Latest news with #HurricaneBeryl
Bloomberg
07-07-2025
- Climate
- Bloomberg
Texas Floods Reinforce Status as US Epicenter of Extreme Weather
By and Mary Hui Save Welcome to Weather Watch, our weekly newsletter on how the planet's ever wilder weather patterns are impacting the global economy. Got feedback and forecasts? Write us at weatherteam@ And sign up here if you're not on the list already. A year after Hurricane Beryl broke the Houston power grid, Texas — America's epicenter of extreme weather — is facing another crisis.
Forbes
18-06-2025
- Climate
- Forbes
NOAA Predicts Active Hurricane Season, How Does Social Media Fit In
Brad Reinhart, Senior Hurricane Specialist at the National Hurricane Center, works on tracking ... More Hurricane Beryl, the first hurricane of the 2024 season. (Photo by) The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecast an above-average Atlantic hurricane season, which began on June 1 and ends on November 30. Current projections suggest that there could be 17 named storms, including nine hurricanes, with four of these potentially reaching major hurricane status. Any of those storms making landfall could be serious events. Social media has proven helpful in the past in disseminating critical safety information while serving as a communication link following a storm. Yet, it presents new challenges for authorities, including the spread of misinformation. In May, NOAA introduced a "Hurricane Preparedness Week Social Media Plan" that shared vital information via Facebook and X, including tips on what to do before, during, and immediately after a storm. Still, experts suggest that NOAA and other agencies could further utilize social media during hurricane season. "The most effective way is for emergency management agencies to include social media platforms as part of a multiple crisis communication dissemination strategy," explained Dr. Claire Connolly Knox, professor within the School of Public Administration at the University of Central Florida. "These platforms should not be the only communication outlet; however, they cannot be left out of the communication strategy," she added while noting that no single social media network is enough to get the message out. Nor should it replace legacy media. "Crisis communication needs to incorporate individual preferences based on previous experiences with information sources, whether that is print, television, radio, social media, etc.," said Knox. "It is essential that the local office of emergency management staff know their community preferences for communication." As more Americans turn to social media for news and information, NOAA and other agencies must be proactive about what they share on the platforms to stay ahead of baseless reports, rumors, and speculation. "Social media can fulfill numerous functions during natural disasters, such as hurricanes," suggested Dr. Amber Silver, assistant professor in the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity at the University at Albany. "The most obvious of these would be the sharing of official watches, warnings, and advisories with the public," said Silver. "Citizens often use social media to share information about storm conditions and local impacts, which can be used by public officials (e.g., emergency managers, first responders) to assess areas of higher impact vs. lower impact." This information can facilitate operational decision-making, thereby allowing officials to better position personnel, equipment, and supplies in response to rapidly changing conditions. From the end-user's perspective, official and unofficial information shared online has been shown to affect decision-making regarding protective actions, including the actions taken and when they are taken, said Silver. Already, local, state, and federal emergency management agencies turn to the platforms to gain a better sense of what is happening on the ground. Such information can enable officials to better understand local impacts and community needs, which in turn can facilitate their operational decision-making during disasters. However, the multiple agencies need to ensure they're on the same page, including what they collect from social media and what they disseminate. "In crisis communication, the best practice is to speak with one voice. Public information officers from multiple departments or jurisdictions work together before, during, and after a disaster to provide consistent, comprehensible, and specific information through multiple communication mediums," said Knox. Moreover, too much reliance on social media during breaking news events can open the door for misinformation to be accepted as factual, especially if officials inadvertently base their reports on false information. "A unique component of social media platforms is the ability for anyone to create content. During times of a disaster, some of this information is incorrect or false, warned Knox. "Rumor control can become a full-time job during an activation in the emergency operations center or joint information center. This is another reason why it is important for local governments to educate and engage with the public during blue sky days, so the agency's social media account becomes a trusted, reliable source of information during a disaster." Misinformation is likely to move faster than a category five storm, but this may also be why official agencies need to monitor what is being posted. "Like many tools, social media is constantly evolving," added Silver, who acknowledged