The season where climate change is felt most: What does Europe's flood disaster tell us about the climate crisis?

International researchers have stated that the floods experienced in countries such as Poland, Czechia, and Germany are linked to climate change. The analysis also sheds light on the economic impacts of this situation in the region and future flood risks.

In an attribution analysis conducted by the international group of scientists World Weather Attribution (WWA), the impact of climate change on the heavy rainfall and floods experienced this month in European countries such as Poland, Czechia, Austria, Romania, Hungary, Germany, and Slovakia was examined.

The analysis was carried out by 24 scientists working at meteorological institutions and universities in the United Kingdom, Poland, Austria, Czechia, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, and the USA.

According to the analysis, human-induced climate change has doubled the likelihood of the floods that led to the loss of 24 lives in Central Europe.

Rainfall intensity in the region also increased by 7 percent due to climate change.

Scientists determined that if the world continues to burn fossil fuels and global temperature rise reaches 2 degrees, rainfall events similar to those in Central Europe will become 5 percent more intense and 50 percent more frequent, bringing with them the risk of devastating floods, and they warned against the rising costs.

CLIMATE CHANGE LEADS TO DISASTER

Joyce Kimutai, a researcher at the Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment at Imperial College London, stated in her assessment of the analysis that climate change had an impact on the rainfall that submerged Central Europe.

Kimutai said, 'These floods have once again laid bare the devastating consequences of fossil fuel-driven warming. Until renewable energy replaces oil, gas, and coal, such rainfall will occur more severely and cause floods that damage the economy.'

Friederike Otto, a Senior Lecturer in Climate Science at the Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment at Imperial College London, also drew attention to the deadly floods in Central Europe following the extreme drought in Southern Italy and forest fires in Portugal, noting the following:

'Climate change is ravaging Europe, yet politicians across the continent are trying to roll back their climate commitments. Climate change is an existential threat, especially for the poorer segments of society, and all Europeans need to know that fighting it will make their lives much better. Ending fossil fuels creates jobs, lowers energy bills, makes cities healthier places to live, and reduces the risk of deadly floods. This is not a technology issue; we know how to reduce demand and how to substitute fossil fuels with renewable energy.'

COST OF ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTERS LINKED TO CLIMATE CRISIS IS 2.2 BILLION EUROS

According to S&P Global Ratings' analysis of insured losses in the region, there are insured damages resulting from the flood disaster in Central and Eastern Europe estimated at approximately 2.2 billion euros according to initial estimates. This cost indicates that these floods are the most severe flood disaster of the last 10 years.

According to the analysis, the floods could also have long-term effects on the insurance sector.