World weather news

World weather news, December

3rd: Record-breaking rainfall hit the Croatian city of Split, causing traffic chaos and flooding homes and businesses. Marijan registered 118.8 mm of rain during 0600-1200 GMT. The last time Split saw this much rain was on 25 August 1975 when 131.6 mm fell. The city's all-time 24-hour record was set on 6 September 1948, with 228.5 mm. The country's highest 24-hour rainfall record was set in September 1986 when the city of Zadar registered 345 mm.
4th-6th: A major winter storm that started affecting parts of Europe on the 4th dumped more than 3 m of snow in parts of Italy and Austria by the end of the 6th and more than 770 mm of rain in the town of Barcis in northern Italy. Most of the snow fell on Sunday 6th, bringing widespread disruption and travel chaos, with flooding at lower levels and power lines down in places.
5th: A massive hailstorm accompanied by exceptionally heavy rain and drastic temperature drop hit Lebanon's capital Beirut, causing massive floods and traffic chaos. The last time Beirut witnessed a similar event was back in 1968. The hailstorm lasted about 1 hour. The supercell affected only the coastal area around Beirut and its suburbs. Weather stations in Beirut recorded 50 mm of rainfall in a 25 minutes
5th-6th: More than 250000 customers were left without power in New England as the season's first Nor'easter rolled through the northeast U.S. Strong winds and heavy snow hit several areas, with inland Maine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire receiving more than 30 cm of snow. Maine felt the brunt of the storm as more than 230000 customers were affected at some point this weekend, the Central Maine Power reported. The highest snowfall total recorded was 50 cm in Carrabassett Valley, Maine. In Cape Cod, peak wind gusts reached more than 117 km/h.
5th-7th: Heavy rains triggered more flooding in Iran, further worsening the situation in eight provinces already affected by inundations in late November. 160 mm of rain fell in just a few hours in Dashestan in Bushehr Province - equivalent to two months' worth of rain - killing at least seven people. Other counties also badly affected were Deylam and Genaveh.
8th: Venice has been hit by high tides of up to 1.5 metres after its flood barrier system was not activated as a result of mistaken forecasts. Weather bulletins had predicted a high tide rising to 1.2 metres lower than the 1.3 metres level at which the 78 mobile barriers of the defensive system, called Mose, would usually be activated. By the time the water had entered the lagoon on Tuesday morning, completely flooding the narthex of St Mark’s Basilica, it was too late for the system to take effect.
8th-9th: More than 200 000 lightning strikes were recorded across Queensland's Mackay region from Tuesday afternoon, 8 December 2020, to 9 December, according to Ergon Energy, resulting in power outages and equipment damage.
15th: Australian authorities have issued evacuation warnings for low-lying towns in northern New South Wales (NSW) as storms batter the nation's east coast. On Tuesday, emergency officials said they had fielded about 150 calls for help in the past 24 hours. Huge swells pummelled the coasts of NSW and south-east Queensland on Monday, causing major erosion. An already depleted beach at Byron Bay - a popular holiday spot - had all but disappeared, locals said. Authorities said the storm had moved south on Tuesday, bringing the threat of flooding to inland NSW. Meteorologists say the system has already released an amount of rain similar to a cyclone - about 1000 mm over four days. Australia is currently experiencing a La Nina weather pattern, which typically brings more rainfall and tropical cyclones during the nation's summer.
17th: A powerful snowstorm swept through the north-eastern USA, breaking records in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and New York and affecting 60 million people. Parts of northern New York received three feet of snowfall, and New York City received all of last year's snow total in just this one storm. Weather officials warned of "dangerous, if not impossible travel conditions" as they struggled to plough icy roadways. Hundreds of car crashes were reported, with at least two fatalities. The city of Binghamton, New York, received 45 inches of snowfall, breaking its all-time record for the month of December. Parts of Pennsylvania reached 40 inches. The Williamsport Regional Airport broke its previous snowfall record, reporting 24.7 inches of snow. Boston also received more than nine inches of snow on Thursday, breaking the previous record for the date set in 2013. According to the FlightAware website, more than 1,800 flights were cancelled, and another 4,000 delayed. Some rail services have also been suspended across the north-east.
