CHAPTER EIGHT

There were few survivors in Elwood City, and what few there were faced grave danger. Once electricity stopped flowing, they were safe from electrocution, fires, and explosions…from that source. Gas leaks were everywhere from destroyed buildings, the only blessing being the flooding that covered the city. Some areas were too deep for rescuers to measure, not that there were many people to pick up.

There were fifty total, all of them found on rooftops above their flooded homes in areas not hit by tornadoes. They were cold, hungry, and some were injured during their escapes. Rescuers ferried them west, moving others from other areas as they did. Some towns fared better than others, but the only way to get people away from the floods was to take them west to Colorado, where the storm started but didn't hit directly.

People wondered why they weren't being taken to the mountains, and in places New York City, people wondered why they couldn't stay in the high rises. As for the mountains, the heavy rains had caused major erosions and rock slides. Entire communities were covered in rock, much like what often happened in third world countries or out west in California—the ground couldn't handle the barrage of rain, so it gave way. As for the high rises in major cities, many were damaged and deemed uninhabitable by various groups. They had no choice but to head to Colorado and see what they could do there.

The only survivor found in Elwood City with a child in came was Mrs. Powers. She and her husband were like many others, trapped in their homes as the flooding began. She had just made it on the roof with her husband when a higher wave took him down. She clung to the chimney for hours, most of her lower body in the water. She hoped her husband would come back up, but he never did. None of the other parents did either.

Mrs. Powers sent a message to an emergency official, who agreed to do what he could to get the message northward. There were no forms of communication left in many areas—cellphone towers were damaged beyond repair, there were no telephone lines for landline calls, and there was no electricity to operate computers or internet servers. Satellite phones were proving to be unreliable as well, and NASA was saying that some of the satellites orbiting Earth were damaged by the storms, some of which towered over the planet like alien invaders.

As Mrs. Powers made her way westward and her messengers moved northward, people outside of the storm zone were watching the events unfold. Millions dead, thousands forced to be rescued. It felt unreal to people until NASA was able to release photographs from the crew of the International Space Station. Never before had such a weather event been witnessed, but the evidence was unmistakable.

Now the arguments would begin—had this happened before? Was climate change to blame? Did humans have a hand in their own disastrous fate? These were the arguments of the unaffected. All of the people running for their lives—rather, sailing for their lives on various rescue ships—could care less what caused the storm. They just wanted to survive.

A/N: I'm aware of the flames from that rather immature user. Thanks for the numbers yo:) You've been blocked and reported, but thanks for the kind and lovely amazing reviews. Oh and there were 3 more chapters as Chapter 7 wasn't the last one so your last review with your so many f-bombs is technically invalid because you don't know how it ends:D Don't bother reviewing the rest though because you been blocked and I will delete your guest reviews, because Medication, you need to get back on it. But for loyal readers who aren't filled with skillfully arranged alphabet soup for sailors, you get 2 more chapters after this one:) Thanks to my amazing readers and true fans and I hope you enjoy the rest.

Also I just realized I never posted my alien invasion piece from my Disasters series. Preview: When Buster isn't hungry at lunch and Brain actually agrees with him on the alien thing, the kids know it's about to get real. When the aliens invade, will it be a dream come true or a nightmare? Check out "Invasion" to find out, and again, thanks;)