During a Thursday press briefing, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) came prepared with the facts on hurricane history, schooling a reporter who tried to blame tornadoes caused by Hurricane Milton on global warming.
Two hurricanes and dozens of tornadoes have hit Florida in the last couple of weeks.
'People should put this in perspective.'
When asked by a reporter whether he thinks the increase in tornadoes could be linked to climate change, DeSantis responded, “I think you can go back and find tornadoes for all of human history for sure.”
When Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida late Wednesday, it had a barometric pressure of roughly 950 millibars, the governor stated.
“I think, if you go back to 1851, there’s probably been 27 hurricanes that have had lower [barometric pressure] — so the lower the barometric pressure, the stronger it is,” he continued. “I think there have been about 27 hurricanes that have had lower barometric pressure on landfall than Milton did, and of those, 17 occurred, I think, prior to 1960.”
The most powerful hurricane to hit Florida since the 1850s was the Labor Day Hurricane in the 1930s, which had a barometric pressure of 892 millibars, according to DeSantis.
“It totally wiped out the Keys. We’ve never seen anything like it, and that remains head and shoulders above any powerful hurricane that we’ve ever had in the state of Florida,” DeSantis said.
He noted that the state’s most deadly storm was the Okeechobee hurricane in 1928, which killed more than 4,000 people.
DeSantis added that Hurricane Ian, which killed 149 people in Florida two years ago, “wasn’t even close to that.”
“I just think people should put this in perspective. They try to take different things that happen with tropical weather and act like it’s something; there’s nothing new under the sun. This is something that the state has dealt with for its entire history, and it’s something that we'll continue to deal with,” he said.
DeSantis argued that what has changed is Florida’s population.
“We’ve got 23 million people. A storm that hits is likely to hit more people and property than it would have a hundred years ago. And so the potential for that damage has grown,” he continued, adding that the state’s prevention ability has also significantly improved.
“We never did the pre-staging of power assets until I became governor. Now, people, like, expect that, but that wasn’t what was done in the past. That’s why people would be out with power for three weeks when we’d have hurricanes,” DeSantis stated. “Now we have to pay to get these guys to come in, but my view is, the quicker you get everyone hooked up, the better off the economy is going to be anyway.”
Another reporter asked DeSantis if he would denounce “misinformation” about “some entity controlling the weather.”
The governor replied, “This is on both sides. Some people think government can do this, then others think it’s all because of fossil fuels.”
“There’s precedent for all of this in history,” he said. “It is hurricane season. You are going to have tropical weather.”
“These are natural occurrences,” DeSantis added.
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!
Parts of Nebraska and Iowa were ravaged by powerful tornadoes on Friday. Weather experts predict that new storms could bring even more destruction to the Midwest region.
Hundreds of homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed by the ferocity of the storm's fury, especially in a suburb of Omaha, Nebraska.
— (@)
On Saturday, residents of Elkhorn were sifting through the rubble after a tornado decimated the area.
“We watched it touch down like 200 yards over there and then we took shelter,” said Pat Woods – who lives in Elkhorn. "We could hear it coming through. When we came up, our fence was gone and we looked to the northwest and the whole neighborhood's gone.”
Kim Woods, Pat's wife, added, “The whole neighborhood just to the north of us is pretty flattened.”
Jason Sunday – a resident of Elkhorn in Omaha – told KETV, "We saw it coming from the southwest, and when it got too close for comfort, we headed downstairs quickly. We were in the downstairs bathtub, and it was just like the movie said, it was like a freight train."
Three people were hurt with non-life-threatening injuries when a tornado caused an industrial building to collapse in Nebraska’s Lancaster County. There were 70 people inside, but they were able to be evacuated.
Omaha police Lt. Neal Bonacci said and police and firefighters were going door-to-door to help residents.
— (@)
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen toured the area worst affected by the tornadoes in his state.
