Philippines Faces Typhoon Crisis: The Case for Scaled-Up Climate Finance

On the 17th November 2024, Super Typhoon Man-Yi, made its second landfall on Luzon’s Aurora province in Philippines, unleashing catastrophic winds, torrential rain, and life-threatening storm surges. Known locally as Pepito, the storm first struck Catanduanes Island on Saturday evening, where it caused significant destruction, uprooting trees, damaging buildings, and downing power lines with maximum sustained winds of 195 km/h (121 mph) and gusts reaching 305 km/h (189 mph). The northern areas of Luzon are bracing for up to 200 mm (7.8 inches) of rainfall, exacerbating the risks of severe flooding and landslides in already saturated regions.  

Man-Yi is the sixth typhoon to strike the Philippines in November, following an unprecedented series of storms that have left the ground dangerously saturated, heightening the risks of landslides and floods. The sequence began with Tropical Storm Trami in October, which unleashed a month’s worth of rain and caused dozens of fatalities, followed by Typhoon Kong-rey, the largest storm to hit Taiwan in 30 years, resulting in three deaths in the Philippines. November also saw Typhoon Yinxing, which brought 250 mm (10 inches) of rainfall to northern Luzon, and Typhoon Usagi, which delivered a three-meter storm surge and over 200 mm (8 inches) of rain, compounding the devastation across the region. In addition, for the first time since record-keeping began in 1951, four storms namely Yinxing, Toraji, Usagi, and Man-yi were active simultaneously in November 2024. 

The ongoing typhoon crisis has forced the displacement of over 1.4 million people, leaving many struggling with inadequate access to essential resources such as clean water, proper sanitation, sufficient nutrition, and basic health care. Communities have expressed growing fear and exhaustion, describing the terror of rising waters and worsening conditions. The Philippine government continues to issue evacuation orders and mobilize emergency responses, urging residents to prioritize safety amidst this ongoing crisis. 

The relentless barrage of storms reflects the intensifying impacts of climate change, with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warning that tropical cyclones are “very likely” to become more intense, with higher wind speeds and heavier rainfall. Melting polar ice exacerbates tropical cyclone intensity through interconnected atmospheric and oceanic processes. Tropical cyclones rely on warm sea surface temperatures (SSTs) as their primary energy source. As polar ice diminishes due to global warming, less sunlight is reflected into space, and more is absorbed by the ocean, increasing SSTs. Warmer waters lead to greater evaporation, injecting more water vapor into the atmosphere, a key driver of storm intensification. Additionally, melting ice contributes to rising sea levels, amplifying the potential for storm surges during tropical cyclones. The Philippines typhoon crisis can be attributed to the above average sea surface temperatures recorded in the Pacific Ocean this autumn season. 

Furthermore, the disruption of polar cooling systems intensifies these dynamics. The poles act as heat sinks, but the loss of ice weakens this role, allowing excess heat to accumulate in the atmosphere and oceans. This creates a feedback loop where warmer oceans fuel stronger storms, which then exacerbate warming through increased latent heat release. Studies suggest that the frequency of the most intense storms (Category 4 and 5) is likely to increase as the warming trends continue. 

The Philippines, suffering from an unprecedented series of typhoons in recent months, is intensifying its call for robust international action on climate change. The successive storms underscore the dire need for scaled-up climate finance flows to vulnerable nations to bolster resilience and adaptation efforts. As the nation battles the escalating impacts of climate change, this crisis serves as a stark reminder of the urgency to address systemic inequities in climate finance and to accelerate global mitigation efforts. At COP29, world leaders must prioritize robust mitigation efforts, enhanced adaptation strategies, and fully operationalize loss and damage funding to protect the most vulnerable communities who are least responsible for the climate crisis yet bearing its most severe impacts.

Feature image: The Philippine Red Cross responds to a series of typhoons, distributing relief items to affected communities. Credit: The Philippine Red Cross.

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