When looking at the past years, it becomes evident that super storms appear to be occurring much more frequently. Super Typhoon Neoguriis the most recent storm worth mentioning, currently it is said to be a category 4 and will increase to a category 5. Within the last 5 years, Asia has had at least three major storms, which are of equal intensity, like Super Typhoon Haiyan, which was one of the strongest to ever be recorded in 2013.
A major cause of all these massive super typhoons is undoubtedly the climate change due to hazardous environmental damage. When looking at Asia, it is clear that the pollution problems are strengthening storms that are originating in the Pacific. One outcome of those environmental problems is Super Typhoon Neoguri, which is barreling straight toward Japan. The Super Typhoon is raising major concerns because there are at least two nuclear power plants within the projected path of the typhoon. If the storm were to affect those plants, another nuclear incident could possibly occur, similar to that of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that crippled the Fukushima Daiichi power plant and ended up spreading radioactive matter into surrounding waterways.
It is becoming more and more obvious that the effects of climate change are slowly but surely happening all around us and poses a major threat on civilization as a whole. In terms of Americans specifically, the last category 5 storm that occurred was Hurricane Andrew in 1992. The United States has been long overdue for a major storm to occur, especially given the current state of the global environment. It makes people wonder about the increasing chance of another massive hurricane within the next coming years.
Ultimately, the best time to plan for a storm, whether it is a hurricane or a super typhoon, is before it has the chance to strike. If only 3% of Americans are properly prepared for disaster that means that a huge 97% are certainly not. Essentially, if a storm at the same intensity as Super Typhoon Neoguri were to occur in the United States, Americans would be left without power for a matter of months, not weeks.
A recent weather related power outage report from 2012 associated a dollar number on the actual costs of power issues. The report suggests that the cost from power outages due to storms in the United States ranges between $20 to $55 billion annually. More frighteningly however, is that the data even goes as far to suggest that the trend of outages is slowly increasing. Tools like backup generators could prove to be a life changing aid in the event of a massive power outage in the United States. Now more than ever, it is becoming vital for Americans to prepare for the possibility of a disaster and get the essentials needed in the event of a natural disaster like Super Typhoon Neoguri.
