Maeve Higgins: New York floods a wake-up call on climate emergency

The World Bank’s latest Groundswell report about climate migration and climate displacement brings to Maeve Higgins' mind a freak weather incident in New York and the stories of those who drowned in their homes in the city after Hurricane Ida

Pedestrians take cover near Columbus Circle in New York as the remnants of Hurricane Ida moved along the Eastern seaboard. Photo: AP/Craig Ruttle

Last night I had one of those moments where the climate crisis, usually an uncomfortable but largely ignorable hum in the background of my life, flashed quite literally in front of my eyes.

I was sitting having drinks with friends in a wooden structure with a corrugated plastic roof built out into the street opposite a bar. These structures popped up all over New York City last summer and are still in use despite the return of indoor drinking and eating.