By Ethan Wong

In April 2024, the Military Responses to Climate Hazards (MiRCH) identified 11 countries where militaries deployed in response to climate hazards, including China, Greece, Russia, the United States, Zambia, and elsewhere. The tracker documented 16 incidents in total, with deployments responding to floods, droughts, heat, and wildfires.

In Central Asia, a combination of extreme precipitation and snowmelt from warm temperatures caused unprecedented flooding along the Ural River in Kazakhstan and Russia, prompting military responses from both countries. Following initial deployments on March 28, the Kazakh military used additional forces in April to support evacuations, conduct rescue operations, and fortify flood defenses. Since flooding began in late March, Kazakhstan has evacuated over 100,000 people and deployed nearly 6,000 military personnel. 

In Russia, the military also helped evacuate thousands of people from floods in and around the cities of Orsk and Orenburg after a dam on the Ural collapsed on April 5 following heavy rainfall. The floodwaters also threatened critical military production sites, like the Kurganmashzavod factory, which produces infantry fighting vehicles that Russia has used in Ukraine, but no damage has been reported yet. The situation sparked outrage from displaced residents over the lack of flood protections and underscores the importance of early investments in resilience measures. Discontent was also likely exacerbated after authorities decided to hold rehearsals for the annual WWII Victory Day parade despite the ongoing crisis. With parts of Central Asia warming up to two times faster than the global average, these severe floods highlight the region’s growing climate vulnerabilities, potentially increasing the demand for local militaries to respond to climate hazards in the future.

Meanwhile, on April 29, storms and extreme rainfall, amplified by El Niño, devastated the State of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, triggering the worst floods in 80 years. The floods have killed over 100 people, displaced more than 100,000, and affected nearly 400 municipalities. The Brazilian Army has been a key coordinator in the emergency response, delivering essential supplies and deploying helicopters and amphibious vehicles for search and rescue. However, further rainfall could impede operations and potentially worsen the already dire situation.

Moreover, climate hazards impacted several military installations this month. On April 4, four small wildfires broke out on the grounds of the Donnelly Training Area in Alaska during military training. Range control personnel from the US Army Garrison Alaska were able to quickly extinguish the fires. In Cambodia, extreme heat contributed to an explosion at an ammunition warehouse on April 27, killing 22 soldiers. The explosion further illustrates the risks that climate change poses to militaries worldwide and follows similar incidents, such as in Greece when wildfires triggered a series of explosions at an Air Force ammunition depot in July of last year.To see the full MiRCH tracker with new updates for April, click here.