Facts Of The Day 9/15

Extreme Heat

• With all of Montana under some sort of drought condition, crops including winter, spring and durum wheat, barley, and alfalfa are expected to have low yields for 2021.

• The megadrought heating the Western United States forced cattle ranchers to slaughter an additional 38.2 million pounds of livestock between June 2020 and June 2021, representing an annual growth of 30%.

  • The drought is also causing cows to produce fewer calves, which will ultimately force beef prices to rise in 2022.

• Some farmers in California have been so upset by Governor Gavin Newsom’s handling of the water crisis in the state that one dairy farmer bought $44,000 worth of anti-Newsom billboard advertising in the state’s Central Valley region for the recall effort.

• One farmer in Bedford County, Virginia has lost between $50,000 to $75,000 on his 1,300 acres of soybean crops because of the drought.

• Despite the drought, Washington apple growers expect a 2021 yield of 124.8 million 40-pound boxes, which is a 2.3% increase from last year’s 122-million-box crop.

• Multiple schools in Independence, Ohio closed on Tuesday due to the heat.

• The megadrought afflicting the Western United States has reduced Colorado’s reservoir, Blue Mesa, to 28%, forcing seasonal employees who would normally work into October to start job searching in August.

• Due to the drought in Utah, Midway City, Utah is limiting lawn watering to once a week.

• New Jersey experienced 6 heat waves during the summer of 2021, ranging from 3 to 5 days in length.

  • New Brunswick, New Jersey, experienced 36 days where the temperature hit at least 90 degrees.

Wildfires

• As of Tuesday, there are currently 78 large active wildfires that have burned 3,168,562 acres across CA, CO, ID, MN, MT, NV, WA, OR, UT, WA and WY. This year to date, 44,740 wildfires have burned 5,609,865 acres across the country.

• One fire was contained in California on Tuesday – the Bridge Fire burned 411 acres.

• In California, the Dixie Fire burned 960,470 acres and was 75% contained as of Wednesday.

  • The Dixie Fire has burned an area that is larger than New York City, Chicago, Dallas and Los Angeles combined.

• In California, the KNP Complex Fire burned 5,861 acres and was 0% contained as of Wednesday.

  • The KNP Fire threatens the ancient sequoia trees in Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks.

• One fire was contained in Idaho on Tuesday – the Scarface Fire burned 7,806 acres.

• One fire was contained in Montana on Tuesday – the Hay Creek Fire burned 2,894 acres.

• One new fire was contained in Wyoming on Tuesday – the Muddy Slide Fire burned  4,093 acres.

Hurricanes

• Tropical Storm Nicholas dropped almost 14 inches of rain to Galveston, Texas on Tuesday, while Houston, Texas received almost 6 inches.

  • As of Wednesday morning, Nicholas was located about 25 miles west of Port Arthur, Texas, and 35 miles west of Lake Charles, Louisiana, moving east-northeast at 3 mph with winds of 30 MPH.

  • At the height of the storm, 450,000 people across Texas lost power due to Nicholas.

  • As of Wednesday morning, more than 123,000 people in Texas still do not have electricity because of Nicholas.

  • Damage from Nicholas across Texas includes debris in roadways, downed trees that landed on homes and businesses, and flooded homes and businesses.

• As of Wednesday morning, Louisiana could receive 6 to 14 inches of rain from Nicholas, and parts of the state along with Mississippi, Alabama and Florida are under flash flood watches.

  • Southern Louisiana through New Orleans and into the Florida Panhandle could see 4 to 10 inches of rain, with flooding possible in New Orleans.

  • As of Tuesday, over 87,000 people in Louisiana still do not have power.

  • More than 1,000 Louisiana residents remain in shelters because of Hurricane Ida as of Wednesday morning.

  • Hurricane warnings were issued for parts of southern Louisiana on Wednesday morning.

  • At least 10 of 14 deaths in New Orleans, Louisiana, have been tied to heat after Hurricane Ida left thousands without electricity to power fans and air conditioners.

  • Lafourche Parish in Louisiana, which may not see power restored until the end of September or early October, has been coping with a lack of supplies and water-damaged homes while waiting for assistance.

  • A 12-foot, 504-pound alligator suspected of killing a 71-year-old man during Hurricane Ida was captured and was found to have human remains in its stomach on Monday morning.

  • As of Tuesday, about 2 million acres of fish have been killed in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, which is expected to affect recreational and commercial fishing for the immediate future.

• Hurricane Ida dropped 11 inches of rain on Lambertville, New Jersey at a rate of 3 to 4 inches per hour, causing some of the worst flash floodings in living memory.

  • In Lambertville, New Jersey, one family has lost their entire home and is staying with relatives while another resident lost his heat, generator, and tool shed and has a 6-foot crater in the driveway because of Ida.

  • Manville, New Jersey residents are upset that debris they cleared up from Ida, which dropped 10 inches of rain on the city, has not been cleaned up.

  • A 3rd body has been pulled from the Passaic River in New Jersey after a search of 3 people who had been swept away by Ida but authorities have not confirmed as of Wednesday morning if it was connected to the storm.

Climate Studies