Category Archives: Extreme weather

India’s wheat farmers count cost of 40C heat that evokes ‘deserts of Rajasthan’

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The ban on wheat exports highlights the effect a rapidly warming planet has on food security – and livelihoods

It was his buffaloes that he was first worried about. As temperatures in the small village of Baras, deep in the Indian state of Punjab, began to soar to unseasonably hot levels in April, farmer Hardeep Singh Uppal noticed that his two buffaloes, essential for his family’s livelihood, became feverish and unwell.

A few weeks later and the buffaloes now seem fine, flicking their tails leisurely as an icy breeze blows down from an air conditioning unit, a luxury that once sat in Uppal’s parents house but now has been installed in an otherwise run-down cowshed, running all day at great expense. “The vet told me I need to keep them cool in this heatwave otherwise they will die so this is the only way,” said Uppal.

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South Africa’s April floods made twice as likely by climate crisis, scientists say

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Brutal heatwave in India and Pakistan also certain to have been exacerbated by global heating, scientists say

The massive and deadly floods that struck South Africa in April were made twice as likely and more intense by global heating, scientists have calculated. The research demonstrates that the climate emergency is resulting in devastation.

Catastrophic floods and landslides hit the South African provinces of KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape on 11 April following exceptionally heavy rainfall.

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From India’s highs to Thailand’s lows, Asia’s weather is hitting extremes

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Analysis: As the heatwave in India and Pakistan starts to intensify again, Thailand and China are recording strangely cold May days

The final days of April saw further unbearable temperatures recorded in India and Pakistan. Temperatures peaked at 49C in Jacobabad, Pakistan on 30 April, with a high of 47.2C observed in Banda, India. The Indian Meteorological Department confirmed that average temperatures in April were the highest for northern and central parts of the country since records began over 100 years ago.

Heatwaves are a common occurrence at this time of year in India and Pakistan, but scientists believe the intensity, duration and arrival time of the conditions witnessed so far this year are caused by rising global temperatures. Despite a slight respite in the extreme heat over the past few days, temperatures are set to intensify once more this weekend and into next week with maximum temperatures expected to approach 50C in parts of north-west India and Pakistan.

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‘We are living in hell’: Pakistan and India suffer extreme spring heatwaves

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April temperatures at unprecedented levels have led to critical water and electricity shortages

For the past few weeks, Nazeer Ahmed has been living in one of the hottest places on Earth. As a brutal heatwave has swept across India and Pakistan, his home in Turbat, in Pakistan’s Balochistan region, has been suffering through weeks of temperatures that have repeatedly hit almost 50C (122F), unprecedented for this time of year. Locals have been driven into their homes, unable to work except during the cooler night hours, and are facing critical shortages of water and power.

Ahmed fears that things are only about to get worse. It was here, in 2021, that the world’s highest temperature for May was recorded, a staggering 54C. This year, he said, feels even hotter. “Last week was insanely hot in Turbat. It did not feel like April,” he said.

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After the relentless rain, South Africa sounds the alarm on the climate crisis

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Many are still missing after this month’s floods. Extreme weather is becoming more frequent, and it can be devastating

Survivors of South Africa’s devastating floods have described “sheet upon sheet of relentless rain” that washed away entire houses, bridges and roads, killing about 450 people and making thousands homeless.

The storm, which delivered close to an entire year’s usual rainfall in 48 hours, took meteorologists by surprise and has been blamed by experts on climate change. The new disaster comes after three tropical cyclones and two tropical storms hit south-east Africa in just six weeks in the first months of this year.

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Wildfire smoke in Pacific north-west erasing reductions in emissions – study

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Billowing black smoke during wildfire disasters has caused atmospheric carbon monoxide levels to increase, scientists find

The billowing black smoke that has cloaked the US Pacific north-west during wildfire disasters in past years has caused atmospheric carbon monoxide levels to spike, with the contaminants offsetting recent reductions in emissions, scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research have found.

