“This morning, a Christmas Eve arctic blast is pummeling the eastern U.S. Buffalo battered with a historic blizzard, wind gusts exceeding 70 miles per hour, causing whiteout conditions. (There's cars about 35-40 feet away. You can barely see them.) Knocking out power.”
On December 23, 2022, it was reported that a gigantic cross-country winter storm, dubbed Elliot, with massive intensity was reported to become a “bomb cyclone,” exhibiting strength equivalent to a Category 2 hurricane. Tens of thousands of people who had plans for holiday travel were stranded at airports as 5,700 flights were canceled. A bomb cyclone is a storm that intensifies very rapidly. This typically happens when a cold air mass collides with a warm air mass, and a mid-latitude cyclone occurs. As the cyclone intensifies and the system’s pressure drops quickly in a short period of time, it becomes a bomb cyclone.
Temperatures in Colorado dropped to a record-breaking low from 5.5 degrees Celsius to -22.7 degrees Celsius. In other parts of the US, the temperature in Cheyenne, Wyoming plunged from about 6 degrees Celsius to -16 degrees Celsius within 30 minutes. Flash floods occurred in various coastal areas and lakes, and high-freezing temperatures were recorded.
On December 23, 2022, news reports revealed that the bomb cyclone felt in the US also brought strong winds, freezing rain, and heavy snowfall across Canada. As the storm swept across Ontario and Quebec, schools were closed due to the frigid conditions, power to homes was cut, and flights were canceled. Heavy rain and high winds also caused traffic chaos, leading to road accidents. In January 2023, reports stated that a significant winter storm had entered Atlantic Canada.
Repeatedly, climate scientists have warned us that extreme weather events are connected to climate change. The important work of putting the brakes on such dire effects on our lovely planet is in our hands. The wise warnings from Supreme Master Ching Hai (vegan) reiterate the urgent need for worldwide change.
“(What can we do to neutralize the effects of climate change or adapt to the forthcoming changes?) We must, first of all, and the most important thing, we have to stop global warming by choosing a sustainable diet that is vegan.” “I repeat: We must stop animal-people products right now and at all costs if we want to keep this planet.”
