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Reaction Video: Chasing Storms: Understanding Natural Hazards and Disasters Across the U.S.
140 Plays2 months ago
In this video reaction to the podcast episode "Chasing Storms: Understanding Natural Hazards and Disasters Across the U.S.," we dive into the compelling discussion about natural hazards and disasters. The episode explores the science behind events like hurricanes, wildfires, and tornadoes and how communities nationwide respond to these threats. Our reaction video highlights key insights shared in the podcast, from expert advice on preparedness to the fascinating history of these extreme weather events. Watch along as we break down the episode's most intriguing moments and discuss ways to stay safe in the face of nature's fury.
Also, make sure to listen to the previous Chasing Storms podcast episode first! Also, take a look at our latest weather preparedness article, What You Should Know About Hurricane Preparedness, From Our Local Experts.
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Transcript
Introduction to States of Discovery
00:00:10
mromanoiys
Hey, everyone. Welcome back to States of Discovery, a podcast. Buy only in your state. I'm here with my co-host, Sarah. Hi, Sarah.
00:00:22
Sara
Hello Marissa, how are you?
00:00:24
mromanoiys
I'm doing good. You know, it's, a you know, it's, yeah, I'm doing great.
00:00:27
Sara
You say with a sigh.
00:00:31
Sara
That was very convincing.
00:00:36
mromanoiys
Is that better? I'm doing my best.
00:00:38
Sara
Yeah. That is great. I love it.
00:00:41
mromanoiys
no
00:00:42
Sara
Aren't we all?
00:00:42
mromanoiys
I just feel like, you know, there're just this past week, there are more natural disasters
00:00:43
Sara
Yeah.
Impact of Gulf Natural Disasters
00:00:49
Sara
Yeah.
00:00:49
mromanoiys
popping up left and right.
00:00:52
mromanoiys
After we filmed our episode, there's something churning in the Gulf right now that's supposed to be hitting, you know, Louisiana and parts of anything that's going to hit the Gulf is usually going to hit either Louisiana, Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, parts of Florida.
00:01:07
mromanoiys
so
00:01:07
Sara
It landed last night, right?
00:01:09
mromanoiys
Oh, did it? Oh, gosh.
00:01:09
Sara
Yesterday? Maybe? I don't know. I just go by my weather.com alert, like I pay for the premium on my phone so I can get all the updates because I'm paranoid and you know, so yeah.
00:01:15
mromanoiys
Oh, that's awesome.
00:01:20
mromanoiys
No, but that's very smart. That's part of what our episode was about, is being weather prepared.
00:01:24
Sara
This is weather aware, yeah.
00:01:27
mromanoiys
Yeah, yeah. So yeah, I think um for anybody that's just joining us to see our faces, this is our video recap of our most recent episode.
00:01:39
mromanoiys
which was a podcast episode titled, Nature's Fury, Natural Hazards and Natural Disasters in the United States.
Natural Hazards vs. Disasters Discussion
00:01:47
mromanoiys
And Sarah and I went through the difference between natural hazards and natural disasters. We talked about how communities can stay prepared.
00:01:57
mromanoiys
We talked about different hazards that affect the US s from hurricanes to tornadoes to rip currents. And we even had an interview with a storm chaser, Tori Jane, who gave some really great insight into tornadoes and safety.
00:02:15
Sara
Yeah, one of the most fascinating things I thought about this episode, not only were the personal anecdotes from Tori and the first responder we had an audio clip from and yourself, but it was really fascinating to hear it all kind of distilled down into one Singular advice which you already talked about was like being weather aware and making sure you listen to the warnings that they're going to put out that was one great clip from Tori she mentioned like there's usually the there was no warning is not the case.
00:02:46
Sara
um It's just a matter about how diligent you are obviously things can go sideways and storms can change or become.
00:02:46
mromanoiys
Yeah.
00:02:53
Sara
more um violent or maybe, you know, a levee breaks or something happens to where yeah, you have to act fast. So I think that's just, you know, hypervigilance can be anxiety inducing, but I think that's important if you're living in an area where natural hazards can really, you know, ah threaten your life.