As the American west faces increasing threats from big blazes that are fueled by a climate that’s growing warmer and drier, researchers have documented the impact of smoke on public health. But scientists are increasingly finding that the fires may be part of a feedback loop that could accelerate the change in conditions and that health impacts officials have long warned would worsen with climate crisis, may in fact already be here.

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South Africa braces for more heavy rain after floods kill hundreds

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President describes ‘catastrophe of enormous proportions’ as more than 300 people die in Durban area

South Africa is bracing for more heavy rain in districts hit by massive and lethal downpours earlier this week.

More than 300 people have died in flooding in and around the eastern coastal city of Durban in recent days. On Wednesday the president, Cyril Ramaphosa, described the flooding as a “catastrophe of enormous proportions”, directly linking it to the climate emergency.

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More floods evacuation orders issued as Sydney exceeds annual rainfall in just over three months

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Residents in suburbs including Woronora, Bonnet Bay and Chipping Norton, near Liverpool, told to leave as Bureau of Meteorology forecasts more heavy rain

Residents in parts of Sydney’s south have been ordered to evacuate their homes on Thursday with severe storms across the eastern part of New South Wales prompted flood warnings.

State Emergency Services in NSW ordered residents in low-lying parts of Woronora and Bonnet Bay, in Sydney’s south, to evacuate the area by 11:30am on Thursday, in anticipation of worsening rain and flash flooding.

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Tornado hits New Orleans causing damage, power outages and reports of one death

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Tornado occurred as major storm system tore through parts of the US south, killing another person in Texas and injuring more than two dozen

A large tornado touched down in New Orleans on Tuesday evening, causing damage and destruction to the city’s lower ninth ward, before traveling east into the neighboring parish of St Bernard, where officials reported multiple injuries and one death.

The tornado occurred as a major storm system continued to tear through parts of the US south, killing another person in Texas and injuring more than two dozen.

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West Texas fires: crews make progress against giant blaze complex

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Governor declares disaster in 11 counties as experts warn of fires in parts of Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska

Fire crews in Texas made progress on Saturday against a massive complex of wildfires that killed a deputy sheriff and burned at least 50 homes, officials said.

“Progress has been made but fire activity has picked up with rising temperatures and lower humidity,” said Matt Ford, spokesperson for Texas A&M Forest Services. He said about 25% of the flames were contained, up from about 4% late on Friday as the fire burned thick brush and grass fields.

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Indian spiritualist Sadhguru on 100-day motorbike mission to save soil

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Yoga guru will visit dozens of countries en route from London to India to raise awareness of plight of one of nature’s greatest resources

One of India’s best-known spiritual leaders is embarking on a 100-day motorbike journey from London to India to raise awareness of one of nature’s most undervalued resources.

Sadhguru, or Jaggi Vasudev, is setting off on Monday on a 30,000km (18,600-mile) trip through Europe and the Middle East in an effort to “save soil”, meeting celebrities, environmentalists and influencers in dozens of countries along the way.

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Tropical Cyclone Gombe hits countries in south-east Africa

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Damaging winds and torrential rainfall strike Madagascar, Mozambique and Malawi

Tropical Cyclone Gombe affected parts of Madagascar, Mozambique and Malawi last week, bringing damaging winds and torrential rainfall. Gombe made landfall in the Nampula province of northern Mozambique on Friday as a category three tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of about 120mph and more that 100mm of rainfall in places. Mozambique has already been hit this year by Tropical Storm Ana in January and tropical depression Dumako in February.

A powerful late-winter storm system surged across eastern parts of the US on Friday night and Saturday, bringing heavy rain, widespread heavy snow, strong winds, thunderstorms and freezing temperatures. Snow was reported as far south as Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia, with 20-30cm falling quite widely across the Appalachians and northwards through parts of Pennsylvania, New York and Vermont. Damaging winds affected parts of Florida, with a tornado reported near Crescent City, Florida. Cold weather plunging well into the south has been a frequent feature of this winter in the US.

