Global warming - the ingredient that intensified natural disasters in 2024

In 2024, no region was spared from natural disasters - from the small, fragile archipelago of Mayotte to mighty Saudi Arabia, from prosperous European megacities to overcrowded African slums, almost all disasters were intensified by global warming.
In 2024, the hottest year on record, record temperatures were recorded both in the air and on the surface of the seas, and this heat provided fuel for the intensification of cyclones, heat waves and other extreme weather events around the world.
According to the World Weather Attribution (WWA) network of scientists, which is the benchmark for analyzing the impact of global warming on natural disasters, nearly all major disasters studied in the past 12 months have been exacerbated by the effects of humanity's greenhouse gas emissions.
"The impacts of fossil fuel-induced warming have never been more clear or more devastating than in 2024. We are living in a dangerous new era," said climatologist Friederike Otto, head of the WWA, as quoted by AFP.
Heatwave
The deadly danger of heatwaves received huge attention in June when more than 1,300 Muslim pilgrims died during the hajj - the pilgrimage to Mecca - in Saudi Arabia. Temperatures reached 51.8 °C.
No continent was spared the extreme heat, whose nickname of 'silent killer' was exemplified by the death tolls recorded in Thailand, India and the United States.
In Mexico, the heat wave was so intense that howler monkeys fell dead from trees, and in Pakistan millions of children stayed indoors when the thermometer soared above 50 °C.
In Greece, an early heatwave of over 40 °C in June led to the closure of the Acropolis and fuelled severe fires, setting off Europe's hottest summer on record.
Floods
Global warming is not just synonymous with heatwaves: warmer oceans mean more water evaporates and a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture (up to 7% more per 1°C), leading to heavy rain.
In April, rains equivalent to two years' worth of rain fell in the United Arab Emirates in one day, flooding large areas of the desert country and bringing Dubai airport to a standstill.
Kenya, meanwhile, had just emerged from an episode of extreme drought when the east African country suffered its worst flooding in several decades.
In West and Central Africa, four million people were in need of humanitarian assistance following historic floods that killed more than 1 500 people, and Europe - especially Spain - also suffered devastating floods.
Afghanistan, Russia, Brazil, China, Nepal, Uganda, India, Somalia, Pakistan, Burundi and the United States have also not been spared the floods of the last 12 months.
Cyclones
The warming of the surface of the oceans fuels the energy of tropical cyclones, accelerating the force of destructive winds as they make landfall.
Major hurricanes such as Milton, Beryl and Helene devastated the United States and the Caribbean during the 2024 season, characterised by above-average cyclone activity.
In November alone, the Philippines experienced six major storms, just two months after Typhoon Yagi devastated Southeast Asia.
Cyclone Chido, which devastated Mayotte in December, would have been less powerful had climate change not occurred, according to a preliminary study.
Droughts and fires
As a result of climate change, some regions of the world are becoming wetter and others drier.
Drought has hit several regions of the Americas hard, causing large-scale wildfires in the western United States, Canada and even parts of Amazonia, one of the wettest regions in the world.
As a result of successive months of drought in southern African countries, some 26 million people were threatened with famine in December, according to the World Food Programme.
Cost
Extreme weather events claimed thousands of lives in 2024 and impoverished countless others.
In economic terms, natural disasters have caused losses of $310 billion worldwide, according to an estimate by insurance group Swiss Re.
According to the authorities, as of 1 November, 24 weather disasters have been recorded in the US since the beginning of the year, with damage exceeding one billion dollars.
In Brazil, the drought cost the agricultural sector USD 2.7 billion between June and August. According to an international trade organisation, world wine production, undermined by bad weather, has reached its lowest level since 1961. | BGNES