changed on the television. "Too bad you weren't there. You should have seen it. Nikki's got a right cross that could fell a bull rhino."
Dom eyed his friend quizzically. "I think that's a bit of an exaggeration, but I get what you mean. I'd love to have seen it, myself."
"Maybe she should start a boxing class here."
Dom laughed. "Let me know when you're gonna ask her to. I wanna be there to see her reaction. She might just deck you!"
Post by Hobbeth on 11/18/2006
  
|
|
|
|
Current Time: Fri May 17 07:49:12 EDT 2024
Total time taken to generate the page: 0.01973 seconds
|
International Rescue: The Next Phase
Search
Help
Members
Login
Home
