New Orleans and Global Warming

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten

the number of fatalities during The Great Hurricane of 1780 exceeds the cumulative loss in any year (except 1780) and, in fact, in all other decades.

The Great Hurricane developed during mid-October. It was one of three tropical cyclones to kill more than 1,000 people that month.

Apparently, the 1780 hurricanes occurred during a 10- to 20-year period notable for numerous past deadly storms in the Atlantic

Wow, never knew about this storm.

Kinda puts things in perspective.

[chequita guevara]

Dude, check this out.

http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/

[chequita guevara]

This may take a few days, colating all this data.

[pchang]

If you want to look at long term trends, then it is better to look at longer periods of times. If you don't like the idea of yearly averages, then you should use rolling 12 month averages and not individual months. You want to reduce the noise, not accentuate it.

[Berzerker]

No. The insurance companies can handle it. That's what they're there for. If the premiums become too much, maybe there will be a particularly clear trade-off for the people of New Orleans of investment in flood control or paying sky high premiums (or abandoning their city, if that's what they see fit to do).

Yup, and thats where the feds bail out the insurance companies - privatised profit, socialised losses.

Flood insurnace is all Federal, since private companies won't insure against it.

I assume you mean federal flood insurance for people in high risk areas. Just shows the nature of government, waste money on ventures people wouldn't do with their own money, often do it poorly, and reward people for making unwise decisions. Build on an active flood plain, get flooded (big surprise) and have Uncle Sam help you build on the same spot.

Want lower insurance premiums in California? Earthquake proof your house. The insurance company is telling you something.

[Urban Ranger]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
No, that's not my opinion, but if the oceanographic data doesn't support global warming influencing hurricane formation, I have to take that seriously, especially given the decrease in tropical cyclonic activity elsewhere.

Not here. We have quite a number of typhoons in these couple of years, and typhoon season this year isn't over yet.

[Solly]

Originally posted by MOBIUS
Global warming may pump up hurricane power

From the New Scientist...

So will New Orleans be the sacrificial cow that finally wakes up the US to the potential destructive effects of global warming by mankind's emissions into the atmosphere?

Climate change is a natural phenomenon. Climate steady-state is unnatural.

There will be just as many benefits of any climate change as costs. A warmer world is a wetter world, and more people in the world die of famines than floods.

[Berzerker]

There will be just as many benefits of any climate change as costs.

O'Really?