Stormy summer’s toll mounts, in lives and dollars
Australian Financial ReviewDec 27, 2023
Australia: Thunderstorms Kill 10, Cause Power Outages
The Facts
At least ten people have been killed and thousands left without power after severe thunderstorms battered the Australian states of Victoria, New South Wales, and Queensland on Christmas and Boxing Day.
On Sunday, New South Wales received 150mm of rain and 5cm hailstones. Reports have emerged of townhouses, homes, and roads being inundated by flash flooding in the country's eastern suburbs.
The Spin
Narrative A
Australia's nightmarish Christmas has come about despite flood warnings and an efficient crisis management system. Besides the tragic loss of lives, the country must now take stock of the material damage the raging storms have caused. Australia needs a paradigm shift in how it deals with climate-related issues, such as Cyclone Jasper.
Narrative B
It's clear from the many extreme weather-related crises Australia has faced in recent years that the country needs to review urbanization. The drainage systems of Australia's cities haven't been able to cope with their expansion, making extreme weather events like Jasper worse. Add to that the widening of built-up areas in these urban agglomerations, which has reduced the earth's permeable surface area through which water can seep down, and it becomes clear why extreme weather is being so poorly dealt with.
Nerd narrative
There's a 50% chance that Australia's net greenhouse gas emissions will be at least 89% in 2050, according to the Metaculus forecasting community.