As El Nino gets stronger, ‘severe impact’ expected
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THE “El Nino” phenomenon, which sparks global climate extremes, is this year the worst in more than 15 years, the UN weather agency said yesterday, warning it was already causing severe droughts and flooding.
The World Meteorological Organization said El Nino, which occurs every two to seven years, had resurfaced, become “mature and strong,” and is expected to become even stronger by the end of the year.
“Severe droughts and devastating flooding ... bear the hallmarks of this El Nino, which is the strongest in more than 15 years,” WMO chief Michel Jarraud said.
El Nino is triggered by a warming in sea surface temperatures. It can cause unusually heavy rains in some parts of the world and drought elsewhere.
The WMO expects this year’s event to push water surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean more than 2 degrees Celsius above normal, making it one of the four strongest El Ninos since 1950.
Typically, El Nino events reach their maximum strength between October and January, but often continue to wreak havoc through the first quarter of the year.
The phenomenon usually leaves countries like India, Indonesia and Australia drier, increasing chances of wildfires and lower crop production.
Recently, bone-dry conditions caused by the El Nino have sparked some of the worst forest fires in Indonesia’s history.
The phenomenon also often leads to heavier rainfall in the eastern Pacific and South American nations, raising the specter of floods and landslides.
WMO linked this year’s El Nino to the “very active tropical cyclone season” in the Pacific, including the record-breaking Hurricane Patricia that hit Mexico last month.
The UN meanwhile warned last week that El Nino could significantly increase the number of people going hungry, as countries like Sudan, Eritrea, and Ethiopia are expected to see drier conditions, and others, including Kenya, Somalia and Uganda are at risk of floods.
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