Hurricane Idalia hit the northwest of the state of Florida, in the United States, this Wednesday morning (30). The hurricane is the strongest to hit the region known as Big Bend in more than 125 years.
The passage of the hurricane led to a rise in sea levels in the region and brought a lot of rain. As a result, houses and cars were submerged in the hardest hit regions. In Florida and Georgia, nearly half a million people were left without power.
A study led by Tom Knutson, senior scientist at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), showed that global warming generated by the human species is making hurricanes like this more common and dangerous.
The reason would be the rise in water temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico. The hot waters serve as fuel for these storms, something that has always happened in the region but is now happening more powerfully. In July this year, also according to NOAA, water temperatures in the region broke a record, being 1.09ºC above average.
Some forecasts about Hurricane Idalia say it could return to Florida next week, after entering the Atlantic Ocean between South Carolina and North Carolina. This time, the most affected region would be the east coast of the state, where Miami is located.
:: Hurricane Idalia passes through Cuba and causes power outages and floods ::
For Ron DeSantis, this is not the time to talk about climate change
Even amid the devastating scenario, the governor of Florida is not interested in talking about climate change. Pre-candidate for president for the Republican Party, Ron DeSantis created a scene on the subject in the party’s first debate, last week.
Martha MacCallum, one of the Fox News mediators who led the debate, asked candidates who believe that human action is responsible for climate change to raise their hands. DeSantis then asked to speak and stated that he and the other candidates “were not children at school” and that this was not the way to deal with the matter.
Asked by the other moderator, Bret Baier, whether by asking DeSantis to speak he was raising his hand and therefore acknowledging human guilt for climate change, the governor said no.
Editing: Thales Schmidt
