Daily Times

Subway stations closed. Roads flooded. Emergency imposed and life as we know it brought to a standstill. Such graphic images of modern civilisation brought down to its knees are becoming eerily familiar as Mother Nature keeps finding new outlets to let off steam.

But it is still newsworthy when just more than six inches of overnight rain is enough to spell ghoulish nightmares in the financial capital of the new world. Inundated by rain, the American state continues to assess the damage from torrential outbursts, which spawned extensive flooding; damaging schools, washing away roads, and prompting evacuations.

However, ominous clouds hang heavy for the Global South as it sighs over its own lack of preparedness. There are many who proclaim that New York’s infrastructure is, for lack of a better word, untrained to handle such extreme weather events.

That the catastrophes hammering on its doorstep should not have been given a chance to gain this much momentum echoes around as residents criticise the administration for feigning surprise at “a lot of rain.”

It is glaringly apparent that these storms will become a regular routine, thanks to unprecedented climate change, and, henceforth, political leaders and citizens would have to start preparing differently.

Nevertheless, no one, however delusional in their theories or adamant in their arguments, can look past the fact that if one wild event is enough to bring one of the strongest cities in the world to a grinding halt, the developing countries do not have much to take solace in.

Climate change is happening in a far more frightening manner than scientists had predicted. The entire world would have to snap out of its complacency and build upon its systems now. Between fighting fires and making arrangements to ensure they do not occur in the first place, there is indeed a “lot” that needs to be done. *