Hurricane Sally Strikes the Gulf; Other Storms Form in the Atlantic

Tracking Hurricane Sally

Hurricane Sally has weakened since striking the Alabama-Florida state line before dawn on Wednesday, September 16 — but it is still inflicting major damage. The storm is moving at a glacial pace, dumping more than 20 inches of rain in some areas, downing trees and leaving homes and streets flooded. Numerous storms are forming in the Atlantic, and climate change may be making September storms more numerous and more dangerous. Watch the video and answer the discussion questions. To read the transcript of the video below, click here. 

Discussion Questions: Hurricane Sally

1. Have your students identify the 5Ws and an H:

• Who is being affected by this storm?
• What are some of the characteristics that make Sally a dangerous storm?
• When and where is this happening?
• Why are slow moving storms dangerous?
• How are officials and others trying to address the problem?

Have students share with the class or through a Learning Management System (LMS).

2. Focus question: What are some ways hurricane season may be becoming more damaging and dangerous because of climate change?

3. Media literacy: What other information would you like to have to determine how climate change may be making hurricanes or tropical storms more dangerous or numerous?

Climate Change Resources with Share My Lesson

Dig Deeper: In the northern hemisphere, some of the most dangerous effects of warm weather are often seen in late August through October after months of warming ocean waters (building and strengthening storms) and warm, dry weather in the west (providing conditions for forest fires). Watch the video below and compare the ways climate change may contribute to very different natural disasters such as forest fires and hurricanes in different parts of the country. If there is time: Read and discuss this article on why it can be hard to mentally process the dangers of climate change.

Republished with permission from PBS NewsHour Extra.