Between 1991 and 2025, South America warmed about 0.26 degrees Celsius per decade, while Central America and the Caribbean recorded an average increase of 0.25 degrees per decade
Latin America and the Caribbean are experiencing accelerated climate transformation – with historic heat waves, prolonged droughts, more intense floods, more destructive hurricanes and loss of strategic water reserves. The warning was issued by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a UN agency specializing in climate.in the new report on the State of the Climate in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2025.
The document points out that the signs of climate change no longer only appear in future projections: they are being registered now, with direct impacts on public health, food production, water supply, economy and population security.
According to the WMO, 2025 went down in history as one of the hottest years ever recorded in the region – placing between fifth and eighth place in the historical series. But the most worrying data is the speed of warming.
Between 1991 and 2025, South America warmed about 0.26 degrees Celsius per decade, while Central America and the Caribbean recorded an average increase of 0.25 degrees per decade. Mexico had the fastest increase: 0.34 degrees per decade.
In practice, this means more frequent maximum temperatures, more severe droughts and more difficult to predict extreme weather events.
The 2025 numbers show the size of this change. In Mexico, the city of Mexicali recorded 52.7°C, setting a new national record. In several Central American countries, thermometers exceeded 40°C to 45°C during successive heat waves.
In South America, the heat also reached unusual levels: Rio de Janeiro reached 44°C, while Mariscal Estigarribia, in Paraguay, recorded 44.8°C.
For experts, the Extreme heat is no longer just a discomfort but a growing threat to public health. The WMO estimates that approximately 13,000 deaths per year are associated with heat in Latin America and the Caribbean — calculation based on averages from 17 countries between 2012 and 2021.
But the report highlights an additional problem: Many countries still do not officially record deaths caused by heat as the main cause. In practice, the real number could be significantly higher. In addition to high temperatures, the continent faces a more unstable hydrological cycle — alternating between prolonged droughts and increasingly violent rains.
Over the last 50 years, the observed trend has been towards more frequent extremes. In some areas it rains too much. In others, it hardly rains.
In March 2025, floods hit Peru and Ecuador and affected more than 110,000 people. In Mexico, floods that occurred in October caused 83 deaths.
June 2025 entered the records as the rainiest month in Mexican history. At the same time, Mexico itself faced severe drought: at its peak, the phenomenon affected up to 85% of the national territory, putting pressure on reservoirs and reducing the availability of water for agriculture.
The scenario is also worrying in Brazil. The WMO points out increase in intense rainfall and flooding in southeastern South America — including southern Brazil, Uruguay and northern Argentina. On the other hand, regions such as the Brazilian Northeast are becoming drier.
In the Amazon, climate behavior has become more irregular: longer dry periods and more concentrated and intense rainy seasons.
Another alert in the report involves a resource that is barely visible, but essential for millions of people: Andean glaciers.
These ice formations supply around 90 million inhabitants with water intended for human consumption, agriculture, hydroelectric generation and industry.
The data shows an acceleration in the loss of ice mass both in the southern Andes and in tropical glaciers in countries such as Colombia and Ecuador.
According to the UN, the risk is twofold. As the ice decreases, the demand for water grows – especially in rural areas that have less capacity to adapt. This puts the water security of an important part of the continent at risk in the coming decades.
The oceans are also showing signs of depletion. Latin America accounts for 8.8% of the world’s coastline, and the report shows that the ocean continues to absorb part of the excess heat and carbon dioxide produced by human activities. As a result, the waters are becoming warmer, more acidic and with less oxygen.
In 2025, the Surface ocean pH has fallen to record levels in areas of the Atlantic and Pacific near the region. Extreme marine heat waves were also recorded in the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea and the Chilean coast.
Furthermore, in In stretches of the tropical Atlantic and Caribbean, sea levels are already rising faster than the global average.
For the secretary general of the WMO, Celeste Saulo, the signs are clear. According to her, the accelerated melting of glaciers, the rise in sea levels, the rapid intensification of hurricanes, in addition to the increase in floods, droughts and heat waves show that climate change is already profoundly altering the reality of Latin America.
But the director states that there is still room to reduce impacts. As an example, the UN cites Hurricane Melissa, which hit Jamaica in October 2025. It was the first category 5 hurricane ever recorded reaching the country.
The disaster left 45 people dead and losses estimated at US$8.8 billion – equivalent to more than 41% of Jamaica’s GDP.
Even so, advanced risk models and advance planning made it possible to reduce human losses.
For the WMO, the conclusion is straightforward: investing in monitoring, early warnings and climate adaptation is no longer an environmental policy and became an economic and social protection strategy.
*This text does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Jovem Pan.
