Climate-related extreme weather events and COVID-19: A first look at the number of people affected by intersecting disasters

Around the world, billions of people are directly or indirectly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the most affected are the people suffering its direct health impacts, but also those especially vulnerable to the compound impacts of the effects of COVID-19, including effects of lockdowns and other restrictions to reduce the spread of the pandemic, and their economic implications. These compound impacts are particularly severe for people hit by extreme weather events, which always hit the most vulnerable groups hardest, and are now significantly exacerbated by the impacts of the pandemic.

This paper aims to provide a preliminary analysis of the number of people jointly affected by COVID-19 and climate-related disasters – demonstrating the multilayered nature of these crises and highlighting the compounded vulnerability faced by communities.