An El Niño state occurs when the central and eastern equatorial Pacic sea-surface temperatures (SSTs) are substantially higher than usual. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) defines an El Niño event when the NIÑO 3.4 area has sea-surface temperatures at least 0.5 ºC higher than normal for five consecutive three-month-averaged periods. While some countries experience depressed rains during El Niño events, Somalia experiences heavier rainfall amounts that usually lead to flooding, disease, destruction and death.