Wildfires and snowstorms: The weather in the US is getting crazy

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Icy cold and meters of snow in California, heat and devastating forest fires in Texas: the US is currently experiencing severe weather extremes. California’s Sierra Nevada was hit by a snowstorm this weekend – that’s what heavy snowstorms with sharp temperature drops are called in the US.

The weather service warned of “treacherous and life-threatening” conditions in mountainous communities through Sunday: “Travel should be limited to emergencies only.” In some places, up to three meters of snow may fall. The neighboring state of Nevada was also affected.

In the Palisades Tahoe winter sports area, where the 1960 Winter Olympics were held, wind gusts of up to 300 kilometers per hour were measured, according to media reports. Several ski areas would have to close, also due to the high avalanche danger.

In addition, Interstate 80, one of the nation’s major highways, was closed for about 100 miles due to snow and icy conditions. The weather service and highway police warned of so-called whiteout conditions, where drivers can lose their orientation due to extremely limited visibility. Scores of vehicles became stuck on a pass road and drivers had to be rescued during an hours-long operation, police said.

Is it due to climate change?

Several schools remained closed on Friday. The storm also caused power outages. About 10,000 households in the region are without electricity, according to the website Poweroutage.us on Sunday. Due to the storm, Yosemite National Park, popular among tourists, is also closed to visitors until further notice.

In Texas, strong winds further fanned the forest fires that had been raging for days, the media reported on Saturday evening (local time). The largest fire, the so-called Smokehouse Creek Fire, has already spread over more than 4,000 square kilometers and is spreading east into neighboring Oklahoma. So far, only 15 percent is under control, it said.

Texas Secretary of Agriculture Sid Miller called it a “monster fire” and asked for donations of feed and hay for livestock, as well as prayers for affected farmers. “It’s devastating,” he told CNN. The fires have so far killed two people, destroyed hundreds of homes, other buildings and cultivated areas and killed thousands of cattle. This means a huge economic loss for farmers.

Experts attribute the increase in natural disasters in the US – storms, floods and wildfires – to the effects of climate change. President Joe Biden had already spoken of an ‘existential threat’ in this context last year. “I don’t think anyone can deny the consequences of climate change anymore,” he said at the time. (SDA)

Source: Blick