00:03:13
mromanoiys
Yeah, I think that so recently to this week, one of our one of our writers Jackie Sutherland, who's a phenomenal writer for only in your state came out with a hurricane preparedness article that I wanted to touch on just because she really went above and beyond in rounding out what to do when a hurricane's headed your way, how to be prepared. um And I thought it was a really great article. i'll link I linked it in the show notes of our original podcast. I'll link it in these show notes too, just so you can read. and And in case you don't know where to start in terms of a hurricane plan, this will kind of give you some guidance on where to start, what free resources there are, how, ah
00:04:01
mromanoiys
you know, you can stay in the know, like your weather.com app, which is a great resource. But because the thing about natural disasters and natural hazards is that there's no really, it's like, there's no definite of where it's going to land, you know, or what's going to happen or when it's going to happen.
00:04:19
Sara
Yeah.
00:04:21
mromanoiys
It's like, even just speaking to Tori, I feel like that really opened my eyes to you know her story about going after a certain tornado and then it was coming at a different direction when she forecasted.
Weather Unpredictability and Preparedness
00:04:35
mromanoiys
It's just like this this unknown that maybe is kind of what fascinates me about natural disasters or like these weather events, but it's, you know, there are ways to prepare, but it's that unknown factor that is the scariest.
00:04:38
Sara
yeah
00:04:52
Sara
Yeah, no, absolutely. um The fact that, yeah, it can all turn in a second. um It's no joke.
00:04:57
mromanoiys
yeah
00:04:58
Sara
And we, as humans, don't really have any way to control it. So whether it is a hurricane, a flood, a forest fire, um there's a lot that happens very quickly that you have to be prepared for.
00:05:02
mromanoiys
yeah
00:05:11
Sara
I'm curious from your end, because you have so much experience with, say, like hurricanes, and And this article that just came out, what's something do you think that people do incorrectly?
00:05:20
mromanoiys
Yeah. Hmm.
00:05:21
Sara
Like they maybe in an assumption people make of like, you know, how to handle the storm, but you feel like is actually ah to their disadvantage.
00:05:30
mromanoiys
Yeah, that's a great question. And I'll share with you a personal story that is kind of embarrassing, but here we are.
Personal Experiences with Hurricanes
00:05:39
mromanoiys
ah My sister and I, when we moved to Florida from New Jersey, our very first hurricane that we were going through, we did not take it seriously. We were coming from the Northeast. We mostly had experience with blizzards and snowstorms and nor'easters.
00:05:59
mromanoiys
nothing like a hurricane that would cause that had the the levels of wind and rain and flooding. So we went well, well, the grocery stores were being emptied out of food, of supplies, water, especially. We went out to buy a TV for our house.
00:06:20
mromanoiys
yeah And here we are, everyone is like preparing their houses and we're carrying in our new TV which could very much be destroyed in a matter of days. um But it it was so naive of us and because also I just think what what people should
00:06:32
Sara
Wow. Yeah.
00:06:42
mromanoiys
really take seriously is how to be prepared but also take every category of hurricanes seriously.
00:06:49
Sara
Yeah.
00:06:53
mromanoiys
Don't just mess around with like oh well it's a category two I don't have to worry about it which was our mindset in the beginning because you know my mom just went through it was a tropical storm category one and the levee broke and she lost everything
00:07:00
Sara
yeah
00:07:06
mromanoiys
So you can't take things lightly. And I think that's that's just to the long-winded answer to your question.
00:07:13
Sara
yeah
00:07:14
mromanoiys
I think people take things too lightly. And I think that's something that only experience you can draw from to make better choices. But I think you should take every storm, every hurricane that's projected to potentially come towards you or in your you know you're in the path of it, take it seriously.
00:07:33
mromanoiys
Go out and get supplies.
00:07:33
Sara
Yeah.
00:07:35
mromanoiys
Stay prepared.
00:07:36
Sara
Mhm.
