Hottest year sends planet past 1.5C; at least 10 dead in LA fires; and a ‘sham’ Instagram marriage
Climate breakdown drove the annual global temperature above the internationally agreed 1.5C target for the first time in 2024, EU data shows, supercharging extreme weather and causing “misery to millions of people”. Heatwaves of previously impossible intensity and frequency are now striking around the world, along with fiercer droughts and wildfires.
The ongoing California fires have claimed at least 10 lives. The death toll is likely to rise, the Los Angeles county sheriff has warned, as crews continue to comb through the rubble in search of additional victims.
Nearly 180,000 people so far have been forced to evacuate, with the burned area now covering more than 30,000 acres.
Top news
*This is an excerpt from today's Afternoon Update newsletter. Sign up here to get the full version delivered to your inbox every weekday.
Main image: Ethan Swope/AP