Pillen said on the X social media platform:
Suzanne and I extend our deepest prayers to all those impacted by today's storms. I have ordered that state resources be made available to assist with the emergency response and to support local first responders as they assess the damage. Nebraskans are tough, resilient people, and our neighbors and communities will rally around affected families and businesses to assist them. Nebraskans are no strangers to severe weather and, as they have countless times before, Nebraskans will help Nebraskans to rebuild.
— (@)
In Iowa, the small towns of Minden and Harlan were some of the hardest hit by the destructive tornadoes.
— (@)
— (@)
There were nearly 80 reports of tornadoes on Friday across five states that were corroborated by weather service data and storm chaser recordings.
There have been several reports of injuries but thankfully no fatalities have been reported.
More updates on the severe weather in the Midwest:
Threats of severe weather – including damaging winds, possible flooding, and large hail – are in play for Nebraska, Texas, Oklahoma, and Iowa on Saturday and Sunday.
More than 50 million people are under the threat of severe weather on Saturday.
Approximately 18 million people across Nebraska, Iowa, and Texas, are under flood watches until Sunday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service
There were tornado warnings issued for the Midwest.
A tornado watch has been issued for parts of Kansas and Nebraska until 7 p.m. CDT.
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!
More than a dozen tornadoes touch down across Texas, Oklahoma and Nebraska www.youtube.com
At least seven people were killed as tornado-spawning storms ripped through the South and the Midwest Friday, multiple outlets reported.
"Chaos, absolute chaos," Belvidere Police Chief Shane Woody said, describing the scene of a roof and marquee collapse during a sold-out show at the Apollo Theatre in northern Illinois, near Rockford.
"When officers are first on the scene, when the fire department and first responders get here, they do the best they can to control the chaos as much as possible. But ultimately, we go in, and ultimately try and find people, and save as many people as we possibly can – and bring them to safety as best as we can," Chief Woody also said.
"I was in there within a minute before it came down, concert-goer Gabrielle Lewellyn told WTVO. "The winds, when I was walking up to the building, it went like from zero to a thousand within five seconds."
The packed metal concert had reportedly been underway for less than an hour when the storm struck the century-old venue, killing at least one person and injuring dozens more.
Severe storms and tornadoes also struck other states Friday, including Arkansas, Indiana, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Mississippi, the New York Times reported.
The city of Wynne in northeastern Arkansas was "cut in half by damage from east to west," Wynne Mayor Jennifer Hobbs told CNN. At least two people died in the town with a population of about 8,274.
"Today has been a very hard day for the state of Arkansas," Gov. Sanders said in a news conference. Sanders activated the National Guard to assist the Arkansas State Police and local law enforcement.
"Our message and our mission is really simple," Sanders said. "The people come first and the paperwork will come second."
\u201cOur message and our mission are really simple: the people will come first and the paperwork will come second.\n\nWe will ensure that every Arkansan who needs help receives it.\u201d— Sarah Huckabee Sanders (@Sarah Huckabee Sanders) 1680317555
The apparent tornado that devastated portions of West Little Rock may have traveled more than 40 miles, KTHV reported. The National Weather Service called the storms in Arkansas "catastrophic."
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!
After a deadly tornado tore through Mayfield, Kentucky earlier this month, devastating the small town, one resident grew concerned that children in his community would be suffering this Christmas. So he decided to do something about it.
Shawn Triplett, a retired U.S. Marine Corps veteran who now volunteers at a local elementary school, told People Magazine he was spurred into action after witnessing a heartbreaking interaction between a mother and her young son while helping out at a church shelter.
"I saw a child, no older than 6 years old, crying in his mother's arms," Triplett, 38, recalled. "She was crying too, but you could tell she was doing her best to look strong. The boy told his mom, 'I've lost my Christmas.' It was at that moment that I broke down and had to walk outside."
The family had been displaced as part of the devastating impact of the massive storm, which has killed at least 88 people and displaced hundreds more across the South and Midwest. Triplett's hometown was one of the ones hit hardest. The Marine — who served three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan — said the destruction from the storm was the worst he'd ever seen.
