Where the sky keeps bursting

A Washington Post investigation shows why much of the eastern U.S. is increasingly vulnerable to extreme rain and floods.

washingtonpost.com

N.C. counties that busted budgets after Helene still waiting for FEMA to pay them back

A year after Hurricane Helene, FEMA hasn’t reimbursed millions of dollars spent on cleanup and recovery, upending local budgets and hindering reconstruction.

washingtonpost.com

5 more Outer Banks houses collapse into the ocean amid stormy seas

Over the past five years, 17 homes have fallen along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

washingtonpost.com

As Texas flooded, key staff say FEMA’s leader could not be reached

The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s acting administrator, David Richardson, is often inaccessible, several current and former officials say, raising concerns within the agency.

washingtonpost.com

Amid hurricane season, FEMA staffers reassigned to support deportations

DHS said the moves won’t hinder disaster readiness, but current and former FEMA officials said losing that many people will hurt an already much reduced agency.

wapo.st

A new era of floods has arrived. America isn’t prepared.

A Washington Post investigation reveals why so few people evacuated in the state hit hardest by last year’s deadliest disaster.

washingtonpost.com

How to help Texas flood victims and first responders

Local officials have asked for financial donations, while the Salvation Army and World Central Kitchen are providing support on the ground.

washingtonpost.com

How the cataclysmic Texas floods unfolded, minute by minute

Hundreds of campers were sound asleep early on Friday, expecting to wake up to a fireworks show and special treats of Hershey’s bars and Coca-Cola by the lake.

washingtonpost.com

Between broken tree limbs and muddied cabins, a father looks for his missing child

Michael McCown drove to the Hill Country when he learned of the flood. His little girl had been at Camp Mystic, among the youngest girls in the Bubble Inn cabin.

washingtonpost.com

Flint finally replaced its lead pipes

The contamination in Flint, Michigan, sparked a national dialogue about the harms of lead pipes and the country’s aging water infrastructure.

washingtonpost.com

Land deal ends controversial mining fight near Georgia’s Okefenokee Swamp

The landmark deal ends a years-long fight over a proposed mine next to one of the South’s last truly wild places.

washingtonpost.com

This town was wiped out by Helene. How does it come back?

Chimney Rock, N.C., a popular tourist destination, is hoping to welcome back visitors this summer. But nearly eight months after Hurricane Helene destroyed it, an uncertain future remains.

washingtonpost.com

NOAA scrambles to fill forecasting jobs as hurricane season looms

As the administration scrambles to fill critical vacancies, the work force shortages have meanwhile forced several offices to stop operating 24 hours a day.

washingtonpost.com

Months after Helene, it’s still hard to drive these North Carolina roads

North Carolina is strewn with private roads and bridges. More than 7,000 still need repairs in the aftermath of storm Helene.

washingtonpost.com

Mothering at the End of the World — THE BITTER SOUTHERNER

After Helene, mothers held their infants tight as they swam to safety. Held their toddlers close as tree limbs crashed through their roofs. Held their teenagers fiercely after their kids witnessed dea...

bittersoutherner.com

After Helene, N.C. bill could make it easier to declare missing loved ones dead

Even if a person has been missing for years, he or she is not presumed dead in the state. Alena’s Law, named after a 31-year-old missing since Hurricane Helene, will make death declarations easier for...

washingtonpost.com

Which cities have the most trees? See how yours stacks up.

Why some U.S. cities are so much greener than others

washingtonpost.com

Trump touts ‘clean coal’ — but cuts programs that protect miners

A federal program that screens coal miners for black lung disease has been shuttered because of layoffs and budget cuts.

washingtonpost.com

I’m a disaster reporter. But I was not prepared to watch my city burn.

In the era of climate change, contending with loss has become inevitable.

washingtonpost.com

States caught unprepared for Trump’s threats to FEMA

FEMA is canceling plans to award states grants to help prepare against future disasters. Federal funds given to states after disasters strike could also be in jeopardy.

washingtonpost.com

Wildfires have always burned in the South. Here’s why they’re getting worse.

Storm debris, population growth and dry conditions are all contributing to a viscious fire season in the South.

washingtonpost.com

1 in 8 Californians now face extreme fire danger, Post analysis shows

One in 8 Californians now live in places at risk for the kinds of devastating wildfires that tore through Los Angeles this winter, according to a Washington Post analysis of new state fire maps.

washingtonpost.com

In the Australian outback, climate change widens the racial divide

In the scorching Australian opal mining town of Coober Pedy, White people live in cool “dugouts” while their Aboriginal neighbors suffer above, often without AC.

washingtonpost.com

What went wrong the night Altadena burned

A Washington Post analysis shows that some officials knew of the fire’s westward spread hours before evacuation orders were sent to residents in western Altadena.

wapo.st

Massive storm system kills 28 in central U.S. as tornado risk peaks

Numerous significant tornadoes were expected Saturday afternoon and evening, with the highest risk across several states in the Deep South, forecasters say.

washingtonpost.com

Biden said this plant was a health threat. Trump dropped a lawsuit against it

The Justice Department dropped a landmark lawsuit alleging that emissions from a Louisiana petrochemical plant pose a danger to nearby communities.

washingtonpost.com

Wildfires in the Carolinas prompt a state of emergency, evacuations

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) declared a state of emergency Sunday afternoon as wildfires raged across 4,200 acres in the state.

washingtonpost.com

Trump fires hundreds working on weather forecasts, satellite data and radar systems

The terminations come days before a potential severe weather outbreak in the southeastern U.S. — and just months ahead of the next Atlantic hurricane season.

wapo.st

EPA tells White House to strike down landmark climate finding

The Trump administration is weighing whether to repeal the “endangerment finding,” which states that greenhouse gases pose a threat to public health and welfare.

wapo.st