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DW
6 days ago
- Climate
- DW
Pakistan's deadly floods worsened by global warming: study – DW – 08/07/2025
Heavy rainfall that triggered deadly floods in Pakistan in recent weeks was worsened by human-caused climate change, a new study has found. Pakistan's monsoon rain was likely heavier because of climate change, making floods more dangerous, a new study found. The report from World Weather Attribution, a group of international scientists who study global warming's role in extreme weather, was released on Thursday. Pakistan's monsoon rains, which typically occur from June to September, are variable. The country recorded more than a third more rain, or 36%, in July this year than last year, according to the country's meteorological department. But the rainfall is around 10% to 15% heavier because of climate change, according to the WWA researchers, who analyzed precipitation from June 24 to July 23 in Pakistan. A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture, climate scientists say, which can make rain more intense. "Every tenth of a degree of warming will lead to heavier monsoon rainfall," said Mariam Zachariah, lead author of the WWA study and an environmental researcher at Imperial College London. Pakistan's government reported at least 300 deaths, nearly half of them children, due to the floods, heavy rain and other weather between June 26 and August 3, 2025. Most of the victims were crushed by collapsing buildings. Pakistan's rapid urbanization, with people often living in makeshift homes in flood-prone areas, makes the South Asian country especially vulnerable in the monsoon season, the report noted. "Half of Pakistan's urban population lives in fragile settlements where floods collapse homes and cost lives," Maja Vahlberg of the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, who also helped author the WWA report, said in a statement. "Building flood-resilient houses and avoiding construction in flood zones will help reduce the impacts of heavy monsoon rain." Pakistan, which has a population of 250 million, has experienced several severe monsoon seasons resulting in widespread and destructive flooding. This year's flooding comes after catastrophic high waters in 2022 saw more than 1,700 people die during the monsoon. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Earlier this week, Pakistan's disaster management authority issued fresh flood alerts, warning that rainfall could swell major rivers and trigger flash floods across the upper and central regions. Heavy monsoon rains have resulted in a series of disasters that have battered South Asia, especially the Himalayan mountains, in the last few months. Earlier this week, a village in northern India was hit by floods and landslides, killing at least four people and leaving hundreds missing. Overflowing glacial lakes resulted in flooding that washed away a key bridge connecting Nepal and China, along with several hydropower dams in July.
Asharq Al-Awsat
04-04-2025
- Climate
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Study: Crops Under Threat as Surprise March Heatwave Hits Central Asia
A surprise heatwave hit Central Asia in March, a new study published Friday showed, putting in danger crops and water supply in a largely rural region already heavily affected by the impacts of climate change. Temperatures across the month were up to 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit) hotter in the region than the pre-industrial average, according to World Weather Attribution, a coalition of scientists that studies the impact of climate change on extreme weather events, which conducted the research. Climate change intensified the heatwave by about 4 degrees Celsius, the group said, though cautioned that figure "is likely an underestimate." "This is a heatwave that didn't make headlines –- it happened in spring and in a region that isn't exactly known for blistering heatwaves," said Maja Vahlberg, a technical adviser at the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre who took part in the study. The research was conducted across the five Central Asian states of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. "Our heatwave studies often detect changes of 2 to 4 degrees Celsius (35-39 degrees Fahrenheit), so 10 degree Celsius is quite frankly bonkers," said Ben Clarke from Imperial College London. "Hotter March temperatures are impacting agriculture harvests and access to water in Central Asia, as well as people's health," said Friederike Otto, co-head of World Weather Attribution. The melting of thousands of glaciers is a major threat to people in the landlocked region, which already suffers from water shortages. Between 14 and 30 percent of glaciers in the Tian-Shan and Pamir -- the two main mountain ranges in Central Asia -- have melted over the last 60 years, according to a report by the Eurasian Development Bank. The heatwave coincides with a crucial agricultural season, when almonds, apricots and cherries bloom and wheat is sowed. Around half of all workers in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are employed in agriculture, which makes up one-fifth of the region's economy. In particularly hot spots, temperatures hit 30 degrees Celsius -- highly unusual for March. Central Asia is typically characterized by exceptionally hot summers and harsh, cold winters. Climate scientists said early heatwaves in the region would likely continue, seeing it as a trend rather than a one-off event. "We should expect events like this often," Clarke told AFP during an online briefing.
