Unnatural Disasters
How natural disasters intensified by climate change are affecting people and wildlife across the United States.
Warmer temperatures due to climate change are intensifying nearly every type of natural disaster, posing new threats across the country.
From sweltering heat waves and torrential downpours to smoky skies and toxic water, this storymap will walk you through various types of disasters, their relation to climate change, and how they are impacting people and wildlife.
2023 set a new record for the number of weather disasters that cost a billion dollars or more. By the end of August, 23 separate climate disasters had cost nearly $60 billion and killed 253 people. The summer also registered as the hottest on record, putting the planet on track for the warmest year as well.
To the right are just some of these 'unnatural disasters' that have happened in the United States in recent years. Click any of the icons to learn more. To expand the map, click the arrows in the top right corner. Click and drag the map to move it.
Hurricanes
Climate change is making hurricanes more dangerous for people and wildlife in a number of ways.
Hurricanes are becoming more powerful, with higher wind speeds fueled by warmer ocean temperatures. Stronger winds create higher storm surges and also cause more damage to homes and buildings. Hurricanes are generating more rain because warm air holds more water. Storms are moving more slowly and these slower, wetter hurricanes are causing more flooding. Hurricanes are affecting more places as larger areas of ocean waters are becoming warm enough for storms to form. Finally, hurricanes are intensifying more rapidly, often leaving coastal communities with little time to prepare. These changes are part of the reason hurricanes have become more deadly over the past three decades.
- Soldiers from the Louisiana National Guard respond to Hurricane Laura damage, 2020.
Moments from various hurricane events over the years.
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Wildfires
One of the most dramatic examples of climate-fueled natural disasters, wildfires have grown in frequency and intensity in recent years. Earlier spring snowmelt, extended droughts, and higher temperatures have lengthened the wildfire season and increased the risks. Wildfires have also increased due to changes on the landscape such as overgrown forests, diseased trees, and invasive grasses.
Fires often ignite and spread quickly, leaving people and wildlife little or no time to escape from harm’s way, as we witnessed in historic Lahaina, Hawai’i, in August 2023. Wildfire smoke can worsen air quality and public health thousands of miles away. Historic fires in Canada in 2023 sent massive amounts of smoke into the northern United States, briefly subjecting New York City to the worst air quality on the planet. Smoke contains toxins and soot that elevate the risk of respiratory distress in humans as well as wildlife . Many species are even more sensitive to air pollution than humans.
“Fifteen years ago, a 100,000-acre fire would be the largest fire of your career. Now, we have one-million-acre fires. It’s hard even for us to comprehend,” Kristen Allison, a 25-year veteran firefighter, said of the California wildfires.
The map to the right is showing an up-to-date account of United States wildfire incidents (in acres). The larger the fire symbol, the larger the fire. Clicking on any of the fire icons pulls up information on the fire name, acreage burned, percent contained, and when the fire was discovered.
This map is part of Esri's Disaster Response Program and it provides public information regarding current weather and wildfire incidents in the United States. Data is updated automatically.
Red blazes indicate past wildfires, yellow blazes indicate new wildfires within the past 24 hours, and brown blazes indicated prescribed fires.
Lāhainā, Hawai’i
2023
In early August, drought conditions and winds whipped up by Hurricane Dora passing through the Pacific Ocean contributed to numerous wildfires sprouting up across the island, fueled by invasive grasses. The worst of these grew into a massive wall of fire that quickly engulfed the town of Lahaina, on Maui’s west coast. The downtown suffered near-total devastation, and the fire became the country’s deadliest in a century, killing at least 97 people. Drinking water was contaminated for months after the fire in some communities.
The fire’s impacts on native Hawai’ian wildlife are still being studied. Scientists are particularly concerned about the impacts of runoff pollution from burned areas on the Olowalu Coral Reef, which houses some of the oldest corals in the Hawaiian islands. Scientists are also concerned about Hawai’i’s native plants, many of which are not adapted to fire, as well as the bees that rely on them.
California
2020
The country’s most extensive wildfires occurred throughout California and set a record of 4.4 million acres burned over the course of one year – an area larger than the state of Connecticut.
Damage from the fire can further complicate recovery for at-risk California species like spotted owls and Sierra Nevada red foxes. Other wildlife, like bears and mountain lions, have to travel out of their usual territories to find food and shelter, possibly crossing highways or entering populated areas.
The California wildfires were predicted to have lasting impacts on water quality. Severely burned areas of land send large amounts of sediments into nearby creeks and rivers, increasing the cost of drinking water treatment and harming salmon, trout and other aquatic species.
Heat and Drought
Heat is the leading cause of weather-related deaths. Across the United States, heat waves are becoming more frequent and more intense, a trend that is expected to continue as climate change worsens. Heat exhaustion and heat stroke are the most common causes of death, but heat also contributes to heart attacks, strokes, and asthma attacks. Wildlife are also at risk from extreme heat and drought, and the ecosystems affected can take years, or even decades, to recover.
