ISLAMABAD: From deadly heatwaves in Europe to record floods in South Asia and raging wildfires in Australia, extreme weather events are no longer rare anomalies. They are becoming the defining feature of our era, fuelled by climate change, rapid urbanisation and environmental mismanagement.
The question is no longer if disasters will strike, but how often, how severe — and who will bear the heaviest cost.
Calamities no longer feel like rare outliers. They are increasingly the new norm, shaping global headlines and altering lives at a pace that seems far faster than in the past.
The pressing questions are why disasters are getting worse, who suffers most, what the world is doing to confront them, and what the future may hold.
What role does climate change play?
At the heart of this worsening trend lies climate change. Warmer air and oceans hold more energy and more moisture, intensifying rainstorms, cyclones, hurricanes, and heatwaves, while paradoxically also fuelling longer droughts.
Globally, heavy rainfall events have become more frequent and intense over most land regions due to human activity, according to the UN’s climate body, the IPCC.
Rising sea levels add another dangerous layer, increasing the risk of storm surges, coastal floods and erosion, especially in low-lying areas.
In the UK, temperatures topped 40C for the first time on record in July 2022, causing extensive disruption. This would have been extremely unlikely without climate change, according to World Weather Attribution (WWA).
This level of heat would not have been possible without human-caused climate change, WWA said.
The impact
Human decisions are also magnifying the impact of these natural forces, according to the United Nation. Rapid urbanisation has pushed people into hazard-prone areas such as floodplains and coasts, often without adequate infrastructure. Deforestation removes the natural buffers that once absorbed rainfall and stabilised soil, leaving landscapes more vulnerable to flooding and landslides.
Poor drainage, unchecked construction, and mismanagement of land amplify the destructive power of storms and heavy rains. Even where disasters are driven by natural variability, their effects are more devastating because more people now live in harm’s path.
The consequences are stark. Human lives are lost in the thousands each year, while millions are displaced, often forced to abandon homes permanently. Economically, disasters leave crippling bills.
The United States alone has recorded hundreds of “billion-dollar weather and climate disasters” since 1980, a number that has accelerated sharply in the last two decades.
Health systems also come under strain, as floods and storms trigger outbreaks of waterborne diseases, heatwaves create spikes in cardiovascular and respiratory illnesses, and the trauma of repeated displacement erodes mental health.
Environmental damage deepens the crisis
Forests burn, wetlands vanish, soils erode, and coral reefs bleach, reducing biodiversity and destabilising ecosystems that once cushioned human communities from shocks.
The present cannot be understood without comparing it with the past. While natural disasters have always been part of human history, several indicators confirm that things are indeed worse.
High-damage, high-cost weather events have risen dramatically in recent decades.
The years 2023, 2024, and 2025 brought record numbers of extreme heat waves and abnormal river flows, both too much and too little, showing how the hydrological cycle itself is becoming more erratic.
Events once described as “once in a generation” are now happening every few years, eroding the sense of normality and security that communities once enjoyed.
Who are the most affected?
The poorest, most marginalised communities—those without insurance, savings, or resilient infrastructure—pay the heaviest price. Women, children, and rural populations often lack the resources to escape or recover, making them disproportionately affected by disasters.
On the policy front, frameworks like the Paris Agreement and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction seek to coordinate international action, while climate finance pledges aim to support adaptation in poorer nations.
However, fewer promises see the light of day, denting adaptation efforts in low-income countries.
Insurance and risk-sharing tools are also emerging, although their reach is still limited.
The most fundamental step, however, remains reducing greenhouse gas emissions, because only by curbing warming can the intensification of disasters be slowed.
