Disaster Recovery Journal Fall 2023

Adapting Weather Response Plans to Handle Compounding Disasters By SHANNON COPELAND O ver time, it has become increas ingly clear the climate is chang ing. In recent years, hurricanes have made landfall along the Gulf Coast as Category 4 (Harvey, Laura, Ida, and Ian) or 5 (Michael). In the past, hurricanes would weaken as they approached land; now, they intensify. In addition to intensified tropical events, supercell thunderstorms and strong to violent tornadoes are becom ing more common over the southeastern United States. Not too long ago, a seem ingly routine thunderstorm ripped through The Woodlands, a suburban area north of Houston, knocking down trees and leaving

people without power for days. These are just some examples of how our climate has continued to change and challenge current response efforts in recent decades. Hurricanes Laura & Harvey are just two examples Business continuity and safety pro fessionals have carefully implemented response plans for each disaster affect ing their organization, but what about the unexpected risk of two or more threats? It is essential that response plans not only account for the ever-changing cli mate but also compounding disasters – disasters which coincide or in succession, exponentially increasing the intensity of the associated impacts and recovery time. This scenario was seen in Lake Charles, La., in 2021 when Hurricane Laura made landfall with winds of 150 mph, causing widespread severe damage. Then, just six weeks later, Hurricane Delta devastated

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