Tropical Cyclone Programme: 40-year review highlights success
Although the number of named cyclones averages around 84 annually, the death toll has fallen drastically due to advancements made in forecasting, warning, and disaster risk reduction
Thanks to the improvements in weather forecasting the World Meteorological Organization's (WMO) Tropical Cyclone Programme has been a success in reducing the death toll from tropical cyclones.
Although the number of named cyclones averages around 84 annually, the death toll has fallen drastically due to advancements made in forecasting, warning, and disaster risk reduction, said A Review for the 40 Years of the Tropical Cyclone Programme (1980-2020) report.
The report has been published just ahead of World Meteorological Day on 23 March to highlight its theme of Early Warning and Early Action.
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"The TCP coordination has cemented the links between WMO Members large and small, developed or least developed, in tropical cyclone-prone regions to take joint and well-orchestrated actions to mitigate the impacts of tropical cyclones," said WMO Secretary-General Professor Petteri Taalas in a foreword to the Review.
"After 40 years of steady progress and development, the TCP mission remains the same: to reduce loss of lives and damage to property and to build resilience in face of tropical cyclones. In so doing, the TCP contributes to sustainable development and to achieving the targets of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction). The challenges that lie ahead due to climate change make the TCP ever more relevant today," said Professor Taalas.
Over the last five decades, an average of 43 deaths and $78 million is lost every day due to tropical cyclones; responsible for one-third of deaths and economic losses due to weather, climate and water-related disasters, suggests the data collected by WMO from 1970-2019.
The Tropical Cyclone Programme was established after the devastation left by tropical cyclones such as Tropical Cyclone Bhola which was estimated to be responsible for the deaths of 500,000 people in present-day Bangladesh.
The shocking loss left by the cyclone was a wake-up call and prompted United Nations General Assembly to find ways and means to mitigate the harmful effects of tropical cyclones.
The programme itself is divided into two components: global and regional. They mainly focus on areas such as meteorology, hydrology, disaster risk reduction, and capacity development via research and training.
After decades of effort and technological advancements, there is a steady trend of decrease in the tropical cyclone track forecast errors.
Information regarding storm surge is readily available in Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre (RSMC) advisory bulletins; accessible through websites of those RSMCs covering all ocean basins prone to tropical cyclones.
Tropical cyclones are also monitored around the clock with the help of satellites.
