Scientists say storms like Ciarán are becoming ‘more damaging’

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “It looks like a once-in-every-few-years storm for the UK and France,” said Bob Henson, a meteorologist and science writer with Yale Climate Connections, adding that it could turn into “a once-in-a-generation storm”. open image in gallery Satellite image shows Storm Ciarán swirling over Europe “That’s because the rainfall associated with these types of storms is more severe due to climate change, and the storm surges are higher and thus more damaging due to the higher sea levels.” Storm-related rainfall has intensified in recent years, according to the Met Office. “As records tumble, the increasing frequency and severity of extreme events is a stark reminder that the impacts of climate change are not a future probability, but a present threat affecting us in all parts of the world,” Dr Rihab Khalid, Isaac Newton Trust Research Fellow at the University of Cambridge, said. “It is all too apparent that we are not yet prepared for the impacts of climate change.” “Slowing progress to net zero now will only mean more extreme weather and greater threats like this in the future,” she said, referring to the UK government’s recent decision to rollback key green targets.