Al Etihad
04-04-2025
- Climate
- Al Etihad
Crops under threat as surprise March heatwave hit Central Asia: Study
4 Apr 2025 10:37 Almaty (AFP)A surprise heatwave hit Central Asia in March, a new study published on Friday showed, putting in danger crops and water supply in a largely rural region already heavily affected by the impacts of climate change. Temperatures across the month were up to 10 degrees Celsius hotter in the region than the pre-industrial average, according to World Weather Attribution, a coalition of scientists that studies the impact of climate change on extreme weather events, which conducted the change intensified the heatwave by about 4 degrees Celsius, the group said, though cautioned that figure "is likely an underestimate.""This is a heatwave that didn't make headlines -- it happened in spring and in a region that isn't exactly known for blistering heatwaves," said Maja Vahlberg, a technical adviser at the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre who took part in the research was conducted across the five Central Asian states of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan."Our heatwave studies often detect changes of 2 to 4 degrees Celsius, so 10 degree Celsius is quite frankly bonkers," said Ben Clarke from Imperial College London."Hotter March temperatures are impacting agriculture harvests and access to water in Central Asia, as well as people's health," said Friederike Otto, co-head of World Weather Attribution. The melting of thousands of glaciers is a major threat to people in the landlocked region, which already suffers from water 14 and 30% of glaciers in the Tian-Shan and Pamir -- the two main mountain ranges in Central Asia -- have melted over the last 60 years, according to a report by the Eurasian Development Bank. The heatwave coincides with a crucial agricultural season, when almonds, apricots and cherries bloom and wheat is half of all workers in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are employed in agriculture, which makes up one-fifth of the region's particularly hot spots, temperatures hit 30 degrees Celsius -- highly unusual for Asia is typically characterised by exceptionally hot summers and harsh, cold winters. Climate scientists said early heatwaves in the region would likely continue, seeing it as a trend rather than a one-off event. "We should expect events like this often," Clarke told AFP during an online briefing.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Crops under threat as surprise March heatwave hits Central Asia: study
A surprise heatwave hit Central Asia in March, a new study published Friday showed, putting in danger crops and water supply in a largely rural region already heavily affected by the impacts of climate change. Temperatures across the month were up to 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit) hotter in the region than the pre-industrial average, according to World Weather Attribution, a coalition of scientists that studies the impact of climate change on extreme weather events, which conducted the research. Climate change intensified the heatwave by about 4 degrees Celsius, the group said, though cautioned that figure "is likely an underestimate." "This is a heatwave that didn't make headlines –- it happened in spring and in a region that isn't exactly known for blistering heatwaves," said Maja Vahlberg, a technical adviser at the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre who took part in the study. The research was conducted across the five Central Asian states of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. "Our heatwave studies often detect changes of 2 to 4 degrees Celsius (35-39 degrees Fahrenheit), so 10 degree Celsius is quite frankly bonkers," said Ben Clarke from Imperial College London. "Hotter March temperatures are impacting agriculture harvests and access to water in Central Asia, as well as people's health," said Friederike Otto, co-head of World Weather Attribution. The melting of thousands of glaciers is a major threat to people in the landlocked region, which already suffers from water shortages. Between 14 and 30 percent of glaciers in the Tian-Shan and Pamir -- the two main mountain ranges in Central Asia -- have melted over the last 60 years, according to a report by the Eurasian Development Bank. The heatwave coincides with a crucial agricultural season, when almonds, apricots and cherries bloom and wheat is sowed. Around half of all workers in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are employed in agriculture, which makes up one-fifth of the region's economy. In particularly hot spots, temperatures hit 30 degrees Celsius -- highly unusual for March. Central Asia is typically characterised by exceptionally hot summers and harsh, cold winters. Climate scientists said early heatwaves in the region would likely continue, seeing it as a trend rather than a one-off event. "We should expect events like this often," Clarke told AFP during an online briefing. asy/jc/yad
