This summer has been notably impacted by intense rainfall and flooding. States including Texas, New Mexico, North Carolina, Illinois, New York, and New Jersey have faced significant flood events recently. Earlier this month, the nation experienced at least four rainfall events classified as 1,000-year storms within a single week.
In June, flash floods claimed at least nine lives in West Virginia after 2.5 to 4 inches of rain fell in parts of Ohio County in just half an hour.
In early July, over 120 people lost their lives in Central Texas’s Hill Country when heavy rains caused the Guadalupe River to surge near Carville in just 90 minutes.
A few days later, a devastating flash flood in a remote village in Ruidoso, New Mexico, resulted in at least three fatalities.
Earlier this week, Central Park in New York City recorded more than two inches of rain within an hour, marking the second-highest hourly rainfall in the city’s history, according to New York City’s emergency management.
Las Schumacher, the director of Colorado State University and the Colorado Climate Center for State Climate Scientist, noted that the recent flash floods can partly be attributed to the summer months being the peak time for storms.
“From June to October, we often see significant rainfall in various parts of the country,” he mentioned, highlighting that the Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1st to November 30th.
However, studies indicate that climate change is likely to exacerbate storm frequency and severity, increasing the chances of heavy rains and flooding.
“A warmer atmosphere holds a greater amount of water vapor, which contributes to rainfall,” Schumacher explained. “The evidence supporting this is very compelling.”
Despite this, the surge in warnings today compared to the past can be attributed to advancements in the ability to detect and track weather systems.
Over the past four decades, radar technology and meteorological models have seen substantial improvements, leading to an increase in the number of warnings issued during extreme weather situations.
“The systems we had in the ’80s are not comparable to those we use today,” he remarked. “With enhanced radar and a broad array of data sources, it’s expected that we’ll see more warnings simply because our technology is evolving.”
These warnings are vital not only for saving lives but also for safeguarding infrastructure like susceptible dams, levees, and drainage systems during flood events, Aghakouchak stated.
“It serves as a reminder that such events can lead to catastrophe,” he said. “The floods in Texas were a significant disaster, and we must always be prepared.”
Source: www.nbcnews.com
