2023-12-01 07:17:09
Deadly hurricanes, huge forest fires and floods: climate change is making extreme weather events more likely – the world will clearly feel this in 2023.
When looking for a word for 2023, “extreme weather” comes to mind. At the end of the year, the past few months seem to blur into an ominous mix of floods, forest fires and storms – one extreme followed the next. The EU environment agency EEA had already warned in the spring: “Due to our changing climate, the weather in Europe is becoming more extreme.” 2023 was also a weather year of extremes beyond Europe. A review in excerpts:
JANUARY: Flooded towns and meters of snow on the west coast, hurricanes in the southeast: numerous people die in the USA due to strong winter storms. In California, trees are snapping and there are flash floods. The persistent rainfall turns small streams into raging rivers. At the same time, tornadoes wreaked havoc, particularly in the southeastern state of Alabama.
FEBRUARY: Tropical storm “Gabrielle” rages in New Zealand with hurricane-force winds and heavy rain. Houses, roads and bridges are destroyed, power and communication lines are damaged. The government declares a national emergency – only for the third time in the country’s history. At times the water is so high in some areas that only the roofs of houses stick out of the water.
MARCH: Temperature records and full beaches: According to the calendar, winter is not yet over – but in parts of Spain the air conditioning is already running at night. Water is becoming scarce in many places. People groan under temperatures that sometimes exceed 30 degrees. Mallorca has the first tropical night of the year, so the thermometer doesn’t fall below 20 degrees.
APRIL: At the beginning of the month, several tornadoes raged across parts of the USA. There are dead and injured. According to US media reports, there are around 50 hurricanes in seven states that can be classified as tornadoes. We’re talking about a rare “monster storm system” that extends from the southern United States to the Great Lakes region in the north.
MAY: Dozens of forest fires are forcing thousands of people to flee their homes in western Canada. The province of Alberta declares a state of emergency. It’s an “unprecedented crisis,” says the province’s premier, Danielle Smith. Given the severe drought, the flames are spreading quickly. As a result of global warming, the risk of forest fires is increasing in many regions, as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has found. Cyclone Mocha is causing severe devastation in parts of Myanmar and Bangladesh. The tropical cyclone made landfall on the west coast of the two neighboring states with wind speeds of sometimes more than 250 kilometers per hour. It is the most violent cyclone to hit the region in more than a decade. There is also severe flooding due to heavy rain and storm surges. While it was still very dry in Italy in winter and early spring, there is now heavy rainfall. There are sometimes dramatic floods in the Italian regions of Emilia-Romagna and the Marche. The area on the Adriatic coast is hit by severe storms. The fire department rescues people trapped in their homes by the water or motorists stranded in the water. There are dead people.
JUNE: Flames blaze in the forest area near Jüterbog in Brandenburg, clouds of smoke rise. The situation at the former military training area is getting worse. The ammunition load is high and strong winds make the situation more difficult for the emergency services. Fires also break out in quick succession at two former military training areas in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania: near Lübtheen and in the Viezer Heide near Hagenow. Both areas are contaminated with ammunition.
JULY: Capitals like Rome and Athens are burning, Croatia has its first major forest and bush fire of the year: the south and southeast of Europe are heating up. In many places the thermometers show more than 40 degrees. In Greece, large parts of the economy restricted their activities. For thousands of tourists on Rhodes, their vacation is turning into a nightmare due to forest fires. The emergency services first got the flames under control, but then the strong wind changed and drove the fire directly towards tourist hotspots and villages in the south and southeast of the island. People are brought to safety. Video footage shows tourists leaving their vacation spots on foot. Several people die in fires in Sicily. The situation is particularly critical in the north of the Italian Mediterranean island. Emergency services are fighting forest and wildfires. A warmer climate can contribute to more water falling from the sky, more often in the form of heavy rain. According to climate experts, the periods without precipitation are becoming longer in some cases. And the risk of droughts increases, especially in already dry areas. Forest fires can spread more quickly in extremely dry vegetation.
AUGUST: A low pressure area over Italy is causing heavy rain in Austria and neighboring Slovenia. Places are flooded, traffic arteries are cut, floods and landslides cause enormous damage. The heavy rainfall leads to mudslides and floods in southern Austria. A civil defense alarm is declared in parts of Styria and Carinthia.
Flame inferno in the vacationer’s paradise of Hawaii: Thick smoke hangs over the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific, a coastal strip of Maui is in flames, parts of the usually lush green island are charred black due to devastating bush and forest fires. There are more than 100 dead. Hawaii’s Governor Josh Green speaks of a “terrible catastrophe”. Pacific Tropical Storm Hilary is bringing torrential rain to the southwestern United States. The US state of California and its metropolises San Diego and Los Angeles are particularly hard hit. The storm, which is rare for the region, floods streets and topples trees and power lines. In Canada, violent forest fires are moving relentlessly towards two cities. Flames are destroying buildings around West Kelowna, and the city of Yellowknife in the Arctic Circle is almost completely evacuated. The government of British Columbia on the Pacific coast declares a state of emergency for the entire province. “This year we are experiencing the worst wildfire season ever in British Columbia,” it said. Large parts of Greece are covered in clouds of acrid smoke due to massive forest fires. The fires are also raging near the capital Athens. Because of the fires, air quality is deteriorating massively in large parts of the country.
SEPTEMBER: Where it was recently burning, streams are now turning into raging rivers: the masses of water that storm “Daniel” is pouring out over central Greece exceed all predictions. Cars are being carried away by the floods, people have to be rescued from their homes with inflatable boats, for example in the port city of Volos, where the water sometimes flows past waist-high. Record rainfall and flooding in Hong Kong leaves people dead and injured. The government of the Chinese Special Administrative Region speaks of “extreme conditions”. Streets become rivers, subway stations fill with water. Hong Kong comes to a virtual standstill after the heaviest rains since 1884. A severe storm is causing widespread devastation in civil war-torn Libya. There are thousands of dead. Storm “Daniel”, which was already raging in Greece, is also affecting the North African country. The port city of Darna is particularly badly affected. According to eyewitness reports, the strong winds caused electricity pylons to fall. In the middle of the night, a dam bursts with a loud bang. A second dam also gives way to the water masses.
Exceptionally heavy rain partially paralyzes the US east coast metropolis of New York. Motorways and streets are transformed into lake-like landscapes, and an airport terminal is also flooded and closed. Governor Kathy Hochul declares a state of emergency.
OCTOBER: Pacific storm “Otis” hits Mexico’s southwest coast with full force as a hurricane of the highest level 5 near the famous seaside resort of Acapulco. Within just about twelve hours, the tropical storm develops into an extremely dangerous hurricane. There are numerous deaths. “According to records, rarely does a hurricane develop so quickly and with such force,” said President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Experts say the rapid intensification of hurricanes is due to climate change.
NOVEMBER: Even before summer begins in the southern hemisphere, large parts of Brazil are suffering from a severe heat wave. In the metropolis of Rio de Janeiro, the temperature feels like it rises to 59.7 degrees in one day. The temperatures in Brazil feel much more unpleasant than in Germany because of the high humidity. In fact, the thermometer read over 40 degrees.
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