Radio Atlantic

The Endless Devastation of Hurricane Season

This week, the most rigorous estimate yet of deaths caused by Hurricane Maria was published, marking a grim milestone: the hurricane season of 2017 was one of the deadliest in North America in a century. A year after Puerto Rico, Houston, and other communities were devastated by storms, they’re still counting the victims and trying to rebuild. Because of climate change, these types of extreme disasters may only grow more common.
In this episode, The Atlantic’s staff writers Vann Newkirk and Elaina Plott join Matt Thompson to discuss their reporting on Puerto Rico and Houston. How are they doing a year later? And what should we learn from their recovery efforts?
Links

- “A New Death Toll for Puerto Rico After Hurricane Maria” (Vann R. Newkirk II, August 28, 2018)
- “Hurricane Harvey Is Houston’s Unending Nightmare” (Elaina Plott, August 26, 2018)
- “A Look Back at Hurricane Harvey: One Year Since Landfall” (Alan Taylor, August 26, 2018)
- “Researchers Are Still Counting the Dead From Hurricane Maria” (Vann R. Newkirk II, August 2, 2018)
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The Atlantic has long been known as an ideas-driven magazine. Now we’re bringing that same ethos to audio. Like the magazine, the show will “road test” the big ideas that both drive the news and shape our culture. Through conversations—and sometimes sharp debates—with the most insightful thinkers and writers on topics of the day, Radio Atlantic will complicate overly simplistic views. It will cut through the noise with clarifying, personal narratives. It will, hopefully, help listeners make up their own mind about certain ideas.
The national conversation right now can be chaotic, reckless, and stuck. Radio Atlantic aims to bring some order to our thinking—and encourage listeners to be purposeful about how they unstick their mind.