BUENOS AIRES (dpa-AFX) - 2023 saw another climate record tumble, with Latin America and the Caribbean registering their hottest ever recorded temperatures, according to the UN's weather monitoring agency.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) attributed the temperatures to a 'double whammy' of El Nino and long-term climate change, leading to droughts and wildfires combined with extreme rainfall and hurricanes.
'Unfortunately, 2023 was a year of record climatic hazards in Latin America and the Caribbean,' said the agency's head, Celeste Saulo.
'El Nino conditions during the second half of 2023 contributed to a record warm year and exacerbated many extreme events. This combined with rising temperatures and more frequent and extreme hazards due to human-induced climate change.'
According to WMO, the 2023 mean temperature was the highest on record, 0.82°C above the 1991-2020 average and 1.39°C above the 1961-1990 baseline.
The year was 'exceptional' for Mexico, where temperatures exceeded 45°C, or 113°F, at many weather stations, with a high of 51.4°C on August 29. It also experienced the fastest rate of warming in the region.
Extreme heatwaves affected central South America from August to December, with the mercury soaring in parts of Brazil to above 41°C in August. Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina all recorded their highest September temperatures. In Uruguay, the 2023 summer was the driest among the last 42 years on record.
The extreme weather also claimed many lives, along with massive wildlife, ecosystem and economic losses.
The Category 5 Hurricane Otis in Mexico resulted in dozens of fatalities and damages costing billions of dollars, while severe droughts disrupted river flow into the Panama Canal, paralyzing international shipping.
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