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Extreme weather can whip up anxiety. Here's how having a safety plan can help

Nbcwashington · · 737 words · By Jeff Martin; The Associated Press
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What to know about Extreme weather can whip up anxiety. Here's how having a safety plan can help

Hurricanes, wildfires, floods and other extreme weather can also kick up storms of anxiety.

Claims checked 9
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
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Center100%
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5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Hurricanes, wildfires, floods and other extreme weather can also kick up storms of anxiety.

Why it matters

Thankfully, there are several ways to reduce that stress, according to mental health experts who have helped people who have experienced disasters.

Common ground

One of the most important things to do is have a plan, they say.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/national-international/extreme-weather-anxiet…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 9 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 5
help Insufficient Evidence 1
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verified Verified By Reference 1
info Single Source 1
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Claim 1: “The restaurant [The Corner Kitchen], built around 1895 by American industrialist George Vanderbilt in the Biltmore Village section of Asheville, has since reopened after major renovations and repairs.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results to verify the building date, the role of George Vanderbilt in its construction, or the current status of the restaurant's renovations.
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Claim 2: “Ruben Juarez, a health economist at University of Hawaii professor who directed the Maui Wildfires Exposure Study”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web sources (UHERO, LinkedIn, and a professional bio) confirm Ruben Juarez is a professor of health economics at the University of Hawaii and the director of the Maui Wildfire Exposure Study.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport (IATA: BOS, ICAO: KBOS, FAA LID: BOS) — more commonly known as Boston Logan International Airport — is an international airport located mostly in Ea…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logan_International_Airport
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2025 Pacific hurricane season was the first to see twenty named storms since 2018. It was an active Pacific hurricane season with an above average number of tropical cyclones, largely due to warme…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_Pacific_hurricane_season
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web search NEUTRAL — DR. RUBEN JUAREZ · University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization · Department of Economics · Maui Wildfire Exposure Study · UHERO Statewide Rapid Survey ...
https://rubenj.net/
+ 2 more evidence sources
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Claim 3: “When the remnants of Hurricane Helene unleashed torrents of rain on the state two years ago, water and mud poured into the restaurant”
DISPUTED
The claim states Hurricane Helene occurred 'two years ago'. However, Wikipedia and news reports explicitly date the devastating effects of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina to September 27, 2024. This contradicts the 'two years ago' timeline.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Wind and flooding from Hurricane Helene devastated North Carolina on September 27, 2024, primarily in its western Appalachian region, causing at least 108 reported deaths and major destruction of infr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_Hurricane_Helene_in…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Hurricane Helene ( heh-LEEN) was a powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that caused widespread catastrophic damage and numerous fatalities across the Southeastern United States in late September…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Helene
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Hurricane Helene was the most intense tropical cyclone of the 1958 Atlantic hurricane season. The eighth tropical storm and fourth hurricane of the year, Helene was formed from a tropical wave east of…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Helene_(1958)
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 4: “The American Red Cross also has extensive guides for hurricane preparedness.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple Red Cross web pages confirm they provide hurricane preparedness checklists, supply lists, and relief guides.
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web search NEUTRAL — When a hurricane or tropical storm strikes, the Red Cross provides shelter, food and comfort. Learn About Red Cross Hurricane Relief.
https://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergen…
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web search NEUTRAL — Jan 1, 2022 ... These storms bring high winds, heavy rain, storm surge (rise in water level), flooding and tornadoes. Climate change has caused hurricanes ...
https://www.redcross.org/content/dam/redcross/get-help/pdfs/…
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web search NEUTRAL — Mar 25, 2025 ... Use apps like the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) app or your local weather app for real-time updates on storm developments, warnings ...
https://www.redcross.org/take-a-class/resources/articles/hur…
