September brought O’Fallon beautiful weather, gracing us with endless warm and beautiful days. Sadly, the weather in the rest of the world has different plans.

Southern Mexico was hit with a 7.1 earthquake on September 19. The earthquake destroyed towns and communities, including Mexico City. As of September 20, there have been 11 aftershocks reaching all the way up to magnitude 4. They estimate it will cost $1-10 billion to rebuild. The earthquake has killed at least 217 people, leaving many towns in rubble and destroyed families.

Earlier in September, we all watched and prayed as hurricane Harvey devastated Texas. It turned roads into rivers and destroyed many homes. Harvey took the lives of 39 people causing all the destruction a Category 4 storm can.

Irma followed in Harvey’s footsteps, landing as another huge hurricane in a matter of weeks. Irma jumped up to a Category 5 as it devastated Cuba and weakened to a Category 4 before hitting Florida. As of September 19, the hurricane has caused 101 deaths. She is the longest-lived Atlantic hurricane since 2004.

After Irma comes Maria, who reached Puerto Rico on September 20. Puerto Rico now sits in darkness, since Maria’s storms shut down 100% of their power. Puerto Rico was already in debt and bankrupt before this storm, and now hope seems far away. The governor says it could be months before power returns to the whole island. Hurricane Maria reached the island at a Category 4, and has killed over 200 people.

On the other side of the nation, San Francisco was hit with a week long heat wave that broke historical records. On August 30, the heat reached a high of 101° F. That was not all Mother Nature had in store. On September 1, the heat reached a high of 106° F. For the first time in over 100 years, San Francisco had back-to-back triple digits.

The unbearable heat does not stop its destruction there. September usually brings the end of wildfire season, but for the western states, it is just the beginning. Parts of the country were ablaze, and many people could not leave their homes due to the poor air quality.

While you enjoy the warm weather and sunny days, keep in mind the struggles of people in our own country and around the world suffering from hurricanes, earthquakes and wildfires. A lot of people and communities have been seriously affected and are in need of continued prayers and support.