Flood Season

New York Times

6 days ago

The rainwater flowed into my central New Jersey home on Monday night, carving rivulets across my floor that grew into streams and then ponds. My sump pump was quickly overmatched; so was my wet vac. A second pump, which I hoped would drain pooling water through a window, shot a geyser of brown basement liquid into my face.
My battle against the elements left me with a sore back and a cellar full of sopping mementos, musical instruments and holiday decorations. But I got off easy. The flash floods did far more damage just a few towns over. There, roads became rivers. Two people died when fast-rising waters carried their car into a stream. 'Water has killed more people in my time as governor than any other sort of weather event,' Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, lamented yesterday. He blamed climate change.
Many factors influence the weather, and scientists don't like to say that climate change caused this specific storm or that one. But researchers know that climate change is causing heavier rainfall in many storms — the warmer the atmosphere gets, the more moisture it can hold and release. Extreme rainstorms have become more common around the world.
The last month has brought a rush of the resulting floods. Over a single week, the water surged in New Mexico, Illinois, North Carolina and Texas, where the deluge killed more than 130 people.
Are you safe?
Flash floods are the hardest disasters to prevent. What should you know about your neighborhood's flood risk? Claire Brown, who covers the climate, talked to experts about why you may be at more risk than you think, what you can do about it and how local governments are adapting.
FEMA's flood maps. The agency publishes maps that inform zoning regulations and building standards. They also affect which homeowners have to buy flood insurance. (Search for your address here.) But experts worry that these maps underestimate the risk of sudden and intense storms that lead to the rapid rise of rivers — such as the one that inundated Camp Mystic in Texas this month. By one estimate, more than twice as many properties are prone to once-in-a-century floods as FEMA maps suggest. As many as 440,000 homes across the country may be underinsured for flood risk.
Where else to look. The government frequently updates maps of current and past floods and runs a water prediction service. The National Weather Service is refining a tool to visualize floods at street level. Real estate websites like Zillow, Redfin and Realtor.com also use models from an independent research firm to share flood-risk data on listings.
States adapt. Many are bolstering their warning systems and building infrastructure. New York City, for example, is building a 2.4-mile system of flood walls and floodgates designed to protect the East Side of Manhattan. After thousands of Vermont residents lost homes and businesses in a 2023 flood, the state is improving its alert system and may require homeowners to disclose past flood damage when they sell property. It's also buying homes in floodplains and turning them into parkland.
More coverage
Florida and the central Gulf Coast face a risk of flash flooding in the coming days.
A summer camp in Central Texas serving disabled youths reopened barely a week after the flooding. An army of volunteers helped it clean up.
War in Ukraine
As Trump has pivoted and announced a plan to send weapons to Ukraine, some Republicans are contorting themselves to stay aligned with him.
In the video below, Maggie Haberman, who covers the White House, explains how Trump's position on Russia and Ukraine has changed. Click to watch.
Congress
Some Republican senators refused to support the move to rescind aid and public broadcast funds. JD Vance had to break a tie.
PBS and NPR are pleading directly with lawmakers to shield them from more than $500 million a year in federal funding cuts.
Josh Hawley, a senator from Missouri, introduced legislation to reverse some of the Medicaid cuts that he voted for as part of Trump's big policy bill two weeks ago.
Epstein Files
House Democrats, capitalizing on a Republican rift, called for Trump administration officials to testify about their handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.
The Republican breach over the Epstein saga hints at a broader fraying of Trump's political coalition, Annie Karni writes.
Late night hosts covered Epstein and MAGA.
Government Overhaul
The Health and Human Services Department finished firing thousands of employees after a Supreme Court ruling cleared the way for mass government layoffs.
The Justice Department wants to undo civil service and whistle-blower protections so it can to fire career law enforcement officials without cause.
Israel
Some of Benjamin Netanyahu's political allies quit his government over a proposal to make ultra-Orthodox religious students serve in the Israeli military.
The Israeli military struck government forces in Syria and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon. Israel said it was securing its northern border.
The U.S. ambassador to Israel urged an investigation into the killing of a Palestinian American during a clash with Israeli settlers in the West Bank, calling it a terrorist act.
China
Beijing is spending billions to become an A.I. superpower.
