As natural disasters continue to claim more lives around the globe, the difference between life and death can be tied to the amount of warning that residents get to prepare or evacuate. A new initiative by the United Nations, as reported by The Associated Press, will look to combine the agency’s resources with that of the World Meteorological Organization and bring some of the early warning systems used throughout first world countries to developing nations.
“Today, one-third of the world’s people, mainly in least-developed countries and small island developing states, are still not covered by early warning systems,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said to The Associated Press. “In Africa, it is even worse: 60% of people lack coverage.”
Systems such as these ones would allow people to escape these disasters, brought about by climate change, and the timeline for the action plan is November of this year. “WMO plans to build on some of its existing programs like a multi-hazard alert system for hazards such as tropical cyclones, flooding and coastal inundation, as well as an early warning system that helps inform people most at risk of some kinds of disasters,” the U.N. said to The Associated Press.
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