Several comments:

Hey, if you chose to stay, great. But shouldn't you have prepared a bit
beforehand, in terms of squirreling water/gasoline/food and so forth?
How about Parrot food?

People in earthquake areas have supplies, and houses reinforced.
People in flood zones have a plan, and usually a small boat. They know
which roads flood easily and which stay dry. They know when to stay and
when to go.
People in tornado alley have basements and storm cellars.
People who live in ice and snow winterize their cars, carry a sleeping
bag, a change of clothes, and usually some snacks in the winer.

What is it about hurricane "victims"? All I ever see them on TV doing is
hammering plywood over windows. That is a good start, of course. When
the storm is over, the first thing which happens is the appeal to
charities and the feds."Oh, pity me, I'm stupid..."

Just came back from a town whose downtown a mile wide was levelled two
years ago from a 4-5 strength tornado in SW Missouri. You can't tell
now---the town only lost two businesses permanently (people on the verge
of retirement) and Main Street is back in business. Yeah, the town dealt
with FEMA and SEMA, but mostly the town put itself back together, with
local contractors doing cost-share labor. No people screaming "we need
jobs and health care." Hey, if everything's broke, there is plenty of
work that needs doing, and you don't need to be a journeyman carpenter
to know how to hammer a nail straight.

The *Government" doesn't help. It seems to harass self-sufficient
people, while abandoning the clueless.

I really don't understand this. Of course, I am of an age where civil
defense training and preparedness were part of our science/health
classes...we expected nuclear attack any day, so we were taught and
learned tricks for living on one's own, with little external
infrastructure for weeks on end. Things like purifying water/wilderness
medicine/what you needed on hand to 'get along' for some time until
things got back to normal. Even something as simple as keeping two
week's worth of canned/boxed food in the house at all times--and even
how to use your refrigerator as an 'icebox'. Of course, there was no
way to mitigate radiation...except burrowing underground.

I'm just tagging here on Jonathan's experience...but there is something
seriously wrong with a culture which does not teach its children how to
find water, food, and shelter without a supermarket and a big brother
government to assist you. Or, even, to "know when to hold 'em and know
when to fold 'em" in dealing with a natural disaster. Sometimes,
running to safety temporarily is a *good* idea...