Six-Week Window to Prepare for Strong El Niño Impact

Australia warns of a potentially intense El Niño forming, bringing heat, drought, and fire risk across the Southern Hemisphere. Policymakers have six to twelve weeks to secure water reserves, mobilize fire readiness, and arrange agricultural insurance before impacts accelerate. Seasonal forecasts are more reliable than in past decades, though translating ocean warming into regional rainfall predictions remains imprecise. The 1997–98 El Niño cost the global economy over $5 trillion—illustrating what's at stake.