Climate Disasters on the Planet from March 22 to March 28, 2024: Summary

South America

Brazil

On March 22-23, storms brought record-breaking downpours and wreaked havoc in Brazil's southern states. Various rain-related accidents killed at least 28 people, and six were reported missing.

In the city of Pará de Minas, Minas Gerais, the storm became the worst ever recorded. A total of 130 mm fell in just 2 hours, which is more than the monthly norm of precipitation for March (122.3 mm).

Petropolis suffered the greatest damage in the state of Rio de Janeiro. On March 22, almost a two-month norm of precipitation (270 mm) fell in just 24 hours. Record amounts of rain caused flooding. In just a few hours, in the city more than 200 landslides occurred.

Thousands of residents were forced to leave their destroyed or flooded homes and seek shelter in emergency shelters.

Aftermath of devastating floods and landslides in Petropolis, Brazil

Rescue operations were hampered by the continuous rain and the risk of new landslides.

In spite of the difficult situation, the rescue teams managed to save a girl buried under a layer of mud who had been trapped there for more than 16 hours. She survived thanks to her father, who protected her with his body.

In total, more than 100 people were rescued in Petropolis.

Residents of the Santo Eduardo neighborhood in the north of Rio de Janeiro state, were stranded after a heavy downpour hit the region on Friday evening. In some neighborhoods, water reached the roofs of houses.

Severe flooding in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

A calamitous situation also occurred in the town of Mimoso do Sul, Espírito Santo state.

Even the rescuers themselves had to be rescued. A boat carrying three firefighters flipped over and was swept away by the water. Two of the men managed to cling to a house and climb to high ground, while the third managed to grasp only onto a tree. He was later rescued by a helicopter.

The mayor of the city was desperate at the number of calls for help. A video was published online where he addressed the residents through tears in his eyes:

“People, the entire Mimosa [du Sul] are calling me. My father has already taken his boat, and he is rescuing some people here, but I've got about 100 missed calls. People are calling me, saying they are dying somewhere. I no longer know what to do. The fire department is out in the streets. People who have boats need to get them outside and help rescue other people because I can't handle it alone. Everybody needs to help. Everybody is so desperate.”

The state government declared a state of emergency in 13 towns in southern Espírito Santo on Saturday night.

Asia

China

China is going through a real weather apocalypse.

On March 25, a strong storm with thunderstorms and large hail hit Zhejiang Province. One of the weather stations recorded a wind gust of more than 65 meters per second.

A red alert was issued for thunderstorms and strong winds in Chun'an County. In Lishui County, a bridge fence was blown down by the wind.

Aftermath of violent winds in Zhejiang Province, China

The residents of Yiwu County were hit by a violent wind storm with heavy rain and hail.

A supermarket owner reported that a gust of wind ripped off the roller shutter door and destroyed the saleroom, damaging windows and goods.

Powerful wind gust in Yiwu County, Zhejiang Province, China

The storm caught the locals by surprise and scared them a lot.

Social media users commented, “It's so scary,” "This is really frightening,” "Hail in Yiwu scares the hell out of me,” "It's almost as dark at 6 p.m. as it is at 8 or 9 pm.”.

Some people were severely injured by large hailstones. The massive egg-sized hailstones also caused huge damage to property: the windshields of many cars were smashed and the bodies were covered with large dents.

According to the insurance company PICC, as of March 26, more than 11,400 claims for car damage had been received.

Aftermath of a giant hailstorm in Yiwu County, Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang, China

According to China Weather Network, this weather anomaly in central and southern Zhejiang was caused by a heatwave with temperatures reaching 30°C, which is unusually hot for this time of year.

On March 26, a major traffic accident occurred on the Jinan-Qingdao Expressway in Shandong Province due to heavy fog.

Major traffic accident due to heavy fog, Shandong Province, China

On March 27, a powerful sandstorm hit northern China and neighboring Mongolia. Its traces reached the Amur Region in Russia, where on the morning of March 28, residents woke up as if on another planet: the sky turned orange.

Sandstorm in the Amur Region, Russia

Climate disasters are synchronized all over the planet. Different countries of the world were hit by extreme dust storms.

A cloud of dust from the Sahara covered Algeria and Morocco.

Sandstorm in Morocco

Sandstorm in Algeria

It is worth noting that the sandstorm in Morocco affected the eastern part of the country, although sandstorms usually invade the southern desert regions of Morocco at this time of year. Such early sandstorms are extremely unusual.

Dust from the Sahara reached the Canary Islands and the Iberian Peninsula, bringing hazy orange skies to Spain and Portugal.

On March 27, satellite images showed the dust cloud hovering over southern Italy, Malta, Greece, Libya, and Tunisia. This had a negative impact on air quality in these countries and resulted in limited visibility.

On the same day, the dust storm reached Romania.

