Everyone in the World to Receive Natural Disaster Alerts

The United Nations is working on a massive 5-year plan to have every single person in the world be alerted in case of extreme weather events.

“We must boost the power of prediction for everyone and build their capacity to act,” says UN Secretary-General António Guterres. “Early warning systems save lives. Let us ensure they are working for everyone.”

The World Meteorological Organization oversees the project and should present its action at the next UN climate conference which will take place later this year in Egypt. Some $1.5 billion will be allotted over the next five years to improve the quality of the services and related infrastructures as a third of the world population isn’t equipped with early warning systems. The alerts could take many forms, including mobile or email alerts, radiobroadcasts, or simply a village point person equipped with a megaphone, to inform populations of incoming floods, droughts, heatwaves, or storms. A 24-hour warning can cut ensuing damage by 30%, an impressive tenfold return on investment on early warning systems.