The days keep passing, but the images of devastation and the echo of laments have not ceased to be heard[stopped coming from] across the Flor- ida Straits. For the Cuban exile com- munity, the pain is mixed with the impotence and frus- tration of not being able to do anything -- or do enough to remedy the needs of loved ones.

There has been a lot of good will and solidarity in these days in which the images of the Cuban landscape reveal a ravaged nation that has lost hope. Yet little has been said about a possible mass exo- dus, as time passes without and victims can't envision envisioning a short-term solution decide to leave their island. Nor has there been any talk of the profound emotional and socioeconomic consequences that a migratory crisis could bring us.

Many Cubans on the island are despairing over material losses and shortages, but their sentiment is not being channeled into public protests that would prompt government repression. Mean- while, the Havana regime in Havana refuses to accept unrestricted assistance from the United States and 25 European nations, despite admitting that the island's reserves are insufficient to cover $5 billion in damages.

But let's not forget that U.S. border security took a radical turn after 2002, and the threat of an exodus would be perceived by Washington as an act of war.

Yet the sea remains a way out for Cubans on the island, and for the networks of smugglers that reap the profits.

Last week a Cuban who was trying to get to Florida illegally died from head injuries. His and others' demise at sea serve as reminders of the danger- ous conditions in which people are smuggled aboard overloaded vessels run by unscrupulous criminals, who some times also kidnap the immigrants to extort money from their families. The illegal voyages have increased in price: [between] $10,000 and up to $15,000 per person. Although it seems tough and it hurts to accept it, those who finance these illicit activities are also responsible.

The potential for an exodus now can't be discarded, because it would unleash a

humanitarian crisis.

Is our community ready? I don't mean the public safety aspect. Are we emotionally prepared to confront the tension that a migratory crisis would generate between Cubans and non-Cu- bans? Or the crisis that would develop between the different factions of the exile community.

Suppose Cubans are all at sea and the Coast Guard sets up an "ocean con- tainment wall." There are several pos- sible scenarios. Pressure to let [allow] the Cubans enter [in] would come from their rela- tives in Miami.[; others would advocate] Send sending them to Guantánamo and set [set- ting] up programs with third countries. Would another agreement be made such as wet-foot/dry-foot [policy] and the 20,000 reunification visas, or would they simply be returned?

During the 1980 and 1994 crises, the migrants eventually arrived in South Florida. However, today we are faced with somber economic indicators and a shortage of resources among local relief agencies. Could the new arrivals

be absorbed by the community?

More complicated than sending aid is receiving thousands of people and giving room and board to relatives in one's own home. Besides the family dimension of the problem, it is trou- bling to think of the pressures that would be placed on social services, the school system and healthcare facilities.

Meanwhile, the days keep passing and the Cubans try to recover slowly and arduously, but the destruction of almost a half million homes and the colossal agricultural losses have made the specter of famine a real possibility.

These are precisely the conditions that foster human trafficking and could unleash a mass exodus. Conscience and respect for life must prevail, so family members should focus on legal means of reunification and not suc- cumb to human trafficking.

Because forced to face a mass exo- dus, we will have only prayer to save us.

The price to be paid here and there would be enormous.

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