16th-18th: Rescuers are trying to free more than 1,000 vehicles which have been stranded on a highway for two days after a heavy snow storm struck Japan. Authorities have distributed food, fuel and blankets to the drivers on the Kanetsu expressway, which connects the capital Tokyo to Niigata, in the north. The snow, which began on Wednesday evening, caused multiple traffic jams along the road. It also left more than 10000 homes in the north and west without power. Officials have been using a combination of heavy machinery and physical labour to dig out the vehicles one by one, but around 1000 cars were still stranded on the road as of Friday noon. According to the meteorological agency, the heavy snow - said to be this year's most intense cold spell - is expected to continue through the weekend.
17th-19th: The death toll from a category five cyclone that tore through northern Fiji has risen to four, as emergency crews work to assess the full extent of the damage from one of the year's strongest storms. Tropical Cyclone Yasa was packing winds of up to 345 km/h when it struck the country's northern islands on Thursday night and Friday morning. With communication still cut off in parts of the country and storm surge warnings still in place, there are fears the death toll could rise. Emergency efforts are focused on Fiji's second-largest island, Vanua Levu, which bore the brunt of the cyclone. It weakened to a category one storm by Saturday afternoon, but was still a category three when it hit the Lau islands in the country's north-east overnight on Friday. There are reports of flooding and landslides across the islands. While the country's largest island, Viti Levu, was spared the worst of the winds, its main river Rewa experienced heavy flooding and the capital Suva was inundated with rain.
18th-19th: Tropical Depression Vicky, the first tropical cyclone to hit the Philippines in December, made its first landfall in the vicinity of Baganga, Davao Oriental on Friday afternoon. As of 4 p.m. local time Saturday, the eye of Vicky was situated 135 km east-southeast of Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, packing winds of 45 km/h near the centre and gusts of up to 55 km/h.
18th: A series of landslides have been reported in the town of Seyoisfjordur, Iceland, causing major damage to at least 10 houses and electrical poles. A red alert phase has been in effect in the area since 15 December, with fears that more houses would be lost in the slips, while residents nearby Eskifjordur had to be evacuated as well due to the hazards. The landslips occurred following days of heavy rain - meteorologists said the precipitation during 14-18 from December was the most recorded during a five-day period in the country. Around 700 people reside in the town, and some of them stayed with friends, relatives, or at hotels in nearby communities. Kristin Bjorg Olafsdottir, a climate specialist at the Icelandic Met Office told Iceland Monitor that up to 570 mm of rain fell in the town during the 14th-18th - the most recorded in a five-day period in Iceland. The average yearly precipitation in Reykjavik is 860 mm.
18th: A line of severe storms struck central Argentina, producing a massive sandstorm, powerful winds, and hail. Widespread power cuts and property damage were reported. In La Pampa, an enormous sandstorm caused extensive power cuts, water supply disruption, and a lot of damage, particularly in the Santa Rosa area. Powerful winds knocked down trees and destroyed stalls in the central square.
22nd: Flash flooding hit Rio de Janeiro in Brazil as further heavy rains struck the region, resulting in at least one fatality today. The flooding came just days after severe inundations and landslides hit Santa Catarina, leaving 12 people dead and nine others missing. Roads and streets turned into rivers as flash floods raged, washing away debris and vehicles. The municipalities of Duque de Caxias and Mage were among the worst-hit, especially the Carretero and Santo Antonio areas, according to local media. In Xerem, up to 224.2 mm of rain was recorded in a 24-hour period to 23 December.
27th: Storm Bella struck parts of north-western Europe, leaving more than 55000 households without electricity in its wake. More than 21000 homes lost access to power in the UK, around 34000 in the east and central France, and around 1500 in Ireland. In northwest Spain, Bella brought winds of up to 125 km/h and waves up to 10 m. A building in Aviles collapsed, damaging several vehicles parked in the area. No injuries were reported. More than a third of flights from France's main airport in northern Paris encountered delays due to the storm.
27th: A powerful storm hit Nunavut, Canada, bringing record wind gusts of up to 135 km/h and heavy snow. Meteorologists said it was unusual for such a storm to occur this late in December, affecting much of the territory. "It was like an all-day thing. The wind was so strong," Pangnirtung mayor Eric Lawlor said. "Many shacks and cabins are gone. Many, many snowmobile windshields are gone."
29th: An automatic weather station at Tsetsen-Uul in a valley in Mongolia recorded a provisional atmospheric pressure of 1094.3 mb at midnight GMT. The previous confirmed world record was 1089.4 mb on 30 December 2004 in Tosontsengel, also in Mongolia.
