In the span of a few short weeks, two hurricanes — Helene and Milton — devastated several southeastern states including North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida.
Between the two storms, at least 250 people have been confirmed dead. Nearly 100 people are still missing just in North Carolina. And more than 400,000 people in Florida are still without power.
Helene is the second-deadliest hurricane to hit the U.S. mainland in 50 years, trumped only by Hurricane Katrina. Milton even reshaped parts of Florida’s coastline.
The last month has been a devastating one—but according to a July report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, compounding natural disasters like Helene and Milton are becoming more common.
What do back-to-back disasters mean for the efforts to rebuild? And do we need to reimagine disaster preparedness entirely to confront this new reality?
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