USA, measures to protect against extreme weather

2024-07-03 16:02:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

USA, measures to protect against extreme weather

People stand by the waves by the sea as Hurricane Beryl heads towards the southern part of the island, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic July 2, 2024/Reuters

As the Caribbean islands experience its first Category 5 hurricane this year and countries such as India and China grapple with record rainfall, flooding and landslides, scientists warn that extreme weather will become the norm as a result of climate change. Voice of America correspondent Aru Pande reports from Washington, where US President Joe Biden announced new climate recovery measures.

Hurricane Beryl is approaching Jamaica after passing through the southeastern Caribbean.

Fishermen like Clive Davis are trying to reinforce their boats.

"The tropical storm quickly turned into a hurricane. So fast! It's unusual,” says Mr. Davis.

Hurricane season is setting a new record this year, according to scientists.

"It is an unusual event because it is happening much earlier than expected. Usually, such storms hit in August and September, but now this hurricane is hitting in June and July," says expert Andrew Dessler of Texas A&M University.

In Washington, where temperatures hit a decade-old record last week, emergency officials on Tuesday briefed President Joe Biden and members of his cabinet on the extreme weather.

"Tens of millions of Americans currently live in places where there are warnings of the highest temperatures ever recorded. Last month here in Washington, the temperatures were 37 degrees Celsius, in Phoenix, Arizona 44 degrees and in Las Vegas, 43 degrees,” declared President Biden.

President Biden emphasized that extreme temperatures are the leading cause of weather-related deaths in the United States and announced a host of measures that, according to him, will protect Americans.

They include new workplace safety standards and nearly $1 billion in funding to fund projects that will protect diverse communities from natural hazards such as storms and floods.

Scenes like these are already being seen around the world in places like New Delhi in India, which is facing heavy rain these days after extremely high temperatures that reached 53 degrees Celsius at the end of May.

"It's getting hotter and hotter. It's not a matter of memory. It's a physical thing. We are releasing harmful gases into the atmosphere and the result is a hotter world,” says Mr. Dessler.

Scientists say that high temperatures, rising sea levels and changes in the amount of atmospheric precipitation are a sign that storms like Hurricane Beryl will be more frequent in the future./ VOA