Extreme weather and climate impacts bite Latin America and Caribbean

Dying glaciers, record-breaking hurricanes and wildfires, debilitating drought and deadly floods scarred the socio-economic landscape of Latin America and the Caribbean in 2024, inflicting major damage long after the headlines faded, according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). 

Key messages

• WMO regional State of Climate report highlights socio-economic toll
• 2024 sees record-breaking hurricanes, floods, droughts and wildfires
• Glacier retreat threatens long-term water supplies
• Advances in renewable energy are a bright light in the region
• Early warnings are saving lives

The State of the Climate for Latin America and the Caribbean 2024 highlights the mounting toll of weather, climate and water extremes on lives, livelihoods and food supply chains in a region which is no stranger to poverty and insecurity.

“In 2024, weather and climate impacts cascaded from the Andes to the Amazon, from crowded cities to coastal communities, causing major economic and environmental disruptions. Drought and extreme heat fuelled devastating wildfires. Exceptional rainfall triggered unprecedented flooding, and we saw the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo.

It was the warmest or second warmest year on record, depending on the dataset used. Glaciers were a very visible casualty of the rising temperatures with the disappearance of Humboldt, its last remaining glacier, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela became the second country in the world to lose all its glaciers.

“But there is also hope. Early warnings and climate services from National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) are saving lives and increasing resilience throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. The work of the WMO community and all our partners is more important than ever to meet challenges and seize opportunities,” said Celeste Saulo.

Another bright light in another bleak report was the increasingly important role of renewable energy – at nearly 69% of the region’s energy mix. Solar and wind experienced a remarkable 30% increase in capacity and generation compared to 2023.

WMO is enhancing the capacity of NMHSs to support renewable energy development and integration through artificial intelligence based wind forecasting, solar and wind atlases and climate services, in collaboration with national and regional partners.

The State of the Climate for Latin America and the Caribbean report was released at a WMO Regional Association meeting hosted by El Salvador to inform decisions on climate change mitigation, adaptation and risk management at regional level.

Accompanied by an interactive story map and an extreme events dashboard, it complements the WMO State of the Global Climate flagship report, which was released on 19 March.

It incorporates input from National Meteorological and Hydrological Services, UN and regional partners, research and academia and individual experts.

Key messages

Temperatures

The mean temperature in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2024 was +0.90 °C above the 1991–2020 average. Depending on the dataset used, it was the warmest year on record in Central America and the Caribbean, and the warmest or second warmest in Mexico and South America.

Drought and floods

Rainfall patterns were influenced by El Niño conditions in the first half of the year.

For instance, there was widespread drought across Amazonia and the Pantanal, where rainfall was 30% to 40% below normal. Later in 2024, the Negro River in Manaus reached a record low and the Paraguay River in Asunción reached its lowest level in 60 years.

Wildfires in the Amazon and Pantanal regions, central Chile, Mexico and Belize were fuelled by drought and extreme heatwaves, breaking records in many countries. In Chile, wildfires resulted in over 130 deaths, making these fires the country’s worst disaster since the 2010 earthquake.

Floods triggered by heavy rainfall in Rio Grande do Sul became Brazil’s worst climate related disaster, causing economic losses to the agricultural sector of about 8.5 billion Brazilian reais. While timely warnings and evacuations helped mitigate the impacts of the flooding, there were more than 180 fatalities highlighting the need to improve the understanding of disaster risks among authorities and the public.

Glaciers

In South America, glaciers are crucial water sources for millions of people, so their accelerated retreat is a cause for concern.

The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela lost its final glacier, Humboldt, joining Slovenia as the first two countries to lose all their glaciers in modern times.

The Conejeras Glacier, nestled within in the Sierra Nevada, Colombia, and the Martial South Glacier, in the Cordon Martial, Ushuaia, Argentina, were declared extinct in 2024.

Data for 2024 from 5 500 glaciers across the Andes show that the mountains have lost 25% of their ice coverage since the end of the nineteenth century and that their tropical glaciers are melting 10 times faster than the cumulative global average.

Sea-level and tropical cyclones

Ocean warming and the melting of glaciers, ice caps and ice sheets is accelerating sea level rise, increasing the vulnerability of coastal communities and low-lying island nations in the Caribbean to hazards such as tropical cyclones.

This was evidenced by Hurricane Beryl, which was the strongest hurricane on record to make landfall on Grenada and its dependencies and caused devastation across the Caribbean.

Climate-related impacts and risks

Climate related impacts in the LAC region are associated with hazardous extreme events and a complex scenario of increased exposure and vulnerability. The El Niño event in the first half of 2024 contributed to these impacts.

As in previous years, this complex scenario was further complicated by high and rising food prices, increasing poverty, high income inequality, and increasing levels of hunger, political instability and health and food insecurity.

The increasing frequency and intensity of droughts, floods and heatwaves, and the increasing intensity of hurricanes, demonstrate the growing risks for agriculture and food security in the region. The losses of crops and livestock and the interruption of supply chains have significantly affected the availability of food, income and the stability of rural livelihoods.

Given this panorama, it is crucial to implement agricultural resilience strategies, anticipate actions, strengthen food systems and prioritize mitigation actions in the face of climate change, according to the report, which gives a country-by-country breakdown of the impacts.

Renewable Energy

Renewable energy generation in LAC reached nearly 69% of the region’s energy mix in 2024, with renewable energies such as solar and wind experiencing a remarkable 30% increase in capacity and generation compared to 2023.

To advance the expansion and optimization of renewable energy use across LAC, WMO is supporting its Members by enhancing the capacity of NMHSs to develop science-based operational products and services in collaboration with academia, the private sector and energy stakeholders.

In 2024, an artificial intelligence (AI)based short-term wind speed forecasting product for wind power plants was codeveloped in collaboration with the National Meteorological Institute of Costa Rica (IMN) and the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE).

In Chile, an evaporation rate estimation model for large water bodies with floating solar panels was codeveloped in collaboration with the Meteorological Directorate of Chile (DMC), the Ministry of Energy and Diego Portales University.

Both countries were also supported in their efforts to develop high-resolution national atlases for wind (Costa Rica) and solar energy (Chile), utilizing reanalysis, observational and climate projection data to support long-term energy planning.

Additionally, an operational, modular climate service toolkit for energy is being developed for Colombia, Chile and Ecuador under the Enhancing Adaptive Capacity of Andean Communities through Climate Services (ENANDES+).

State of the Climate for Latin America and the Caribbean 2024 - English

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation in atmospheric science and meteorology.

WMO monitors weather, climate, and water resources and provides support to its Members in forecasting and disaster mitigation. The organization is committed to advancing scientific knowledge and improving public safety and well-being through its work.

For further information, please contact:

• Clare NullisWMO media officercnullis@wmo.int+41 79 709 13 97
• WMO Strategic Communication Office Media Contactmedia@wmo.int

Region: Region IV: North America, Central America, the Caribbean