Key Facts Of The Day 07/01

Hurricanes

• On Friday, Tropical Storm Bonnie became the second named storm of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, bringing with it the risk of life-threatening flash flooding and mudslides.
  • By Friday, the storm had strengthened slightly and moved into the southwestern Caribbean Sea. 
  • The Nicaragua-Costa Rica border up to Laguna de Perlas, Nicaragua, was under a hurricane watch, and the storm was expected to move through the area into Saturday.
• Forecasters are watching two other storms in the Atlantic, including one that is expected to bring heavy rain this weekend to the American Gulf Coast, where flood alerts are in effect in Texas and Louisiana.
• Yellowstone National Park is reopening its flood-damaged north loop at noon on Saturday.
  • The loop is reopening nearly three weeks after massive flooding forced thousands to flee the park as water, rocks, and mud washed out bridges and roads.
  • The north and northeast entrance gates at Gardiner and Cooke City, both in Montana, remain closed and there will not be access to the Lamar Valley due to damage from flooding.
  • The backcountry in the northern part of the park will remain closed due to hazardous conditions or damaged trails and bridges. 
• President Joe Biden granted South Dakota’s request for a presidential disaster declaration to aid the recovery from May storms that included over a dozen tornadoes.
  • The storms hit the eastern part of the state on May 12 with tornadoes, straight-line winds, and flooding.
  • Two people were killed, roads were temporarily closed and thousands of people were left without power.

Wildfires

• As of Friday, there are currently 55 large active wildfires that have burned 2,406,184 acres across AK, AZ, CA, GA, NV, NM, NC, OR, TX, UT, and WA. As of Friday, 33,926 wildfires have burned 3,922,641 acres across the country.
• In Alaska, 40 fires have burned 1,610,375 acres as of Friday.
• In Arizona, 4 fires have burned 62,404 acres as of Friday.
• In California, 2 fires have burned 1,291 acres as of Friday.
  • The Rices Fire has burned 904 acres and is 20% contained as of Friday.
    • As of Thursday afternoon, the fire was threatening 250 structures.
    • More than 370 firefighters are working on putting out the fire, and seven of them have been injured.
      • Mary Eldridge, a spokeswoman for the agency’s Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit said that those injuries were related to heat.
    • The small communities of Birchville, Sweetland, French Corral, Bridgeport, Rice’s Crossing, and the Buttermilk area were under evacuation orders.
    • Evacuation warnings were issued for areas of neighboring Yuba County.
• In Georgia, 1 fire has burned 2,213 acres as of Friday.
• In Nevada, 1 fire has burned 1,966 acres as of Friday.
• In New Mexico, 2 fires have burned 666,871 acres as of Friday.
  • The Black Fire has burned 325,136 acres and is 69% contained as of Friday.
  • The Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire has burned 341,735 acres and is 93% contained as of Friday.
• In North Carolina, 1 fire has burned 1,938 acres as of Friday.
• In Oregon, 1 fire has burned 40,274 acres as of Friday.
• In Texas, 1 fire has burned 11,598 acres as of Friday.
• In Utah, 1 fire has burned 4,254 acres as of Friday.
• In Washington, 1 fire has burned 3,000 acres as of Friday.

Extreme Heat

• Texas keeps getting drier as relentless heat saps moisture from the ground. 
  • While the norm is two days, San Antonio, Texas had 17 days of triple-digit heat in June.
  • The average yearly 100-degree day count in San Antonio is 18, the great majority of which typically occur in July and August.
  • San Antonio set eight record highs, soaring to a maximum of 105 on June 12. 
    • The city also set eight record highs in May, and two in April.
  • Del Rio saw 23 days of 100-degree heat, the most on record tied with 2018 and 1953.
  • Austin saw 21 days of 100-degree heat, most on record topping 20 in 2008.
  • Abilene saw 20 days of 100-degree heat, second-most behind 21 in 1953.
  • Waco saw 16 days of 100-degree heat, second-most on record behind 17 in 2011 and 1998.
  • Victoria saw 11 days of 100-degree heat, most on record topping 8 in 2009.
  • Dallas-Fort Worth saw 9 days of 100-degree heat, the fourth-most on record.
  • Houston saw 5 days of 100-degree heat, fifth-most on record.
  • Amid the heat, power demand in Texas soared to an all-time high last week, which ERCOT was only able to meet through new wind and solar power plants.
  • ​​After a pause in 100-degree weather for a few days, triple-digit heat is projected to return to San Antonio next week. 
• As temperatures soar into the 90s on Friday and stay warm throughout the July 4 holiday weekend, animal control officers in Massachusetts are urging residents to look for signs of possible heat stroke in their pets and to leave them home when going for car rides.

New Reports And Data

• A June 2022 study found that anthropogenic climate change is a ‘push’ factor that enhances the risk of wildfires globally. 
• A June 2022 study found that intense heat in the southwestern United States broke records last summer partly because it hit in tandem with an unusually severe drought.
• A June 2022 study found that limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees celsius would reduce risks to humans by up to 85%.