The phenomenon of dust transport from the Sahara Desert to Europe is becoming more frequent and intense, reaching even the UK.

And if earlier, sandstorms came to Europe during the warm season (mostly in summer), now Europeans are witnessing them in spring and even in winter.

On March 24, a dust storm affected residents of Texas in the United States.

Dust storm in the state of Texas, USA

Tons of dust also blanketed Almaty in Kazakhstan. The city was plunged into darkness in a matter of minutes.

Dust storm in Almaty, Kazakhstan

On March 28, in Kyrgyzstan, contrary to weather forecasts, a dust storm suddenly developed by the end of the day accompanied by gusty winds that ripped off roofs and damaged trees. Twenty-four people were injured.

Destruction after squall winds in Kyrgyzstan

Kazakhstan

The spring flash flood has become a real disaster for the residents of Kazakhstan.

Flash flood waters inundated the Kostanay, Aktobe, Akmola, Abay and West Kazakhstan regions.

Anomalous flash floods in Kazakhstan

Roads, houses and multi-storey buildings are flooded.

Despite round-the-clock pumping of the meltwater, it is not receding. Mass evacuations from the affected regions are underway; in the Kostanay region, people had to be rescued by helicopter.

In the city of Aktobe, the Ministry of Emergency Situations had to rescue medical personnel who could not get out of the premises and attend an emergency due to flooding.

People wait for the aid of rescuers after large-scale flooding, Kazakhstan

On March 27, flash floods paralyzed the operation of the local airport. The runway was flooded. Such an emergency situation at a strategic facility is happening for the first time.

According to the Ministry of Emergency Situations, a total of 2,500 people and about 700 units of machinery were involved in the flood prevention measures. According to local residents, spring flash floods are causing such serious damage for the first time in recent years. Unfortunately, this year they even led to human casualties.

On March 23, in the Bayganin district, a tragic accident occurred as a 4-year-old child drowned in meltwater.

A combination of several factors was the cause of such extensive flooding. Due to a sudden warm spell, the snow, which was abnormally high this year, began to melt all at once in many regions. The situation was exacerbated by rains, and the freezing of soil up to 1 meter deep meant that the meltwater did not seep into the ground. Instead, it flowed rapidly into populated areas.

Afghanistan

Severe floods in Afghanistan

Heavy rains hit western Afghanistan: the provinces of Faryab, Badghis, Farah, and Sar-e Pol. The downpours caused floods that led to significant material damage. Hundreds of residential homes, administrative buildings, as well as two major bridges were destroyed, and agricultural lands were damaged. Unfortunately, at least five people died.

Iran

Atypical snowfall in West Azerbaijan province, Iran

In typically dry and hot Iran, 30 cm of snow fell in West Azerbaijan province this week.

Abnormal rainfall and floods in Ahvaz, Iran

In the city of Ahvaz, on March 24, nearly two months' worth of rain fell within one day – 41.9 mm (the average monthly rainfall in March is 24 mm). Since the beginning of the month, more than four monthly norms have already fallen there – 122 mm. In the province Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, more than 1,200 people were affected by the flood. In different parts of the country, 110 roads were closed.

Saudi Arabia

It's becoming difficult to describe Saudi Arabia as a country with a typical desert climate.

On March 23, the streets of Shaqra town and the capital, Riyadh, were once again flooded by rain and covered with hail.

Hailstorms and heavy rains in Saudi Arabia

Türkiye

Flood in Hatay province, Türkiye

On March 25, a powerful storm in the Turkish province of Hatay tore off the roofs of houses. Torrential rains flooded the container towns where survivors of the February 6, 2023 earthquake are housed.

Indonesia

Indonesia has been struck by an unending series of natural disasters.

On March 22, a 6.5 magnitude earthquake struck in the sea near the Tuban district of East Java Province. The earthquake's epicenter was located in the sea, 114 km northeast of Tuban, with a hypocenter depth of 12 km. This earthquake was preceded by two powerful shocks with magnitudes of 6.0 and 5.3.

Aftermath of the M6.5 earthquake in Indonesia

The earthquake caused serious damage to Bawean Island. A number of homes and religious buildings collapsed there. Nearly all of the island's 30 villages have homes damaged during the earthquake.

The seismic event's aftershocks were strongly felt in the city of Surabaya. A local resident, Ody Sujadi, said he was quite panicked because Surabaya rarely experienced quakes, but there were three quakes today (March 22). Three hospitals and a shopping center building in the city were also damaged. Residents of almost the entire island of Java, including the country's capital, Jakarta, felt the shaking.

Floods and landslides are almost incessant in various regions of the country.

Since the beginning of March, these natural disasters have already claimed 62 lives, with 16 missing. A total of 1,333,877 people in 32 provinces of the country were affected and evacuated.

Widespread floods in various regions of Indonesia in March 2024

In 2024, Indonesia experienced temperature records every single day without exception!

