All articles tagged with #extreme weather
Bangkok has declared a flood disaster across all 50 districts after approximately 300mm of rain fell in two days, causing 40 deaths and displacing thousands. While central districts remain largely functional, low-lying areas face stagnant water, and Suvarnabhumi Airport suffers major disruptions due to staff shortages. Officials warn of continued heavy rain as the city struggles to drain its overwhelmed canal network.
A new study projects that the current record-breaking El Niño will cause approximately 451,000 additional heat-related deaths globally between June 2026 and February 2027. The event, which has already shattered temperature records, is amplifying the effects of human-caused climate change. Developing nations in the Global South, particularly in Africa and Asia, face the highest mortality risks due to limited access to cooling infrastructure and healthcare. While the El Niño is a natural phenomenon, its unprecedented intensity is driven by a warmer baseline climate, leading to severe droughts, wildfires, and food insecurity. Experts urge immediate emergency measures, including heat warnings and cooling centers, to mitigate the crisis, warning that current conditions may become the new normal within two decades.
A 'super El Niño' has shattered historical temperature records in the Pacific Ocean, with forecasts predicting a peak of 4.0C by December. The Climate Impact Lab projects this event could cause 451,000 excess heat-related deaths globally by February 2027, disproportionately affecting nations in the Global South. While the phenomenon is a natural cycle, scientists warn that underlying fossil-fuel-driven warming is amplifying its impacts, leading to severe droughts, wildfires, and food insecurity worldwide.
El Niño has surged to record heat in the Pacific (ONI around 3.05C, edging past 3.02C from 2015), with models predicting a peak near 4.0C. The event could be the strongest in about 1,000 years and may push 2027 toward the hottest year on record, as climate change amplifies heat and extreme weather worldwide, triggering heatwaves, droughts, floods, wildfires, and food- and water-security pressures.
Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a statewide emergency to mobilize resources ahead of what forecasters warn could be the strongest El Niño on record, with NOAA predicting a very strong event this fall and winter. The declaration enables pre-staging flood-fighting supplies, coordinating Caltrans and National Guard support, and protecting communities as heavier rains, floods, landslides and coastal erosion become more likely.
August set a new global record for atmospheric water vapour (27.35 kg per square metre), driven by ongoing global warming and a strengthening El Niño; the record coincides with August being the hottest month on ERA5 data and suggests more intense rainfall and stronger storms as humidity fuels storm energy, with scientists warning the warming-El Niño combination could push temperatures to new highs next year.
A 45-year global analysis (AGU Advances) shows extreme heat seasons have expanded into spring and fall across about half the world since the 1980s, with some regions seeing earlier heat and others later, and a noticeable shift in the seasonality of dangerous heat. NOAA reported this summer (June–August) was the warmest in 132 years in the Lower 48, while August globally set a heat and humidity record. While exact causes remain uncertain, climate change is viewed as the primary driver. The timing shifts raise risk because protections are often centered on summer, leaving communities vulnerable when extreme heat arrives off-season or lingers past expectations.
A passenger ferry carrying about 240 people lost contact in rough weather in the Java Sea, leaving at least six dead and more than 100 missing; authorities have rescued around 113 people so far as search-and-rescue efforts continue.
The coming El Niño could be the strongest on record, amplified by a warming climate and measured with a relative index; already driving hotter Augusts, it is expected to lift global temperatures into 2027, fuel wildfires in Indonesia, alter cyclone activity across the Pacific, and bring drier springs with higher bushfire risk to Australia, while threatening crops and vulnerable communities worldwide. The piece calls for stronger research and bolder climate action to anticipate impacts and guide adaptation and emissions reductions.
UN officials warn the current El Niño could be the largest in about 1,000 years, likely driving 2027 toward record heat as global warming amplifies its impacts—from worsening wildfires and droughts to more intense floods—and the World Food Programme says up to 50 million people could face acute hunger. Ocean temperatures near the Niño core are already about 2.6°C above the 30-year average and are forecast to rise toward roughly 4°C in November, with the WMO calling it a 'very strong' event that could spill into 2027. The crisis underscores the urgency of cutting emissions and boosting resilience.
The World Meteorological Organization warns that El Niño has stabilized and will intensify to a very strong event, likely lasting through February and continuing into 2027. It will push global temperatures higher, alter rainfall and monsoon patterns, and raise risks of floods, droughts, and heat, potentially impacting economies and infrastructure. While natural, it will amplify ongoing climate warming, prompting urgent preparedness across sectors such as agriculture, health, and energy.
A flash flood devastated parts of Grand Canyon National Park, killing at least two people and leaving about 15 unaccounted for, with search-and-recovery efforts ongoing. Initial assessments noted the flood damaged roughly 40% of the Transcanyon Waterline, and flood watches remained in effect as authorities continue to account for hikers and visitors.
A warming planet is intensifying climate extremes: Nepal’s deadly flood is linked to a glacier ice avalanche, while Los Angeles endures unusually humid, heat‑driven nights as a super El Niño strengthens and pushes global temperatures higher. Scientists say these events are connected by climate change, which is making heat, storms, and glacial melt more frequent and severe, with August 2026 expected to be among the hottest on record.
Tropical Storm Dolly, formed Thursday, could bring much-needed rainfall to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands without causing destructive winds or storm surge, though wind shear and dry air may weaken it; the rainfall could help alleviate severe drought conditions in Puerto Rico.
A powerful tornado struck southern France, injuring at least 40 people and damaging or destroying around 300 homes, with four other tornadoes reported nationwide as Western Europe faces more storms in the coming days.