This is no Fairy Tale... it's climate change

Our home was attacked by a giant dragon over the weekend. She circled our house for hours, shaking it and roaring to let us know how strong a monster she was. She threw buckets of water at our windows, and knocked down trees and power poles with her thrashing tail. She blew the sea 3 meters higher than normal with her hot breath. Her name was Fiona.

But, like the house the 3rd little pig built, our house was constructed strong and high. The weather wizards told us Fiona the dragon was coming so we had days to prepare to fight back. Anything that could move was put away or tied down. We had extras gas for our generator, knowing it was likely the power would go out. We made sure all windows were sealed tightly closed. Flashlights were tested and ready, phones and spare batteries were fully charged.

They call this “emergency preparedness” and we may be hearing this term more in the future. Experts are telling us these kinds of storms will become more common because of climate change and we must try to learn more about how to prevent the most serious problems with each one. Repairs need to be made stronger and better to withstand future events. They call this “climate change adaptation”.

In 2019, we had the “storm of the century”, hurricane Dorian. That was just 3 years ago and we’ve already surpassed it with Fiona. What should we expect next? What can we do to prevent becoming repeated victims of climate change? What more can we do to adapt?

A place to start

Preparing ahead, not just when an emergency is looming, but in our everyday decisions can also help. Things like considering how we plan new construction: how strong our buildings are built, how high they are above sea level, what type of windows and doors are used, etc. becomes more important with the bigger and more frequent storms that climate change promises to bring. Like the man who built our home, we all need to pay attention to how high water can get, how strong winds can become, and make choices about how and where to build.

And our existing homes can become better prepared too. Here are some of my ideas for strategies to consider:

• Keep trees away from houses and parking areas so they can’t cause damage if they fall (falling trees broke two neighbours’ car windows)

• Install high quality roofing, strong doors and windows when upgrading (our new roof, installed last June, has highest-quality shingles with a 50-year guarantee!)

• Consider adding hurricane shutters that have saved many windows in the south where these storms are more common (any installers in Atlantic Canada?? You may be busier in the near future!)

Planning for the future

Our provincial Department of Fisheries and Oceans came by yesterday, measuring how high the storm surge had come. The ocean left clear foot-high piles of marsh grass along the edge of our lawn that made it easy to do their measurements. He told us the storm surge was 3 meters (about 10 feet) above normal. That compares to what I’ve been hearing about Florida storms! This information will be used to revise flood maps that will help future planning and building restrictions to keep people (and their property) safe.

I also saw an explanation on the news of why this storm was so strong. Scientists know that hurricanes require a water temperature warmer than 26.5c (79.7f) below them to add power to the storm, providing energy for it to build strength as it passes over water. Normally the ocean is cooler than this in the fall, making storms weaken as they travel north. However, right now, the water off the eastern coast of the US is 27 to 29c (80 to 84f) and, as they explained, this is why hurricane Fiona arrived in Canada with 165 kilometer per hour winds (102.5mph), a “post-tropical storm” with category-2 hurricane winds! This explains how climate change, with warming of oceans, creates stronger storms.

And the news today?

All the news is about hurricane Ian’s devastation of the Florida coast and worries of how it will affect the Carolinas. Here in Atlantic Canada, we’re still working on cleaning up the devastation from hurricane Fiona. Homes throughout our area have torn siding and missing roofing. But we’re lucky compared to Prince Edward Island, Cape Breton Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland, where many more buildings were blown down, damaged, and flooded, and entire roofs were removed. Roads blocked by fallen trees have prevented help from reaching many. We’ve seen Canadian Armed Forces trucks travelling to and from PEI with help and supplies, and we know they are travelling to NS and Nfld too.

So, I feel like I should be thankful that we withstood the storm well, and look at our “hay removal” lawn project as an opportunity to exercise! They tell us expressing gratitude can improve our mood and lessens our stress. Those of us who escaped with minimal damage can feel thankful it wasn’t worse, but what about those who didn’t make out so well? I've been hearing stories of kindness and people reaching out to help strangers. I guess we all could be helped by feeling thankful for neighbours, friends, volunteers, and governments who are offering their help and support. (Maybe I've been reading too many psychology books lately...) But we’ll get through this and, hopefully, be better prepared for what future storms may bring!

All about climate change (and adapting to it!)

It appears it’s too late to avoid all the effects of climate change, so we’ll have to adapt as best we can. Support politicians who will work to limit this climate change and help to prevent worsening weather disasters. And if you have other ideas or suggestions for preventing wind and storm damage, please share them in the comments below!

PS: The idea for the dragon analogy was stolen (with permission!) from writer David B. Clear, who is so much funnier to read than I am! You'll find him on Medium and at his website: davidbclear.com .

#hurricaneFiona #hurricaneIan #climatechange