Please find below links to some aspects of disaster resilience that were in the news recently…
Recent emergencies/disasters
Lee goes post-tropical before reaching Nova Scotia https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2023/09/lee-goes-post-tropical-before-reaching-nova-scotia/
Libya – 5,300 Lives Lost in Derna Floods, Thousands Still Missing https://floodlist.com/africa/libya-floods-september-2023-update
Weather tracker: Australia bakes in spring heatwave while US hit by 14 storms https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/sep/18/weather-tracker-australia-bakes-in-spring-heatwave-while-us-hit-by-14-storms
‘Worst risk since black summer’: NSW south coast fire danger upgraded to ‘catastrophic’ https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/sep/19/nsw-schools-closed-heatwave-australia-high-fire-danger-total-fire-bans
Rare tornado touches down near the towns of Saint-Pierre-des-Landes and Ernée, France https://watchers.news/2023/09/18/rare-tornado-touches-down-near-the-towns-of-saint-pierre-des-landes-and-ernee-france/
Rainy season in Niger results in 41 deaths; Maradi Region worst hit https://watchers.news/2023/09/19/rainy-season-in-niger-results-in-41-deaths-maradi-region-worst-hit/
Destructive tornado outbreak hits Jiangsu, damaging or destroying 1 600 homes and killing 10, China https://watchers.news/2023/09/20/destructive-tornado-outbreak-hits-jiangsu-damaging-or-destroying-1-600-homes-and-killing-10-china/
East coast heatwave moves north as out-of-control bushfires rage across multiple states https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/east-coast-heatwave-moves-north-as-out-of-control-bushfires-rage-across-multiple-states/apuavk78z
Extreme Weather and Climate Change
French ski resort closes permanently because there’s not enough snow https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/travel/france-ski-resort-closes-la-sambuy-climate-scn/index.html
Antarctic sea-ice at ‘mind-blowing’ low alarms experts https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-66724246
Record Heat Deaths in Arizona Spur Push for Disaster Assistance https://www.wsj.com/us-news/climate-environment/record-heat-deaths-in-arizona-spur-push-for-disaster-assistance-86352a62
‘Medicane’ storms to increase as climate change heats Mediterranean https://www.inkl.com/news/medicane-storms-to-increase-as-climate-change-heats-mediterranean/WMRYqATNkmy
Young people to take 32 European countries to court over climate policies https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/sep/14/young-people-to-take-32-european-countries-to-court-over-climate-policies
Climate change undermines nearly all sustainable development goals https://public.wmo.int/en/media/press-release/climate-change-undermines-nearly-all-sustainable-development-goals
The Libya floods: a climate and infrastructure catastrophe https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2023/09/the-libya-floods-a-climate-and-infrastructure-catastrophe/
Earth’s land masses have a higher chance of becoming wetter than drier as temperatures rise https://news.agu.org/press-release/as-earth-heats-up-rain-pours-down/
Seven megatrends that will shape the next 20 years https://www.csiro.au/en/news/All/News/2022/July/Seven-megatrends-that-will-shape-the-next-20-years
Monitoring El Nino in a warming climate https://www.weatherzone.com.au/news/monitoring-el-nino-in-a-warming-climate/1512801
Intense September heat toppling records in SE Australia https://www.weatherzone.com.au/news/intense-september-heat-toppling-records-in-se-australia/1513224
Wind and solar remain the lowest cost new build electricity generation sources despite inflationary pressures https://www.csiro.au/en/news/all/news/2023/july/gencost
California sues five of the world’s largest oil companies — ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips and Chevron https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-17/california-sues-oil-exxonmobil-shell-bp-conocophillips-chevron/102866110
Rooftop solar eats up all demand in South Australia, world’s most renewable grid https://reneweconomy.com.au/rooftop-solar-eats-up-all-demand-in-south-australia-worlds-most-renewable-grid/
People who work from home all the time ‘cut emissions by 54%’ against those in office https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/sep/18/people-who-work-from-home-all-the-time-cut-emissions-by-54-against-those-in-office
The BoM has finally declared an El Niño. What does it mean – and why did it take so long? https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/sep/19/what-is-el-nino-weather-pattern-climate-event-australia-bushfires-temperature-summer
