Extreme Weather Hits Pittsburgh Hard: Why We Can’t Count on a Hero to Save Us

Leah Lamonte, a property owner in North Versailles, is familiar with flooding, owning two properties near Crooked Run Creek. However, this past summer brought unprecedented challenges. Floods on June 6 and June 16 inflicted significant structural and utility damage and dislocated her tenants for weeks. When she contacted Township Manager Joseph Varhola for assistance, she was told that the creek was her responsibility. Varhola later clarified that he was merely conveying information from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. Lamonte expressed her concerns about the lack of feasible solutions amidst increasingly severe weather. The Pittsburgh area has faced numerous extreme weather events this year, further exacerbated by climate change. Recently, Lamonte and community leaders criticized President Trump for cutting climate and infrastructure funding. Local officials like Amanda Settelmaier emphasized the dire need for cooperative government strategies to combat these escalating weather events, warning that without intervention, communities will suffer lasting consequences.