Devastating flooding and unusually early snow made this September especially challenging for Europe. During the month, some of the region's residents were bracing for at least one-in-a-hundred-year events.
What's happening?
September featured several weather extremes in Europe that included out-of-season levels of snowfall, torrential rains and flooding, and some of the coldest temperatures since spring.
The Met Office, the United Kingdom's national weather and climate service, tweeted in mid-September that "as cold air digs in, over a metre of snow could also fall over parts of the Alps," per Bloomberg.
The forecast turned out to be accurate. Historic amounts of snow piled up high in the Alps, which in some spots were buried by 3 to 5 feet of the white stuff.
Several weather reporting stations in Austria reported record-cold temperatures in September.
The same storm that brought snow and cold also produced prolific amounts of rain in Italy. In the northern part of the country, people had to be rescued from their rooftops.
Many parts of Europe have experienced weather whiplash. Scorching heat in Paris during the Summer Olympics pushed temperatures close to 100 degrees, and Greece was forced to close its most popular tourist site, the Acropolis, during a June heat wave.
Why is extreme weather in Europe important?
According to a Gallagher Re annual report (PDF), a record 63 billion-dollar weather disasters struck Earth last year. That broke the previous record of 57 set back in 2020. The estimated damage in 2023 totaled well over $300 billion. The insurance company has been busy tallying up this year's toll of severe weather on our planet. Through the first half of 2024, eight of the top ten costliest economic events were weather-related. Those disasters caused an estimated total economic loss of over $47 billion.
According to the National Centers for Environmental Information, the United States has endured 20 confirmed climate and weather disasters through early September. That is well above the 1980 to 2023 annual average of 8.5 events and exceeds the annual average of the most recent five years (through 2023) of 20.4 events.
According to a study posted by the National Library of Medicine, "Long-term changes to Earth's energy balance are increasing the frequency and intensity of many extreme events and the probability of compound events, with trends projected to accelerate under certain greenhouse gas emissions scenarios."
What's being done about extreme weather events?
Heat-trapping gases act like steroids in our atmosphere, increasing the odds for extreme weather events. Cooling our planet is critical.
We can all make a positive impact by using our voices and advocating for change. Exploring and educating ourselves about critical climate issues, pushing for change at our workplaces, and voting for pro-climate candidates can all help.
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