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Date Published: 13/02/2025

Spain ranked eighth among countries most affected by extreme weather events

A new report exposes Spain as one of the countries hardest hit by the climate crisis

Climate change might not be something exactly tangible that impacts our everyday lives, but it is certainly leaving its mark. This has been made very clear by the Climate Risk Index 2025, which shows that between 1990 and 2022, natural disasters have claimed the lives of 800,000 people and caused 4.2 trillion dollars in economic losses worldwide.

What’s more, Spain has been highlighted as one of the countries hardest hit by the climate crisis. Located in the Mediterranean basin, one of the most vulnerable spots to global warming, the country is ranked eighth among those most affected by extreme weather events: 27,000 lives lost and 25 billion dollars in damages.

“Spain ranks high mainly due to its high number of fatalities in absolute and relative terms,” explained the report.

Heat waves, droughts, forest fires, reduced agricultural yields, overloaded infrastructure and overwhelming pressure on health systems are some of the phenomena that have caused widespread damage in this country.

The report also highlights the 1999 drought in southern Spain and the severe flooding in 2019 in the southeast, two of the most devastating events that left a trail of casualties and massive losses to agriculture, property and infrastructure.

Spain once again reached a critical point during the heatwave of 2022, alongside Pakistan, Belize, Italy, the United States and Greece. Between mid-June and July, scorching sun and several wild fires raised temperatures to 43°C, resulting in more than 11,000 deaths.

But the issues are far from historical. Year after year, the global temperature climbs, and last month was officially labelled the hottest January ever recorded on the planet. In addition, 2024 turned out to be the third hottest 12-month period in Spain’s history.

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Image: Climate Risk Index

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