Where the Weather is Deadliest

As part of the latest Global Climate Risk Index by Germanwatch, the countries proportionately most affected by extreme weather over the last twenty years have been revealed. Due primarily to the devastating Cyclone Nargis which claimed the lives of an estimated 140,000 people in 2008, Myanmar has the highest average annual weather-related deaths, with 14.55 fatalities per 100,000 population. When looking at the absolute numbers, 7,098 people died per year on average because of adverse weather conditions.

As our infographic shows, per 100,000 population, no country comes anywhere near the toll borne by Myanmar in recent times. Perhaps surprisingly, France, Italy and Spain are also among the countries at the top of the list. While the report offers no explanations, a key factor could be sudden and extreme heat waves such as the one in 2003 which claimed in excess of 70,000 lives across Europe, primarily in France.