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Claim 5: “the deadly 2023 fires [in Maui]”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia and Britannica both confirm the occurrence of deadly wildfires in Maui in 2023.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2023 Hawaii wildfires were a series of wildfires that broke out in early August 2023 in the U.S. state of Hawaii, predominantly on the island of Maui. The wind-driven fires prompted evacuations an…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_Hawaii_wildfires
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The directed-energy weapon wildfire conspiracy theories are claims circulating on social media and in fringe commentary that 2020s wildfires in places such as California, Hawaii and Texas were started…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directed-energy_weapon_wildfir…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Megathyrsus maximus, known as Guinea grass and green panic grass, is a large perennial bunch grass that is native to Africa and Yemen. It has been introduced in the tropics around the world. It has pr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megathyrsus_maximus
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 6: “One of the Maui wildfires study's findings was that mental health affects rippled through the entire community and were found in many people who weren't in the burned area”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources (Civil Beat and other reports) specifically state that the mental health crisis from the Maui wildfires extended beyond the burn zones to people who lived outside the affected areas.
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web search NEUTRAL — Mar 11, 2026 ... More than half of the wildfire's impact on depression and anxiety could be traced to housing instability and lost income.
https://www.hawaii.edu/news/2026/03/11/mauiwes-mental-health…
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web search NEUTRAL — Mar 11, 2026 ... People who lived inside the burn zones at the time of the fires had a 53% higher risk of depression and 67% higher risk of anxiety compared to ...
https://civilbeat.org/2026/03/beyond-the-burn-zone-maui-wild…
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web search NEUTRAL — Mar 11, 2026 ... 8, 2023, and Maui was burning. Ramelb, born and raised in Lahaina, lived outside the burn zone, so his home was intact. But he couldn't get into ...
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/11032026/mauis-mental-hea…
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Claim 7: “Kevin Westmoreland, who co-owns The Corner Kitchen in Asheville, North Carolina”
CORROBORATED
The restaurant's own 'Meet the Crew' page and other web results confirm Kevin Westmoreland as a co-owner/CFO of The Corner Kitchen in Asheville.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of characters in the American television series Prison Break. The characters are listed alphabetically by their last name or by the name which appears in the episode credits.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Prison_Break_character…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of films, television series and animations produced by independent and privately run production company Scott Free Productions, currently headquartered in London and Los Angeles. Establ…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Scott_Free_productions
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of cinemas that exist or have existed in the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cinemas_in_Toronto
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 8: “Melissa Brymer, a psychologist and director of terrorism and disaster programs at the UCLA-Duke National Center for Child Traumatic Stress”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources (UCLA newsroom, Military Child Education Coalition, and Wellbeing for LA Learning Center) confirm Melissa Brymer's role as director of terrorism and disaster programs at the UCLA-Duke National Center for Child Traumatic Stress.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Events from the year 1974 in the United States.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1974_in_the_United_States
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web search NEUTRAL — Melissa Brymer is director of terrorism and disaster programs at the UCLA-Duke National Center for Child Traumatic Stress and an expert on how children deal ...
https://newsroom.ucla.edu/experts/melissa-brymer
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web search NEUTRAL — D., Psy.D. is the Director of Terrorism and Disaster Programs of the. UCLA/Duke University National Center for Child Traumatic Stress and its National Child.
https://militarychild.org/upload/files/NTS/2019/Brymer_Biogr…
+ 1 more evidence source
info
Claim 9: “She recommends a step-by-step guide for families at ready.gov/plan.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The web search results provided for this claim are generic website builders (Wix, Canva) and a city website for San Marcos, TX. None of the provided evidence confirms the existence or content of ready.gov/plan.
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web search NEUTRAL — Follow these 6 simple steps to create a website today. Identify your needs and map out your audience, these will help you assess your site structure and the pages you want. A clear plan keeps your web…
https://www.wix.com/
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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 1, 2026 · Both pets are available for adoption at the San Marcos Regional Animal Shelter.
https://www.sanmarcostx.gov/
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web search NEUTRAL — Create free professional websites on your own domain in minutes. Canva’s website builder makes launching a one-page website easy with customizable templates for your brand.
https://www.canva.com/website-builder/
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.