No. 23 of 108
July 6, 2025
In the aftermath of historic floods in central Texas with more rain on its way, over 800 have been rescued by neighbors, strangers, emergency responders, and volunteers from across Texas and multiple states, including the Cajun Navy, a volunteer disaster rescue group that emerged from Louisiana following Hurricane Katrina. The death toll is now at eighty, and dozens are missing. Across the United States (and across the world), there has been an increase in 100-year storms and 1000-year storms. For example, in North Carolina, there have been nine 100-year storms since 1999. The term “100-year storm” doesn’t mean that the epic (as much wind, as much rain, as much flooding, as much fill in the blank) storm comes once in a hundred years. It means there is a one percent chance of such a storm in any given year. Meteorologists are calculating most severe storms should be considered as 25-year storms, as in a twenty-five percent chance of a severe storm happening in any given year. Nearly every severe storm research project, lab, and group have been defunded by the federal government.
The “why” of severe storms separate us politically. The storm doesn’t care whether we believe that human activity impacts climate change, or not. During and after a storm, humans from across the political spectrum arise to be in support of each other, not caring (for a long moment) whether we believe that human activity impacts climate change, or not. This is the best of humanity’s compassion. Tragically, whether we believe or not has become a factor in how well we prepare, how vigorously we pursue the science of severe storms to better predict their patterns and impacts, and whether we accept and therefore plan for increasing incidences of severe storms. This is the nadir of humanity’s wisdom.
No. 23 of 108