00:07:36
mromanoiys
grab water, grab canned goods, there's a chance you'll lose electricity, maybe get a generator if you can afford it. Or, you know, I know that one storm that I went through, ah my sister and I lost power for, it was close to two weeks, and my neighbor across the street ran us an extension cord across the street into our house so that we could plug in a fridge and have food.
00:07:52
Sara
Wow. Yeah.
00:08:02
mromanoiys
So it's like stuff like that, you know, I think people should really just take every warning seriously, prepare for the worst, you know?
00:08:11
Sara
And it doesn't take long for a fridge without power to just, everything inside to just go bad. Like a freezer, you get a little bit more time, but it's still not great.
00:08:17
mromanoiys
Yeah.
00:08:20
mromanoiys
Right.
00:08:20
Sara
um as these simple pleasures you really take for granted, like once you get the power cut, you have to start doing some triage, like especially like produce and unfrozen items. um and i And I think there's this aspect too of people, and maybe as I get older and my frontal cortex sort of forms and I start to realize the dangers, you know, um that at one point people would think like, oh, it couldn't happen to me.
00:08:29
mromanoiys
Yeah.
00:08:43
mromanoiys
Yeah.
00:08:44
Sara
Not to me, though. Like, I will go get a TV in this storm or I'm gonna it's a blizzard but I know how to drive on the roads.
00:08:49
mromanoiys
Mmhmm.
00:08:51
Sara
And it's not about you necessarily sometimes it's the other variable you have no control over. And so why would you put yourself in that danger.
00:08:58
mromanoiys
Yeah.
00:08:58
Sara
Whenever I was recently in um I traveled to California with my family to take my nephews to national parks, and we were driving through um like a lightning strike wildfire that they just needed to do a controlled burn in the area anyway. So they're like, okay, we're just going to like manage this. But we didn't expect it. And as we're driving through, because people were there and and other cars were there, I just assumed everything would be fine, which it was. But like there was fire on either side of the car. You could feel the heat. in
00:09:29
Sara
you know, i there was this like weird assumption of like, well, I guess we'll be okay, you know, in which they obviously were professionals, and they gave us fair warning, and it was like documented and all that.
00:09:33
mromanoiys
right
00:09:38
Sara
But like, let's say if that wasn't the case, and you just came upon a road where that there was fire on either side, what would you do in that situation? Would you assume that you can just drive through it and be safe? Or are you driving in the wrong direction?
00:09:49
Sara
Is it going to move across the road? So it's just a lot of um Yeah, you can't make assumptions. And the best you can do is be prepared and start Documenting and you know what I would much rather be silly and paranoid and a little bit cautious and over cautious than to not you know how many storms have I weathered in my basement here in Ohio with the animals like leading the cats down with ham into the basement because
00:09:58
mromanoiys
Right. Yeah.
00:10:06
mromanoiys
Yeah. Aww.
00:10:13
Sara
yeah Well thankfully the one's an hour fine but ah another cat was very um anxious so even like a gust of wind would send him hiding under a couch.
00:10:18
mromanoiys
Aww.
00:10:23
Sara
So it's like wow you have to like prepare and protect your animals and so we're just sitting in the basement but I'd much rather be safe than sorry you know.
00:10:30
mromanoiys
Yeah, because really you never know. And I think even like to your point of these controlled burns, you never know when the winds are gonna shift and something could go wrong.
00:10:38
Sara
Mm-hmm.
00:10:39
mromanoiys
You never know. There was one hurricane that I went through that the eye of the storm was supposed to hit us directly. And we were watching, watching, watching. It shifted past us.
00:10:49
mromanoiys
So we were like, oh, phew. But then like as weather does, that the storm circled back around
00:10:57
Sara
Oh no.
00:10:58
mromanoiys
and went over us, it did a loop.
00:10:59
Sara
Just kidding.
00:11:01
mromanoiys
We were looking at the map, my sister and I were like, is this even possible?
00:11:02
Sara
Wow.
00:11:05
mromanoiys
Like, is this, you know, and it just like went back around and then it hit us directly. And it's stuff like that. that's You're just like, oh man, it just missed me. But then you never know.
