As the 2025 cyclone season barrels into the western Pacific, communities across Southeast Asia are grappling with the mounting toll of climate-fueled disasters. From the bustling city of Darwin in Australia’s Top End, where supermarket shelves are stripped bare ahead of Cyclone Fina, to the storm-battered provinces of the Philippines, the human and economic costs of extreme weather are becoming impossible to ignore.
On November 20, 2025, the Bureau of Meteorology sounded the alarm for residents in Australia’s Northern Territory. Cyclone Fina, the first named storm of the season, was churning 390 kilometers northeast of Darwin, its sustained winds near the center clocking in at 95 km/h and gusts reaching a formidable 130 km/h. While the system was forecast to make a U-turn at sea, the threat to coastal and island communities was real and immediate. Authorities extended a cyclone watch to Darwin itself, warning of intense rainfall, dangerous winds, and the possibility of destructive gusts as the weekend approached.
“The windiest spell for Darwin is likely to be from midday Saturday to perhaps midday Sunday, a very blustery 24 hours there as the cyclone crosses by likely somewhere to the north,” senior meteorologist Angus Hines told reporters, according to AAP News. Hines noted there was a small chance Fina could strengthen into a severe category-three system, although he emphasized this was an outside likelihood. Still, even at its current strength, the cyclone posed a significant risk: damaging property, toppling trees and street signs, causing power outages, and creating perilous conditions on coastal waters.
Forecaster Jude Scott added that the degree of Darwin’s impact would depend on the cyclone’s track. If it hugged the Tiwi Island coast, the city might be spared the worst, but a path closer to the mainland would bring cyclonic impacts directly to Darwin’s doorstep. Residents, many of whom still remember the devastation wrought by Cyclone Marcus in 2018—which cut power to nearly 29,000 properties—have been urged to finalize their cyclone plans and shelter at home. The memory of Cyclone Tracy, which destroyed Darwin and claimed 66 lives on Christmas Day in 1974, still looms large in the collective consciousness.
As people rushed to secure bottled water, bread, canned goods, and other essentials, the sense of urgency was palpable. At a Coles supermarket in central Darwin, staff struggled to keep up with demand, restocking supplies as quickly as shoppers snatched them up. It’s a familiar scene—one mirrored thousands of kilometers to the north, where the Philippines is enduring yet another punishing typhoon season.
In the Philippines, the climate crisis is not a distant threat but a daily reality. On November 20, 2025, Filipino politician Javi Benitez addressed the international community, highlighting the increasing severity of typhoons: “Super typhoons, some exceeding 300 kilometres per hour, have become more common and more deadly. They inflict permanent injuries and sweep away items with immeasurable value, such as a family photo album or a child’s favourite toy.” As reported by Context, Benitez described how the costs of these disasters—soaring medical bills, destroyed infrastructure, damaged crops, submerged communities, and increased disease outbreaks—fall unfairly on ordinary Filipinos.
Last year alone, a series of six typhoons struck the Philippines within just 30 days, affecting 13 million people and causing more than $500 million in economic losses. According to recent research cited by Benitez, climate change made this catastrophe 1.7 times more likely and increased the intensity of these storms by 7.2 km/h. Meanwhile, emissions released between 2015 and 2025 by just five major investor-owned oil and gas companies are projected to cause over $5 trillion in damages—more than 100 times the Philippine national budget.
Despite contributing less than 0.5% of global emissions, Filipino communities consistently bear the brunt of climate change. Benitez and five other members of the House of Representatives have introduced the Climate Accountability Act (CLIMA Bill), which would establish a reparations fund financed by penalties on oil and gas corporations that exceed emissions thresholds. “These penalties are designed to hold corporations accountable, not to raise costs for Filipino consumers,” Benitez explained. The fund aims to compensate communities for climate-related loss and damage and to incentivize cleaner business practices across the industry.
The CLIMA Bill, which may be the first of its kind in the Global South, is part of a broader global movement. Other countries—such as Barbados, France, and Kenya—are exploring similar fossil fuel taxes, and the United Nations Secretary-General has urged governments to tax fossil fuel profits. “We are approaching a point where rules designed for a stable climate no longer protect our communities or guarantee even a minimal level of safety and income security,” Benitez warned.
The push for accountability isn’t just happening in legislatures. In October 2025, 67 survivors of Super Typhoon Odette announced plans to file a case in Britain against a British oil giant for its alleged role in driving the climate crisis. As Benitez put it in a speech on the House floor: “Greed in all forms is our enemy, it is our duty to fight it.”
While lawmakers and activists fight for long-term solutions, immediate relief is also critical. On November 19, 2025, GCash, a leading e-wallet provider in the Philippines, announced a one-month extension for loan payments for borrowers affected by the recent typhoon. The extension, which applies to loans due between November 9 and 13 for residents in the hardest-hit areas, is automatically applied to eligible accounts. During the grace period, the Automatic Debit Arrangement feature will be temporarily disabled, allowing customers to prioritize emergency needs and recovery. Importantly, no additional interest, late fees, or penalties will be charged during this time. GCash stated, “Other locations may be included as the government declares additional areas under a state of calamity.”
These measures offer a lifeline to families struggling to rebuild, but they are, at best, a stopgap. The underlying issues—rising emissions, inadequate climate financing, and the disproportionate burden borne by vulnerable communities—remain unresolved. As the world’s climate grows more volatile, the calls for justice and accountability are only growing louder.
In the words of Benitez, “Filipinos have paid enough. It is time the world’s biggest polluters do the same.” As storms gather strength over the Pacific and communities brace for impact, the question isn’t just how to survive the next cyclone, but how to ensure those most responsible for climate chaos finally share in the cost of recovery.