As states across the country continue to report increases in COVID-19 cases, it's clear that the pandemic is far from over. Natural disasters and severe weather events during the pandemic are creating further problems for states that are left to battle everything at the same time.

Natural disasters are battering the U.S. in ways we've not seen before. The West Coast alone has been ravaged by wildfires and lightning storms that weren't predicted, and the Midwest is dealing with the aftermath of an extremely damaging derecho wind storm. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's annual Atlantic hurricane forecast confirmed the nation should prepare for between 13-19 named storms this year -- Delta is the 25th.

A court last week approved a settlement totaling $800 million from casino company MGM Resorts International and its insurers to more than 4,400 relatives and victims of the Las Vegas Strip shooting that was the deadliest in recent U.S. history.