Key Facts Of The Day 10/21

Hurricanes

• As cold air and surging warmth collide, a storm system will unleash a variety of travel-disrupting weather impacts such as heavy snow, severe weather, and winds up to 90 MPH across the nation’s midsection.
  • Everything from strong, dry winds to severe thunderstorms capable of producing heavy rain, hail, and even tornadoes will erupt in the southeastern zone of the developing storm where warmer air will be in place.
  • On the storm’s northwestern flank, the combination of plunging temperatures, heavy snow, and gusty winds may produce localized blizzard conditions.
• After Hurricane Ian caused devastation across Florida and other parts of the East Coast, communities deal with the aftermath and start recovery efforts.
  • Many of the residents and business owners hardest hit by the storm are those least able to afford the high costs of rebuilding.
    • Hurricane shutters or impact-resistant windows alone, required in new construction, add thousands of dollars in additional building costs
  • After a walloping by Hurricane Ian, South Seas Island Resort on Captiva is laying off 238 employees.
  • Weeks after Ian made landfall, animal rescue workers are still finding pets that disappeared during the storm and trying to connect them to their owners.
  • Hundreds of large farm animals were killed by high winds and floods that tore through agricultural fields. 
    • Over 200 hundred cows perished at the Dakin Dairy Farm in Myakka City, Fla.
• Kentucky’s efforts to create a normal school year after summer floods show the new reality of climate change.
  • The 25 affected school districts reopened weeks past their normal schedule, and damage to schools in the region may top $100 million.
  • School systems, already with aging buildings and deferred maintenance are often left vulnerable in the aftermath of extreme weather events.
  • The damage to West Whitesburg Elementary was so extensive that its roughly 430 students were moved into Letcher County Central High School. School opening was delayed more than a month.
    • School officials hope to rebuild West Whitesburg Elementary, within the next two years.
  • In Perry County, another area devastated by flooding, two elementary schools were consolidated into a school building, that had closed five years ago.

Wildfires

• As of Friday, there are currently 30 large active wildfires that have burned 534,352 across CA, ID, IN, KY, MT, OK, OR, TN, TX, and WA. As of Friday, 56,856 wildfires have burned 7,026,251 acres across the country.
• In California, 1 fire has burned 76,788 acres as of Friday.
  • The Mosquito Fire has burned 76,788 acres and is 95% contained as of Friday.
• In Oregon,3 fires have burned 298,778 acres as of Friday.
  • The Cedar Creek Fire has burned 126,690 acres and is 55% contained as of Friday.
• In Texas, 1 fire has burned 483 acres as of Friday.
• In Washington, 14 fires have burned 53,564 acres as of Friday.

Extreme Heat

• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasters are predicting a mild and dry winter for the southern tier of the U.S., including already drought-stricken areas in the lower Mississippi River Valley and the Southwest.
  • The forecast is largely driven by an expectation that La Niña will persist for a third straight winter, something that has only occurred a handful of times over the past 50 years.
  • The forecast also means no slowing in the momentum of a megadrought in California and the West, with no relief for the parched Colorado River basin and dangerously depleted Southwest reservoirs like Lake Mead and Lake Powell.
  • Below-normal precipitation could also continue to be a problem for the Mississippi River, as low water levels have slowed barge traffic and threatened municipal water supplies.
• Continuing La Niña weather is expected to bring above-average rainfall for parts of Hawaii, but drought conditions could persist over some areas of the islands.
  • Ranchers and farmers are hardest hit by the Hawaii drought, as invasive axis deer encroach upon pastures intended for livestock and eat the produce.

New Reports and Data

• An October 2022 study found that when wildfires burn in the west, their heat and airborne particles inflict stronger rain and larger hail upon central states.
• An October 2022 study found that climate change will make dangerous temperatures more common during Arba’een by the end of the 21st century, threatening participants with an increased risk of heat-related illness.
• An October 2022 study found that after a large fire, in a fragmented urban landscape, mountain lions who were already at risk of extinction increased behaviors that would put them at risk of negative encounters with humans and other mountain lions.