The examine additionally highlights constructive developments amid the awful information, such because the rising position of renewable vitality within the area and the facility of early warning programs to avoid wasting lives.
“In 2024, climate and local weather impacts cascaded from the Andes to the Amazon, from crowded cities to coastal communities, inflicting main financial and environmental disruptions,” mentioned WMO Secretary-Normal Celeste Saulo.
“Drought and excessive warmth fuelled devastating wildfires. Distinctive rainfall triggered unprecedented flooding, and we noticed the earliest Class 5 hurricane on document,” she added.
Feeling the warmth
The State of the Climate for Latin America and the Caribbean report reveals that 2024 was the warmest or second warmest 12 months on document, relying on the dataset used.
Rising temperatures led to the disappearance of the Humboldt Glacier, the final one standing in Venezuela, which turned the second nation on the earth after Slovenia to lose all its glaciers within the trendy period.
In the meantime, El Niño situations within the first half of the 12 months influenced rain patterns. For instance, areas throughout the Amazonia and Pantanal areas in Brazil skilled widespread drought, the place rainfall was 30 to 40 per cent under regular.
Wildfires and floods
Wildfires within the Amazon and Pantanal, in addition to in central Chile, Mexico and Belize, had been pushed by drought and excessive heatwaves, breaking data in lots of nations. Wildfires in Chile resulted in over 130 deaths – the nation’s worst catastrophe because the February 2010 earthquake.
Floods triggered by heavy rainfall within the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul turned Brazil’s worst local weather associated catastrophe, inflicting billions in financial losses to the agricultural sector.
Whereas well timed warnings and evacuations helped mitigate the impacts of the flooding, WMO mentioned greater than 180 fatalities had been reported, thus highlighting the necessity to enhance understanding round catastrophe dangers amongst each authorities and most people.
Hope and resilience
“However there’s additionally hope,” Ms. Saulo insisted, pointing to shiny spots within the report.
“Early warnings and local weather providers from Nationwide Meteorological and Hydrological Providers (NMHSs) are saving lives and growing resilience all through Latin America and the Caribbean,” she mentioned.
Furthermore, renewable vitality accounts for practically 69 per cent of the vitality combine. Photo voltaic and wind vitality skilled a exceptional 30 per cent improve in capability and technology in comparison with 2023, WMO mentioned.
The UN climate company and companions are additionally aiding nationwide meteorological and hydrological providers to help renewable vitality improvement and integration via synthetic intelligence-based wind forecasting, and different measures.
The State of the Local weather for Latin America and the Caribbean report was issued at a WMO Regional Affiliation assembly hosted by El Salvador to tell choices on local weather change mitigation, adaptation and danger administration on the regional degree.
It enhances the State of the Global Climate flagship report, launched final week.
