The UK Met Office has warned that an El Niño event likely to be the strongest in living memory could make 2027 the hottest year on record, with sea surface temperatures in the Pacific forecast to exceed 3°C above normal later this year. Dr Zeke Hausfather of Berkeley Earth said it might be the strongest in 500 or even 1,000 years.
Governments worldwide are mobilising. Sri Lanka has allocated $14 million to fight severe drought, while Indonesia battles wildfires that have burned more than 200,000 hectares this year. Honduras placed 80 percent of the country on drought alert, and the US will send a military hospital to Peru. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham called an emergency Cobra meeting due to drought and wildfires.
The monsoon in South Asia is running well below normal so far in 2026, while the UK could see wet and stormy conditions in autumn.