Amazon climate disasters spike 300% while government tracking systems fall dangerously behind

A groundbreaking new study reveals that extreme weather disasters are devastating Amazon communities at an unprecedented rate, but government reporting systems are failing to capture the true scope of the crisis. Researchers from five countries analyzed over 12,500 reports of storms, floods, landslides, droughts, and wildfires across the Amazon basin between 2013 and 2023, uncovering a pattern of widespread underreporting that leaves millions of people vulnerable.

The research paints a stark picture: in just one year, more than 3 million people were affected by climate disasters, with over 100,000 pieces of critical infrastructure destroyed or damaged. The disasters aren’t randomly distributed—they cluster in two high-risk zones. Along the Andean foothills, steep terrain combined with intense rainfall triggers deadly landslides, while in the Orinoco-Amazon transition zone, agricultural expansion and illegal land grabbing fuel increasingly frequent fires.

Perhaps most troubling, the study reveals massive gaps in disaster tracking. Ecuador dominates reports of extreme weather events, not because it faces more disasters than its neighbors, but because it has better reporting systems. Meanwhile, Brazilian cities—despite experiencing significant impacts—appear less frequently in the data due to different tracking methods. Four Amazon countries provided no municipal-level data at all, despite clear satellite evidence of widespread disasters.

The reporting failures are most severe for heatwaves and droughts, with almost all recorded incidents coming from Brazil alone—even though satellite data confirms these hazards occur throughout the entire region. This systematic underreporting prevents effective disaster response and leaves vulnerable communities without adequate support when climate disasters strike.