Independent UK - The United States is no stranger to extreme weather, but the accelerating effects of climate change are pushing some regions closer to the brink of uninhabitability. From oppressive heat in the Southwest to rising sea levels and storm surges along the coasts, the challenges are diverse, daunting, and interconnected.
Masada Siegel, a consultant for FEMA and emergency management organizations, knows this reality well. A Phoenix native and mother of a 9-year-old son, Siegel has seen her hometown transform into a hostile environment. Last summer, Phoenix experienced 113 consecutive days over 100°F, the longest streak ever recorded. The average temperature that month was 97°F.
“In the summer at 116 degrees, you’re not laying out by the pool,” Siegel says. “You’re either in the pool, indoors, or in the shade. And then at a certain point, the pool is so hot, it feels like you’re in soup.”
Phoenix saw just 4.54 inches of rain last year — 2.52 inches below normal — and the lack of precipitation, as well as the increased heat, has thrown seasonal rhythms out of sync: “I have a lemon tree that’s flowering in January. My lime tree is flowering in January. They’re not supposed to flower until springtime.” More on the rest of the country
1 comment:
The Idiot in Chief is too stupid to realize the risk he is pushing the American people into .Climate disasters will make it impossible to have a prosperous communities very sdoon. But since Trump wants to kill you, he is unwilling to acknowledge the reality of a changing cliamte and the harm it weill do so he doubles down on pollution.
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