Across Yemen in recent weeks, nearly 100 people have died in floods. And more than 560,000 people across the country have been affected since late July.
Yemen’s central highlands, Red Sea coastal areas and parts of the southern uplands are expected to receive “unprecedented levels” of rainfall in excess of 300 millimetres (12 inches),
The flooding in Yemen has destroyed homes, displaced thousands of families and seriously damaged critical infrastructure such as health centers, schools and roads.
The Arabian peninsula’s poorest country, engulfed in civil war since 2015, was already struggling with rising malnutrition and has suffered a spike in cholera cases linked to the heavy rains and floods.
Mohammed Hamid, assistant under-secretary of the meteorology department in the Huthi-held capital, Sanaa, said recurring extreme weather events in Yemen clearly indicated the impacts of climate change.
Since May 2015, there have been around nine tropical cyclones, or one every year—an unusually high number—Hamid told AFP.
“We need to get ready for new cyclones” in October, Hamid said.
As the planet heats, the warmer air can hold more moisture, creating heavier and more frequent storms, weather experts say.
Weakened by years of conflict, Yemen’s creaking infrastructure and disaster response capabilities add to the threat from climate change, said Karim Elgendy, a climate consultant and associate fellow at the Chatham House think tank.