By Donna Conneely At the beginning of June, the 2020 hurricane season was already looking busy, with at least nine major ‘named' storms predicted by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA). As of the middle of August, these nine named storms have already come and gone, and the tenth, Josephine, is forming on the…

By Donna Conneely In late May, the town of Midland, Michigan suffered severe inundation that has been described as a “500-year flooding event”. Although there was no loss of life, the flooding was so extreme and damaging that it dwarfed all other flooding events in living memory. At least 10,000 residents were displaced, and this…

By Donna Conneely The 2020 Atlantic Hurricane Season officially begins on June 1st, and all those who were hoping to be spared extra worry, inconvenience, and expense will most likely be disappointed. As if the year 2020 is not bad enough already, the hurricane season is likely to add to our troubles. As early predictions…

By Donna Conneely During the 1950's and 60's the U.S. enjoyed a period of massive federal investment in the nation's infrastructure. Bridges, roads, railways, and other transportation and energy-related systems were built or improved, and as a side benefit this investment created tens of thousands of jobs. The large expenditures on infrastructure, although difficult at…