Key Facts Of The Day 07/27

Hurricanes

• On Tuesday morning, record-breaking rainfall caused widespread flash flooding in St. Louis, Missouri.
  • The flash floods killed at least one person.
  • In St. Louis’ Ellendale neighborhood, fire personnel checked about 18 flooded homes and rescued six people and six dogs by boat.
  • All four interstate highways heading to downtown St. Louis – I-70, I-64, I-55, and I-44 – had at least one closure because of flooding early Tuesday.
  • Parts of the St. Louis area’s MetroLink commuter rail system were flooded.
  • On Tuesday, more than 6,000 power outages were reported in St. Louis County and more than 1,100 in neighboring St. Charles County.
  • In the city, more than 9 inches of rain fell from late Monday to Tuesday, surpassing the city’s highest 24-hour rainfall total on record, which was 7.02 inches on August 19-20, 1915.
    • In the wider St. Louis area, about 6 to 10 inches of rain fell from midnight to 6 a.m.
    • Of the more than 9 inches that fell in 24 hours in St. Louis, 7.68 inches fell in just six hours.
    • Based on historical data, rainfall that intense in St. Louis has less than a 1 in 1,000 chance of happening in a given year.
    • The climate crisis makes such extremes more frequent and supercharges rainfall worldwide.

Wildfires

• As of Wednesday, there are currently 79 large active wildfires that have burned 2,765,545 across AK, CA, FL, HI, ID, MT, NV, OK, TX, UT, and WY. As of Wednesday, 38,579 wildfires have burned 5,585,727 acres across the country.
• In Alaska, 60 fires have burned 2,665,122 acres as of Wednesday.
• In California, 2 fires have burned 23,413 acres as of Wednesday.
  • The Oak Fire has burned 18,532 acres and is 26% contained as of Wednesday.
  • The Washburn Fire has burned 4,881 acres and is 91% contained as of Wednesday.
• In Florida, 1 fire has burned 1,200 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Hawaii, 1 fire has burned 2,368 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Idaho, 3 fires have burned 39,416 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Montana, 2 fires have burned 1,133 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Nevada, 3 fires have burned 7,997 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Oklahoma, 1 fire has burned 4,000 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Texas, 4 fires have burned 8,799 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Utah, 1 fire has burned 11,701 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Wyoming, 1 fire has burned 396 acres as of Wednesday.

Extreme Heat

• On Tuesday, the Biden Administration launched the website Heat.gov which coordinates information on extreme heat.
• As of Wednesday morning, in the U.S., more than 44 million people are under extreme heat advisories, watches, or warnings.
  • Throughout the Pacific Northwest, temperatures are forecast to be the highest of the summer and aren’t predicted to drop until the weekend.
  • Seattle, Washington, and Portland, Oregon are under excessive heat warnings until Thursday evening.
    • Seattle may see temperatures hit 90 on four consecutive days through Friday, while Portland may get afternoon temperatures hovering near 100.
  • Access to air conditioning is a complicating factor that amplifies risk in vulnerable populations such as the elderly and homeless.
  • Many cities will also see elevated nighttime temperatures, which will keep homes without air conditioning uncomfortably warm.
• In San Antonio, Texas, extreme heat disproportionately affects low-income residents.
  • Low-income residents have few options to relieve themselves from the heat.
  • Some residents in the Westside have to take a bus to get to the cooling centers, and with little shade, waiting for a bus can often be an excruciating experience.
  • Simple things like venturing into the backyard, walking to the store, or waiting for a bus can be dangerous on the hottest days.
  • San Antonio has seen at least 46 days of 100-plus-degree weather so far this year.
• Water supply becomes harder to predict as snow disappears.
  • A 2022 study found that a steadily warmer climate will produce 45 more snow-free days by 2070.
  •  Annual water supplies are predicted by measuring snowmelt.
  • The loss of snow also means some areas in and around the Rocky Mountains and in eastern North America will be particularly vulnerable to water shortages, as gradually melting snow is an important resource.
• On Monday, a third set of human remains were recovered from Lake Mead.
  • The ongoing megadrought in the west has pushed the reservoir’s water level to an unprecedented low.
  • The water levels at Lake Mead are the lowest since the reservoir near Las Vegas was filled for the first time in April 1937 as Hoover Dam.
  • As of Tuesday, Lake Mead was about 1,040 feet above sea level.
  • The lake supplies electricity to 350,000 homes and is also a significant source of irrigation and drinking water to about 25 million people across the Southwest.

New Reports And Data

• A July 2022 study found that exposure to ‘forever chemicals’ in many household products cost the U.S. billions in health costs.
• A July 2022 study found that prenatal and postnatal exposure to air pollution can harm kids.
• A July 2022 study found that Houston residents’ chemical exposure increased post-Hurricane Harvey.