The Red Cross fears many more natural disasters after a year: “This may just be the beginning” | climate
“In Europe we see what severe weather will cost”
The relief organization expects to expand around the world and hopes that the impact of this natural disaster on people will remain as minimal as possible.
Meanwhile, with floods, landslides and wildfires all over the world, the impact of climate change has been clearly in the news in recent months, says Dirk Segar, head of international aid for the Red Cross.
“In Europe, we’re now seeing what extreme weather does: it takes lives, homes are destroyed, and nature is literally on fire,” Segar says. Climate change, and the last time El Nino showed itself in force, resulted in 2016 being the warmest year on record.
“We don’t see many natural disasters in the Netherlands”
Segaar points out that many wildfires are still underexposed, especially in countries far from the Netherlands. We read little about the deadly heat in Iran, disease outbreaks in Bangladesh, and floods in Vietnam.
We get very little of it, he stresses, when people in these vulnerable countries are often the hardest hit. “People are still sometimes recovering from a previous disaster or conflict. And then the next misery is really imminent.”
The Red Cross is currently calculating where potential floods or hurricanes will have the greatest impact. The aid organization already wants to bolster homes there, prepare water when drought strikes and inform farmers so they can harvest their crops before floods. “This can save lives,” says Segar. “It is much less expensive to work now than to work then.”
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