Extreme weather impacts hitting India and Asia hard

As reported earlier, India has been experiencing heatwaves in recent weeks during the hot pre-monsoon period, with temperatures in the mid 40°C. This is likely to continue, according to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD).

A recent report ‘The State of the Climate in Asia 2023’ by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has said that in India, severe heatwaves in April and June resulted in about 110 reported fatalities due to heatstroke. A major and prolonged heatwave affected much of South-East Asia in April and May, extending as far west as Bangladesh and Eastern India, and north to southern China, with record-breaking temperatures.

The WMO press release points out that according to the Indian Meteorological Department, during March-May 2024, above-normal number of heatwave days are likely over most parts of the country except over Northeast India, Western Himalayan Region, Southwest Peninsula and West coast…The frequency of heatwaves, their duration and their maximum duration are increasing, which is attributed to global warming. In the heat wave areas of India, the total duration of heat waves has increased by about 3 days in the last 30 years. The Intergovernmental Panell on Climate Change (IPCC) model projections indicate an increase of about two heat waves and heat wave duration by 12-18 days by 2060. India is successfully rolling out integrated heat-health forecasts action plans and #BeatTheHeat campaigns, with practical advice and information. But the vulnerable – including outdoor workers and those living in densely populated informal housing settlement are exposed.

Asia is warming faster than the global average. The warming trend has nearly doubled since the 1961–1990 period. Asia also remained the world’s most disaster-hit region from weather, climate and water-related hazards in 2023. Floods and storms caused the highest number of reported casualties and economic losses, whilst the impact of heatwaves became more severe, as per the new WMO report. According to a WMO press release, the report highlighted the accelerating rate of key climate change indicators such as surface temperature, glacier retreat and sea level rise, which will have major repercussions for societies, economies and ecosystems in the region. In 2023, sea-surface temperatures in the north-west Pacific Ocean were the highest on record. Even the Arctic Ocean suffered a marine heatwave. Asia is warming faster than the global average. The warming trend has nearly doubled since the 1961–1990 period.

In 2023, over 80% of reported hydrometeorological hazards in Asia were flood and storm events, according to EM-DAT data. Specifically, floods were the leading cause of death in reported events in 2023 by a substantial margin. Several extreme precipitation events took place in 2023. In June, July and August, several floods and storm events resulted in more than 600 reported deaths across India, Pakistan, and Nepal. In India, Yemen, and Pakistan, floods were the natural hazard event which caused the greatest number of fatalities, highlighting the continuing high level of vulnerability of Asia to natural hazard events, especially floods. Many parts of Asia experienced extreme heat events in 2023. Japan experienced its hottest summer on record. China experienced 14 high temperature events in summer, with about 70% of national meteorological stations exceeding 40℃ and 16 stations breaking their temperature records.

Asia is the Earth’s largest and most diverse continent, covering 30% of the land area and hosting 60% of the global population, or over 4.75 billion people. It spans various sub-regions like the Middle East, Central Asia, and East Asia, and features a wide range of climates and geographies. The region is the most disaster-prone globally, experiencing frequent extreme events like typhoons and earthquakes. In the past 50 years, Asia has seen 3,612 disasters causing nearly a million deaths and $1.4 trillion in losses, nearly half of the world’s total. “The report’s conclusions are sobering. Many countries in the region experienced their hottest year on record in 2023, along with a barrage of extreme conditions, from droughts and heatwaves to floods and storms. Climate change exacerbated the frequency and severity of such events, profoundly impacting societies, economies, and, most importantly, human lives and the environment that we live in,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo, in the press release.