Strange weather and climate change A meteorologist connects the
dots between the recent floods, tornadoes, blizzards and climate
change. This story was originally covered by PRI's Living on
Earth. For more, listen to the audio above. Relentless rainfall
- a deluge that dumped five months worth of rain in just 14 days
- and a massive spring snowmelt have had a devastating effect
along the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, forcing the Army Corps of
Engineers to take extreme measures. Demolition experts blew up
levees along the Mississippi in a daring effort to protect
cities and towns from record-breaking floodwaters. Meanwhile,
states in the South and Southeast have been experiencing an
unprecedented number of intense tornadoes. In April, nearly 900
tornadoes tore through the region - four times as many as usual.
Before the tornadoes, the upper-Midwest was hit by near-record
snow pack. When that melted, it sent a huge amount of floodwater
down the Mississippi. "This is all quite expected and due in
part to a warmer