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UN agency: Major droughts count rises amid record-hot 2015
Pedestrians walk past a digital thermometer reading 113 degrees Fahrenheit in the Canoga Park section of Los Angeles, Aug
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Pedestrians walk past a digital thermometer reading 113 degrees Fahrenheit in the Canoga Park section of Los Angeles, Aug. 15, 2015. Earth last year wasnât just the hottest year on record, but it left a century of temperature high marks in its hot dust. (AP/Richard Vogel) (AP/Richard Vogel)
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span class="inline inline-center">Pedestrians walk past a digital thermometer reading 113 degrees Fahrenheit in the Canoga Park section of Los Angeles, Aug. 15, 2015. Earth last year wasn't just the hottest year on record, but it left a century of temperature high marks in its hot dust. (AP/Richard Vogel)
The UN agency specializing in reduction of disaster risks says the Earth faced more than twice as many major droughts last year than the average of the last decade.
Focusing part on the human cost of the hottest year on record last year, the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction says in a trend analysis Thursday that 98.6 million people were affected by disasters in 2015. It counted 32 major droughts last year, up from an annual average of 15 over the preceding decade.
Office head Robert Glasser said a reduction of greenhouse gases and adaptation to climate change "is vital for countries seeking to reduce disaster risk now and in the future."
It said extreme temperatures including heat waves contributed 7,346 deaths, up from 7,232 over the previous decade.