31st: A new North Pacific low-pressure record of 921 mb was set as a powerful extratropical storm hit Alaska. While the centre of the low crossed the Aleutian Islands, the nearest weather station Shemya island of the Alaska weather station network recorded 924.8 mb, breaking the previous Alaskan record of 926 mb set at Dutch Harbor on 25 October. When the system moved into the Bering Sea, it also set a new minimum central pressure of 921 mb, becoming the deepest storm in the Bering Sea on record. The last storm with so deep pressure were remnants of Super Typhoon Nuri.

World weather news, November

1st: Super typhoon Goni has killed four people in the Philippines after ferocious winds caused power outages and infrastructure damage. About 350,000 people were evacuated from its projected path, including in the capital, Manila, where the main international airport was ordered closed. Goni made two landfall in two places in the Bicol region, where four deaths were reported, said provincial Governor Al Francis Bichara, including one hit by a tree and a five-year-old washed away after a river overflowed. In Quezon, Governor Danilo Suarez said power supply was cut in 10 towns as Goni toppled trees. Between 19 million and 31 million people could be affected by the typhoon, including those in danger zones and in metropolitan Manila, the disaster management agency said. The storm hit in the early hours of the morning with sustained winds of 215 km/h and gusts of 290 km/h. It was moving west toward densely populated regions, including Manila, and rain-soaked provinces still recovering from a typhoon that hit a week ago and left at least 22 dead.
2nd: The city of Sanharo in Pernambuco, Brazil, has declared a state of emergency after heavy rains caused major flooding in several areas of the city today. According to the state's water and climate agency, 288.8 mm of rain was recorded in a 24-hour period, which was equivalent to almost half a year's average. Meteorologists said the amount of rain is unusual for the month of November, which is commonly a dry month. Around 300 people were left homeless after floods triggered by heavy rains hit Sanharo. This prompted the city government to declare a state of emergency and accommodated the displaced victims at gymnasiums and schools. In Petrolina, a portion of a hospital's roof collapsed due to strong winds and heavy rains.
3rd-13th: At least 150 people have been killed by landslides in Guatemala after Storm Eta's torrential rain and high winds battered the Central American country. Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei said around half the deaths were in a single town where a hillside collapse buried some 20 houses under thick mud. Eta made landfall in neighbouring Nicaragua as a hurricane on Tuesday (3rd). It was later downgraded to a tropical storm. Ongoing heavy rain has left rescue workers unable to reach one of the worst-affected areas, including the town of San Cristobal Verapaz, which is home to half of the reported casualties. Eta first hit Nicaragua as a Category Four hurricane with winds of 140 mph and torrential rains. It then weakened into a tropical depression as it moved into neighbouring Honduras and later Guatemala. In Nicaragua, tens of thousands of people were evacuated to shelters before the hurricane struck. On the country's north coast, two men were killed when a landslide buried the mine where they were working. Eta then made landfall in Cuba's Sancti Spíritus Province on the 8th and then made its third landfall on the Lower Matecumbe Key in the Florida Keys on the 9th. By 1235 UTC on the 11th, Eta strengthened into a hurricane again west of Florida and then made landfall near Cedar Key, Florida on the 12th. Eta weakened over land as it accelerated north-northeastwards, emerging over the Atlantic Ocean near the Florida/Georgia border. More than 10000 people sought refuge at shelters in Puerto Cabezas and surrounding villages. Eta knocked down power lines and trees while damaging roofs and causing flooding in Puerto Cabezas. Overall, at least 200 fatalities across Central America have been attributed to the storm. Eta bought heavy rainfall and gusty winds to the Cayman Islands and Cuba, the latter of which was already dealing overflowing rivers that prompted evacuations. Heavy rainfall and tropical-storm force winds were recorded across all of the Florida Keys and South Florida as well as the southern half of Central Florida, bringing widespread flooding to the region. Eta's second approach and landfall bought storm surge and gusty winds to the west coast of Central Florida as well as additional heavy rainfall to northern Florida.
5th: Major floods hit parts of southern Andalusia, Spain, resulting in damage, blocked roads, trapped residents, and a derailed train. The region registered 148.1 mm of rain in a 24 hour period, which was more than the average November rainfall of 100 mm.
