There is no evidence that climate change caused Hurricane Maria, or the earlier storms Irma and Harvey but scientists generally agree it contributed to their severity. Heat stored near the ocean surface fuels tropical cyclones and the sea temperature has been higher than average this year. Storms that occur naturally produce more intense rainfall because of the man-made emissions that have contributed to global warming. Climate change is also contributing to sea levels rising, largely because of thermal expansion of the oceans. This increases the risk of storm-surge damage on coasts during hurricanes because the sea level is already higher than it would have been.

Source: The Times September 19, 2017 11:03 UTC