This storm has been raging for about 50 years. When it ends it'll just be replaced by another storm. They're the result of flawed geoengineering that occurred before joining a larger interstellar society about 300 years ago. The geoengineering turned the entire surface toxic. In some places the atmosphere is even corrosive. 

Many Exadians left, but most refused to leave their ancestral planet. They continue to live there now. The shuttle should make it through the storm okay and then some of those Exadians will get some sorely needed help.