Hurricane Sandy 1-Year Anniversary

Floor Speech

Ms. MATSUI. Mr. Speaker, as a member of SEEC, the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition, I rise today to recognize the 1-year anniversary of Superstorm Sandy. Today, we remember those who lost their lives during this catastrophe and salute those who continue the rebuilding efforts.

One year ago, Sandy ravaged the east coast, producing devastating floods and widespread power outages, disrupting cellular phone networks and transit systems. As a whole, the region suffered over $65 billion in economic losses. Families lost their homes, their precious mementos, and reminders of their daily lives. Communities lost their businesses. Tragically, some individuals lost their lives.

While the east coast was the primary victim of Sandy, extreme weather knows no boundaries and other communities around the country are not immune from suffering the same fate. Floods, hurricanes, wildfires, and droughts are becoming all too common, all too intense, and all too costly. These events will continue to wreak economic havoc and uproot families, unless we take meaningful action to address climate change.

In California, climate change is increasing the frequency of extreme heat and prolonged drought, placing millions of Californians at greater risk of public health threats such as heat-related sickness, forest fires, and water scarcity.

At home, my constituents live under the constant threat of flooding, which is why I work relentlessly to strengthen our levees and upgrade our infrastructure. If extreme weather caused a levee to be breached in Sacramento, the damage would be similar to that experienced in New Orleans.

Mr. Speaker, events like Sandy can happen anywhere. They don't just threaten the coasts, but all communities in all States. Events like Sandy can happen at any time--and are happening with alarming frequency. This was not an isolated event that happens every decade.

We cannot continue to sit back and wait for the next disaster to happen before we take action. The time to act is not a year from now, not a month from now, not even a day from now. The time to act is today.

We must implement preventative measures to make our communities more resilient and be proactive in addressing climate change, the root cause of extreme weather events. Only then will we be able to safeguard the country from the destructive effects of extreme weather and ensure that the legacy of Sandy is one of action and not despair and procrastination.

Source