Flooding that killed 24 people in Central Europe earlier this month was caused by rainfall made twice as likely by human-induced climate change, a group of scientists said on Wednesday.
Researchers also warn that the cost of climate disasters in Europe is rapidly rising.
Storm Boris stalled over Central Europe from 12 to 16 September, inundating Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Austria, Czechia, Italy and Germany with torrential rain.
Thousands of people have had to leave their homes as buildings were swept away, bridges collapsed and infrastructure was damaged.
Now a rapid analysis by researchers from World Weather Attribution (WWA) has found the fingerprints of climate change on the intense rainfall that caused this deadly flooding.
The researchers from WWA found that the four days of rainfall from Storm Boris was the heaviest ever recorded across Central Europe by a significant margin.
The precipitation also covered an unusually large area, even greater than previous historic floods in 1997 and 2002.
Cold air from the Alps meeting very warm air from the Mediterranean and Black Seas created a perfect storm that then dropped heavy rainfall over a very large area, the scientists say.
If global warming reaches 2C, similar similar storms will drop at least 5% more rain and occur around 50% more frequently. The cost of damages caused by extreme weather in Europe is rising.
Austria’s insurance companies have estimated that damages from the recent flooding could hit €1 billion. Poland’s government has pledged 2 billion zloty (€468 million) in free and non-repayable aid for families and home renovations.
In Romania, where poorer communities are largely uninsured, the government has allocated 100 million RON (€20 million) to affected households. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen promised €10 billion of assistance for flood recovery.
Crippling droughts in southern Italy. Devastating wildfires in Portugal. Killer floods in Central Europe. Climate change is wreaking havoc in Europe, but politicians across the continent are trying to pull back on climate commitments.
Climate change is an existential threat, especially for poorer parts of society, and all Europeans need to know that tackling it will make their lives so much better.
Ending fossil fuels creates other jobs, influences energy bills, and makes cities healthier places to live in, while reducing the risk of killer floods.
Green Euro & ABC Flash Point Weather Engineering News 2024.
Climate Change is real as the global gletschers are melting big time, however, the business model connected to it is a hoax, steeling tax payers money for corporation to thrive and cash in huge profits as usual.