Key Facts Of The Day 2/8

Storms and Flooding

• On Wednesday, a storm system will bring severe weather, including the potential for tornadoes,  across the south-central U.S.
  • The main threat of severe weather will focus on the interstate 10, 20, 40, and 55 corridors that include Louisiana, Mississippi, and southeastern Arkansas.
  • A moderate risk of severe weather and tornadoes includes the cities of New Orleans, Monroe, and Alexandria, Louisiana, as well as Jackson and Vicksburg, Mississippi.
  • Heavy rain will hit the northwestern and central Gulf coast through the lower Ohio Valley and into the mid-Mississippi Valley.
    • While the rain may help provide a small boost in Mississippi River levels, quick runoff could lead to flooding problems.
• For nearly six days, people across Central and East Texas lived without power after an ice storm downed power lines and caused widespread outages last week.

Wildfire

• As of February 3, there are currently 0  large active wildfires that have burned 0 acres across the country.
• As of February 3, 1,688 wildfires have burned 12,882 acres across the country.

Extreme Heat

• According to NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, January 2023 was the nation’s sixth warmest on record, with an average temperature of 35.2 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont each had their warmest January on record.
  • Indiana, New York, and Pennsylvania saw their second-warmest January on record, with 17 additional states experiencing a top-10 warmest January.
• In 2022, around 36.3 million trees died in California primarily due to drought conditions which also exacerbated insect infestations and diseases.
  • Abnormally high temperatures and overcrowded forests choked with dead trees also played a role in the increased mortality.
• In drought-stricken states, fossil fuel production jeopardizes limited water supplies.
  • Some oil and gas production processes use large quantities of water, the pollution threatens nearby water sources, and the emissions contribute to climate change, exacerbating drought and aridification.

New Reports and Data

• A February 2023 study found that tree inventories in the Southeast and south-central parts of the U.S. could shrink by as much as 40% from 2020 baseline scenarios due to rising temperatures and shifting precipitation patterns.
• A February 2023 study found that at least 15 million people worldwide live in the flood paths of dangerous glacial lakes that can abruptly burst their banks and rush down mountainsides.
• A February 2023 report found that climate change and other environmental factors contribute to the rise of antimicrobial resistance.