The World Weather Attribution (WWA) organisation and the Climate Central group have released their first annual report on the extreme climatic effects of 2024, which highlights that we suffered 41 days of ‘dangerous heat’ and relentless suffering.
The report warns that all countries must prepare for increased temperatures and work towards minimising climate related deaths and damage in 2025 and the coming years.
Hottest day on planet was July 21
The analysis indicates that July 21 was the hottest day on Earth in 2024, with the largest number of people ever exposed to excessively high temperatures: 5.3 billion. The regions with the most number of days of excessive heat at levels considered ‘dangerous heat’ were the closest to the equator and belonged to the Small Island Developing States (SIDS), with 18 of the 20 countries experiencing more than 130 additional days of above normal temperatures.
Dangerous heat and extreme weather attributed to fossil fuel
The report states that if the world does not quickly abandon oil, gas, and coal, the number of days of over-the-top temperatures will continue increasing each year and threaten public health even more. The study’s recommendations for 2025 include a ‘faster’ abandonment of fossil fuels, improvements in early warning systems, real-time reports of heat-related deaths, and international funding to help the resilience of developing countries.
The document also analyses how the extreme climate affected the planet through different types of disasters, including heat waves, floods, storms, forest fires, droughts, and cold fronts, with a compounding of the El Niño phenomenon.
