The beginning of April saw major storms across the South and Midwest of the U.S., and one Tennessee family used levees to protect their home from the devastating floods.
What's happening?
The Weather Channel posted a TikTok showing the family's home untouched, but the rest of the landscape was completely flooded. The family's been doing this for years to prepare for storms.
@weatherchannel Surrounded by floodwaters, one Tennessee home stood high and dry after record-breaking storms. #TheWeatherChannel #fyp #weathertok #weatherchannel #weatherfacts #WeatherScience #flooding #severeweather ♬ original sound - The Weather Channel
"This part of Tennessee was hit hard by record-breaking rainfall and a slew of severe storms," the narrator, meteorologist Orelon Sidney, said.
Tennessee wasn't the only state affected. Severe storms also hit Indiana, Missouri, and Arkansas. According to The Weather Channel, on April 4, 11 states were under flood watches, affecting 33 million people.
Missouri, Tennessee, and Arkansas also experienced tornadoes. At least three of them were EF3 tornadoes. The National Weather Service classifies an EF3 tornado as strong with wind speeds from 136 to 165 mph.
Tennessee resident Jose Cabrera told The Tennessean he felt lucky to survive after a tornado lifted him into the air.
"It woke me up, and then it hit the trailer," Cabrera said. "It threw me up in it. I went flying. Then it slammed me into the ground."
Sadly, his neighbor was one of the storm's casualties. According to the BBC, at least 22 people died in the storms. Almost half of the deaths were in Tennessee and included children and the elderly.
Why are deadly storms concerning?
While extreme weather events have been happening for years, the warming temperatures around the world are steroids for the weather. Floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, or droughts were already going to happen, but the warmer climate is making them more severe.
A study published in Nature found that, while the government estimates one storm leads to an average of 24 deaths, there are "7,000-11,000 excess deaths" after a hurricane.
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Move somewhere else 🌎 Deaths are not the only consequences of these storms. For example, as of December 2023, the Internal Displacement Monitoring Center calculated that natural disasters had displaced 7.7 million people.
What's being done about severe storms?
According to Trap Bag, levees can be effective in fighting against flooding. They can be natural or artificially made, and they create a barrier that water can't get through. It's clearly working for the Tennessee family, but more can be done.
The planet is warming due to the use of dirty energy sources. By reducing society's reliance on them, the Earth can start to cool, which in turn lessens the chances of severe weather.
There are cleaner and cheaper energy sources out there, including solar and wind power.
However, to understand the solutions, you first need to understand climate issues. By educating yourself, you can make decisions that benefit the planet and have meaningful conversations about what needs to be done.
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