The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as the authoritative voice for weather, climate, water and related environmental issues, and disasters caused by hydrometeorological hazards. The hazards under its mandate include severe storms, tropical cyclones (hurricanes and typhoons), storm surges, floods, cold spells, heat waves, cold waves, droughts, volcanic ash transport, air pollution, sand and dust storms, among others. It also contributes with data, information products and services for the monitoring and prediction of forest fires, locust swarms, health epidemics, tsunami, among others.