The US has been battered by extreme weather in recent weeks. Heavy snowfall swept the west coast, with Seattle recording an unseasonable 9in of snow. On 2 January, Washington was struck by “thundersnow” storms that left five dead and 850,000 homes without power. And, conversely, extreme heat was recorded in southern states, with temperatures soaring to the mid-30s Celsius.
The former tropical cyclone Seth made landfall on the north-east coast of Australia this week, bringing gale-force winds of about 65mph and waves rising to 9 metres. The gusts, which coincided with high tides, caused hazardous conditions on 3 and 4 January in south-east Queensland, putting a strain on coastguards on the Gold Coast.
In Malaysia, 50 people were killed and 125,000 evacuated from their homes in the past two weeks after extreme flooding. While floods are not unusual during the monsoon season, the region was hit by one month’s average rainfall in one day, leading to one of the worst incidents of flash flooding on record. The government has promised to provide $300m in aid, and requested an additional $3m from the UN’s Green Climate Fund to help adapt to an uncertain future.
