The strongest El Niño on record may be brewing in the Pacific

By Andrew Freedman9 July 2015 (Mashable) – El Niño conditions are intensifying in the tropical Pacific Ocean, potentially leading to a record event that would help control rainfall in East Africa and possibly bring desperately needed drought relief to California, while temporarily cutting off rainfall to parts of the Indonesian rainforest. A record strong event […]

Minnesota air quality plunges as smoke plume from Canada fires descends – ‘The smoke we’re smelling used to be trees in western Canada a few days ago’

By Paul Huttner 6 July 2015 (Minnesota Public Radio) – What next, locusts? Monday morning’s downpours (and flash floods in the east metro) got our attention early. Just when you thought it was safe, the core of the dense smoke plume from over 600 wildfires in Alaska and western Canada arrived. The dense white smoke […]

The weather.com Climate Disruption Index: The 25 most vulnerable U.S. cities

By Michele Berger 6 July 2015 (weather.com) – “There are so many different ways that people will feel the impact of climate change,” says David Easterling, Ph.D., of NOAA’s National Center for Environmental Information. Sea-level rise and flooding. Extreme heat and drought. Extreme precipitation events. Which events matter and how much depends on which part […]

Climate change threatens 50 years of progress in global health, study says – ‘Climate change is a medical emergency’

By Damian Carrington and Sarah Boseley22 June 2015 (The Guardian) – Climate change threatens to undermine half a century of progress in global health, according to a major new report [Policy Responses to Protect Public Health; pdf]. But the analysis also concludes that the benefits to health resulting from slashing fossil fuel use are so […]

Floodwaters causing new Gulf of Mexico dead zone off Texas

By Rusty Surette18 June 2015 COLLEGE STATION (KBTX) – Record rainfall totals in many parts of Texas the past few weeks means a record amount of freshwater pouring into the Gulf of Mexico – as high as 10 times the normal rate – and that could lead to huge problems for marine life and commercial […]

Video: Zoo animals on the loose after deadly flooding hits Tbilisi, Georgia

  By Sofia Chaava, Matthew Grimson, and Ian Sherwood14 June 2015 (NBC News) – Georgia mobilized its special forces on Sunday and warned residents in the capital not to leave their homes after lions, tigers and bears — among other animals — escaped during floods that have claimed at least 11 lives. Heavy rains and […]

Global warming may have amplified record-breaking Texas deluge – Floods are a preview of future extreme weather events

By Elizabeth Harball, Scott Detrow27 May 2015 (Scientific American) – Large swaths of Houston were underwater yesterday after more than 10 inches of rain fell on the city during a 24-hour window. The bulk of the rain came during intense Monday night thunderstorms, bringing America’s fourth-largest city to a standstill by yesterday morning. Major highways […]

Governor says deadly flooding is worst ever seen in Texas area

By Jim Forsyth25 May 2015 (Reuters) – Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Monday likened the ferocity of flash flooding that killed at least three people to a tsunami, and authorities said a dam had given way in a state park. Abbott declared states of disaster in 24 counties and flew over the area south of […]

‘Epic’ flooding on Alaska’s Dalton Highway hinders North Slope oil operations

By Alex DeMarban21 May 2015 DEADHORSE (Alaska Dispatch News) – Unprecedented flooding continues to interfere with daily operations on the North Slope oil patch after surging waters wiped away swaths of the Dalton Highway and isolated a section of Deadhorse, the jumping-off point for the sprawling industrial region. “This is just epic,” said Mike Coffey, […]

Rising sea levels threaten Florida cities, but state has few plans – Saltwater intrusion forcing cities to abandon water wells

By Jason Dearen11 May 2015 ST. AUGUSTINE, Florida (Associated Press) – America’s oldest city is slowly drowning. St. Augustine’s centuries-old Spanish fortress is feet from the encroaching Atlantic, whose waters already flood the city’s narrow streets about 10 times a year — a problem worsening as sea levels rise. The city relies on tourism, but […]

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