There’s little doubt we’re to blame for hurricanes getting worse

Climate scientists are still scrapping over the details, but the increased ferocity, unpredictability and spread of tropical storms is in line with predictions

hurricane damage

Mexico Beach, Florida, was largely wiped out by Hurricane Michael

Joe Raedle/Getty

HURRICANE Michael was a big one. Intensifying faster than expected, its 250-kilometres-per-hour winds were just short of Category 5 strength, making it the fourth most powerful hurricane to hit the US mainland since records began.

The building codes in the Florida panhandle, where Michael made landfall on 10 October, are designed to protect only against winds of 180 kilometres an hour. Most houses were built long before even these codes were introduced. In seaside towns such as Mexico Beach, below, the winds and storm …