About 180 Million Americans Threatened by Smoke, Heat or Floods

Skip to Content News Archives Economy Energy Oil & Gas Renewables Electric Vehicles Mining Commodities Agriculture Real Estate Mortgages Mortgage Rates Finance Banking Insurance Fintech Cryptocurrency Work Wealth Smart Money Wealth Management Investor Personal Finance Family Finance Retirement Taxes High Net Worth FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials More Innovation Information Technology FP500 Podcasts Small Business Lives Told Tails Told Shopping Financial Post Store Obituaries Place a Notice Advertising Advertising With Us Advertising Solutions Postmedia Ad Manager Sponsorship Requests Classifieds Place a Classifieds ad Working Profile Settings My Subscriptions Saved Articles My Offers Newsletters Customer Service FAQ News Economy Energy Mining Real Estate Finance Work Wealth Investor FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.HomePMN BusinessAbout 180 Million Americans Threatened by Smoke, Heat or FloodsAt least 178 million Americans are breathing in smoky air, enduring high heat or contending with catastrophic flooding. That’s more than half of the US population.Author of the article: You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.Smoke from massive wildfires in Canada reduce visibility and cast a haze over the Capitol in Washington on July 17. Photo by Finn Gomez /Photographer: Finn Gomez/Getty I(Bloomberg) — At least 178 million Americans are breathing in smoky air, enduring high heat or contending with catastrophic flooding. That’s more than half of the US population.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLYSubscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman, and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLESSubscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLESCreate an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountAbout 151 million people living from the northern Rockies to the Mid-Atlantic and down to the Gulf Coast are again experiencing high heat Friday, according to Bob Oravec, a senior branch forecaster for the US Weather Prediction Center.Yellow-tinged wildfire smoke from Canada has blanketed a large swath of the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest, affecting the air quality of about 87 million Americans on Friday, he said. About 70 million people are experiencing smoke and heat concurrently.Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of Top Stories will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againAbout 10 million people in Texas, meanwhile, are under flood watches Friday. And then there are the Americans affected by strong gusts and wildfires in the dry US West.July’s extremes add to a growing list of wild weather events globally this year, from blistering heat in Europe to Super Typhoons ravaging the Pacific.As the climate warms, the chances of more intense storms, droughts and fires have been rising. A hotter world, driven by human-caused warming, has led to the atmosphere holding more moisture, prompting catastrophic flooding, as was seen in Texas a year ago; it’s also contributed to significant levels of evaporation that’s ushered in years-long droughts, including in the US Southwest earlier this century.Some scientists say this is just the beginning of even more severe weather during both summer and winter that will threaten commerce and populations globally.“The impacts that we’re seeing this summer are completely consistent with what we’ve been expecting to see for a long time now,” said Jennifer Francis, a senior scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center.This week’s weather events have been influenced by a “very persistent jet stream pattern” that is responsible for a heat dome, fire conditions and storms in Texas, she said.The impacts of this week’s weather crises have varied. At least two people have died in south-central Texas and some communities in Hill Country have issued mandatory evacuation orders. Chicago’s air quality is hazardous. Masks have again become common sights across the Northeast and Midwest this week. Sporting events and concerts have been postponed.“It’s very likely that we’re going to see a lot more cases where you’ve got multiple types of extremes happening at the same time because they’re all connected to this particular jet stream configuration,” Francis said.—With assistance from Brian K Sullivan.This advertisement has not loaded yet.Notice for the Postmedia NetworkThis website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.