Sustainable Switch – Climate Focus: Super Typhoon Ragasa and Tropical Storm Bualoi Batter Asia

This edition of the newsletter highlights Super Typhoon Ragasa, the world’s most powerful tropical cyclone so far this year, which has wreaked havoc across southern China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

In Taiwan, at least 15 people were killed and many remain missing as Ragasa unleashed torrential rain and fierce winds. Hong Kong was also battered by destructive gusts and heavy downpours. Fueled by unusually warm seas and favorable atmospheric conditions, the storm rapidly intensified into a Category 5 super typhoon on Monday, with winds exceeding 260 km/h (162 mph).

Entire towns in Taiwan were left buried in mud, with residents facing acute water shortages. Cleanup operations are underway in the eastern county of Hualien, where a barrier lake overflowed, creating a massive wall of water that swept through parts of the city.

Barrier lakes form when landslides, rockfalls, or other natural blockages dam a river, often in a valley, cutting off or disrupting its natural flow. Satellite imagery analyzed by Planet Labs for Reuters shows this particular lake forming between July 17 and 25, expanding nearly fivefold by mid-September.

Postal worker Hsieh Chien-tung from Guangfu described the sudden floodwaters as a “tsunami,” recalling how he narrowly escaped to the second floor of his post office. When he returned home, he found his car swept into his living room.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Bualoi left at least three dead in the Philippines late Thursday, spreading destruction across central islands and southern Luzon—just days after another severe storm had struck the northern region.

Global Climate Week: Calls for Action
In New York, leaders at Climate Week urged the world to turn lofty promises into concrete action. Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne underscored the urgency, saying climate change poses an existential threat for small island states.
“For us, every storm translates into financial ruin,” he warned.

What to Watch
Britain’s hottest summer on record at least brought one sweet outcome: a bumper crop of apples, ideal for cider production. Click here to watch an interview with a British apple grower at Showerings Orchard.

Number of the Week: 50%
That’s the projected drop in honey production this season in Iraq’s port city of Basra. Rising salinity in the Shatt al-Arab waterway, combined with extreme heat and drought, is straining the delicate ecosystem bees rely on. Read Reuters’ full report and watch the video here.

Today’s Climate Lens: Thailand’s Power Dip
Thailand’s electricity output and imports—supplying power to more than 70 million people—fell 5.4% year-on-year in the first seven months through July, according to official data. That’s nearly double the decline seen during the pandemic lockdowns of early 2020.

Officials say this would mark only the fourth annual drop in power generation in nearly four decades, largely because relentless rains kept heat down, reducing demand for air conditioning.