The governor of Florida who does not believe in climate change has ordered mandatory evacuation for 20 counties that lie in the path of Hurricane Helene, which is expected to be a major storm by the time it makes landfall. It’s still a few hundred miles off the coast. The projected map has a direct hit on Tallahassee, 22 miles inland.
Crews from the Yankee north and Mid-Atlantic are heading south to help Florida, which is more than it did for us when we had Sandy. The heavy rain will go north into Georgia and the southern Appalachians, which probably don’t need it.
In the meantime, we keep looking for a real rainstorm here, soft gentle rain, not the violent rain of a hurricane, of course. All of this during “Climate Week,” when we are supposed to be focused on solutions for the climate crisis we face and the know-nothings like DeSantis and certain other politicians deny.
Prayer for the Day
What we have done to your Earth, O Lord! What we have done.
We may ask for forgiveness but it requires repentance,
And repentance requires real action on our part.
Storms grow stronger, lands are parched, species vanish,
But big coal and oil, beckon us to do their bidding,
As they pay off politicians and destroy the land.
Awaken us, energize us before we wonder why it is all gone.
In the name of the One who calls us to change,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
Hurricanes are becoming stronger faster. They are less predictable and thus more dangerous because there is less time to prepare and evacuate. Flooding from hurricanes is worsening due to higher sea level, more rainfall, and slower storm speeds.
Illisa Ocko, climate scientist, Environmental Defense Fund
In a hurricane, spiraling winds draw moist air toward the center, fueling the towering thunderstorms that surround it. As the air continues to warm due to climate change, hurricanes can hold more water vapor, producing more intense rainfall rates in a storm.
Tom Knutsen, scientist, NOAA Geophysical Dynamics Laboratory
You visit the earth and water it, you greatly enrich I;
The river of God is full of water; you provide us with grain, which you prepare
You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges, softening it with showers
Blessing it with growth.
Psalm 65: 9-10