it is not without its issues. "The sheer volume and rapidity of information diffusion during a large-scale disaster is a known challenge, especially when that information includes misinformation and disinformation. With that being said, however, social media can be used to share information from official sources more quickly and efficiently than traditional channels." There is no denying that hurricane season can cause anxiety, especially for those who now live in regions that have been hard hit in recent years. However, turning to social media before a storm can further bring a negative impact on one's mental health. "Overexposure to media, especially during hurricane season, can significantly impact our mental health, even for those of us who are not directly affected," warned Dr. Reggie Ferreira, director of the Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy and professor in the School of Social Work at Tulane University. The continuous updates about hurricanes, flooding, and destruction can heighten one's anxiety and create a pervasive sense of dread or helplessness. "Over time, we may also experience compassion fatigue, where exposure to repeated distressing stories leads to emotional numbness or a reduced ability to empathize," said Ferreira. "There's also the risk of secondary trauma exposure; individuals might develop trauma-like symptoms such as nightmares or heightened alertness just from viewing graphic content." Additionally, the sheer volume of real-time updates can become overwhelming, making it more challenging to distinguish credible, helpful information from sensationalized or misleading posts. Ferreira cautioned that the use of AI-generated images on social media can exacerbate the issue even further. "Many people end up 'doomscrolling' late into the night, which disrupts sleep and can further exacerbate our mood and anxiety disorders," said Ferreira. "It's a cycle that can quietly take a toll on our emotional well-being."
India Gazette
07-06-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
"Strengthening early warning systems, coordination is crucial", says PM Modi addressing ICDRI
New Delhi [India], June 7 (ANI): Highlighting the significance of strengthening early warning systems to mitigate risks from disasters, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that coastal regions and islands are at great risk due to natural disasters and climate change. Addressing the International Conference on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (ICDRI) via videoconference, the Prime Minister said that India in recent times witnessed Cyclone Remal in India and Bangladesh, Hurricane Beryl in the Caribbean, Typhoon Yagi in Southeast Asia, and Hurricane Helene in the United States. 'The theme of this conference is shaping our resilient future for coastal regions. Coastal regions and islands are at great risk due to natural disasters and climate change. In recent times, we saw Cyclone Remal in India and Bangladesh, Hurricane Beryl in the Caribbean, Typhoon Yagi in Southeast Asia, Hurricane Helene in the United States, Typhoon Usagi in the Philippines, and Cyclone Chido in parts of Africa. Such disasters damage life and property,' the Prime Minister said. He recounted India's experience during the super cyclone of 1999 and the Tsunami in 2004. 'India also experienced the pain during the super cyclone of 1999 and the tsunami in 2004. Cyclone shelters were constructed across the vulnerable areas. We also helped build a Tsunami Warning system for 29 countries,' PM Modi said. 'The coalition for disaster-resilient infrastructure is working with 25 small island developmental states. Resilient homes, hospitals, schools, energy and water security and early warning systems are being built,' he added. Further emphasising the need for a skilled workforce to tackle future challenges, PM Modi said, 'Courses, modules and skill-development projects need to become part of the higher education system. This will build a skilled workforce that can tackle future challenges. 'Many countries faced disasters and rebuilt with resilience. A global digital repository for the learnings and best practices would be beneficial. Disaster resilience requires innovative finance; we must design actionable programmes and ensure that developing nations have access to finance,' he added, stressing the global digital repository. 'Strengthening early warning systems and coordination is crucial. This helps in early decisions and effective last-mile communication,' the Prime Minister further said. (ANI)
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump's contract-cutting blitz rattles a once-flourishing DC industry
A Trump administration project to revisit thousands of federal agreements is starting to sink a vast ecosystem of contractors that deploy jobs across the Washington economy. It's an effort — launched in February — that's already produced claims of big savings, including $43 million for oversight and protection of private information in the federal insurance marketplace. Contracts worth $14 million for health care support within the Department of Veterans Affairs and $16 million for assisting relief efforts in Texas following last year's Hurricane Beryl and other natural disasters have also been marked as terminated. At least 2,775 out of more than 20,000 contracts for consulting and investment advice under review have been cut as of May 11, worth $3.1 billion in claimed savings, according to an analysis of DOGE's list of terminations and government data obtained by POLITICO. But the reach of the review — looking back at contracts that have already gone through a competitive bidding process overseen by career civil servants — is nonetheless unprecedented. It has frozen hiring, triggered layoffs and sparked chaos across the consulting industry, a vast shadow workforce across Virginia, Washington and Maryland that often weathers broader economic slumps. 