Drought and Deluge: 900,000 Sri Lankans Face Famine

Sri Lanka’s Food Production Hit by Extreme Events

Growing food insecurity: Rice production to drop by 40 percent in 2017

Extreme drought followed by floods in Sri Lanka has hit large swaths of cropping areas, threatening the food security of more than 900,000 people in Sri Lanka, said a joint report released by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the UN World Food Program (WFP).

Drought conditions in 2016 and early 2017 led to widespread crop failures, especially the rice paddy – the country’s staple food. Total paddy production in 2017 is forecast at 2.7 million tons, about 40 percent less than the last year’s output.

Other crops, including various pulses, chillies and onion, which rely mainly on rainwater, were also heavily damaged by the dry weather, increasing food insecurity, said the report.

The situation was exacerbated by subsequent heavy rainfalls in May. Floods and landslides in the south-western parts of the country caused deaths, large population displacements and damage to infrastructure. The rains did not ease the water supply constraints in the drought-impacted north-central and eastern parts of the country.

 

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Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters

Cost of 200 disasters in the U.S. exceeds $1.1 trillion

Some 200 weather and climate disasters have occurred in the U.S. since 1980, each exceeding  $1 billion (including CPI adjustment to 2016) in overall damages/costs. The total cost of these 200 events exceeds $1.1 trillion, according to NCDC/NOAA.

Some 12 weather and climate disaster events with losses exceeding $1 billion each across the United States have occurred this year (as of  September), exceeding the 1980–2015 annual average of 5.2 events (CPI-adjusted); the annual average for the most recent 5 years (2011–2015) is 10.8 events (CPI-adjusted).

Four new billion-dollar disaster events have been added during the 3rd quarter, bringing the 2016 event total to 12. This represents the 2nd highest total number of events surpassing the 11 events observed in 2012. The record number of events in one year (since 1980) is 16, as observed in 2011.

The U.S. has also experienced 4 billion-dollar inland flood events during 2016, doubling the previous record, as no more than 2 inland flood events have occurred in a year since 1980. This is a notable record, further highlighted by the numerous other record flooding events that have impacted the U.S. in 2016.

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) U.S. Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters (2016). https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/billions/

Major Heatwave Plagues Europe

Temperatures exceed 40°C in parts of Europe

Heat warnings and alerts are in effect throughout  Spain and Portugal after temperatures soared to as high as 44ºC (111ºF).

The hot weather has also impacted Belgium, France, Italy and the Netherlands, while UK had its hottest day in nearly a decade.

• England had its hottest July day on record, with temperatures reaching 36.7ºC (98ºF).
• Paris saw temperatures of up to 40ºC.
• Red Alert was issued for the southern city of Cordoba in Spain.

Heatwaves across Europe

In 2003, a heatwave resulted in excess mortality, causing  70,000 more deaths than usual across Europe, including up to 20,000 in France.

In 2010, the daytime temperatures in Moscow climbed over 38ºC (100°F) for the first time since record-keeping began in 1879. A total of about 56,000 more deaths were reported nationwide during July and August 2010, compared with the same period previous year.

U.S. High Temperature for Tuesday, June 30, 2015

In the US high temperature of 52ºC (125ºF) was registered at Death Valley (CA), while the lowest temperature for Wednesday, July 1, 2015 was 0.6ºC (33ºF) at Tomahawk, WI