Heat Domes, 2023
July and August 2023 brought record-breaking stretches of extreme heat from the Southwest to Florida and across the Midwest. In July, Phoenix set a record of 31 consecutive days at or above 110°F. In August, a massive heat dome subjected more than 100 million people across the Midwest to life-threatening temperatures and was responsible for at least 157 deaths.
Record temperatures in South Florida pushed water temperatures to as high as 101°F in July, possibly the highest ocean temperature ever recorded. The state’s coral reefs–an ecosystem that supports up to a million aquatic species–suffered a massive bleaching event as a result of the intense heat.
Pacific Northwest Heat Dome, 2021
In June, temperatures soared in Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and southern Alaska, a region not accustomed to high temperatures. Consecutive days near or above 100° heat caused more than 150 deaths in the United States and 400 in Canada, and hundreds more hospital visits. The heat also raised water temperatures dramatically, killing more than a billion marine animals, including mussels and sea stars, in the Salish Sea and stressing wildlife from the Pacific to the Rocky Mountains.
The Great Salt Lake, ongoing drought
Utah's Great Salt Lake has shrunk to half its normal size over recent years due to an extended drought fueled by climate change combined with the overuse of water from the rivers that feed the lake – largely for irrigation but also for rapidly growing communities. This poses a risk to brine shrimp and the surrounding wetlands used by ten million migrating birds. As water levels decline, dust filled with arsenic, mercury and other heavy metals contaminate the air. Experts warn the Great Salt Lake could disappear in as little as five years unless significant water conservation measures are put in place.
Compare images from NASA's Earth Observatory of Utah's Great Salt Lake taken June 1985 (left) and July 2022 (right).
Colorado River Basin Megadrought, ongoing drought
Lake Mead and Lake Powell, two of America’s largest reservoirs, reached record lows due to a two-decades-long drought, exacerbated by urbanization and climate change. With less rain and snowmelt replenishing the lakes, higher temperatures increasing evaporation, and a growing population making new demands on the reservoir, the 40 million Americans who depend on the Colorado River and its reservoirs for drinking water, electricity generation, and agricultural irrigation face an uncertain future. Wildlife depend on this water too – 30 fish species in the Colorado Basin are found nowhere else in the world, while iconic bird species like the threatened yellow-billed cuckoo call river’s delta home.
Floods
More than 40 million Americans already live in a high-risk flood zone – and climate change will increase the risks.
Warmer temperatures increase evaporation, which can lead to more intense rainstorms. As a result, flooding rivers and streams are projected to become “flashier” and more dangerous. Intense rain will also increasingly damage properties in urban areas due to backed up stormwater systems. Coastal flooding is projected to dramatically increase due to sea level rise.
In addition to climate change, a 2023 Supreme Court decision that removed federal protections for most wetlands will also increase flooding risk for communities, as wetlands that once absorbed floods will end up plowed under or paved over.
Left: Flooding in Cedar Rapids, IA. Right: Heavy rain triggers mudslides in Arches National Park.
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Toxic Algae
Phytoplankton, or algae, provide food for a wide range of species. However, scientists are recording a worldwide increase in the frequency and intensity of harmful algal blooms, which is when an overgrowth of algae has toxic or harmful effects on people or wildlife.
Each summer, hundreds of harmful algae outbreaks occur across the United States – and these outbreaks are becoming more common. Warmer temperatures and higher levels of carbon dioxide help fuel the algae’s growth as does runoff pollution, largely from industrial agriculture. Not all algae emit toxins, but even non-toxic blooms can harm wildlife, for example by clogging the gills of fish and shellfish.
Algal toxins can kill fish, shellfish and other wildlife and can create significant economic hardship for communities. People exposed to the toxins can experience a wide range of health problems. Here are a few of the places around the country that are affected by recurring harmful algal blooms:
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Get Involved
Headlines that read “record-breaking heat” or “unprecedented flooding” have become the norm. Across the United States – and the world – unnatural disasters like these have become more frequent, intense, and longer-lasting because of climate change. These climate disasters are starting to shape our everyday lives – from communities losing power for days to insurance companies canceling homeowner’s coverage in flood and fire-prone regions. The toll these events have on people and wildlife is staggering, and the cost of our inaction means we’ll continue to experience more destruction and death.
Everyone — governments entities at all levels, business, civil society, individuals — needs to be prepared to face more extreme weather events as the climate continues to change at an increasing pace. Climate science must be taken into serious account in how we build, adapt and protect our homes, communities, businesses and infrastructure. -UN Environment Programme-
To make significant changes that address our climate, energy, and biodiversity crises in the timeframe required, we need to use all the tools in our toolbox. Now, more than ever, we must rally behind “both/and” solutions – like the responsible expansion of renewable energy and transmission , natural climate solutions , climate-smart agriculture , and carbon removal technologies like direct air capture and carbon recycling – to counter the effects of climate change and prevent further damage from severe weather events. When paired together, these efforts can maximize ecosystem and energy resiliency, and help facilitate effective climate adaptation for communities and wildlife.
Will this be the year that leaders in Washington start seeing climate change as the existential threat that it is? One step you can take today is to use your voice to send a comment urging Congress to invest in climate solutions and in clean energy technologies.
