Supersized El Nino Triggers 75% Crop Losses and Threatens 7.4 Million With Hunger
Updated
Updated · DW (English) · Sep 13
Supersized El Nino Triggers 75% Crop Losses and Threatens 7.4 Million With Hunger
3 articles · Updated · DW (English) · Sep 13
Summary
Central America's dry corridor has already lost more than 75% of corn and bean harvests, while a supersized El Nino is spreading drought, floods and extreme heat across multiple regions.
7.4 million more people in Africa's Sahel could fall into acute food insecurity as El Nino cuts rainfall; Sri Lanka already needs emergency water supplies and expects another severe drought in early 2027.
Europe has endured record heat waves that dried the Rhine and Danube, with forecasters expecting warmer El Nino-linked conditions to persist through spring 2027.
6-foot waves on California's coast have accelerated erosion, and warmer Pacific waters are threatening Galapagos wildlife by wiping out plankton and washing away tortoise eggs.
Climate scientists say warming from fossil-fuel emissions is amplifying each El Nino cycle, intensifying both drought and flooding even as places like Chile's Atacama briefly bloom after rare rain.