UN says 2013 'extreme events' due to warming earth
By Associated Press
Mar 24, 2014 5:03 AM CDT
FILE - In this March 19, 2013, file photo, a trickle of water left in the Rio Grande is pushed downstream by the wind near the chile growing community of Hatch, N.M. In southern New Mexico, the mighty Rio Grande has gone dry, and farmers are worried about dwindling water supplies as the state enters...   (Associated Press)

GENEVA (AP) — The U.N. weather agency blames human impact on the global climate for much of last year's extreme weather that wreaked havoc in Asia and the Pacific region and in Europe.

The World Meteorological Organization's annual assessment says 2013 was the sixth-warmest year on record. Thirteen of the 14 warmest years have occurred in the 21st century.

The agency's secretary-general Michel Jarraud said Monday that sea-level rise leads to increasing damage from storm surges and coastal flooding, as Typhoon Haiyan demonstrated when it killed at least 6,100 people and caused $13 billion in damage to the Philippines and Vietnam. Meanwhile, Australia had its hottest year on record.

"Many of the extreme events of 2013 were consistent with what we would expect as a result of human-induced climate change," Jarraud said.