In the summer, we spoke to four experts about the record-breaking heatwave that scorched the western US and Canada. As the year ends they share their hopes and fears for the future
The American west faced an unprecedented year of climate disasters in 2021.
A cold wave in February triggered temperatures 50F below average in Texas, killing at least 150 across the state and leaving millions without power and water. Heatwaves over the summer broke temperature records across different western states, killing hundreds in the northwestern US and Canada. Fires seared through large swathes of the west, razing the northern California town of Greenville and searing through groves of giant sequoia trees.
