Evelyn Duarte, contributor

The United States has faced two deadly hurricanes within the last three weeks. Hurricane Helene occurred between Sept. 24 and Sept. 29. Helene flooded towns, destroyed roads and bridges and swept away homes in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia killing at least 230 people. Since 1851, Helene has been Florida’s strongest hurricane north of Tampa. As a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 140 mph, it made landfall near Perry, Florida, late on Sept. 26.

Due to Helene’s fast forward movement and its large size, its winds were still powerful when it reached Georgia and South Carolina, which rarely experienced winds that damaging. The storm caused more than two million homes to lose power across the two states and more than a quarter million were still without electricity a week later.

The current hurricane, Hurricane Milton, started Monday, Oct. 7 and has continued up until Oct. 9. Sources claim that Hurricane Milton had caused Florida to have their largest evacuation since 2017. “Historic, catastrophic, life-threatening–all those words summarize the situation,” said Austen Flannery, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Tampa. Hurricane Milton is claimed to be a Category 5 storm. Now that global warming has had a big effect on today’s world, Hurricanes have started to become brutal and more deadly than before. 

Authorities need to inform the public about how to stay safe during a hurricane. Maybe even build houses above ground, that way houses won’t be flooded. Milton has grown larger since its descent on Florida. Florida officials issued a final warning to residents to evacuate or face grim odds of survival following the storm’s steady, potentially catastrophic path. In these tough times, we all just have to stick together and help a neighbor out.

It’s frustrating to see some people still denying climate change, especially when its impacts are becoming more severe and undeniable. The connection between climate change and more intense hurricanes is well-documented. Warmer ocean temperatures fuel these storms, making them stronger and more destructive. Rising sea levels also worsen storm surges, increasing the risk of flooding in coastal areas.

While hurricanes have always existed, climate change is amplifying their intensity and frequency, leading to more damage, displacement and loss of life. This denial slows down efforts to mitigate these effects, which is a huge issue considering the growing need for better infrastructure and policies to protect communities.