00:11:16
Sara
Yeah.
00:11:17
mromanoiys
So I agree with you.
00:11:17
Sara
Yeah.
00:11:18
mromanoiys
I'd rather be silly and, you know, have a bunker under my house for worst case scenario.
00:11:24
Sara
Yes. Wow. I, you know, if I had the money, I would be burying a like a fallout shelter in my backyard so that I could weather storms maybe not so much floods but I want to be self sustainable I want to be able to like collect or um maybe collect rainwater but find a way to like harvest water or clean water um have a alternative source of energy.
00:11:48
Sara
So whether it is ah like a makeshift wind turbine or a generator or even like having around the house, which I find very helpful, they have a lot of um power packs that are cranks.
00:11:49
mromanoiys
Yeah.
00:11:58
Sara
So like, you know, the old crank radios, you can do that for a power pack for your phone, which in this day and age, that's almost as important as getting a weather radio or something like that.
00:12:05
mromanoiys
Yeah.
00:12:06
Sara
So, yeah, I feel like that's um that's the dream. Don't give me a sports car. I want a hole in the ground where I can hide.
00:12:12
mromanoiys
I love
00:12:15
Sara
That's all I want.
00:12:17
mromanoiys
that.
00:12:20
mromanoiys
But you know what, there is logic there because that sports car would be blown around in the wind and you'll be safe in a bunker.
00:12:27
Sara
right
00:12:30
Sara
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know what people like. They don't like sports cars. They like fallout shelters.
00:12:35
mromanoiys
Yeah.
00:12:35
Sara
That's what I'm saying.
Taking Weather Warnings Seriously
00:12:36
Sara
So, yeah.
00:12:36
mromanoiys
I mean, I would be down on that too. Yeah. I think the ultimately, let me ask, what was your takeaway, like your the most important takeaway you had from this podcast episode?
00:12:47
Sara
I think it would be hearing both your story and the accounts from Tori is that basically yeah you don't know how things are going to shift and how disastrous it can be and you can't take your safety for granted and it's never um there's never a problem with having an abundance of caution so be weather aware be prepared care for your own life and the life of the people you love and even if you feel like that's a little bit too much
00:13:19
Sara
You know, it's it is what it is because yeah, a tornado could come out of the rain and you didn't expect it or maybe the eye of a storm circles back or something happens. So I feel like people need to really take it seriously, especially whenever it's not just property, but it's loss of life that's at stake.
00:13:32
mromanoiys
Yeah, absolutely. I think that that is the takeaway from me, exactly what you just said. It's not just property, it's loss of life. And and what you said earlier about i you know people thinking this could never happen to me.
00:13:49
mromanoiys
We've all gone through like that mindset of, oh, this only happens to people on the news or you know on TV or or in the newspaper.
00:13:55
Sara
Yep.
00:13:56
mromanoiys
But in reality, anything is possible when it comes to weather events. And I think having that, just that mindset of this could happen to me, what would I do if it did?
00:14:02
Sara
who
Weather's Diverse Impact Across the US
00:14:10
mromanoiys
And and having that plan going forward.
00:14:10
Sara
Yeah.
00:14:14
Sara
Yeah, and it's one of those things too where maybe we're not weather experts or preparedness experts, but we do live in a country where we, in ah almost like a sort of this like twisted pride kind of way, where we all experience from Florida up to Washington, we are experiencing these natural hazards. So hurricanes, floods, wildfires, earthquakes, tornadoes, blizzards.
00:14:36
Sara
anything and in between. um So make sure whenever, you know, we might be able to write about like, for example, Jackie's hurricane preparedness article, we might be able to advise you, but also, you know, check the weather stations, check your local meteorologists and the warnings, always stay on top of it, because we live in a very diverse and unique landscape. And you really can't take that for for granted.
00:14:58
mromanoiys
Yeah, that's very well said. Um, yeah, so anybody that hasn't listened to the podcast episode yet, head on over to Spotify or Apple Music. You can listen to the episode and enjoy, and we will be back with an all new episode of States of Discovery. Stay tuned.