At least some of us have heard the news of disasterous flooding that has occured in Southern United States, specifically the states of Oklahoma and Texas. President Barack Obama signed a (late) declaration of disaster on May 29, 2015 for areas in Texas that were affected by floods, killing at least 24 and leaving many missing and/or dead.

But that wasn’t all of the rain… Just yesterday, May 29, 2015, some areas of Dallas, Texas, a highly populated urban city, say up to 7 inches of rainfall within 24 hours. Thousands and thousands of drivers were trapped on freeways with many areas flooded for 5 to even 7 hours.

The interesting piece of the puzzle is this – Texas was in a very severe drought, some areas holding the highest level of a drought that NOAA’s NWS (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Weather Service) can issue. It was busted in one day. How could this be even scientifically possible? How could it’s climate rapidly change within a year to the most soaked area in the United States? This could be from one of two things: Climate change, or a strong El Niño. Sorry to “get your hopes up”, but these conditions seem to be from a strong El Niño. This means that waters by the equator are warm, and warm moisture can rise towards the north.

Declaration of Disaster

The President of the United States, Barack Obama, has activated federal funding for 3 counties within the State of Texas that have been deeply impacted by the flooding (no pun intended). Assistance can include grants for temporary homes and repairs, low cost loans, and other programs to get these cities back into shape.

Disaster Declarations are normally only issued if serious disaster occurs, whether it be natural, or human-related catastrophe. 

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