ONN BREAKING NEWS: Chaos in the Aftermath of Collisions
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Originally Broadcast on March 30th, 2495
ONN News Desk/Saeko Mori Reporting
In the aftermath of the meteorite showers experienced yesterday by Cocoon and Mnemosyne Stations, not all are sympathetic to those affected. Across the stations, reports of vandalism and looting have come in over the last several hours.
Cocoon Station, long a hotbed of various illegal dealings, is no stranger to protests, riots, looting and vandalism. But today marks the first instance of looting following a natural disaster in recent history. We interviewed citizens on the streets about today's happenings to hear their viewpoints.
The video cuts to a short woman wearing semi-transparent shades and with her hair in a multi-coloured mullet, studded jacket hanging off otherwise bare shoulders and a tank top that reads "Motley's Afterparty", the name of a club in Nu York.
"I think that it's a symptom, and we shouldn't lie to ourselves about it. How many people who are well off do you see looting businesses? Nobody that makes enough. Maybe if they're a spoiled jackass and they do it for fun. Pay these people more? Lower rent? Make it so hospital care doesn't bankrupt them? Hey, maybe the looting won't happen, huh?"
The feed goes to a tall, blue and silver-skinned mutant with fish gills and black eyes, hair pulled back into a high tail. Ambiguous in gender, they're wearing a heavy, patterned duffle coat, hands deep in the pockets.
"What's there to say? I got a call from work. Said, "Don't come in today". Thought I was fired. Turns out, I don't have a job, but not for that reason. These looters are fucked up. I gotta pay my bills bro, you don't need a fucking free TV."
One more cut finds the camera pointed at a stout suited man, lapel adorned in colourful pins. His accent is heavy, from a European sky city, and he's holding an umbrella with the holographic logo of a designer company.
"Well I think this is a prime example of why Armitech pulling up their operations was a bad idea. It's clear that these security contractors have no handle on the situation. You don't see rioting in Luna after what happened, do you? NO! Because Matsumoto is still there."
The camera shows Saeko Mori behind the reporting desk once more.
While opinions differ on the looting itself, one thing is for certain. Earlier this afternoon, three Cocoon businesses were reported to have had fires started outside and their employees and patrons assaulted and left shaken by the ordeal. GT+T's Trauma Team, Shinsoku Forgeworks and The Free Company have been responding around the clock on Cocoon Station and Luna Colony. Be it putting out fires, supplying life-saving medical care to injured citizens or stopping the looters in progress, their personnel have gone above and beyond to supply much needed relief wherever it is needed most.
We've attempted to reach out to the groups for comment, though given the situation is still developing, it may be some time before we hear statements from each - if at all.
In the coming days, Cocoon's fires will die down, the air will clear and we will be left with only the question of rebuilding. Normalcy seems fleeting in the aftermath of disaster.
ONN News Desk, Saeko Mori reporting.