The BBC reports today that “Recent flooding in Nigeria has become an “overwhelming” disaster, and many states were not properly prepared for them despite warnings.”

Intense floods like those inundating Nigeria in recent weeks are expected to become more frequent as the globe continues to warm under a thickening blanket of greenhouse gases.

The Arctic is warming four times faster than the globe, which is melting ice and snow at a rate never-before seen. This loss of white, reflective surfaces means more of the sun’s energy is absorbed, which exacerbates global warming, and in turn increases evaporation from warmer oceans and land into a warmer atmosphere.

That extra moisture is fuelling all storms, including those in Nigeria, making devastating floods more likely.

Flooding in 27 of Nigeria’s 36 states has claimed over 600 lives in “the worst flooding the West African nation has seen in a decade. Some 1.3 million people have been displaced, and more than 200,000 homes have been destroyed.”

This “worse than usual” seasonal flooding has resulted in evacuations, damaged farmland and worries about increased spread of disease and disruption to food supplies.

Image – TUBS, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons