A home without power in Argyle, TexasChris Rusanowsky/Zuma
If you’re reading this in Texas, chances are you’re huddled over your phone in a cold, dark home, using cell service to access the internet.
More than 3 million people in the Lone Star State—and tens of thousands more in states including Louisiana and Mississippi—are without power thanks to a winter storm that has battered a normally balmy region and killed more than 30 people. Scientists say that human-caused climate change is partly responsible for the extreme southern sweep of the polar vortex; the warming Arctic could be disrupting the jet stream and sending that cold air where it doesn’t normally go. Even record-breaking cold is a sign that the climate is out of whack and a harbinger of extreme weather to come.
A bit of good news: Good samaritans in Texas have rescued 3,500 sea turtles from the cold. They’re staying at the South Padre Island Convention Center.
This post was brought to you by the Mother Jones Daily newsletter, which hits inboxes every weekday and is written by Inae Oh and Abigail Weinberg. It regularly features guest contributions by our much smarter colleagues. Sign up for it here.