"I've been deployed three times, I've seen war zones, I've seen absolute destruction, and nothing compared to it," he said in an interview with CNN. "I mean, the whole town was just leveled."
"It gut-punched me," Triplett went on to say about the young boy he saw crying. "I felt actual pain at that moment. I tried to sleep that night but I couldn't. The pain in that kid's voice broke me in half. I had to do something about it."
After thinking long and hard about what he could do, Triplett said he finally decided, "I was going to give them back their Christmas. That was my mission."
So Triplett, moved to compassion by the distress of others, decided to start raising money to make sure Mayfield children receive gifts this Christmas.
It started out as a $10,000 fundraising initiative put on by Triplett and his friends and family. But soon, after the message was spread around on social media, the movement grew. By Christmas Eve, nearly $100,000 had been raised after people from all across the country joined the effort.
"It's been unreal," he said of the support. "It started as just family and friends helping, to now donations coming in from all over the globe."
On a GoFundMe page that Triplett started, the Marine explained that he is simply raising funds to buy toys for Mayfield children who are currently living in shelters, temporary government housing, or staying with family and friends.
With the donation money in hand, Triplett himself made countless runs to a local Walmart, which offered to cover 25% of the cost. There, he filled carts to the brim with toys of all kinds — later wrapping them with gift paper he purchased himself.
The Marine made sure to note that he didn't keep any of the proceeds for himself. Rather, he made every effort to use every last penny for children in his community. He told People that he was overwhelmed by the generosity of others and overjoyed to have been able to help even more kids than he had imagined.
"Our original goal was to support 30 kids, but because of the GoFundMe, we're able to reach hundreds of kids — and that's my biggest joy, being able to give these kids so much," he told People. "The support has been humbling and overwhelmingly incredible."
"To all those who have helped with your donations, your time, even just by sharing the cause, thank you so much from the bottom of my heart," he added. "Everything you have done for this cause has meant the world to me. Children need to be children, they don't need to be reminded of trauma every day."
That's especially true on Christmas.
End Credits: Shawn Triplett Takes Poignant Photo, Uses it to Drive GoFundMe for Toys for Children www.youtube.com
The minds behind 'Twisters' have successfully reverse-engineered the chemistry of the original film and even improved it in places.
First Baptist Church was joined by congregations all over the city in a volunteer effort to serve the shocked community.
thefederalist.com
www.theblaze.com
freebeacon.com
America's heartland torn apart by tornado outbreak
America’s heartland was devastated by 144 confirmed tornadoes on Friday and Saturday, leaving many injured and much property lost.
The tornadoes ranged from EF-0 to EF-3 and destroyed communities all the way from Texas to Iowa.
In one video that a brave civilian captured, a tornado crosses the path of a train in Nebraska, absolutely obliterating everything it touches — except for the train. While the tornadoes in Nebraska were devastating, there were thankfully no casualties reported.
“How did everyone survive this in Nebraska?” Keith Malinak says, astounded.
“Yeah, it’s amazing,” Pat Gray agrees.
In another video, a man stands outside to capture video of a tornado approaching his home while his wife begs him to come inside. He records until the last minute when the tornado breaks into two separate tornadoes — which is absolutely terrifying.
“Their home got destroyed, by the way,” Malinak says, adding that one tornado came within a half a mile of his family’s home in Elkhorn, Nebraska.
“Makes you count your blessings, doesn’t it?” Gray says.
While there were luckily many survivors, there was much property damage, many homes destroyed, and unfortunately some casualties in other places, like Oklahoma.
Those victims can be helped at Mercury One, where 100% of donations go to those in affected areas.
“If you can contribute, it would be greatly appreciated. There’s a lot of rebuilding to do,” Gray says.
Want more from Pat Gray?
To enjoy more of Pat's biting analysis and signature wit as he restores common sense to a senseless world, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.