Governments must step up to fund methane-hunting space camera https://www.context.news/net-zero/opinion/governments-must-step-up-to-fund-methane-hunting-space-camera
Libya floods: how climate change intensified the death and devastation https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-02899-6
Climate-induced rising sea levels are forcing residents of this tiny Panama island to leave https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-11/carti-sugtupu-residents-leave-panama-island-hit-by-rising-seas/102839860
How weather ‘blocks’ have triggered more extreme heatwaves and floods across Europe https://theconversation.com/how-weather-blocks-have-triggered-more-extreme-heatwaves-and-floods-across-europe-213304
Germany to Surpass 50 Percent Renewable Power This Year, Official Says https://e360.yale.edu/digest/germany-50-percent-renewable-power
Mission Zero: How Today’s Climate Choices will shape Australia https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/missionzero/
Climate change played major role in Libya floods https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-66854670
“We should lead:” Australia urged to fast track net zero to 2035, as El Niño declared https://reneweconomy.com.au/we-should-lead-australia-urged-to-fast-track-net-zero-to-2035-as-el-nino-declared/
NT desert ranger groups call for extension of carbon credits program to support fire mitigation https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-21/savanna-carbon-credits-market-traditional-fire-mitigation-nt/102870062
Net zero by 2035 would be ‘monumentally’ hard for Australia to achieve. But these experts argue it’s critical https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-21/experts-say-net-zero-should-be-by-2035-for-australia/102881722
Interplay of climate change-exacerbated rainfall, exposure and vulnerability led to widespread impacts in the Mediterranean region https://www.preventionweb.net/news/interplay-climate-change-exacerbated-rainfall-exposure-and-vulnerability-led-widespread
From Carbon Sink to Source: The Stark Changes in Arctic Lakes https://e360.yale.edu/features/greenland-lakes-climate-change
Australia should wipe out climate footprint by 2035 instead of 2050, scientists urge https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/sep/20/australia-should-wipe-out-climate-footprint-by-2035-instead-of-2050-scientists-urge
Climate scientists and Pacific activists call on Australia to ramp up ambitions ahead of UN summit https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-20/australia-called-to-ramp-up-climate-ambitions-nyt-ad/102876940
Disaster risk reduction
Creating Resilient Futures https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-80791-7
The Politics of Modelling: Numbers Between Science and Policy https://academic.oup.com/book/46867
Forensic investigations of disasters: Past achievements and new directions https://jamba.org.za/index.php/jamba/article/view/1490/2662
CAMS global biomass burning emissions based on fire radiative power (GFAS) https://ads.atmosphere.copernicus.eu/cdsapp#!/dataset/cams-global-fire-emissions-gfas
A very busy Atlantic hurricane season continues: Hurricane Nigel is here https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2023/09/a-very-busy-atlantic-hurricane-season-continues-hurricane-nigel-is-here/
Japan’s pioneering early warning system offers blueprint for climate adaptation efforts https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/09/japans-early-warning-systems-blueprint-climate-adaptation-efforts/
What new data reveal about how hurricanes kill https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2023/08/what-new-data-reveal-about-how-hurricanes-kill/
Hydrological regimes explain the seasonal predictability of streamflow extremes https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/acf678
Changes in hail hazard across Australia: 1979–2021 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41612-023-00454-8
Hazards with escalation potential: Governing the drivers of global and existential catastrophes https://www.preventionweb.net/publication/hazards-escalation-potential-governing-drivers-global-and-existential-catastrophes
A priori selection of hydrological model structures in modular modelling frameworks: application to Great Britain https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02626667.2023.2251968
Urban Flood Risk Handbook: Assessing Risk and Identifying Interventions https://www.gfdrr.org/en/publication/urban-flood-risk-handbook-assessing-risk-and-identifying-interventions
