Natural disasters

FLASHFLOOD WARNINGSWhy Flash Flood Warnings Will Continue to Go Unheeded
By Rebecca Egan McCarthy
Experts say local education and community support are key to conveying risk.
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TEXAS FLOODS“Disasters Are a Human Choice”: Texas Counties Have Little Power to Stop Building in Flood-Prone Areas
By Joshua Fechter and Paul Cobler, Graphics by Carla Astudillo
Experts suggested that more data and education are needed as Texas and the rest of the country build in known flood plains.
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EXTREMISMExtremist Groups Uphold Long Tradition of Exploiting National Tragedies for Publicity
While Texas authorities respond to the devastation from the July 4 Hill Country flooding, which has killed at least 119 people and left over 170 still missing, Patriot Front, a Texas-based white supremacist group, is using the disaster to generate positive publicity under the guise of disaster relief.
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TEXAS FLOODSWeather Warnings Gave Officials a 3 Hour, 21 Minute Window to Save Lives in Kerr County. What Happened Then Remains Unclear.
By Emily Foxhall
Federal forecasters issued their first flood warning at 1:14 a.m. on July 4. Local officials haven’t shed light on when they saw the warnings or whether they saw them in time to take action.
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TEXAS FLOODSThe Texas Flash Flood Is a Preview of the Chaos to Come
By Abrahm Lustgarten
Climate change is making disasters more common, more deadly and far more costly, even as the federal government is running away from the policies that might begin to protect the nation.
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CLIMATE CHANGE & DISASTERS Climate Change Helped Fuel Heavy Rains That Caused Hill Country Floods, Experts Say
By Arcelia Martin, Inside Climate News
Warming ocean temperatures and warmer air mean there’s more water vapor in the atmosphere to fuel extreme downpours like those that struck Texas during the July 4 weekend.
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TEXAS FLOODSHills, Rivers and Rocky Terrain: Why the Hill Country Keeps Flooding
By Alejandra Martinez
When storms roll in, water rushes downhill fast, gaining speed and force as it moves — often with deadly results.
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FLOODSIn Texas Region Prone to Catastrophic Floods, Questions Grow About Lack of Warning
By Paul Cobler
Water rose fast along the Guadalupe River, causing dozens of deaths. Local officials said they couldn’t have seen it coming.
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WILDFIRESGames Can Promote Preparedness and Build Community Resilience to Wildfire
By Emily Cerf
If a wildfire causes an evacuation, people are forced to leave quickly and make decisions under pressure. These challenging decisions can have serious impacts on the outcome of a fire, and are what players confront in ‘Firewise Residents,’ one of three simulation games created by University of California, Santa Cruz computational media researchers.
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DISASTER RESPONSEStates Fear Critical Funding from FEMA May Be Drying Up
By Jennifer Berry Hawes
Many states rely on the federal government for the vast majority of their emergency management funding. Now, local leaders are looking for clues about the money —and the future of FEMA itself.
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CASCADING HAZARDSHurricane Helene Set Up Future Disasters, from Landslides to Flooding -- Cascading Hazards Like These Are Now Upending Risk Models
By Brian J. Yanites
Hurricane Helene lasted only a few days in September 2024, but it altered the landscape of the Southeastern U.S. in profound ways that will affect the hazards local residents face far into the future.
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FLOODSNew Tool Could Help Florida Homeowners Weather Flood Risks, Lower Insurance Costs
By Karen Dooley
With flood risks increasing from extreme weather events like hurricanes and even routine plumbing issues, researchers are helping Florida homeowners make smarter choices about building materials and interior finishes that better protect their homes and potentially save on their insurance premiums.
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FLOODSResearchers Offer Hard-Hit Communities Solutions for Flood Recovery and Resilience
Long before flash floods damaged communities in Ohio and Marion counties this month, West Virginia University researchers were studying community resilience in flood-devastated areas of the state. The toolkit they developed will help communities better prepare for such emergencies and recover quicker.
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RESILIENCEImproving Resilience to Tsunamis and Earthquakes via Predictions of Waste Disposal Times
Researchers develop framework to predict cleanup times after seismic events by analyzing the interdependence of disposal facilities and road networks.
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POWER-GRID RESILIENCE Hardening the Grid: Research Team Focuses on Quake Proofing Transformer Bushings
By Paul Menser
During an earthquake, the place where a large, high-voltage power transformer is most vulnerable is its bushings – hollow electrical insulators that safely guide current between a transformer’s internal windings and external power lines.
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