Extreme heat, power outages and hospitals pushed to the limit: the risk that El Niño could trigger a cascading crisis

The ‘super’ El Niño is developing in the tropical Pacific will alter weather patterns across the entire world. It has the potential to bring more extreme heat, drought and flooding. Scientists are concerned about the unprecedented rate of surface warming. NOAA has given an 83% probability of a strong to very strong El Niño from January to March 2027. Natural disasters and impacts Major El Niño events in 1982-83, 1997-98 and 2015-16 resulted in extreme flooding, severe droughts and disruptions to ecosystems and economies worldwide. Health care suffers at the center of polycrises, which are multiple connected crises occurring simultaneously. Crises disproportionately affect underhoused individuals, those with disabilities, lower-income households and Indigenous communities. A strong El Niño can put an entire energy system under stress, which is when the health system is most vulnerable.

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