'Sobering, genuinely frightening, and alarming': A look back at a summer of climate crises

ITV News correspondents, Peter Smith, Robert Moore, Emma Murphy and James Mates, reflect on a summer of reporting on the climate crisis

Words by Elisa Menendez, Content Producer

Fatal wildfires, once-in-a-century earthquakes and catastrophic flooding leaving tens of thousands dead, displaced and grieving.

It is clear 2023 has left no doubt among many that the climate crisis is only worsening - and its impact is reaching more people across the world.

ITV News teams have spent the summer travelling from the ashes of Maui, to the ghostly coral reefs of the Atlantic ocean, and the parched lands of southern Spain and beyond.

Here, they reflect on the "sobering", "genuinely frightening" and "alarming" events they witnessed and what they learnt from them.

Hawaii: ‘There was no hope, anyone who was trapped there was dead'

Correspondent Peter Smith and the ITV News team travelled to western Maui to report on American's deadliest wildfire in over a century.

Dozens remain missing and 97 were killed following the fires in August. The worst-hit area was the town of Lahaina.

Fires spread so rapidly towards homes and blocked roads, that some were left with no way out and "in a moment of panic, some decided the only option was to jump into the sea and start swimming to save their lives," reflected Smith.

The entire town was left incinerated and rescue teams were forced to comb through ashes looking for traces of DNA due to the lack of human remains.

"We knew as soon as we arrived if someone wasn’t able to escape, there’s no way they could’ve survived," said Smith.

Florida: 'It was clear we were seeing the death of an ecosystem'

US Correspondent Robert Moore and the team took a boat out to the Florida Keys earlier this summer to report on rising sea temperatures. To their surprise, taking a dip in the western Atlantic ocean felt more like taking a warm bath.

The temperature of the waters had hit a "frightening" 31C and the coral reefs had turned "ghostly white".

"It became immediately apparent this was more than just the bleaching of the coral, it was also a warning signal of the ecological destruction that was happening because of these rapidly rising temperatures in the ocean," said Moore.

"We were just seeing one microcosm of a much broader ecological tragedy."

Corfu: 'The fire of the century'

Correspondent Emma Murphy travelled to Corfu where fires were raging, threatening homes, businesses and tourists in July, while tens of thousands of residents evacuated.

Although climate change did not spark the fires on the Greek island - the cause is still under investigation - the weather conditions that had built up over the summer had contributed to the fires burning stronger and for longer. It also meant they spread to areas they would not usually reach.

"One local person we spoke to said he thought this was the fire of the century and he was genuinely concerned about what that meant for the island going forward," said Murphy.

It is clear the climate is having a direct impact on migration. It has begun to affect the way people live their lives and where they choose to call home - if they are fortunate enough to make that choice.

"At the moment, we tend to have to travel to cover climate emergencies, but in the years ahead, those climate emergencies will be much closer to home and people will have to start really assessing what impact the climate has on their lives," she added.

Italy and Spain: 'What we were warned was going to happen, is indeed happening'

Europe Editor James Mates and ITV News teams travelled from the parched farmlands of southern Spain to the sweltering centre of Rome.

Rome reached some of the highest temperatures ever recorded at 45C during a two-week heatwave in July - an unusually long period to experience such extreme heat.

"They had real problems keeping old people safe, keeping people in hospital safe, and just running the business of the city," reflected Mates.

For farmers in Andalucia, southern Spain, climate is already affecting their livelihoods and they are severely worried.

The land is so dry, they struggle to grow produce and keep their animals fed and watered. Their futures are looking increasingly uncertain without enough rain.

Climate scientists have long been warning what lies ahead if the world - and namely does not change its ways and better protect the environment.

"Now we're not reporting on warnings. We're reporting on reality - a consistent pattern in which what we were warned was going to happen, is indeed happening," said Mates.

"We can do no more than keep reporting."

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