Uncertainty in three dimensions: the challenges of communicating probabilistic flood forecast maps https://hess.copernicus.org/articles/27/3351/2023/
Two years on from Victoria’s largest earthquake https://www.src.com.au/two-years-on-from-victorias-largest-earthquake/
Paleostorm Chasers Test a New Detection Tool https://eos.org/articles/paleostorm-chasers-test-a-new-detection-tool
Earthquakes and other natural hazards are a risk everywhere – here’s how people are preparing in the US and around the world https://theconversation.com/earthquakes-and-other-natural-hazards-are-a-risk-everywhere-heres-how-people-are-preparing-in-the-us-and-around-the-world-199588
The countries with the highest disaster risk worldwide are the Philippines (WRI 46.86), Indonesia (WRI 43.50), and India (WRI 41.52) https://www.preventionweb.net/publication/world-risk-report-2023-focus-diversity
Emergency management
The One Thing Everyone Should Know About Fall COVID Vaccines https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2023/09/fall-covid-vaccine-update-cdc-recommendation/675304/
MapAction disaster mappers working with UN on response to floods in Libya https://mapaction.org/breaking-mapaction-disaster-mappers-to-support-un-response-in-libya/
Why the pandemic treaty risks becoming COVID-19 groundhog day https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-02904-y
What Will Make Or Break Maui’s Bumpy Recovery? https://themessenger.com/opinion/what-will-make-or-break-mauis-bumpy-recovery
With a ‘difficult’ fire season ahead, emergency services are calling for aerial firefighting capabilities https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-21/australia-aerial-firefighting-apability-730/102883174
Disaster Education, Communication and Engagement
There are more than 1,500 volcanoes potentially active in the world and more than one million volcanic vents under the sea https://www.preventionweb.net/knowledge-base/hazards/volcano
For Military, PFAS in Firefighting Foam Pose New Threat https://www.govtech.com/em/for-military-pfas-in-firefighting-foam-pose-new-threat
Fire gets attention – but extreme heat can do more damage https://theconversation.com/worried-about-heat-and-fire-this-summer-heres-how-to-to-prepare-212443
The Big River Watch: help us demand better for our rivers https://www.ciwem.org/news/the-big-river-watch-help-us-demand-better-for-our-rivers
This site offers a compilation of images from 35 years of geological field research. The photos on this site are suitable for instructional presentations and are freely available for those purposes https://geologypics.com/
Disaster psychology
Wave goodbye to winter. Say hello to above average warmth with a side of climate anxiety https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/wave-goodbye-to-winter-say-hello-to-above-average-warmth-with-a-side-of-climate-anxiety/4hgriyrld
The Good Luck of Your Bad Luck: Marcus Aurelius on the Stoic Strategy for Weathering Life’s Waves and Turning Suffering into Strength https://www.themarginalian.org/2021/09/19/marcus-aurelius-luck/
‘Listen to me!’: Young people’s experiences of talking about emotional impacts of climate change https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959378023001103
Where does scientific uncertainty come from, and from whom? Mapping perspectives of natural hazards science advice https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212420923004284#sec5
Elite Panic vs. the Resilient Populace https://www.commentary.org/articles/james-meigs/elite-panic-vs-the-resilient-populace/
‘Treated like machines’: wildfire fighters describe a mental health crisis on the frontlines https://thenarwhal.ca/wildfire-firefighter-burnout/
Psychosocial Perspectives on Community Responses to Covid-19 https://www.routledge.com/Psychosocial-Perspectives-on-Community-Responses-to-Covid-19-Networks-of/ODwyer-Souza/p/book/9781032295060
Sociology and disasters
Who lives and who dies in the world’s next pandemic should not depend on where they live https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/sep/17/who-lives-and-who-dies-in-the-worlds-next-pandemic-should-not-depend-on-where-they-live
‘You have to be ready for a war’: Severe storms, power outages leave caregivers and their loved ones feeling helpless https://buffalonews.com/news/local/you-have-to-be-ready-for-a-war-severe-storms-power-outages-leave-caregivers-and/article_7fca519a-4779-11ee-970d-0756b40b3ea1.html
Reducing disaster risk for the poor in tomorrow’s cities with computational science https://www.nature.com/articles/s43588-023-00521-3
Disaster Resilience News 