We can’t say that Hurricane Harvey was caused by climate change. But it was certainly worsened by it. — Dr. Michael Mann

Harvey is already the worst rainstorm in U.S. history and it’s still raining. — Meteorologist Eric Holthaus

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It’s the fifth day of an unprecedented rain event that one of the world’s top scientists is saying was made worse by climate change. Flood totals as of earlier this morning topped a record-smashing 49 inches. Emergency management officials are saying that this is a 1,000 year flood event (and it could get worse). And the rains are still falling as levees in and around the city of Houston over-top or fail.

The record for total rainfall from a tropical system has been BROKEN! Mary's Creek at Winding Road recorded 49.20", previous record is 48". pic.twitter.com/yCjuUOR8p3 — NWS Houston (@NWSHouston) August 29, 2017

If peak rainfall was the whole of this story, then things wouldn’t be quite so bad for Houston and other Texas cities. But with this particularly severe storm it’s a combination of size, severity and duration that has produced such terrible floods. Harvey’s persistent stall has brought very severe rains to a large swath running all the way from southeast Texas in an arc through Mississippi. And a huge flood basin from Victoria to Austin to Lufkin to Lake Charles has now received between 8 and nearly 50 inches of rain as of early Tuesday.

Such a large swath has resulted in a more significant pulse of waters flooding into streams, lakes, and reservoirs. This depth of zonal flooding generates more water pile ups as flows move downstream. Resulting in higher peaks at rivers in places like Houston and putting more stress on water management infrastructure. An infrastructure that was designed to handle the 100 to 1,000 year floods of a gentler climate but not the so-called 1,000 year or worse floods of an atmosphere loaded up with a much greater portion of storm-fueling heat and moisture.

Weather Service: "The #Harvey 3-to-4 day rainfall totals of greater than 40 inches are simply mind-blowing": https://t.co/K6ZGhDaIya pic.twitter.com/C7wxedgUkN — Capital Weather Gang (@capitalweather) August 29, 2017

That this will be the worst flood in Texas history by a number of measures goes without question. That the flood was made worse by climate change is a scientific fact. That Texas is still getting pummeled by a tragic blow that is costing both lives and tens of billions of dollars in damages is a foregone conclusion.

At this point, the question we need to be asking ourselves is how can we prepare for more of these kinds of extreme rainfall events — which are surely coming. And how can we honestly work together to reduce both their future intensity and damage? How can we ultimately protect lives and property in a world we have made more dangerous by burning fossil fuels and dumping carbon into the atmosphere? And how quickly can we resolve ourselves to stop making the problem worse?

UPDATED (1)

RELATED STATEMENTS AND INFORMATION:

Links:

Hurricane Harvey Made More Deadly by Climate Change

National Weather Service Houston

The Capital Weather Gang

Harvey is Already the Worst Rainstorm in U.S. History and it’s Still Raining

Houston Levee Failures