SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Heavy rains triggered flooding and landslides in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, killing at least four people and cutting off dozens of communities, authorities said Tuesday. At least four people were reported dead and two others missing in Haiti’s southwestern region, where flooding affected more than 3,200 families and destroyed hundreds of homes, according to the country’s Civil Protection Agency. It added that landslides have affected several roads in southwestern Haiti.
Meanwhile, in the neighboring Dominican Republic , at least 30 communities have been cut off by rains, and more than 100 homes are flooded, according to the country’s Emergency Operations Center. Both countries share the island of Hispaniola. Popular Reads Judge rules Trump DOJ 'unlawfully' fired Maurene Comey 1 day ago Trump told DOJ to sue to block Alaska Senate results if Republican narrowly loses Oct 23 Britt McHenry resigns from State Department after basketball game altercation Oct 23 The rains are blamed on a low-pressure system moving through the northern Caribbean. ___ Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
The Associated Press reports deadly flooding and landslides from heavy rain in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, with clear sourcing for the deaths, missing people and damaged homes. It never says that a warming climate makes heavy rainfall like this more frequent and more severe. It puts the rain down only to a passing low-pressure system.
Leaves out the climate link
Serious
“Heavy rains triggered flooding and landslides in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, killing at least four people”
Why this matters
The words "Heavy rains triggered flooding and landslides" open a deadly extreme rainfall story, and nothing anywhere in the article links that rain to the warming climate.
The impression it gives
A reader takes the deadly rain as a weather event with no connection to climate change.
The context
The documented record shows that human-caused warming has made heavy rainfall more frequent and more intense. The article contains no word for climate or warming.
How we know
On the recordThat warming has made hot extremes, heavy rainfall, agricultural and ecological drought, fire weather and intense tropical cyclones more frequent or more severe.ipcc.ch (opens in a new tab)
Checked against the whole articleIt never uses the words “climate” and “warming”.
“The rains are blamed on a low-pressure system moving through the northern Caribbean.”
Why this matters
This is the article's only line on why the rain fell. It names "a low-pressure system" as the cause and stops there.
The impression it gives
A reader concludes the full explanation for the deadly rain is a routine passing weather system.
The context
A low-pressure system may set off the rain, but warming loads the dice towards heavier downpours. The record shows warming has made heavy rainfall more frequent or more severe, and the article never says so.
How we know
On the recordThat warming has made hot extremes, heavy rainfall, agricultural and ecological drought, fire weather and intense tropical cyclones more frequent or more severe.ipcc.ch (opens in a new tab)
Checked against the whole articleIt never uses the words “warming”.
Heavy rains from a low-pressure system triggered flooding and landslides in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, killing at least four people. Climate change is making extreme rainfall like this more frequent and more intense.