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I live in Chicago. I grew up in Southern California (Ventura County). Huge wildfire in fall of '93 started in my neighborhood. Then a few months later in '94, g
by hugs 2y ago
I live in Chicago. I grew up in Southern California (Ventura County). Huge wildfire in fall of '93 started in my neighborhood. Then a few months later in '94, got to "ride" the Northridge earthquake. I would love to move back to CA, but haven't because of natural disaster risk. I still have family that lives there, though, and I enjoy going back when I can. The Great Lakes region theoretically is poised to be a /relatively/ safer place in the future as a "climate refuge", all things considered. And the huge amount of fresh water is nice... except... the more I learn about PFAS in the water, the more I realize... no place is perfect. (And if it truly was perfect, I'd probably not be able to afford to live there.) So... I choose snow, cold, and tornado risk over wildfire and earthquakes. Out of all the risks, wildfire risk seems the scariest (okay, maybe second to flooding). Everyone gets to (and has to) choose which risks they're willing to live with.
- Izkata 2y agoI think the two biggest natural disaster risks around Chicago are tornados and algal blooms. It's rare anyone thinks about the second one, but imagine having no water from faucets for an extended period.
- roland35 2y agoAlso in the great lakes region. From reading and researching this topic I feel like Californians vastly overestimate the risk of blizzards and tornados while discounting wildfire and earthquakes. I feel like any natural disaster here has plenty of warning, which massively reduces the actual risk me and my family assuming I take the warning seriously. Unfortunately there is absolutely no warning for earthquakes and relatively little warning for wildfires (better than earthquakes, but still not as good as tornados or winter storms).