"It's over!"
"We're saved!"
Not only in New York, but also in major cities in the north, people kept emerging from their snow-covered houses, gazing at the sunshine outside with tears in their eyes.
Whether it was a frail elderly person, a terrified child, or an exhausted young person, at this moment, everyone shed tears, even if they were frozen in place...
Almost simultaneously with these people emerging, various rescue teams also began to appear in the city. Like the rescue teams in New York, they drove through the city in sleds, carrying simple, Junk Collection- and-bone Horn, waking up the survivors one by one.
After half a day of preparation, the survivors in New York finally had time to evacuate. They rode in sleds, leaving Manhattan Borough for Staten Island, where they boarded vehicles to leave.
This is because the New York City area was completely frozen over, and the ice surface simply could not support vehicles weighing tens of tons.
No one objected to this. Even the most pampered person, after being repeatedly beaten down by society and nature in the past few days, would learn to cherish the present.
Being alive is already a blessing; what more could you ask for?
Many people who couldn't wait and couldn't get a seat even huddled together and walked through the frozen harbor, slowly making their way to Staten Island.
Jack gave up his sled to two couples with children, and he and Sam decided to walk.
They casually found two planks, tied them to their shoes, and set off on their journey.
Then they saw corpses scattered everywhere on the road; even several meters of snow could not bury them all.
They walked through the snow, and as they walked, they would feel themselves kicking tree branches or stones beneath the snow.
In this situation, it is 100% certain that they have encountered the body of a deceased person.
Some well-meaning people even tried to dig the bodies out of the snow and find another place to put them, but the more they dug, the more bodies were found under the snow, and the more gruesome the deaths became.
Generally speaking, the bodies at the top are those that froze to death. These bodies can be divided into those killed by the cold storm and those that froze to death naturally.
Those killed by the storm faced death in the instant before they were born, so their posture didn't have time to change; they remained in the position they were in before death.
The bodies of those who died of natural freezing showed signs of pain, and all their clothes had been removed before they died.
If you dig any deeper, you'll find the bodies of those who died in the tsunami. Their faces are grotesquely contorted, mouths agape, eyes wide open—a chilling sight.
Continuing on, we find those who died during the agitation phase—shot, killed with melee weapons, and even strangled to death...
The thick ice and snow resembled an archaeological excavation site, forming layers of "culture" in just a few days. By examining the bodies found in each layer, one could discern what had transpired.
The horror of being buried under the snow turned everyone pale with fright, and the survivors, filled with shock and fear, dared not dig any further after a short while.
There are more corpses under the snow than sweet potatoes underground; it's impossible to dig them all out!
Looking at the scene, Jack sighed, feeling utterly lost.
If they had taken evacuation measures earlier, like in other countries, perhaps this scene wouldn't have happened.
well!
" Sam, let's go, we don't need to watch anymore."
Jack patted Sam on the shoulder and led him and the other friends on their way to Staten Island.
Scotland.
Although it was afternoon, Professor Rapson and the others were fast asleep. Trapped in the snow with nothing to do, they usually could only sleep as much as possible.
"Hoo--snort!"
"Snoring"
The only sound inside the car was rhythmic snoring.
Professor Rapson slowly opened his eyes. The dimly lit car was illuminated only by a small light. He groped for his glasses, then scratched his head and walked towards the windshield.
He thought he heard a rustling sound coming in, so he went to check if it was just his imagination...
But the closer he got to the front of the car, the clearer the sound became.
until--
brush!
Is anyone home?
The snow that had accumulated on the car window was suddenly brushed away, and the light from a flashlight shone through the glass from the outside.
Professor Rapson immediately realized!
It's a human!
Someone has come to rescue them!
"Here, here..."
He quickly faced the light, rushed to the glass, and banged on it with his hand, making a series of "bang" sounds.
The sound made him afraid the glass was one-way and he couldn't see from the outside.
However, after he knocked twice, there was a response from outside, with two knocks in return.
