Extreme Heat Boils The US West

A new Gallup poll titled “Extreme Weather Affects Sharply More in Western U.S.” concludes, “Nearly one in five Western residents affected by wildfires.” Forty-three percent of those living in the West said they have been affected by extreme weather, up from 30% in 2023. 

Nationwide, 37% say that they had been affected by an extreme weather event, up from 33% in 2023. 

The Gallup survey also found that “Wildfires and extreme heat largely account for the increased reports of extreme weather among Western residents. Seventeen percent of those living in the West have been affected by wildfires, up from 5% in 2023.”

Wildfires Total 14

The southern California wildfires in January were 14 fires that burned from the 7th until the 31st. These destroyed over 57,000 acres, killed 28 people, caused the evacuation of 200,000, and destroyed over 16,000 structures, including thousands of homes. It will take years to rebuild some of these areas. 

The worst climate events varied substantially across the four regions in the Gallup study. In the East, these were hurricanes and floods; in the Midwest, tornadoes; in the South, hurricanes; and in the West, extreme heat and wildfires. 

Climate Change Contribution

Gallup concludes, “Scientists attribute increased and more intense extreme weather events to climate change.” What might have been the other options?

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