Hurricanes, Climate Babble & The Grid

WSJ’s Holman Jenkins suggests we “Stop the Hurricane Climate-Change Babble” since folks have relocated to Florida in droves yet fewer than ever are dying from the weather there while its “grid reliability” sinks ala the Everglades.

Observes the columnist: “Florida is one of America’s fastest-growing states, with 4 million people moving in since 2005 … the year Hurricane Katrina showed a global audience what happens when a powerful storm lands directly on a large US population center. And yet [again] 4 million people moved to Florida.” Mr. Jenkins goes on to note the category 4 storm that hit Miami in 1926 killed 372 at a time when Dade County was home to just 100K souls, while the latest Hurricane, Ian, that hit Naples on the state’s western shore, killed “only” 120 … [meanwhile] the “sea off the Miami coast has risen 10 inches & the CO2 component of the atmosphere has increased by 50%” & Miami is home to million plus.

Jenkin’s point is this: “The declining menace to life & safety from hurricanes is a major factor explaining Florida’s population growth despite the known risk of tropical cyclones as well as the widely heard forecast such storms will become more deadly because of climate change.” He reasons folks have more money to protect themselves, building standards & emergency services are better & “anyone with a smartphone can now know with great precision when the moment has come to gather up the kids, dog & family photos to head for higher ground.” Perhaps the one biggest wild card, he ironically adds, may be the climate alarmists whose green energy policies are roiling the reliability of the critical energy grid, which can cause more deaths than needs be.

Davd Soul