'The government's going to force [contractors] into a race to the bottom,' said Stan Soloway, a former procurement official at the Defense Department who later ran the Professional Services Council, a trade association for federal contractors. 'These are consequences that happen when the process leading up to them is not appropriately deliberative and thoughtful and insightful.' For decades, the government has grown increasingly reliant on the private sector to perform functions once handled by federal employees, a shift done ostensibly to control costs by having companies compete. It also created today's opportunity: The Trump administration has brought a new intensity to slashing contractors partly because they're easier to cut than federal workers, many of which have civil service protections. In the same breath, the government is renegotiating contracts to get better deals for relatively greater work, according to three lobbyists representing large and small consulting firms who, like others in this report, were granted anonymity for fear of retribution. The General Services Administration, which oversees government contracting and is leading the review, is systematically targeting business deals it can retroactively deem 'non-essential' — 'any contract that merely generates a report, research, coaching, or an artifact,' according to an agency memo obtained by POLITICO. The early stages of the economic fallout for the D.C. region are starting to trickle out. Consulting firms included in GSA's list of 20,000-plus contracts have reported layoffs for nearly 3,600 employees in Washington, Maryland and Virginia alone since the start of the Trump administration, according to publicly available data. And consulting industry giant Deloitte, which has not yet announced layoffs in the DMV area, is widely expected to shed staff as well. Trump administration officials say the undertaking is determined to make sure the agreements provide good value to taxpayers. It's exactly the sort of mission conservatives elected President Donald Trump to do — shrink the federal government in a way that previous administrations have failed to deliver. They have also said these cuts would not impact essential services and instead target redundancies. Veterans Affairs spokesperson Peter Kasperowicz said the agency has so far canceled 'hundreds' of the 130,000 contracts it is reviewing and won't cancel those that 'directly support Veterans, and beneficiaries or provide services VA cannot do itself.' Josh Gruenbaum, GSA's commissioner for the federal acquisitions division, also downplayed the fears of the administration's critics. The contract review, he said, 'is simply identifying the right private industry partners who take the deficit as seriously as we do and are willing to provide quality goods and services at competitive prices.' White House DOGE adviser Katie Miller did not respond to multiple requests for comment. To get out of a contract early, the government can simply pay companies a 'kill fee' that varies by contract, said Christine Harada, who oversaw procurement in the White House and GSA during the Obama and Biden administrations. But it's against federal business practices for agencies to cut a contract midway just to get a better deal, she said. But taking the government to court comes with enormous risks, said Darrell West, a senior fellow at the center-left Brookings Institution who studies government contracting. 'If you sue this White House, you're never going to get a future contract. Everybody knows that,' he said. As part of its review, Trump's GSA instructed agencies to provide one-sentence justifications for essential contracts worth keeping, according to the GSA memo. It has also asked every agency to review their contracts with the 10 consulting firms it says receive the most government funds and terminate any non-essential agreements. POLITICO is tracking updates to DOGE's 'Wall of Receipts,' which already claims nearly $32 billion in savings from all contract terminations it has posted publicly, and $170 billion in savings overall from cuts government-wide, as of May 11 — though DOGE's logs have been riddled with errors. Among those terminations are at least 2,775 of the consulting contracts highlighted by GSA. The actual number of consulting contracts DOGE claims to have canceled may be higher, as the group has masked identifying information from hundreds of contracts on its page due to 'legal reasons' and describes its termination list as a 'subset' of its activity. However, what DOGE claims to have cut is not always the same as what the agencies themselves claim. One of the largest contracts listed as canceled is a $1.3 billion agreement with New York-based Deployed Resources originally intended to help construct and furnish an immigration processing center along the southern border. But the contract, initially with the Department of Homeland Security, is active and was taken over by the Department of the Army, according to Army public affairs specialist Ryan Mattox. In recent weeks, GSA has signaled to some contracting firms