The 2024 State of the Climate report states that the world experienced 152 climate disasters in 2024, marking them as "unprecedented" out of 617 reported events.

Extreme weather events caused the highest number of new annual displacements since 2008, while also destroying homes, vital infrastructure, forests, farmland, and biodiversity. The combined impact of escalating conflicts, droughts, and rising food prices contributed to worsening food crises in 18 countries worldwide by mid-2024.

Tropical cyclones, floods, droughts, and other hazards resulted in the highest number of new displacements in the past 16 years, exacerbated food crises, and caused significant economic losses.

The UN World Meteorological Organization’s annual report is based on scientific input from National Meteorological and Hydrological Services, WMO Regional Climate Centres, UN partners, and numerous experts.

The report features sidebars on monitoring global temperatures in relation to the Paris Agreement and analyzing temperature anomalies in 2023 and 2024. It also includes supplements on climate services and extreme weather events.

It reported that in the West and Central African region, 1,526 deaths occurred, 639,000 homes were damaged or destroyed, and more than 1 million people were displaced, with Chad and Nigeria being among the hardest-hit countries.

In Kenya, 282 flood-related deaths were reported, while Tanzania saw 161 deaths. Cyclone Hidaya caused at least 236 deaths in southern Ethiopia, and at least 172 deaths were reported across Mayotte, Mozambique, and Malawi.

Severe heatwaves impacted large areas of West Africa and the Sahel, with temperatures in many inland regions regularly reaching or surpassing 45°C. For example, several stations in Mali recorded their highest temperatures on record, and 102 heat-related deaths were reported.

Disasters in Asia, America & Others

Typhoon Yagi was the most intense storm in Asia, causing widespread devastation across the region. It made record-breaking landfalls in China and Vietnam, resulting in the loss of more than 700 lives.

A wildfire south of Viña del Mar in Chile, resulted in 134 reported deaths, making it the deadliest wildfire in South America.

Flooding around Porto Alegre in Brazil, resulted in 182 reported deaths, displaced over 420,000 people, and caused several billion US dollars in economic losses, making it one of the costliest meteorological disasters on record in South America.

Helene caused at least 219 deaths, marking the greatest loss of life from a mainland United States hurricane since Katrina in 2005. The economic losses were estimated at US$78.7 billion, the largest of any event globally in 2024 and the biggest from an inland flooding event. The disaster affected western North Carolina, as well as Georgia, western South Carolina, and eastern Tennessee.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said the planet is issuing more distress signals -- but the report shows that limiting long-term global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius is still possible.

“Leaders must step up to make it happen -- seizing the benefits of cheap, clean renewables for their people and economies - - with new National climate plans due this year, ” said António.

According to the WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo, while a single year above 1.5 °C of warming does not indicate that the long-term temperature goals of the Paris Agreement are out of reach, it is a wake-up call that the world is are increasing “the risks to our lives, economies and to the planet.”