Cynical, disaster-seeking climate change hysterics have been pushing, for decades now, a narrative that global warming, especially warming ocean temperatures, increase the risk of hurricane activity. Every year, they seem to be eagerly awaiting devastating superstorms to prove them right. And the 2025 hurricane season looked ripe.
In May, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted a more-active-than-average season (which runs from June 1 to Dec. 1). The Washington Post hyped this prediction into: “The forecast underscored the dangers of a historically active stretch of Atlantic hurricane activity.”
And, indeed, the stage was set for the perfect storm to cause catastrophic impact on the American Southeast: NOAA fretted hurricane-fueling warm ocean waters; the South had just come off of a record year of domestic net migration raising the potential human cost; and climate change-denying President Trump had scaled back the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) which, alarmists claimed, would significantly hinder disaster response.
There was an ominous anniversary, too. Late summer 2025 marked exactly 20 years since the catastrophic Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast. “Now more than ever, NOAA is prepared for what the hurricane season may bring,” said Laura Grimm, NOAA’s acting administrator, at an event announcing the forecast in Jefferson Parish, La., to mark the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.”
Yep, the narrative of a disastrous 2025 hurricane season fueled by man-made climate change wrote itself; all the alarmists had to do was wait.
June and July passed quickly and quietly without a single U.S. landfall. August showed promise as Hurricane Erin swelled into a threatening category 5 hurricane. The alarmists manned their stations, and the media began sowing panic over this climate-induced superstorm. Unfortunately for the catastrophists, the storm never got closer than 200 miles from the U.S. coastline.
By early September, the Atlantic was still pitching a shutout. Sept. 10, the day at the center of the peak hurricane window, saw zero hurricane landfalls and no storms on the horizon. No devastating storm has yet hit, and time is running out for the season. There are six weeks remaining. Sure, anything could happen in that time. But so far nothing has.
Instead of just admitting the error of their ways, the climate activists at the Washington Post doubled down this week and claimed that the lack of storms is actually evidence of manmade climate change. This never-admit-error mindset underscores the climate movement’s willingness to twist any outcome into proof of their radical worldview. With them, it’s always: “Heads I win; tails you lose.”
When ideology is put aside and actual scientific principles are followed, the picture is crystal clear: there is no relationship between man-made emissions and increased hurricane frequency, intensity or any other aspect of hurricanes. All hurricane activity remains within the bounds of natural variability, according to NOAA.
Hurricane tracking reveals that there have been no changes in trends, even though man-made emissions have steadily risen during the same period. And while promoters of climate change narratives like to highlight the increased costs in storm damage, they ignore the fact that population growth in coastal regions is the main driver in this phenomenon – not increased storm strength. This is so obvious. Even the Washington Post has had to admit this.
The superstorms that weren’t, serve as a stark reminder: the climate agenda thrives on fear. Rain or shine, the alarmists’ forecast of planetary doom remained the same. In doing so, they show their hand – prioritizing political agenda over evidence. It’s time to separate rhetoric from reality and liberate ourselves from climate hysteria.
Steve Milloy is a biostatistician and lawyer. He posts on X at @JunkScience.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.
(Featured Image Media Credit: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center via Flickr)
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