China will restrict use of its battery-making technology in other countries, which could cement its lead in electric-vehicle production.
Other Big Stories
Iran deported more than a million Afghans this year. Women and girls who fled the Taliban to work and study fear 'coming back to a cage.'
The Trump administration released around half of the National Guard troops it deployed to Los Angeles during last month's protests.
The U.S. resumed deporting migrants to countries other than their own, sending five people to Eswatini, in southern Africa. The Supreme Court cleared the practice.
Federal officials rarely penalize for-profit rehab hospitals for grave errors that hurt patients, an investigation found.
Inflation accelerated slightly last month. Prices rose more for the products most affected by tariffs, like furniture and appliances.
The Times recently invited readers to send questions about Zohran Mamdani's decisive win in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary. We've highlighted one below; you can find many more here, about both local and national issues.
How does Mamdani's race and subsequent win reflect the overall picture of politics — especially the identity of the Democratic Party — going into November and beyond?
Samantha Kaplan, Annapolis, Md.
Lisa Lerer, a national political correspondent, explains:
There's a long and storied history of overinterpreting New York elections as barometers of the national mood. Just ask Eric Adams, who once heralded himself as the Biden of Brooklyn, or ask Bill de Blasio about his very brief presidential campaign. As one prominent Democrat put it to me recently, the party should spend more time thinking about the Upper Peninsula of Michigan than the Upper West Side.
The most competitive midterm races will largely take place in more moderate areas of the country. So I would not expect many Democratic candidates to embrace democratic socialist positions. More likely is that candidates will try to emulate Mamdani's effective use of social media, and perhaps his intense focus on affordability, an issue that resonates everywhere.
As I wrote last month, there are some early signs that Mamdani's win could inspire some younger Democrats to challenge older incumbents in primaries. It comes as many voters are desperate for generational change after watching their leaders dismiss their concerns about Joe Biden's age.
We plan to continue answering questions in the New York Today newsletter until the election in November. Submit your own here, and sign up here to get that newsletter delivered to your inbox.
For more
Mamdani told a group of business leaders that he would discourage use of the phrase 'globalize the intifada,' a rallying cry for opponents of the war in Gaza that has been seen as a call to violence against Jews.
Andrew Cuomo, who will run as an independent against Mamdani, is test driving a warmer, friendlier version of himself. Read his interview with The Times.
Public media is a public service. To abandon it would take away nonpartisan local news that the private sector can't provide, the Editorial Board writes.
Here's a column by Bret Stephens on Mamdani.
Bigger and Weirder: Click the image above to see Weird Al Yankovic's first ever Madison Square Garden performance.
Stubborn visitor: A popular New York hiking trail had to close for a month because of a moose that wouldn't leave.
Your pick: The most clicked article in The Morning yesterday explored the pros and cons of Benadryl.
Lives Lived: Andrea Gibson was a master of spoken-word poetry who cultivated legions of admirers with intensely personal, often political works exploring gender, love and a four-year fight with terminal ovarian cancer. Gibson died at 49.
M.L.B.: A wild All-Star Game featured a homage to Clayton Kershaw, a first-of-its-kind home run swing-off to decide the winner and an M.V.P. award for the Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber.
W.N.B.A.: Caitlin Clark injured her groin in last night's game against the Connecticut Sun.
Apple TV+ may not be many people's streaming platform of choice, but yesterday's Emmy nominations were good to it. 'Severance,' its dystopian workplace drama, earned 27 nominations — the most for any series. Seth Rogen's 'The Studio,' also from Apple TV+, picked up 23, tying a record for a comedy. Here are some other highlights:
The former 'ER' star Noah Wyle capped his comeback with a best drama actor nomination for his role in the medical drama 'The Pitt.' (It was one of 13 for the show.)
'Adolescence,' a British show that stirred political debate about teenage social media use in its home country and became a hit for Netflix, was nominated for best limited series. (Forecasters say it's the favorite.)
Colin Farrell's prosthetics in 'The Penguin' paid off: He was nominated for best actor in a limited series or TV movie.
Trending: People online were searching for this year's nominees. See the full list here.
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Travel ultralight.
Use a melon baller on more than just melons.
Here is today's Spelling Bee. Yesterday's pangram was beachcomb.
And here are today's Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections, Sports Connections and Strands.
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