Hurricane Delta recently made landfall in Louisiana and Texas as the first-ever hurricane to strike the United States with a name taken from the Greek alphabet — a convention signifying that weather forecasters had run through their typical list of 21 rotating, alphabetical names. Yet nearly two months still remain in the Atlantic hurricane season, a season marked by the unique challenges of preparation, evacuation, and rebuilding amidst a deadly respiratory pandemic. President Trump’s denial of science in the face of the pandemic and his refusal to address the underlying causes that fuel disasters like heat waves, fires, and hurricanes continue to put American lives at risk. The consequences of his failure are particularly clear in poor communities and communities of color, who find themselves on the front lines of the interlocking crises of pandemic deaths and storm damage. Below, we lay out how Trump’s lack of leadership worsens the deadly cycle of disasters plaguing America.
Trump’s refusal to act on climate could be worsening hurricanes
Scientists agree: Human activity is increasing the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, and that’s fueling more powerful hurricanes. Often, these supercharged hurricanes move slowly and hold more water, saturating an area with devastating rainfall — as was the case with Hurricane Florence in North Carolina and Hurricane Harvey in Houston. While the science on this is still under examination, it also appears that the rapid intensification that has occurred with hurricanes like Delta is also linked to our warming planet.
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