Extreme Temperature Diary- Saturday November 14th, 2026/Main Topic: As Pollution-Fueled Climate Disasters Intensify, Flood Deaths Hit 13-Year High

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As Pollution-Fueled Climate Disasters Intensify, Flood Deaths Hit 13-Year High | Common Dreams

As Pollution-Fueled Climate Disasters Intensify, Flood Deaths Hit 13-Year High

Deadlier flood disasters “are the foreseeable consequences of a fossil-fueled economy in which those who pollute most are also the best protected from its consequences,” said one campaigner.

Julia Conley

An analysis released Thursday by anti-poverty group Oxfam juxtaposed the soaring number of flood-related deaths worldwide with the ultrawealthy’s ability to insulate themselves from the climate disasters that are growing more common and devastating as oil and gas emissions continue.

The group found that as monthly temperature records were shattered in more than 100 countries this year, flood deaths reached a 13-year high—driven largely by catastrophic flooding in Nepal and Tibet in August, when a glacier collapse sent a “wall of water more than 100 meters high, traveling at 180 kilometers per hour,” which swept through a valley and killed more than 1,500 people, with 5,600 still missing.

The flooding disaster, which the chief of the United Nations Office for Project Services said last month should be a “defining moment” for an international community grappling with how to mitigate the impacts of the climate emergency, accounted for about three-quarters of the 8,000 people who died in floods this year.

“Deaths from flooding are seven times higher in more unequal countries,” noted Oxfam, while people in the Global South are far less likely to have contributed meaningfully to the carbon pollution that scientists say is heating the planet, putting the 1.5°C limit set by the Paris Agreement in 2015 out of reach, and causing the loss of glaciers and more extreme weather disasters.

“The carbon pollution of a person in the richest 1% has contributed 34 times more to today’s extreme heatwaves than the average person, and 100 times more than someone in the poorest 50%,” said Oxfam.

In September, the UN found that with countries contributing far too little to efforts to reduce carbon emissions, the planet is now expected to overshoot the 1.5°C threshold, and said policymakers must now focus on ensuring the overshoot is temporary.

But on Thursday, as world leaders gathered in Antalya, Türkiye for the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31), a report warned that the Earth could in fact be heading for an “irrevocable” breach of the 1.5°C limit.

“The carbon pollution of a person in the richest 1% has contributed 34 time more to today’s extreme heatwaves than the average person, and 100 times more than someone in the poorest 50%.”

The record number of flooding deaths this year, said Amitabh Behar, executive director of Oxfam International, “are not accidents of weather. They are the foreseeable consequences of a fossil-fueled economy in which those who pollute most are also the best protected from its consequences.”

Oxfam also emphasized that while flooding deaths are soaring, one trend at COP31 demonstrated how the ultrarich are making devastating disasters in communities around the world more likely.

The group analyzed data from Polluterjet, finding that 87 private jets landed at Antalya Airport since November 7, just before COP31 began, emitting an estimated 777 tons of carbon dioxide.

“Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote’s private jet flew approximately 4,370 kilometers from Lagos to Antalya, emitting an estimated 30 tons of carbon, roughly as much as the average person emits in six years,” said Oxfam. “During COP30 last year, 66 private jet journeys were recorded.”

According to the Global Solidarity Levies Task Force, taxing private jets owned by about 250,000 people around the world could raise $45 billion per year, “nearly 12 times the amount rich countries gave to UN climate funds in 2025.”

“While families mourn loved ones killed by floods and endure blistering heat, the ultrawealthy carry on flying in private jets, high above the devastating consequences,” said Behar. “Governments must stop treating the extraordinarily polluting luxuries of the superrich as an untouchable privilege. Taxing private jets is an obvious first step.”

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Julia Conley

Julia Conley is a senior editor and staff writer for Common Dreams.

