DeclinetoState
06-21-2008, 10:51 AM
This is from a leftist blog (http://www.theleftcoaster.com/archives/012730.php), not a "legitimate" news site (though it's often hard to tell the difference between them).
Meteorological Bad Luck
by Turkana
The Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/18/AR2008061803371.html?hpid=topnews) reports that some believe the horrendous Midwest floods were at least partially caused by bad land use, while others believe they're just the result of "meteorological bad luck." The Dubuque Telegraph Herald (http://www.thonline.com/article.cfm?id=205819) provides a little context:
The last time a "once-in-a-lifetime" flood swamped the tri-state area was 1993 -- less than a lifetime ago for most people.<br>
"We had floods in 1993, 2001 and now in 2008," said Steve Kuhl, meteorologist in charge at the Quad Cities office of the National Weather Service. "It is certainly true this flood is historic -- especially along the Cedar and Iowa rivers. Now, we're expecting the Mississippi River from Muscatine south to approach 1993 levels."
Historic "once-in-a-lifetime" floods every several years. Just bad luck. Sure. The Cedar Rapids paper, The Gazette (http://www.gazetteonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080612/NEWS/262592557), quoted Elkader Fire Chief Mike Anderson:
"Nobody here has ever seen a flood like this — ever. We've had about seven 100-year floods since about 1990. (Now) I think we're at the 1,000-year flood."
More bad luck.
Meteorological Bad Luck
by Turkana
The Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/18/AR2008061803371.html?hpid=topnews) reports that some believe the horrendous Midwest floods were at least partially caused by bad land use, while others believe they're just the result of "meteorological bad luck." The Dubuque Telegraph Herald (http://www.thonline.com/article.cfm?id=205819) provides a little context:
The last time a "once-in-a-lifetime" flood swamped the tri-state area was 1993 -- less than a lifetime ago for most people.<br>
"We had floods in 1993, 2001 and now in 2008," said Steve Kuhl, meteorologist in charge at the Quad Cities office of the National Weather Service. "It is certainly true this flood is historic -- especially along the Cedar and Iowa rivers. Now, we're expecting the Mississippi River from Muscatine south to approach 1993 levels."
Historic "once-in-a-lifetime" floods every several years. Just bad luck. Sure. The Cedar Rapids paper, The Gazette (http://www.gazetteonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080612/NEWS/262592557), quoted Elkader Fire Chief Mike Anderson:
"Nobody here has ever seen a flood like this — ever. We've had about seven 100-year floods since about 1990. (Now) I think we're at the 1,000-year flood."
More bad luck.