The UN World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has warned that floods and storms will not ease anytime soon as global warming drives water crises worldwide.
“Water-related hazards continue to cause major devastation this year,” WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo said on Thursday.
She listed examples: “The latest are devastating monsoon flooding in Pakistan, floods in South Sudan and the deadly flash floods in Bali. And unfortunately, we see no end to this trend.”
Saulo revealed that “2024 was the third straight year with widespread glacial loss across all regions.” Glaciers lost 450 gigatonnes — the size of a seven-kilometre block of ice — enough to fill 180 million Olympic swimming pools.
That single loss raised sea levels by 1.2 millimetres, putting hundreds of millions in coastal areas at higher risk of floods.
The WMO report noted that 2024 was the hottest year in 175 years of records, with global temperatures 1.55°C above the pre-industrial baseline. Warmer air now holds more moisture, meaning heavier rainfall and deadlier storms.
Extreme Events Becoming Commonplace
In September 2024, Storm Boris triggered catastrophic flooding in central and eastern Europe. Tens of thousands were displaced, and in the Czech Republic, rivers rose to levels seen only “once in 100 years.”
But WMO hydrology chief Stefan Uhlenbrook warned: “A ‘century event’ happened. Statistics show these extreme events might become even more frequent.”
The agency confirmed wetter-than-normal conditions last year across central-western Africa, Lake Victoria, Kazakhstan, southern Russia, Pakistan, northern India and north-eastern China. According to the report, what happens to the water cycle in one region can ripple across the world, worsening climate shocks elsewhere.
The WMO stressed the urgent need for better data on streamflow, groundwater, soil moisture and water quality. These remain poorly tracked, limiting preparedness against disasters.
For more on global warming’s impact, see BBC’s climate coverage or UN data on extreme weather.
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