This Letter to the Editor was written by Ray Nakano and was published in the Toronto Star on August 15, 2024.

Quebec recovering from historic rainfall, power outages as storm remnants move east, Aug. 10

Flooded basements, power outages, roads washed out … sound familiar? What Quebec experienced is just like what happened to Toronto on July 16, as torrential downpours hit Montreal and its surrounding areas.

Whether remnants of more and more extreme hurricanes or not, these are unnatural disasters brought about by global warming. We need to stop burning fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas, and switch to clean and cheap renewable energy.

Our roads, bridges and stormwater infrastructure were not built for once-in-a-hundredyear rainfall events that are happening more frequently. We need a city stormwater charge that will help pay for upgrading our stormwater infrastructure. The sooner, the better before the next torrential downpour.

Ray Nakano, Toronto