The world is on fire and retail is to blame. At least partially.
Global warming is likely “the result of human activity since the mid-20th century and proceeding at a rate that is unprecedented,” according to NASA, and is evidenced by a global rise in temperature, warming oceans and extreme weather events.
Over the last 40 years, the United States has sustained 246 weather and climate events where the cumulative costs reached $1 billion or more each — and together caused more than $1.6 trillion in damage, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information. Already this year, as of April 9, the U.S. experienced two weather disasters with losses exceeding that milestone — and such events have been clustered together in recent years.