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Sydney floods: two found dead, roads inundated, homes and suburbs across the city swamped

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Streets become rivers amid shocking deluge as Manly Dam spills and Roseville bridge flooded, with evacuation orders covering more than a dozen suburbs

Tens of thousands of Sydney residents have been forced from their homes as floods unleashed carnage across Australia’s largest city and claimed the lives of a mother and son.

Australia’s death toll from the east coast floods rose to 21 on Tuesday as a massive stretch of the New South Wales coast endured dangerous winds and heavy rains, causing landslides and wild surf conditions as the second east coast low in a week moved in.

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‘Infants here don’t know how to eat’: millions facing famine in Madagascar

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As sandstorms ruin crops and drought worsens food shortages, mothers are walking miles to feed their children at clinics

After four vicious storms in as many weeks and the worst drought in 40 years, there are fears that the hunger crisis facing 2 million people in southern Madagascar could become a famine. With record low rainfalls in the Grand Sud region, USAid’s Famine Early Warning Network is warning that large-scale humanitarian support will be needed until next year.

Food shortages have been compounded by three cyclones and one tropical storm that have ravaged parts of the south and east of the country since late January. The most recent hit the south-east coast on 22 February, affecting thousands of people.

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Australia news updates live: fresh flood warnings for NSW as more rain due, Qld schools stay shut

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Hundreds of thousands of NSW residents are still under evacuation warnings or orders as Hawkesbury-Nepean region remains a major concern; Victoria records 26 Covid deaths, NSW records two. Follow all the day’s news

Resilience NSW commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons has told ABC radio that flooding across the state was worst than predicted:

Unprecedented levels [of flooding] experienced up in northern NSW, flood levels that came in well above what was forecasted … And at the same time we’ve still got serious flooding concerns in Hawkesbury and Nepean ...

We’ve also formed up a significant taskforce, comprising of firefighters … the Australian defence force. So working shoulder to shoulder with business owners, with property owners, homeowners ...

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California debates naming heatwaves to underscore deadly risk of extreme heat

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Experts and advocates are also exploring new ranking systems to add urgency to the growing disaster of rapidly warming landscapes

Climate scientists from around the world issued dire warnings on Monday, in the latest IPCC report on the dangers posed in the unfolding climate crisis. Among them is extreme heat, a crisis that on average already claims more American lives than hurricanes and tornadoes combined.

Though the impact is already being felt, heatwaves are largely silent killers. Often, the toll is tallied far into the aftermath of an event and is vastly undercounted. Unlike fires and floods that produce immediate and visible destruction, heat’s harmful effects can seem more subtle – even if they are in fact more deadly.

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Flood waters surge across Brisbane and south-east Queensland as ‘rain bomb’ threatens lives

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Heavy rainfall expected to continue overnight, with northern New South Wales next in the line of fire

Flood waters continued to rise across Brisbane, south-east Queensland and other parts of the state on Sunday night as a “rain bomb” dumped significant volumes of water into the city and put more than 1,000 homes at risk.

In some parts of Brisbane, flooding and damage has already been more severe than the 2011 floods, which killed 33 people and caused widespread damage.

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Life-threatening floods forecast for Queensland as Sydney records wettest summer in 30 years

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Some areas of northern NSW and south-east Queensland could receive 300mm amid more wild weather in coming days

Sydney has experienced its wettest summer in three decades and the most humid season in 10 years, with more torrential rain forecast for the New South Wales north coast and south-east Queensland over the coming days.

The heavy rain and flooding has already led to three deaths – two in Queensland and one in NSW.

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Storm Eunice: London added to red weather warning amid ‘danger to life’

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Major bridges closing and millions told to batten down and not go outside as authorities warn of ‘significant disruption’

The east of England including London has been added to the red weather warning for wind issued by the Met Office because of Storm Eunice, which has prompted rare danger-to-life warnings, with millions of people told to stay indoors at home to avoid 90mph winds.

The rare highest alert – meaning a major impact is very likely – was widened just before 4am, to run from 10am until 3pm on Friday, due to fears of the storm “causing significant disruption and dangerous conditions due to extremely strong winds”, the Met Office said.

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