As I was driving into work this morning, I noticed that Centennial Park, which is just across the street from CNN center, was finally reopened to the public. The roads through downtown Atlanta still have detours as workers continue to repair damage and broken windows in the high rise buildings. Why do I mention this? Well a little over 3 weeks ago, Atlanta saw its first ever downtown tornado. This was just one tornado in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I write this because it definitely gave me a different perspective when the natural disaster is in your own back yard. The Atlanta downtown commuters have been inconvenienced for three weeks while repairs have been underway. But I can’t help to think how minimal this inconvenience is compared to the magnitude of the other natural disasters I’ve reported on over the last several years and how life as many people know it will never be the same again.

Years later there are many regions in the world that are still recovering from natural devastation, but are hardly talked about anymore: The victims of the 2005 Pakistan earthquake during a bitterly cold winter, Cyclone Sidr in Bangladesh, the Gulf Coast of the U.S. after Hurricane Katrina, and the many coastal towns and cities around the Andaman Sea affected by the tsunami. This of course is just a small handful of the many that have taken place over the last several years.

World food prices are on the rise which is making it increasingly difficult to bring relief not only to new areas in need, but also to the communities that are on the long road to recovery. As members of the world community, let’s continue to stay prepared, informed and involved.

-- From Kevin Corriveau, CNN Senior Weather Producer/Anchor

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