The strongest hurricane ever recorded has set another record.  Fortunately, the damage it caused was not catastrophic.  However, the past 10-15 years has been marked with a number of record breaking natural disasters where the impact has been catastrophic.  Resilience to such levels of destruction is slowly gaining momentum which is an encouraging sign.  In the wake of Hurricane Patricia, the GRC has prepared this collection of articles from a variety of sources.

Why Hurricane Patricia Didn’t Cause Epic Damage

Hurricane Patricia—the strongest hurricane ever recorded—made landfall on Friday without causing the catastrophic damage that many had anticipated. That lack of destruction is in large part due to the storm’s record winds staying confined to a small area and hitting a relatively unpopulated region. “The amount of damage is going to be entirely dependent on where the storm hits,” said Sean Sublette, a meteorologist at Climate Central. “If it had been a more heavily populated area, we’d be having a much different conversation.” The storm made landfall near Cuixmala, a luxury retreat in a sparsely populated ocean reserve, early Friday evening with winds of around 165 miles per hour. But the storm’s strongest winds didn’t extend much beyond 15 miles of its eye. The nearest city Manzanillo, which has a population of more than 100,000, is located more than 50 miles away…FULL STORY

 

Hurricane Patricia: how one Puerta Vallarta resident stuck out the storm

My home in Puerta Vallarta is an apartment one block from the ocean, behind several beachfront mansions. Because it’s around 40 feet off the ground, I decided to stay. Yes, I took precautions, of course. I had a fanny pack with cash, ID, cell phone, crank flashlight/radio, and my camera. I had bottled water to drink, bananas, a bunch of cold cuts and a loaf of bread. I stockpiled several gallons of fresh water, candles, and a first-aid kit…FULL STORY

 

Hurricane Patricia strikes: How natural disasters affect travel

Hurricane Patricia, the strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere, slammed into the southwest Mexican coast on Friday with winds of up to 200 miles per hour. The storm’s sheer power makes it “uncharted territory,” as meteorologist Jim Cantore of the Weather Channel said on Twitter. But complicating matters is its popular location: U.S. State Department officials estimate that tens of thousands of Americans may be living or traveling in Patricia’s path at such resort spots as Puerto Vallarta. Natural disasters can wreak havoc on travelers in many ways, from the emotional letdown of a peaceful getaway being ruined to urgent safety concerns. While Hurricane Patricia is historic, a guide for how travelers can respond to it can be found in past disasters, such as the destructive earthquake that hit Nepal in April…FULL STORY

 

Terrifying, Eerily Beautiful Photos Taken From Space Of Hurricane Patricia