The Imprint

The above quote is from Netflix’s Explained series: ‘Hurricanes’, said by Tania Rosario Méndez, executive director of Taller Salud, in Loîza, Puerto Rico. She says this in relation to Hurricane Maria’s detrimental effects on Loîza in 2017. Her point touches on mismanagement, lack of prevention measures and disparity. But let’s take a step back and consider tropical storms in general…

Recent events have showed that hurricanes and natural disasters are occurring more often and with greater intensity. Most recently, Hurricane Milton hit Florida just a month ago. So far, hurricane Milton has caused the deaths of ~14 people in Florida with some days bringing three months’ worth of rain in just three hours. This once category 5 hurricane approached Siesta Key, Florida, on October 9th as a weakened category 3 storm. This destructive hurricane created 41 tornadoes and caused over 1 million power outages immediately after the storm. Hurricane Milton is particularly tragic as it comes just two weeks after category 4 hurricane Helene- a destructive storm that has a climbing death toll of 300.

Labelled cyclones in the east and hurricanes in the west, the countries and areas just above and below the Earth’s equator are no stranger to tropical storms. And there’s been a global pattern of more intense and frequent tropical storms over the last few years. Tropical storms require specific conditions to form. This includes a sea surface temperature of 27°C or 80°F, which then causes lots of storm clouds due to evaporation. This leaves a low pressure area at the ocean’s surface which winds rush in to fill. Due to the coriolis effect, which causes the wind to curve over long distances, a spinning motion occurs, creating a tropical storm.

The last few decades have seen the most detrimental storms, including Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Harvey in the US and notably Hurricane Maria across Puerto Rico. Each of these natural disasters have racked up hundreds of billions of dollars in damage. And what’s driving these destructive storms, you ask?

Climate change. The increase in the temperature of sea water means that the conditions for tropical storms to occur are being met more frequently. The higher temperature means that hurricanes are moving slower with faster winds. And perhaps this is only the beginning…

Méndez’s quote about diasasters reflect the disparity in preparation and prevention across countries. Poorer communities tend to live in more vulnerable areas such as coastal towns or industrial areas, meaning that they are more at risk of disasterous effects. Potential mismanagment of money mean that these communities take longer to recover, keeping these families in a state of powerlessness. This happened in Loîza, Puerto Rico when Hurricane Maria hit in 2017.

Loíza is only a 20 minute drive from capital, San Juan, yet the two differ in economic success. Geographically surrounded by 2 rivers, the ocean and a vast swamp, Loíza is surrounded by water, making is particularly vulnerable to natural events like hurricanes. This risk is escalated by the coastal town’s history of racism. Loíza was neglected in the 60s and 70s through lack of urban planning and has little access to necessary infrastructure such as universities and hospitals, holding it back from economically thriving.

In these instances, vulnerable towns like Loíza are hit the hardest and are given less support. It is through community and togetherness that they can get back on their feet and persevere.

Limiting the negative impact also boils down to prevention strategies that are put in place. But due to the fact that tropical storms are more frequent and stronger, they can be harder to predict. For example, Hurricane Helene that hit a few weeks before Milton has directly and indirectly caused 200 deaths in western North Carolina, simply because the flooding wasn’t anticipated. And in some cases, people are unfortunately affected because of the hurricane’s unexpected by-products. For example, when Hurricane Helene hit Florida, many didn’t die because of the flooding but because of the tornadoes it created.

It’s clear to see that the consequences following a natural disaster can be affected by a variety of factors, some in our control and some not. Going into a uncertain future, at risk of more and more of these natural events is hard. These back to back hurricanes across America have been described as ‘once in a lifetime’ but will this be true of the future?

Please check out Netflix’s Explained, it is a great visual way to learn and they cover an array of topics including but not limited to time, plastic surgery, pirates and creativity.

Thank you for reading, and I hope my next piece brings you back to The Imprint!