Key Facts Of The Day 6/8

Hurricanes

• Tropical Storm Alex, with 60 MPH winds, became the first named storm of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season.
  • In Florida, it flooded streets and left drivers stranded in some cities over the weekend, while in Cuba it killed three people, damaged dozens of homes, and knocked out electricity in some areas.
  • The storm’s appearance was unusually early for the Atlantic hurricane season, which officially began a week ago, but it is not unprecedented for Florida.
• California officials will decide today whether to approve construction of a seawall to prevent the rising ocean from destroying a crumbling cliff that supports tracks for one of the nation’s busiest Amtrak lines.
  • Other proposed solutions include stabilizing the bluff with steel pillars. 
  • There’s also a plan to relocate the tracks, a major undertaking that’s estimated to cost billions of dollars.
  • Flooding on the tracks has forced local authorities to stop or slow trains repeatedly.
  • The Government Accountability Office warned in a report last month that ballooning disaster costs related to climate change are creating an “unsustainable fiscal future.”

Wildfires

• As of Wednesday, there are currently 16 large active wildfires that have burned 762,545 across AK, AZ, CO, and NM. As of Wednesday, 28,764 wildfires have burned 2,011,197 acres across the country.
• In Alaska, 10 fires have burned 59,023 acres as of Wednesday.
  • In Alaska, crews are working to protect several structures from a fire burning west of Talkeetna.
• In Arizona, 1 fire has burned 7,598 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Colorado, 1 fire has burned 242 acres as of Wednesday.
• In New Mexico, 4 fires have burned 695,682 acres as of Wednesday.
  • The Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire has burned 318,172 acres and is 65% contained as of Wednesday.
    • The governor’s office confirmed Tuesday that several hundred homes are estimated to have been destroyed by the fire. That number will likely increase as inspections and documentation is ongoing.
    • Gov. Lujan Grisham and other top elected officials have called for the federal government to cover 100% of recovery costs.
  • The Black Fire has burned 293,680 acres and is 46% contained as of Wednesday.

Extreme Heat

• Temperatures are soaring from Texas to California this week, with readings topping 110 degrees in some areas and an escalating danger of heat-related illnesses. 
  • On Tuesday, several record highs were set in Texas:
    • 117 degrees in Rio Grand Village
    • 103 degrees in Austin 
    • 104 degrees in San Antonio
  • Midland, Texas topped 100 degrees for the 13th time in 2022, more than twice as many times as in 2021.
  • The National Weather Service has issued much of southeast California, southern Nevada, and southern Arizona with excessive heat warnings.
    • The Phoenix area is under an excessive heat warning through Monday. The city is forecast to hit 106 to 110 degrees on Wednesday and Thursday before lurching to 112 on Friday and 113 on Saturday.
    • In Yuma, Arizona, both weekend days should peak around 112 degrees.
    • Death Valley is forecast to see highs over 120 degrees Friday and Saturday — near records for the time of year.
    • Las Vegas could also challenge records Friday and Saturday, with highs around 110 degrees.
    • In California, forecast highs on Friday include 102 in Redding, 105 in Chico, Sacramento, and Fresno, and 103 in Bakersfield.
• Climate change and rapid population growth are shrinking the Great Salt Lake, creating a bowl of toxic dust that could poison the air around Salt Lake City, Utah.
• Decades of drought could soon force Arizona to tap the reserves of excess Colorado River water that the Arizona Water Bank has stored away.
• Panelists told a Senate Agriculture subcommittee that long-term water shortages could make farming impractical in parts of the West.

New Reports And Data

• A June 2022 report found that oil and gas companies underreported methane leaks.
• A June 2022 study found that wind turbines have increased local incomes by around 5% and house values by 2.6% in parts of the U.S.