The impact of climate change is being felt by families across the country as disasters grow larger and occur more often. To get ready for these intense weather events, the American Red Cross is urging families to make readiness a priority this September during National Preparedness Month.
For the past several years, the country has experienced more intense storms, heavier rain, higher temperatures, severe droughts and record-setting hurricanes and wildfires. Some of these emergencies are impacting people who don’t usually experience a major disaster, while other communities are going through the devastation of disasters multiple times a year.
Last year, extreme weather events created the greatest number of billion-dollar disasters to strike the U.S.
Now in 2021, extreme drought conditions helped wildfires start earlier than normal, and more than 4.6 million acres have already been consumed — that’s nearly a million acres higher than this time last year. Meteorologists are also predicting another above-average hurricane season.

Read the full story on how to prepare for a possible disaster in the mid-week Bowie News.