As I discussed last week, the 2022 Atlantic Hurricane Season was a bit of a dud until Fiona devastated Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic before creating havoc in the Maritime provinces of Eastern Canada. But the U.S. was spared and, no doubt, climate change deniers took solace in the dearth of tropical activity.
Then a Tropical Depression formed off the coast of Venezuela and drifted to the northwest, developing into Tropical Storm Ian over the warm waters of the Western Caribbean. Now a hurricane, Ian will soon cross the westernmost portion of Cuba before swirling northward along the Gulf Coast of the Florida Peninsula, The storm's exact track remains uncertain, but it is almost certain to rake most of the coastline with torrential rain, high winds and a significant storm surge; Ian's slow movement is expected to exacerbate the damage and its massive size will also threaten inland areas with flash flooding.
One can hope that Ian fizzles over the Gulf of Mexico but the excessively warm waters and lack of atmospheric wind sheer make that scenario unlikely. Since humans won't retreat from their beachfront lifestyle anytime soon, such disasters will continue to unfold. Global warming guarantees it.
