Updated

Asian governments, from Sri Lanka to South Korea, are rushing preparations for what forecasters describe as the most severe El Niño event on record, with hundreds of millions of people facing simultaneous risks of drought, wildfire, typhoons and flooding driven by exceptionally warm tropical Pacific waters. Commentators warn the developing 'super' El Niño, amplified by the broader climate crisis, could trigger one of the biggest global weather upheavals in a millennium. Analysts caution that governments worldwide are largely unprepared for the scale of disruption expected in the remainder of 2026 and beyond.