El Niño Fuels Extreme Weather and Indonesian Wildfires
Warmer seawaters shifted eastward by El Niño are intensifying typhoons, flash floods and wildfires as COP31 gets underway in Turkey.
Updated on Nov. 13, 2026 in Environmental
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El Niño is shifting already warmer seawaters eastward, fuelling extreme weather events such as typhoons and flash floods. Indonesia's wildfires are raging as the phenomenon amplifies the impacts of climate change and deforestation.
Why it matters
The extracted reporting links El Niño to a wider run of extreme weather during a year expected to rank among the hottest on record. The timing coincides with COP31 in Turkey, where climate impacts are on the negotiating agenda.
The available figure is the expectation that 2026 will be among the hottest years on record, a projection rather than a measured total. The extraction provides no burned-area, rainfall or damage figures, so the scale of the events cannot be compared against prior seasons.
The players
Cassie Flynn
Cassie Flynn is Global Director of Climate Change at the United Nations Development Programme, a role overseeing the agency's climate work across its global programmes.
Francine Elisaia
Francine Elisaia is Narratives and Communications Lead at the Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change movement, a youth-led campaign active across Pacific island nations.
The details
El Niño is moving already warmer Pacific seawaters eastward, a shift that is fuelling extreme weather such as typhoons and flash floods. In Indonesia, the same climate pattern is amplifying the effects of climate change and deforestation on wildfires that are currently raging.
Timeline
2026: Year expected to be among the hottest on record.
- 2026-11-13
Broadcast published while COP31 is underway in Turkey.
Seasonal Patterns
The El Niño-Southern Oscillation cycle is the documented driver here, with warm Pacific waters moving eastward to intensify weather extremes. This 2026 episode is being reported alongside a year expected to rank among the hottest on record.
Residents in typhoon, flood and wildfire-prone regions should follow official weather and emergency warnings as El Niño-driven events develop. Public-health advisories for smoke exposure are the most direct practical step where wildfires are burning.
The takeaway
El Niño shows how a natural ocean cycle can compound human-driven climate change and deforestation, so extreme weather can arrive in clusters rather than one at a time. Tracking both signals together gives a clearer picture of near-term risk.
Further reading
For broader background, explore the Environmental coverage on Wisevoter.
Source note: This article includes information reported by France 24.
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