More than 90 percent of deaths reported worldwide due to these disasters took place in developing countries.

“The most vulnerable communities, unfortunately, bear the brunt of weather, climate and water-related hazards,” WMO chief Petteri Taalas said in a statement.

Cyclone Moncha, which wreaked havoc in Myanmar and Bangladesh last week, exemplified this reality, Taalas said.

The severe storm “caused widespread devastation, impacting the poorest of the poor”, he said.

But the WMO mentioned that improved early warning systems and coordinated disaster management had significantly reduced human casualties.

SOURCE-PUNCH