Gabby Kientzle, gabby.kientzle@sierraclub.org
Just days after Hurricane Helene wreaked widespread destruction in the Southeast, Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida last night, leaving millions of people without power and hitting Gulf Coast barrier islands with severe flooding. Tornadoes generated by the hurricane also destroyed dozens of homes and killed at least four people.
Hurricane Milton rapidly intensified due to record warm water temperatures in the Gulf. Data have shown that the damage caused by hurricanes can be exacerbated by warmer ocean temperatures caused by climate change and the associated sea level rise.
The Biden-Harris administration has launched a robust response and recovery effort to address the damage done by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, with over $344 million in assistance already provided to Hurricane Helene survivors and more than 8,000 federal personnel on the ground across the Southeast, including in Florida, to continue Hurricane Helene recovery efforts and respond to the impacts of Hurricane Milton. However, agencies like the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Transportation, and the Small Business Administration lack sufficient resources to address the long-term damage done by these hurricanes and other extreme weather events this year. Congressional leaders have not committed to returning from recess to pass additional funding for these needs.
Sierra Club Executive Director Ben Jealous released the following statement:
“Our thoughts are with Florida communities that are still reeling from Hurricane Helene and are now being hit with the compounding crisis of yet another massive hurricane. Congress must act immediately to ensure that there is sufficient funding to address the massive need left by these devastating storms, particularly for the most vulnerable communities who are hit the hardest by these disasters.
“We must also recognize that these devastating back-to-back storms are not just random weather events. We know that the climate crisis, driven by the continued expansion of fossil fuels, is causing storms like these to be more frequent, more severe, and more deadly. It is critical that we rapidly transition away from the dirty fossil fuels that are making these storms worse, and hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for their role in driving the climate crisis.
“Big Oil has known for decades that their products were making disasters like these inevitable. We cannot allow corporate polluters to continue collecting billions of dollars every year in subsidies while our communities face unimaginable devastation and enormous cleanup costs. Fossil fuel companies caused these disasters. Now they should be on the hook for cleaning up their mess.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.