Extreme weather conditions in South Asia and Africa
The world has been experiencing extraordinary weather extremes for weeks. Firstly, the heatwave in South East Asia and the torrential rainfall on the Arabian Peninsula and parts of Africa. The extreme rainfall and flooding have claimed many lives and caused economic and agricultural losses in East Africa and parts of the Arabian Peninsula. Intense heat has gripped large parts of Asia, disrupting daily life and posing a serious health risk to local people. The first heat-related deaths have already been reported.
The situation in South Asia
Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Vietnam have been plagued by extremely high temperatures for weeks. Due to the high humidity, the perceived temperature rises to up to 50 degrees, bringing normal life to a standstill. Schools in the Philippines are closed and the state weather bureau warns of "extreme danger", especially for senior citizens, pregnant women, children, people with chronic illnesses and the overweight.
India has also experienced heatwaves with temperatures of around 40 °C in recent weeks during the hot pre-monsoon season. According to the Indian Meteorological Department, this is likely to continue.
April is usually a hot month in South Asia and Southeast Asia, but El Niño and climate change are pushing temperatures to alarmingly high levels, says Ben Churchill, WMO Regional Director for Asia and the Southwest Pacific.
The WMO report "State of the Climate in Asia 2023" shows that Asia remains the region most affected by weather, climate and water hazards in the world in 2023. Floods and storms caused the most reported fatalities and economic losses, while the impact of heatwaves became increasingly severe.
Extreme heat becomes a silent killer
"Extreme heat is increasingly becoming the great silent killer," said WMO Deputy Secretary-General Ko Barrett. "Heat-related deaths are vastly underreported, so the true extent of premature deaths and economic costs - in terms of reduced labor productivity, agricultural losses and strain on the power grid - are not accurately reflected in the statistics," she said.
Extreme heatwaves in 2003 and 2010 were responsible for 80% of weather-related deaths in Europe between 1970 and 2019!
Africa experiences heavy rainfall and drought
In the United Republic of Tanzania, Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa informed parliament that at least 155 people were killed and more than 230 injured by flash floods on April 25. There were also fatalities in neighboring Burundi.
The WMO's regional climate center for the Greater Horn of Africa (ICPAC) predicted exceptional rainfall for parts of the region from 23 to 30 April, including northern and western Kenya, central and southern Ethiopia, southern Somalia and Djibouti as well as northern and southern Uganda. It warned of flooding in the flood-prone areas.
In Kenya, the weather station in Kianamu (north-east of Nairobi) recorded around 120 mm of rain on April 24.
In southern Africa, the persistent severe drought is due to a very poor rainy season (November to March), which corresponds to the typical influence of El Niño in this region and is exacerbated by the exceptionally high temperatures, says Alvaro Silva.
Extreme rainfall on the Arabian Peninsula
Flooding in the United Arab Emirates - a country with a hot, dry desert climate and very low annual rainfall - made headlines around the world when rainfall equivalent to several years' worth fell in a matter of hours in mid-April. Dubai's international airport was closed and normally busy highways turned into torrents of water.
On April 16, 2024, the National Center for Meteorology announced that the UAE recorded the highest rainfall in the last 75 years. In the "Khatm al-Shakla" area in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, 254.8 mm of precipitation fell in less than 24 hours... The country thus achieved an extraordinary event in its climate history.
In Dubai, the average annual precipitation in the period 1991-2020 was around 80 mm; further east it was slightly higher, around 120-140 mm).
The slow-moving storm system also hit Oman hard on April 14 and 15, triggering flash floods and reportedly claiming 17 lives.
The severe weather events in the second half of April once again highlight society's vulnerability to weather-, water- and climate-related hazards and the need for early warnings for everyone, explains the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
Reasons for the extreme weather
The decaying El Niño event plays a role alongside a phenomenon known as the Indian Ocean Dipole, particularly in the floods in East Africa and the drought in southern Africa, as well as the high temperatures in South East Asia. However, the excess energy trapped in the atmosphere and ocean by man-made greenhouse gases also has a major impact, especially on extreme heat, according to WMO experts.
"Climate change is exacerbating the frequency and severity of such events and is having a profound impact on societies, economies and, most importantly, on people's lives and the environment in which we live," Barrett told the 80th session of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific on April 23.
For example, when the air warms up, it can absorb more water vapor - around 7 % per 1 °C - which increases the intensity of heavy rainfall events on the one hand and the occurrence of droughts on the other.
More frequent and more intense weather events, such as severe heat waves and heavy rainfall, have a greater impact on more vulnerable population groups.
In addition, human influence since the 1950s has increased the likelihood of compound extreme events, including an increase in the frequency of simultaneous heatwaves and droughts.
The number of disasters has increased fivefold in the last 50 years, due to climate change, the increase in extreme weather events and improved reporting.
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