California’s Fires And Drought Are A Preview Of Future, When Simultaneous Disasters May Become Commonplace
Florida has also been hit with multiple natural disasters recently: extreme drought but also Hurricane Michael. And New York can expect to be hit by four climate crises at a time by 2100 if carbon emissions continue at their current pace, a new study finds. While wealthy nations will be burdened with the costs of such disasters, poorer nations will experience great loss of life from them, the authors say.
The New York Times:
‘Like A Terror Movie’: How Climate Change Will Cause More Simultaneous Disasters
Global warming is posing such wide-ranging risks to humanity, involving so many types of phenomena, that by the end of this century some parts of the world could face as many as six climate-related crises at the same time, researchers say. This chilling prospect is described in a paper published Monday in Nature Climate Change, a respected academic journal, that shows the effects of climate change across a broad spectrum of problems, including heat waves, wildfires, sea level rise, hurricanes, flooding, drought and shortages of clean water. (Schwartz, 11/19)
San Jose Mercury News:
California Fires: Why More Disasters Like Paradise Are Likely
Fire crews are still working to contain the deadly inferno that leveled the town of Paradise, virtually wiping it off the map. Thousands of people are homeless, living in tents, trailers and parking lots. Dozens are dead. Hundreds are still missing. And massive, choking plumes of smoke continue to blanket Northern California. Forecasters say rain might arrive by Thanksgiving to clear away the smoke and mercifully reduce fire danger. But the optimism is tempered by a grim reality. Scientists say as temperatures continue to warm, drying out brush, grasses and trees into explosively flammable fuel by late summer and autumn, catastrophic fires and the unhealthy smoke they spew hundreds of miles away will almost certainly become more frequent in California and across the West in the coming years. (Rogers, 11/19)