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In West Virginias capital of Charleston, where about 50,000 people live in a wide, flat river valley, an intense storm has the potential to flood five of the citys six hospitals at once.
At the largest hospital, as much as 5 feet of water could reach the emergency room. At the childrens hospital, the river could rise to cut off all exits. And at another hospital in the city center, more than 10 feet of flooding could besiege the facility on three sides.
These are some findings of a new 窪蹋勛圖厙 News investigation that examined nationwide hospital flood risk using data provided by , a company considered a leader in flood simulation. The investigation identified 171 hospitals, totaling nearly 30,000 patient beds from coast to coast, that face the greatest risk of significant or dangerous flooding.
The investigation found heightened flood risks at large trauma centers, small rural hospitals, childrens hospitals, and long-term care facilities that serve older and disabled patients. While coastal flooding threatens many hospitals in low-lying states like Florida and Texas, many inland hospitals are at risk from overflowing rivers and streams, particularly in Appalachia. Even in the sun-soaked cities and arid expanses of the American West, storms have the potential to flood some hospitals with several feet of pooling water, according to Fathoms data.
The reality is that flood risk is everywhere. It is the most pervasive of perils, said Oliver Wing, the chief scientific officer at Fathom, who reviewed the findings. Just because youve never experienced an extreme doesnt mean you never will.
The 窪蹋勛圖厙 News investigation is among the first to analyze nationwide hospital flood risk in an era of warming climate and worsening storms. It comes as the administration of President Donald Trump has slashed and , dismantled Federal Emergency Management Agency programs and other important buildings, and generally dismissed the threat of climate change, which the president recently referred to as .&紳莉莽梯;
Even a small amount of flooding could shut down an unprepared hospital, often by interrupting its power supply, which is needed for life-sustaining equipment such as ventilators and heart monitors.
Charleston Area Medical Center, a health system that runs most of the hospitals in Charleston, stated that it is aware of its flood risk and has taken steps to prepare, like acquiring a deployable floodwall.
Many other hospitals could be unaware of their flood risk. Of the 171 hospitals with significant flood risk identified by 窪蹋勛圖厙 News, one-third are in areas outside flood hazard zones mapped by FEMA.
This is highly concerning, said Caleb Dresser, who studies climate change and is both an emergency room doctor and a Harvard University assistant professor. If you dont have the information to know youre at risk, then how can you triage that problem?
As a warming climate intensifies storms, 窪蹋勛圖厙 News has identified more than 170 U.S. hospitals at risk of significant and potentially dangerous flooding. Climate experts warn that the Trump administrations cuts leave the nation less prepared.
