By: Nathaniel de Sam Lazaro

Last month, the nation watched as Hurricane Helene ravaged parts of Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas. According to the Associated Press, the death toll is now 250 people and it is still unclear how many are missing. The hurricane caused billions of dollars in property damage, and 4 million people lost power. However, less than two weeks later, another hurricane pummeled toward the gulf coast of Florida, which had already been hit by Helene.

Hurricane Milton made landfall as a category 3 hurricane in Siesta Key, Florida, located near Tampa. According to Accuweather, at least 23 people died from this hurricane. While Milton was not as bad as expected, these hurricanes are still very deadly and dangerous. Large amounts of Florida were under evacuation zones, and the Tampa Bay Area has now been hit by two major hurricanes over the course of two weeks.

While these hurricanes are natural disasters that have been happening for centuries, it is undeniable that human actions have been making hurricanes more frequent and worse.

According to the Environmental Defense Fund, sea levels have risen by 4 inches since 1970, pushing water further inland and creating storm surges across the world, including in the volatile North Atlantic Ocean, which has seen major hurricanes (category 3 or higher) three times more frequently than it did 100 years ago. This rate has doubled since 1980. Additionally, hurricanes now have 10-15% more rainfall on average than they did 50 years ago.

Additionally, hurricanes have begun to move more slowly, making more water suck into them, making their storm surges more powerful. This is likely caused by the fact that the winds steering hurricanes move slower in warmer climates, and with a rapidly warming earth, this change is expected.

The truth is, climate change is already happening. It is more important than ever that we take steps to mitigate its effects. At the same time, humans must be able to adapt to some of the consequences of human caused climate change. In Florida, construction practices must change to be more resilient to worsening hurricanes. Governments should also enact policies that encourage the use of clean energy rather than fossil fuels. Only large, systemic changes can truly mitigate our climate crisis.  That is the only way we can stop climate change from getting worse than it already is. Our planet depends on it.