"We understand. Wait a moment, we're clearing a path for you. There are no casualties inside, right? I see you only reported being trapped earlier."
"No, no!" Professor Rapson, an elderly man, jumped up and down excitedly in the driver's seat.
At this moment, the others who were sleeping soundly in the back also woke up.
Bob, who was part of the rescue team, came over and calmed Professor Rapson down. "It's alright, they've always known our location. The storm outside should have subsided by now, so they came looking for us."
Professor Rapson gradually calmed down and sat down to watch the rescuers outside clear the snow around the car and make a path through it.
Bob then drove his vehicle slowly out of his current position, joined the other convoy, and followed the lead car all the way to the shelter.
Looking at the thick snow walls on both sides, with the last rays of the setting sun hanging on the horizon, painting the snowflakes with a golden hue, the three people in the car all felt relieved.
The car drove until midnight, and Professor Rapson and his group finally arrived at Scotland Shelter No. 97. Their families were already waiting at the door and immediately went to greet them as they got out of the car.
The three families, with tears in their eyes, embraced each other tightly, overcome with emotion.
At the same time.
Jack and Sam boarded the latest evacuation train from Staten Island and headed south.
However, unlike Professor Rapson.
The people on the bus seemed numb or even depressed.
After escaping mortal danger, the survivors in North America immediately thought of their family and friends.
I worry whether they also survived this disaster.
Jack and Sam are worried about Lucy.
Brian, Laura, and JD also have caring family and friends.
JD, in particular, had been constantly gathering information ever since arriving on Staten Island; his younger brother was still at a boarding school in Philadelphia before the disaster struck...
After listening to Jack's story, Chen Song, who had a past relationship with him, suggested that he hand Jack over to the local rescue team when passing through Philadelphia, so that Jack could continue searching for his brother there.
Philadelphia is roughly located midway between New York and Washington, so they would definitely pass through the area if they traveled south, which wasn't a problem.
Besides JD, there were also other people who wanted to get off the bus midway to find their relatives and friends, and Chen Song dealt with these people in a fairly consistent manner.
If it's on your way, drop them off; otherwise, forcibly take them back to the emergency shelter in the south.
Therefore, during the subsequent evacuation, people left and joined the convoy from time to time.
In the midst of a frozen wasteland, everyone could only huddle together and reach the refuge area on the border in a huddled position.
After getting off the train, Sam had to part ways with Laura temporarily and then embark on a journey with his father Jack, to find his mother.
In the vast refugee zone, there are refugees and armed soldiers everywhere, and sometimes you can see convoys of Mutual Aid Society coming from afar.
The father and son had only one word in mind when they thought of this place: --
chaos!
Fortunately, Jack was, after all, an organized person.
So after making several inquiries, he quickly found out the location of the meteorological bureau.
Now, practically everyone in the entire weather bureau knows Jack, and thanks to his face, Jack finally got his wish and met his old boss Tom.
He took his son's hand and gave them a brief introduction. "This is your other godfather, and also my boss, Tom..."
"This is my son, Tom. He's survived in New York!"
Tom was clearly surprised by their visit; he never expected that the father and son would actually return alive from New York. For a moment when they met, he even thought he had encountered a ghost.
After the initial surprise, Tom felt a little ashamed and didn't even bother to acknowledge his new "son." Instead, he coughed twice, his gaze darting away.
Jack also sensed something was wrong. He told Sam to go outside first, and then asked about Lucy's whereabouts.
Tom told the truth, "... It was too chaotic at the time, and I was too busy. I didn't have much contact with Lucy, and I... I completely forgot about her."
Snap!
Jack slapped his forehead.
He couldn't blame Tom for this; he knew that during this time, the old man...
The company is definitely not just busy.
He could only hate himself for his carelessness.
Seeing this, Tom quickly tried to salvage the situation. "You can post a missing person notice on the radio, or you can register at the office to ask for help finding your relatives. There are many people like you now."
