As Texans put their lives back together from Hurricane Harvey, and Floridians begin to recover from Hurricane Irma, other problems have risen concerning the economy and environment. These hurricanes quickly made names as the worst in U.S. history.
Harvey reached Texas August 25 and died out August 31. In those 6 days 33,000 people were displaced. 19 reported dead. 52 inches of rainfall covered coastal Texas. Annually Texas receives 49 inches of rain. The Hawkeye deadline was before final estimates were recorded for Irma.
"If you lived in a $200,000 home or a $50,000 home, it didn't matter. You still didn't have power. Everybody needed water, everybody needed the same things,” Hurricane Harvey survivor Ron Magill said.
As of September 1, the water finally began to recede, causing numerous problems. The concern shifted from flooding to inflation. In preparation for Harvey, Texas shut down all its inland and offshore oil rigs. At one gas station in Houston prices rose to $8.50 a gallon and a case of water were $99.
Harvey also threatened to be one of the most costly hurricanes in U.S. history. Hurricane Katrina ranked No. 1 costing $79.7 billion. It is estimated that Harvey would cause $75 billion in economic losses. Economists predict that Harvey will not mark any major crash in the economy, rather it will face a temporary lull.
“The recovery to this event is going to last many years to be able to help Texas and the people impacted by this event achieve a new normal,” Texas Governor Greg Abbott said.
With the economy wavering, people turn to the immediate dangers: environmental disaster. Houston is home to numerous chemical plants, refineries, and fossil fuels. Some of these sites were hit hard by Harvey and in turn they have released toxic compounds into the environment. Some believe it is, in part, due to the government's delayed reaction in evoking a safety rule on all of these facilities.
The repercussions of the government's delayed reaction were evident when the Arkema chemical manufacturing facility burst into flames. Floodwater from Harvey knocked out the systems that kept the plant cool. Following this, the next day another facility, Crosby’s Chemical Plant, caught fire too. Crosby’s houses liquid organic peroxides that are used in the production for everyday items such as PVC and packaging.
“The government should have been better with its regulations, it’s not something that can be taken lightly,” Newtown High School senior Ricky Mariani said.
In order to prevent such events, the United States had enacted the Risk Management Plan (RMP) which is part of the Clean Air Act Amendments. This plan requires the Environmental Protection Agency to publish regulations for chemical accidental preventions at facilities that use dangerous substances. Many wondered why the United States was so slow to enact safety procedures yet it was claimed that none of the amendments would be put into effect until March 2018.
The state of Florida tried to get out ahead of Irma as 6.5 million people, or a third of residents, were evacuated prior to her arrival.
“For our entire state but especially for the Keys, it’s going to be a long road,” Florida Gov. Rick Scott said Monday (9/11) after an aerial tour on a Coast Guard plane. “There’s a lot of damage.”
While the United States scrambled to help residents of Texas and Florida (and parts of Georgia and South Carolina) put their lives back together, Hurricane Jose threatened the Atlantic coast and the Northeast during the week of September 18.
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