EARLY WARNING SYSTEMS

HALF the world is unprepared for disasters, says the UN. Even as climate disasters are multiplying, some countries lack the advanced early warning systems needed to save lives, it said this week.

In a fresh report, the UN agencies for weather and for disaster risk reduction found countries with poor early warning systems on average see eight times greater mortality from disasters than those with strong measures. “Extreme weather events will happen. But they do not need to become deadly disasters,” UN chief Antonio Guterres said. |