new year continues a broader trend of costly weather events in recent years. in fact, the national oceanic and atmospheric administration documented 18 separate billion-dollar weather and climate disasters in 2022. these events resulted in the deaths of at least 474 people and caused more than $165 billion in total damages. and these billion-dollar events are now happening more frequently in the united states, too. around every 18 days, compared with every 82 days in the 1980s. two events in 2022 in particular stood out for the sheer scale and cost of destruction. in mid-september hurricane fiona crashed into port key rico bringing with it 30 inches of rain, widespread blackouts and damage to the infrastructure reeling from being hit by hurricane maria in 2017 which caused more than $100 billion in
now, that sounds like good news, and in some sense of course it is. but there is a problem the damage in the golden state from this outbreak of h2o, may cost more than $1 billion. and these storms are not just happening in california. the chaotic start to the new year continues a broader trend of costly weather events in recent years. in fact, the national oceanic and atmospheric administration documented 18 separate billion-dollar weather and climate disasters in 2022. these events resulted in the deaths of at least 474 people and caused more than $165 billion in total damages. and these billion-dollar events are now happening more frequently in the united states, too. around every 18 days, compared with every 82 days in the 1980s. two events in 2022 in particular
every one degree celsius raise in temperature allows air to hold 7% more moisture. the storms are likely to cast california billion dollars. this comes as we learned this week that extreme weather cost the u.s. 165 billion dollars in 2022. there has been a whole slew of bad headlines, with scientists concluding that the past eight years were the hottest on record. oceans surging to a record high, which feels extreme weather. and the great salt lake on the verge of collapse. this will expose millions of people to toxic dust. everything is totally fine. not a climate dumpster fire at all. in california, state that has been taking action to address the climate crisis, but even that is clearly not enough. in congress and the rest of the country needs to take it seriously or it s gonna get worse. the more you know. that s a readout.
that the state isn t ready for. every one degree celsius raise in temperature allows air to hold 7% more moisture. the storms are likely to cast california billion dollars. this comes as we learned this week that extreme weather cost the u.s. 165 billion dollars in 2022. there has been a whole slew of bad headlines, with scientists concluding that the past eight years were the hottest on record. oceans surging to a record high, which feels extreme weather. and the great salt lake on the verge of collapse. this will expose millions of people to toxic dust. everything is totally fine. not a climate dumpster fire at all. in california, state that has been taking action to address the climate crisis, but even that is clearly not enough. in congress and the rest of the country needs to take it seriously or it s gonna get worse. the more you know. that s a readout.
wall, disaster costs for 2022 easily exceed $165 billion. climate change is warming the whole planet and that includes the atmosphere and the ocean. what that means for us is that the atmosphere is able to hold more moisture, so these storms can be bigger. reporter: tonight our changing planet as our new normal becomes even more extreme. miguel almaguer, nbc news, los angeles. let s turn to our other big story tonight. president biden facing criticism over his handling of classified documents following the white house disclosure that they were discovered in a private office he used after he was vice president. kristen welker has late details. reporter: tonight president biden at a mexico summit defending his handling of classified documents after that stunning white house admission they were found inside mr. biden s private office space at his washington think tank. people know i take classified