In the NewsEartherOctober 10, 2018

Hurricane Michael Is Headed Toward Florida’s Poorest Region

Hurricane Michael is on track to create an especially dreadful situation for Florida’s poorest. The Category 4 storm is set to make landfall in northwest Florida, a region of the state that has never seen the hurricane conditions Michael is bringing. It’s also among the state’s poorest regions. Counties that have already received President Donald Trump-approved emergency declarations—Holmes, Washington, Jackson, Calhoun, Gulf, Franklin, and more—suffer from some of the highest poverty rates in the state, anywhere from 17 to 32 percent. This story cites the Lab's 2017 study on the climate damages U.S. counties face, which revealed changes in the climate have the potential to exacerbate inequality.