that it wanted far deeper reductions, said one agency official who was granted anonymity for fear of retribution. And while contracts with behemoth companies like Booz Allen Hamilton, General Dynamics and Deloitte are under the government's microscope, smaller, little-known companies could also have their work cut or reduced. One contract with a roughly 50-person research firm, MEF Associates, that helped states improve employment and other supportive services for welfare recipients facing domestic violence, mental health, substance use and other issues was cut in April. That's made it unclear if families on welfare are more likely to miss out on service improvements. Contractors and former government officials are also worried there could be unintended cancellations for a broader sweep of projects because GSA's spreadsheets labeled contracts 'consulting' even if, in practice, they were used for construction and other unrelated services. Detailed descriptions for each contract are not always available in public federal spending data sets, nor in the data obtained by POLITICO. But some contracts that have been under review, identified through a series of GSA documents, include a$33 million contract for logistical support following Tropical Storm Helene in Asheville, North Carolina (which DOGE claims to have canceled), a $155 million award to build out a system to help prevent veteran suicide and$132 million toward human resources services to help veterans transition back to civilian life. At IBM, another large contractor whose deals GSA is scrutinizing, executives noted the contract review and cancellations prompted them to be 'prudently cautious around consulting for the year,' Chief Financial Officer Jim Kavanaugh said on an earnings call in late April. 'We actually process veterans benefits claims. We help process how the GSA does procurement. We help implement payroll systems,' Arvind Krishna, IBM's president and CEO, told investors. 'I don't think of these as optional.' Many lobbyists, contractors and current and former federal officials acknowledged in interviews there are redundancies within consulting contracts. But some of these redundancies, they noted, are fail-safes that help keep important systems running smoothly and prevent service outages. Harada, the Obama and Biden procurement official, said the Trump administration's penchant for making broad cutsand then backtracking makes her worry it could wipe out important programs and unnecessarily imperil thousands of private sector jobs. 'They're the ones that are operating the Medicare call centers,' she said. 'They're the ones that are administering your Medicaid payments, your veterans benefits. They're the ones that are actually doing some of the medical services for veterans.' Consulting firms aren't sitting by passively. Some have spent the first months of the Trump administration lobbying lawmakers and federal agencies including GSA to stave off contract cuts. Companies including Guidehouse and Booz Allen, which have been singled out by GSA, are working with agencies to make strategic carve-outs, according to three lobbyists and contractors familiar with the matter. But these firms have hit a wall. As DOGE and GSA hack away at contracts, the businesses are having trouble breaking through, they said. A congressional staffer familiar with the matter told POLITICO that lawmakers' ability to intervene in the contract review is limited because appropriations laws don't dictate whom the executive branch hires or what contracts agencies need to issue. During the lobbying blitz, contractors have learned the Trump administration is looking to "rescope" the size of preexisting contracts with the ultimate goal of squeezing lower prices and greater productivity from these consultancies, the three lobbyists and contractors said. 'Everybody's so desperate for work now,' said a former staffer at a major consulting firm GSA targeted. 'So they're going and they're basically lowball[ing] their price. … And as long as it's not ungodly low, they'll win on price.' It's left the contractors in a precarious position: Do they put forward the cheapest bids to secure a deal, unsure if the money they are asking for is enough to fulfill the work, or forgo a contract entirely? 'We're heading toward an unhealthy dynamic. Would you use low price to choose your heart surgeon?' said Soloway, the former Pentagon procurement official, who now runs Celero Strategies, a federal market consulting firm. 'The end result is it ends up costing the taxpayer more. You get a lot less for your money.' Methodology POLITICO obtained 53 spreadsheets that GSA circulated to federal agencies, along with a memo instructing them to conduct a review of 'non-essential consulting' contracts. In total, those spreadsheets amounted to 22,150 rows of data, most of which refer to single contracts, though some individual contracts were repeated across rows. That data is shown in full in the table above, though some columns, including those with personal identifying information, have been removed. POLITICO compared this data to DOGE's publicly available contract termination list posted on May 11 in order to identify contracts that DOGE claims to have canceled. When available, old versions of the DOGE data were used for USAID contract cancellations that are now stripped of identifying information on the DOGE website due to 'legal reasons.' As a result, there may be additional USAID consulting contracts on GSA's list that have been canceled by DOGE.
