Climate scientists have long warned that the 21st century will see more natural disasters worsened or more likely to occur due to global warming. But a series of deadly extreme weather in the northern hemisphere this summer may make 2021 a year when climate predictions become a reality and cannot be ignored.
From death valley-like temperatures in Canada to deadly floods in China and Europe, we have examined some of the worst disasters since the IPCC meeting of the United Nations climate change agency in Geneva.
The Mediterranean is burning
From Turkey to Spain, forest fires around the Mediterranean are raging. Tourists from Italy and Greece were evacuated. Eight people were killed in the deadliest Turkish wildfire in decades.
On Monday, the European Union sent three firefighting aircraft to Turkey because neighboring Greece suffered the worst heat wave since 1987.
Greek Deputy Minister of Civil Defense Nicos Hadalias said: “We no longer talk about climate change, but about climate threats.”
China’s flood
The death toll from the floods that hit China last month rose to 302 on Monday, and the central city of Zhengzhou was flooded by a year of rain in just three days.
The muddy torrent caused cars to drive on the streets, and as the water flow increased, people were trapped in road tunnels and subway systems.
Canadian Thermal Dome
In late June, western Canada was trapped under the “hot dome,” which can cause high temperatures when hot air is trapped by a high-pressure front.
The country has repeatedly broken the highest temperature in history, and finally reached 49.6°C in the village of Lytton on June 30. Litton was mostly destroyed by fire.
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Washington and Oregon in the Pacific Northwest of the United States have also been severely affected.
The exact death toll is not yet known, but hundreds of people may have been killed.
A study conducted by a group of leading climate scientists found that without man-made climate change, weather conditions would be “almost impossible.”
According to the World Weather Attribution Organization, global warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions has increased the likelihood of a June heat wave by at least 150 times.
Deadly floods in Europe
In mid-July, Western Europe was hit by devastating floods. Heavy rains swept across villages, killing at least 209 people in Germany and Belgium, and dozens of missing people.
The flood also caused damage to Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Switzerland.
In some parts of the region, rainfall lasts for two months in two days, and the soil is close to saturation.
California wildfire
Triggered by a shocking drought, the wildfire season in the western United States has just begun, and thousands of firefighters have had to deal with more than 80 fires.
President Joe Biden said over the weekend that 66 seats are still burning, 3.4 million acres of land have been destroyed, and climate change cannot be ignored.
Some fires, including the Dixie fire in northern California, have become so big that they have created their own weather system.
Marcus Kaufman, an expert in the Oregon State Forestry Department, said the fire was “self-reliant” and even triggered his own lightning.