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Canadian records from November 13, 2026. #Canada

— Don Sutherland (@donsutherland1.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T12:40:27.034Z

The preliminary global mean surface temperature for November 12, 2026 was 14.570C (ERA5). That would break the daily record of 14.340C from 2023. #ClimateChange

— Don Sutherland (@donsutherland1.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T04:46:29.281Z

As oceanic warmth from the "super" El Niño nudges Earth's air temp upward on top of long-term climate change, it's no wonder that last month was officially the warmest October in 177 years of global analysis. Update from @drjeffmasters.bsky.social + me:yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/11/octo…

— Bob Henson (@bhensonweather.bsky.social) 2026-11-12T18:12:51.028Z

No candy coating it. To this point we have failed to be responsible stewards of our home planet. But we are still in the driver’s seat and face important choices going forward. Below are three scenarios via Prof @edhawkins.org

— Jeff Berardelli (@weatherprof.bsky.social) 2026-11-13T21:51:55.693Z

#Climate science says 1.5C is dead. No one wants to bury itwww.politico.eu/article/clim…

— Dr Paul Dorfman (@drpauldorfman.bsky.social) 2026-11-13T11:49:22.989Z

Has the current El Niño event now peaked?www.ensotracker.com?index=nino34…

— Michael E. Mann (@michaelemann.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T16:07:54.224Z

The forecasts are that we're back in neutral territory by summer: iri.columbia.edu/our-expertis…

— Michael E. Mann (@michaelemann.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T16:56:10.420Z

Only a few days away from the last sunset of the year at Utqiaġvik and there's still no significant sea ice at the shore. Really, it didn't used to be this way. #akwx #Arctic #SeaIce @climatologist49.bsky.social

— Rick Thoman (@alaskawx.bsky.social) 2026-11-13T23:39:36.894Z

In past eras when sea level rise was as high as is expected by 2080-2100, barrier islands were rare because erosion was too high. Trying to keep a road open to the Outer Banks is already getting very expensive. coastalreview.org/2026/11/barr…

— Dr. Jeff Masters (@drjeffmasters.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T19:33:50.513Z

Quite a few of us, I see! Thanks so much @katharinehayhoe.com for this fun and useful starter pack! go.bsky.app/Po82tCi

— Catherine Wong (@catherinewong01.bsky.social) 2026-11-13T15:17:02.874Z

The odds of an unusually wet, and perhaps exceptionally wet, second half of November continue to rise in California. Model ensembles are trending even wetter, with potential for multiple waves of heavy precipitation in NorCal (and lesser but still substantial) precip in SoCal.

— Daniel Swain (@weatherwest.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T18:37:35.000Z

Get real on the 'age of electricity'.Planned tripling global #renewables by 2030 (4 yrs away) means an additional 11,000 GWe.Planned tripling global #nuclear capacity by 2050 (24 yrs away) means only an additional 1,400 GWe.#climatewww.theguardian.com/environment/…

— Dr Paul Dorfman (@drpauldorfman.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T09:39:10.827Z

Sodium-ion #batteries are approaching lithium-ion performance in key areas, with commercial cells reaching energy densities of 175 Wh/kg and offering strong low-temperature performance. www.pv-magazine.com/2026/11/13/s…

— Dr Paul Dorfman (@drpauldorfman.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T09:35:18.896Z

Norway loses landmark #climate case over oilfields. Country’s Supreme Court rules that government should have considered emissions from burning oil abroad, in a finding likely to affect future projects. www.ft.com/content/8535…

— Dr Paul Dorfman (@drpauldorfman.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T09:43:21.890Z

Meanwhile,Planned tripling global #renewables by 2030 (4 yrs away) means an additional 11,000 GWe.Planned tripling global #nuclear capacity by 2050 (24 yrs away) means only an additional 1,400 GWe.Go figure. Do the maths.www.energylivenews.com/2026/11/13/c…

— Dr Paul Dorfman (@drpauldorfman.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T09:28:22.385Z

Ontario's #SMR Is Late And Over Budget. The Failure Was Predictable.Historical #nuclear cost overruns threaten the economics of its entire four-reactor program, while Ontario's own electricity procurement results point toward a more affordable pathway.substack.com/home/post/p-…

— Dr Paul Dorfman (@drpauldorfman.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T09:24:38.768Z

This, not the travel outage, ought to be the lead headline in the news.www.cnn.com/2026/11/13/h…

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#Nuclear cyber insecurity.#EDF apparently pleased that UK regulators have shifted their #cyber insecurity from ‘significantly enhanced’ to ‘enhanced’. www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/edf-h…

— Dr Paul Dorfman (@drpauldorfman.bsky.social) 2026-11-14T09:31:33.433Z

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