‘Unimaginable devastation’: Biggest storm in a century slams into Florida

Florida has been hit by the first devastating effects of Hurricane Michael as the biggest storm to strike the region in a century made landfall Thursday morning (AEST).

The storm surge and waves from Hurricane Michael
batter the beachfront homes in the Florida Panhandle. 

The powerful Category 4 storm brought torrential rainfall, hurricane-force winds of up to 250 km/h and life-threatening water surges to the Florida Panhandle.

Florida Governor Rick Scott warned of “unimaginable devastation”, saying it would be the worst storm in 100 years.

Read the story from The New Daily - “‘Unimaginable devastation’: Biggest storm in a century slams into Florida.”

This Hurricane Season, Puerto Ricans Are Imagining a Sustainable Future

Nine months after Hurricane Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico, the Caribbean island faces another potentially devastating hurricane season, while much of its infrastructure and land still remain in tatters.

A man grows vegetables in a hydroponic farm in
 his Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, home in 2018. 

The Category 5 hurricane that ripped through the Caribbean last fall not only caused nearly 5,000 deaths, but also exposed the fragility of the island’s social, political, and economic underpinnings. The truth behind Maria’s devastation and the United States’ laggard response to the hurricane lies in centuries of colonial exploitation—first by Spain and then by the United States—and in its perpetual subjugation to the whims of American elites.

Read the story from The Nation by Celia Bottger - “This Hurricane Season, Puerto Ricans Are Imagining a Sustainable Future.”