For instance, on March 23, the city of Surabaya recorded the hottest March night in the country's climate history. The minimum temperature was +27.8 °C, while the average minimum temperature for March is typically +25 °C.

Record heatwave in Indonesia

Papua New Guinea 

On March 24, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck the East Sepik province of Papua New Guinea. Over 1,000 homes were destroyed. It is worth noting that last week, these same regions were affected by extensive flooding and landslides.

Aftermath of the M6.9 earthquake in Papua New Guinea

Africa

Kenya

Residents of Nairobi, Kenya, experienced widespread flooding after heavy rains that began on March 24. Roads became impassable, and railway services were disrupted. The Nairobi expressway was flooded up to knee level, severely hampering the traffic.

Aftermath of torrential rains in Nairobi, Kenya

Continuous rains were observed in all 17 districts of the city. Around 1,180 families were affected. At least 10 people died and some remain missing. 

Mozambique

Severe flooding in southern Mozambique

Another African country, Mozambique, has suffered at least 4 deaths as a result of a flash flood. Extreme rain in the south of the country affected 12,740 residents. Nearly 10,000 homes were flooded in the provinces of Maputo, Gaza and Inhambane.

North America

Mexico

Over the past few days, the surge of wildfires that swept through Mexico in March this year has been spreading at a catastrophic rate. The number of active wildfires in the country has doubled in just 3 days. The fires have already scorched more than 10,000 hectares of land, with local residents experiencing health issues due to smoke and cinders. Unfortunately, the fires have claimed the lives of 5 people.

Devastating wildfires in Mexico

More than 8,000 people and 8 helicopters are engaged in firefighting.

The work of firefighters is hindered by weather conditions. For example, in the state of Veracruz, it was impossible to control the fires for some time, as strong winds prevented aerial firefighting efforts.

According to the National Forestry Commission (CONAFOR), as of March 28, 126 active fires engulfed more than half of the country's states. The most densely populated state, Mexico, was hit the hardest.

Wildfire in the hardest-hit state of Mexico, Mexico

Europe

In many European countries, extreme temperature swings have shocked local residents.

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Croatia experienced a sharp temperature drop followed by heavy snowfall.

Sudden heavy snowfall in Portugal

On March 23, the weather was still summerlike warm. However, by the morning of March 24, snow had fallen. Local residents were perplexed: “This weather is abnormal: yesterday it was +20 °C but now it's only 0 °C.”

The weather anomaly caused significant damage to gardeners because the sudden cold and snow hit the already blooming fruit trees and jeopardized future harvests.

On the same day, a storm with heavy rain and strong winds hit most parts of Slovenia, bringing hail in some places. Wind gusts in the central part of the country exceeded 100 km/h. There were fallen trees and damaged roads.

On March 26, after a 30 °C heatwave in Portugal, the temperature suddenly dropped and it began to snow.

Sudden snowfall after a 30°C heatwave in Portugal

On March 28, storm Nelson caused wind gusts of 183 km/h in French Brittany.

A day earlier, snow fell in the department of Finistère. This is completely abnormal for this time of the year.

In Spain, the storm killed 2 people.

Storm Nelson affected other European countries as well (UK, Ireland, Spain, France, and Portugal), demonstrating an exceptional power for this season.

Aftermath of storm Nelson in Europe

Russia

On March 26, two active cyclones, the Balkan and the Caspian, hit the European part of Russia, affecting 17 regions of the country from the Kuban to the middle Urals.

Sochi experienced thunderstorms; strong winds with gusts of up to 25 m/s toppled trees. 4-meter waves were seen in the sea.

Stormy weather in Sochi, Russian Federation

In the Volgograd region, because of the intensified wind of up to 20 m/s, dust and sand rose into the air. In Astrakhan Oblast, the downpour continued for almost two days.

Residents of the Volga and Urals regions were hit by downpours mixed with wet snow and sometimes with freezing rain.

In the Samara region, a century-old record of 1922 for the amount of precipitation within 24 hours was broken.

In the Orenburg region, the water level in the river Or rose sharply by 3.64 meters in just one day.

Flooding in the Orenburg region, Russian Federation

The frequency and affected region of hazardous weather events have reached unprecedented levels. Scientific data confirm further deterioration of the situation in the next 4-6 years, which could lead to a planetary catastrophe.

However, there is a possibility to prevent the negative consequences. For that purpose, it is essential to ensure public awareness of the current state of the climate and its implications.

Realizing the causes and potential outcomes of what is happening is of critical importance. Forum “Global Crisis. The Responsibility” helps to better understand the situation and to form a strategy for actions. When the world community recognizes the threat and unites its efforts, political leaders will be compelled to work with the scientific community to develop and implement effective measures to save our planet and its population.

Individual participation in spreading this information plays an important role in saving billions of lives.

You can watch the video version of this article here: