Key Facts Of The Day 4/29

Storms and Flooding

• A strong storm system moving Friday through the Rockies and Plains will whip up winds, raising worries of tornadoes on the Great Plains.

  • Overall the severe storm threat encompasses over 10 million people across the Central Plains, where multiple forecast scenarios are expected to unfold this afternoon and continue into tonight.

  • The Storm Prediction Center has increased the threat of severe storms to a level 4 out of 5 “moderate” risk across portions of Kansas and Nebraska, including Lincoln and Hastings.

  • A few strong tornadoes and very large hail are also still possible Friday afternoon and into the overnight hours.

  • On Saturday, the Midwestern cities of St. Louis, Chicago, and Indianapolis will see the threat of severe storms.

• The growing threat of tornadoes in the South prompts demand for more storm shelters.

  • Over a two-week period starting March 22, there were 49 confirmed tornadoes in Mississippi, that’s nearly as many as were reported in all of March, April, and May last year.

  • As the frequency of tornadoes increases, the vulnerability of residents across the southeast, which is more densely populated than the traditional tornado alley in the Plains, has become a top concern.

• Princeville, on the banks of the Tar River in eastern North Carolina, is a historic Black town that has flooded many times and has endured racism, bigotry, and attempts by white neighbors to erase it from the map.

Wildfires

• As of Friday, there are currently 13 large active wildfires that have burned 236,407 acres across AZ, FL, OK, NC, NE, NM, NV, and VA. As of Friday, 21,461 wildfires have burned 1,089,766 acres across the country.

• As of Friday, the Tunnel Fire in Arizona has burned 19,075 and is 89% contained.

• As of Friday, the Hermits Peak fire in New Mexico has burned 64,394 acres and is 37% contained.

• As of Friday the Cooks Peak Fire in New Mexico has burned 55,931 acres and is 54% contained.

• New Mexico has already reached its annual rate of fire activity and it’s only April.

• Red flag warnings have been issued as winds will be whipping in some of the driest air yet, particularly in Kansas, Colorado, and New Mexico.

• Friday’s fire danger will rise to the level 3 of 3 “extremely critical” range, as conditions worsen.

Extreme Heat

• The Southwest and southern Plains saw further drought intensification in the last week with exceptional drought broadly expanding in New Mexico and moderate to severe drought increasing in coverage across parts of Arizona and Colorado.

• New research found that if humanity’s greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase, roughly a third of all marine animals could vanish within 300 years.

  • The oceans have absorbed a third of the carbon and 90% of the excess heat created by humans.

  • Rising ocean temperatures are shifting the boundaries of marine creatures’ comfort zones. Many are fleeing northward in search of cooler waters, causing “extirpation” — or local disappearance — of once-common species.

  • Polar creatures that can survive only in the most frigid conditions may soon find themselves with nowhere to go.

  • Species that can’t easily move in search of new habitats, such as fish that depend on specific coastal wetlands or geologic formations on the seafloor, will be more likely to die out.

  • Research revealed that most animals can’t afford to lose much more than 50% of their habitat — beyond that number, a species tips into irreversible decline.

  • If the world takes swift action to curb fossil fuel use and restore degraded ecosystems, the researchers say, it could cut potential extinctions by 70%.

• A new United Nations report released Wednesday shows farming, mining, and logging have altered 70% of Earth’s lands from their natural state and degraded up to 40%.

  • If these trends continue, experts expect growing disruptions to human health, food supplies, migration, and biodiversity loss driven by climate change.

New Reports And Data

• An April 2022 study found that if humanity’s greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase, according to a study released Thursday, roughly a third of all marine animals could vanish within 300 years.

• An April 2022 report found that tropical regions lost 9.3 million acres of primary old-growth forest in 2021, which resulted in 2.5 billion metric tons of emissions of carbon dioxide.

• An April 2022 report found that people have altered 70% of Earth’s lands from their natural state and degraded up to 40%.