Deadly Asian floods are no fluke: They're a climate warning, scientists say

Southeast Asia is being pummeled by unusually severe floods this year, as late-arriving storms and relentless rains wreak havoc that has caught many places off guard.

- By ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL and ANTON L. DELGADO

Deaths have topped 1,400 across Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, with more than 1,000 still missing in floods and landslides. In Indonesia, entire villages remain cut off after bridges and roads were swept away. Thousands in Sri Lanka lack clean water, while Thailand's prime minister acknowledged shortcomings in his government's response.

Malaysia is still reeling from one its worst floods, which killed three and displaced thousands. Meanwhile, Vietnam and the Philippines have faced a year of punishing storms and floods that have left hundreds dead.

What feels unprecedented is exactly what climate scientists expect: A new normal of punishing storms, floods and devastation.

"Southeast Asia should brace for a likely continuation and potential worsening of extreme weather in 2026 and for many years immediately following that," said Jemilah Mahmood, who leads the think tank Sunway Centre for Planetary Health in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Asia is facing the full force of the climate crisis

Climate patterns last year helped set the stage for 2025's extreme weather.

Atmospheric levels of heat-trapping carbon dioxide jumped by the most on record in 2024. That "turbocharged" the climate, the United Nation's World Meteorological Organization says, resulting in more extreme weather.

Asia is bearing the brunt of such changes, warming nearly twice as fast as the global average. Scientists agree that the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events are increasing.

Warmer ocean temperatures provide more energy for storms, making them stronger and wetter, while rising sea levels amplify storm surges, said Benjamin Horton, a professor of earth science at the City University of Hong Kong.