" Jack, don't worry too much. We've evacuated quite a few people from New York, Lucy might be inside..."
Jack rubbed his face. "This is the only way."
He left the room, briefly explained the situation to Sam, and then the two went separately to the broadcasting station and the office to leave messages.
Tom was right; there are too many people like them now.
Even in the middle of the night, the line to register information stretched for hundreds of meters. The father and son didn't get their registration forms until morning, and then they didn't hand them in until noon.
Then they entered a long waiting period. Apart from waiting, they could only choose to search for themselves in the refuge, a method that also had little hope.
But they, and others who have lost contact with their families and friends, have no other choice.
In the blink of an eye, a week has passed.
The storm that swept across the Northern Hemisphere has largely subsided, but the temperature drop has not recovered, and the snow on the ground has yet to melt.
However, as long as one is properly covered up, even without the protective suits for Wandering Spacetime, humans can still move around in the outside world.
It was under these circumstances that both domestic and international authorities began sending reconnaissance teams abroad, on the one hand to search for possible survivors, and on the other hand to assess the disaster situation at various important locations.
The most important areas are the various reserve warehouses.
Before the disaster, the Rim Pacific Rim Spacetime Agency gritted its teeth and advanced a considerable amount of supplies to support the evacuation and disaster relief efforts. It was thanks to the support of these supplies that countries were able to focus wholeheartedly on the relocation of their people without having to worry about logistics.
According to the agreement, the Day After Tomorrow Spacetime will immediately repay the equivalent amount of supplies to the Pacific Rim Spacetime after the storm ends.
Despite the current difficult situation, all countries understand the priorities and know that this debt cannot be delayed. They immediately opened their domestic warehouses and took out the supplies to return the debt.
Some countries facing genuinely significant difficulties also anxiously contacted Zhang Tianyuan and Ning Jihua through Elder Zhong's channels. After discussions, they converted the donated supplies into debts and agreed on a repayment date...
Besides these, there are many other tasks involved in the post-disaster recovery work, such as the return of residents and the resumption of production in various sectors.
Of particular importance are industry and agriculture.
Of these two fields, agriculture is the most important.
"Given the current temperature and weather conditions, agricultural production will inevitably face unprecedented challenges in the future. Even in the Southern Hemisphere and low-latitude regions, which were less affected by this disaster, the future outlook is not optimistic..."
"Some say the disaster is over, but I don't think so. This is just the beginning of the real disaster."
At the meeting on future agricultural development convened by Elder Zhong, all attendees were deeply worried, their hearts filled with unspeakable anxiety and sense of crisis.
People always need to eat, and growing food from the ground is the most convenient and lowest-cost method.
Climate change is now having a significant impact on the stability of agriculture.
The land in the north is now and will be difficult to cultivate in the future, and as for low-latitude countries and the Southern Hemisphere, it's uncertain what disasters might occur in those places.
Changes in the climate system affect the entire planet.
As part of this, the Southern Hemisphere and the equator are in no way able to escape it.
Maybe in another year or two, these are the places that will be hit by superstorms?
Therefore, it is still unknown whether these places are still suitable for agricultural production.
Zhang Tianyuan and Liu Chunshi, as representatives of the Mutual Aid Society and meteorological science, attended the meeting and listened to the entire meeting.
During the meeting, Liu Chunshi also explained to everyone the expected future climate development trends and recent weather forecasts from various regions, which included some worrying situations.
For example, typhoons have started appearing more frequently at sea, with a frequency and timing completely different from before...
Zhang Tianyuan silently pondered how to break the deadlock. Although many people were secretly focusing their attention on him, he did not utter a single word until the meeting ended.
This left those who were paying attention to him somewhat disappointed.
In addition, after the meeting, Zhang Tianyuan learned another piece of news from Elder Zhong:
"They've sent someone over now, wanting to meet with me?"
"They want to join the Mutual Aid Society?"