Nature Unleashed. Check it out!

Right now some of our disaster volunteers are standing inside a tornado, well a simulated tornado just off Lakeshore Drive….but it’s still VERY cool. We have partnered with the Field Museum to place trained Red Cross disaster relief workers inside the Nature Unleashed exhibit to guide people around the exhibit. Many of these people have actually been to the disasters featured in the exhibit. Check it out and while you are there ask the Red Cross volunteer helping out to share some of their adventures. Check it out on WGN with Tom Skilling
I was with the Red Cross at two of the disasters featured in the exhibit: Hurricane Katrina and Greensburg, Kansas and I have to tell you the Field Museum did a great job making you feel like you were there.
We’re all familiar with Hurricane Katrina. Greensburg got less media attention but was just as devastating to those affected. In 2007, a small Kansas town was hit by a EF5 tornado that was 1.7 miles wide. 95% of the city was destroyed. Seeing this part of the exhibit really brought me back to what it was like to be there as that town began its healing process. While it was a sobering experience it was also really inspiring to see how resilient that town was and how they all came together to help each other out.
Greensburg ultimately decided to rebuild as an entirely green city. Planet Green did a television series about it http://planetgreen.discovery.com/tv/greensburg/
There are webisodes online if you want to check it out.
Have you ever seen the devastation from a tornado or hurricane up close? Where were you and how you would describe it?
Interested in visiting the exhibit? www.fieldmuseum.org. for more information.


Martha Carlos is a member of the American Red Cross Disaster Public Affairs team. She occasionally travels outside of the Chicagoland area to help with disaster relief and recovery efforts.