Gareth Redmond-King of the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit warns that climate change is escalating extreme weather events *and* destabilizing the climate system. The emergence of natural phenomena like El Niño will now amplify these disruptions, worsening the impacts of a changing climate. Europe is already experiencing more frequent and intense heatwaves, droughts, water shortages, storms, and floods, which should be considered the “new normal”. These events are no longer exceptional occurrences but a pattern of increasing severity. Redmond-King emphasizes that governments are currently underprepared for this escalating climate reality. Effectively, El Niño is ‘fanning the flames’ of the climate crisis, posing an increased threat globally.