World Meteorological Organization (WMOSpokeswoman Clare Nullis told reporters in Geneva that Indonesia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Viet Nam were among the countries most affected by what she described as “a combination of monsoon-related rainfall and tropical cyclone activity.”
“Asia is very, very vulnerable to flooding,” Nullis said, explaining that flooding regularly tops the list of climate risks in the region, according to WMO’s annual climate status reports.
However, she said tropical cyclones such as Senyar, which last week brought “torrential rain, widespread flooding and landslides” to Indonesia’s North Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia and southern Thailand, are rare so close to the equator.
“It’s not something we see very often and it means the impacts are amplified because local communities… don’t have any experience in this area,” she pointed out.
Hundreds of deaths
The spokesperson for the UN weather agency cited figures released Tuesday by the Indonesian National Disaster Office, showing 604 dead, 464 missing and 2,600 injured. In total, some 1.5 million people have been affected in Indonesia and more than 570,000 have been displaced.
As for Viet Nam, Nullis said the South Asian country has been “beaten for weeks” and “bracing for even heavier rains.”
“Exceptional rains in recent weeks have flooded historic sites and popular tourist resorts and caused enormous damage,” she said.
1.79 meters of rain per day
In late October, a weather station in central Viet Nam recorded a national 24-hour rainfall record of 1,739 millimeters, which Ms. Nullis called “really huge.”
“This is the second highest known total for 24-hour precipitation in the world,” she said.
This exceptionally high value is currently being submitted to a formal WMO extremes assessment committee. According to the agency, a value greater than 1,700 mm would constitute a record for the Northern Hemisphere and Asia.
Ricardo Pires, spokesperson for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), described what he called a “rapid humanitarian emergency” in Sri Lanka, after Cyclone Ditwah made landfall last week on the country’s east coast, affecting some 1.4 million people, including 275,000 children.
“With communications cut and roads blocked, the real number of children affected is likely even higher,” warned Pires.. “Houses have been swept away, entire communities isolated and essential services that children depend on, such as water, healthcare and schooling, have been severely disrupted. »
The UNICEF spokesperson stressed that displacement has forced families to take refuge in dangerous and overcrowded shelters, while flooding and damaged water systems increase the risks of epidemics.
“The needs far exceed the resources available at present,” he insisted, calling for additional humanitarian funding and support for the most vulnerable.
Commenting on the intensity of devastating weather events, WMO’s Nullis explained that rising temperatures “increase the potential risk of more extreme precipitation because a warmer atmosphere retains more moisture.”
“It’s the law of physics… we are seeing more extreme precipitation and we will continue to do so in the future,” she concluded.
Publicado anteriormente en Almouwatin.