CBC
22-05-2025
- Climate
- CBC
Expect an above-average hurricane season, says NOAA
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is forecasting an above-average Atlantic hurricane season. According to the federal climate and weather agency, the season — which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30 each year — has a 60 per cent chance of an above-normal season, a 30 per cent chance of a near-normal season and a 10 per cent chance of a below-normal season. They are also forecasting between 13 to 19 named storms, with six to 10 of them becoming hurricanes. Of those, three to five are forecast to be major hurricanes (from Category 3 to Category 5 on the Saffir-Simpson scale). They have a 70 per cent confidence in these predictions. Last year, NOAA forecasted between 18 to 25 named storms, with 8 to 13 becoming hurricanes. And in the end, there were 18 named storms and 10 hurricanes. "The 2024 hurricane season outlook that was issued in May last year, was right on the money," said Laura Grimm, acting NOAA administrator in a press conference. Three of those storms affected Canada in 2024. The remnants of Hurricane Beryl — which was a major hurricane that caused widespread damage throughout the Caribbean — was responsible for one death in Wolfville, N.S., in July due to flash flooding. It also caused two tornadoes near London, Ont. The most significant to hit Canada was Hurricane Debby which became an extratropical storm by the time it hit Quebec in August. According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, it was the costliest severe weather event in Quebec's history, causing almost $2.5 billion in damages due to flooding. About a week later, the remnants of Hurricane Ernesto hit Newfoundland with minimal impacts. Warmer Atlantic Ocean Since 2023, the Atlantic Ocean has been significantly warmer than average due to global warming. The oceans have absorbed roughly 90 per cent of the warming over the past few decades as we continue to release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, mostly from burning fossil fuels. Graham noted that, although the warmer Atlantic Ocean temperature hasn't influenced the number of storms we're seeing in a hurricane season, it is contributing to more rainfall, as the atmosphere is now holding more moisture. However, it is believed that the warmer temperatures have contributed to rapid intensification, as was the case with Hurricane Otis in 2023, which strengthened from a tropical storm to a Category 5 in less than 24 hours. It slammed into Acapulco, Mexico, killing at least 100 people who were caught by surprise by the intensification. But Graham said that their forecasts concerning rapid intensification has been getting better. "We saw the forecast improvements first-hand in 2024," he said. "The skill is better than ever. It was amazing to watch in 2024. Helene was forecast to be a major hurricane … before it was even a depression. It was a bunch of clouds, a couple of thunderstorms." When asked about the Trump administration's cuts and how that could affect the forecast and local offices, Grimm said that it wasn't an issue. "Weather prediction, modelling and protecting human lives and property is our top priority," she said. "We are fully staffed at the hurricane centre and we definitely are ready to go and we are really making this a top priority for this administration, for NOAA, for the department of commerce. So we are very supportive of our national weather staff." About 10 per cent of NOAA's workforce has been cut. Message: Be prepared Most of the press conference centred around preparedness for those who may be in the path of any hurricane. They stressed that people should begin preparations before any hurricanes even develop. "There are no lines for supplies today. No lines for gas, no lines for plywood, no lines for water," said Ken Graham, director, NOAA's National Weather Service. "So while there're no lines, it's a good time to go out there and get your supplies and your kit [and] put it together." He also said that people who are further inland and think they may not experience the effects from a hurricane should still prepare. "Everything's in place for an above-average season," Graham said. "There's no such thing as 'Hurricane Just a' ... There's no such thing as just a Cat 1, there's no such thing as just a Cat 2, just a Cat 3. Every one of them is different." "We're prepared here at NOAA," he said. "Are you?"
