Key facts
- British citizens are urged to stock up on food and water for several days to prepare for potential emergencies.
- The UN warns that the El Niño climate phenomenon is 'supersizing' and could be the largest in 1,000 years.
- This El Niño is expected to cause drier summers and wetter, stormier winters globally, including in the UK.
- The UK government plans a campaign to advise households on emergency preparedness.
- Environment Secretary Angela Eagle highlighted the need for domestic adaptations, such as reservoir building and resilient farming.
British citizens have been advised by a government minister to stockpile food and water for several days, in anticipation of potential power and water outages linked to extreme weather events. The warning comes as the UN described the current El Niño phenomenon as 'supersizing before our eyes', with forecasters bracing for what could be the largest El Niño in 1,000 years. This event is expected to exacerbate extreme weather globally, including bringing a wet and stormy winter to the UK, alongside increased risks of wildfires and floods in other regions.
Environment Secretary Angela Eagle emphasized the importance of personal resilience, stating that having a store of food could significantly improve a household's situation before emergency services can respond. She indicated that the government plans a campaign to educate citizens on preparing for national emergencies, including stocking essential supplies.
El Niño is a natural climate cycle characterized by changes in Pacific winds that lead to rising ocean temperatures and heat transfer to the atmosphere. Current data shows ocean temperatures at the core of El Niño are 2.6C above the 30-year average, approaching record levels seen in 2015. Models predict the anomaly could reach approximately 4C by November. Analysis of historical data, such as coral and tree rings, suggests no El Niño of this magnitude has occurred in the last millennium.
UN Secretary General António Guterres warned that the planet is entering 'uncharted waters' due to rising temperatures and the intensifying El Niño, placing the world in a 'danger zone of extreme weather.' Celeste Saulo, Secretary General of the WMO, echoed these concerns, stating that El Niño has the potential to cause significant disruption to communities and economies worldwide.
In response to these threats, the UK government is prioritizing climate resilience. Beyond the public preparedness campaign, Environment Secretary Eagle will oversee initiatives aimed at improving farming practices and constructing new reservoirs, such as Havant Thicket, the first new reservoir in the UK since 1992. Eagle stated that the country has historically been inadequate in preparing for climate-related emergencies and must adapt its water management and farming techniques to become more resilient and sustainable.