Climate Change Fuels Deadly Floods in Nepal, Killing Over 240

AFP/APP

Kathmandu: Climate change, rapid urbanization, and deforestation fueled the devastating floods that swept across Nepal in September, killing over 240 people, scientists reported Thursday.

The World Weather Attribution (WWA), a group of climate scientists analyzing human-induced climate change’s role in extreme weather events, said climate change significantly intensified the rains that triggered Nepal’s worst flooding in decades.

Heavy monsoon rains caused rivers to overflow, submerging parts of Kathmandu and other regions.

WWA’s analysis showed the rainfall was made at least 10 percent heavier and 70 percent more likely due to climate change. Researcher Mariam Zachariah from Imperial College London said without the atmospheric overload from fossil fuel emissions, the floods would have been less intense and less destructive.

The flooding, which began on September 26, killed 246 people, left 18 missing, and caused widespread damage, including destroying homes and hydropower plants.

Urbanization and deforestation further compounded the impact by disrupting natural water flow, with Kathmandu’s built-up areas increasing fourfold since 1990 and tree cover reduced by over 25 percent since 1989.

Scientists warned that without global efforts to reduce fossil fuel use, such extreme weather events will become more frequent and destructive.