6th-9th: Back-to-back cold fronts brought record temperatures and heavy snow to California, after months of hot weather and wildfires in the state. Single-day snowfall records were also broken in several areas in Nevada. In California, a total of 46 cm of snow engulfed Sierra-at-Tahoe ski resort over the weekend, followed by 25 cm (10 inches) at Sugar Bowl. Daytime temperatures plunged to 50F, with freeze warnings and frost advisories issued for some inland valleys overnight. On the 9th the temperature at Oakland Airport dipped to 38F, breaking the cold record for the day of 41F set in 2009. Gilroy shivered through a below-freezing 31F, beating the previous record of 34F set in 1986. Parts of Southern California have also started experiencing chilly temperatures after months of hot weather and wildfires.
7th-8th: A strong low-pressure system brought blizzard conditions, heavy snow and freezing rain to parts of the Canadian Prairies, shutting down roads in Saskatchewan and Alberta and setting new all-time November snow records. While heavy snow fell in western parts of Saskatchewan, its eastern regions experienced freezing rain. The town of Kindersley in Saskatchewan recorded 47.6 cm of snow on the 7th and 8th, setting a new 48-hour snowfall record. Kindersley recorded 11.6 cm on Saturday; and 35.8 cm on Sunday, breaking the previous 24-hour snowfall record of 21.3 cm set on 17 March 1974. Biggar and Leader have also broken November 2019 snow totals with 21.1 cm in Biggar in 48 hours - which is 6 cm) more than the entire November 2019 - and 23.1 cm in Leader. In November 2019, Leader recorded a total of 12.8 cm.
9th-10th: A state of emergency was declared in Napier, New Zealand, after up to 242.4 mm of rain triggered damaging floods, landslides, and power outages that affected more than 3000 homes on the 9th. The amount of rain that fell in a 12-hour period to Tuesday 10th, made for the city's wettest day since 1963 and the second-highest on record, while the rainfall between 0400 and 0500 UTC was the heaviest hour of rain in 25 years. According to the Civil Defense, the police had evacuated one side of Havelock Road. It also reported landslips on at least five roads, and 14 roads and streets were closed. Many schools also announced temporary closures.
10th-14th: At 0300 UTC on the 10th subtropical storm Theta was named, the first ever 29th named storm in an Atlantic hurricane season, breaking the record set in 2005. The effects of strong southwesterly shear and cooler waters began to take their toll on Theta and the tropical storm began to slowly weaken on the 11th. Convection continued to wax and wane around the centre as it fluctuated in intensity over the next two days, before the system began to weaken again early on the 14th.
13th-19th: Tropical depression 31 developed in the southern Caribbean on the 13th, tying 2005 for the most tropical depressions in one season. Within six hours the system strengthened into tropical storm Iota. Iota is the 13th hurricane of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season. Iota made landfall as a category four storm near the town of Puerto Cabezas on the 16th, where patients had to be evacuated from a makeshift hospital after its roof was ripped off. The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said Iota was now a category two storm, but warned it could bring life-threatening storm surges, catastrophic winds, flash flooding and landslides. Iota struck Nicaragua with sustained winds of nearly 155 mph, the NHC said. It strengthened at sea to a category five storm but it weakened as it made landfall. In Puerto Cabezas, also known as Bilwi, the storm damaged wooden homes, flooded streets and cut off electricity. Residents said the wind ripped away the roofs of houses "like they were made of cardboard". By the 19th at least 30 people had lost their lives in Nicaragua, Honduras, Colombia, Panama and El Salvador. Tens of thousands were forced to flee their homes as Hurricane Iota hit Nicaragua and neighbouring countries. Iota is the strongest Atlantic hurricane of the year and only the second November hurricane to reach category five - the last was in 1932.
14th-16th: Severe storms accompanied by high winds led to widespread power outages in the Midwest and the northeastern U.S. over the weekend, affecting more than 800000 customers. Property damage was also reported, as well as flooding along the shores of the Great Lakes into the 16th. A deepening area of low pressure brought winds of up to 76 mph with a large area of strong wind gusts then affecting Missouri, Indiana, and Ohio. Strong winds knocked down trees, caused property damage, and triggered lakeshore flooding across the Great Lakes, which persisted through Monday. The National Weather Service Detroit has issued a high wind warning for the Detroit area and much of Michigan.
15th: A powerful storm hit Vietnam, injuring at least five people as winds of 90 km/h uprooted trees and damaged buildings. Storm Vamco hit the Philippines earlier this week, with rescuers urgently searching for thousands of people trapped after catastrophic floods. Thousands in Vietnam were told to evacuate on Saturday and airports and beaches closed. The storm weakened from Typhoon strength as it travelled westwards from the Philippines but still caused serious destruction in Vietnam. In the Philippines, International Red Cross rescue teams are searching floodwaters with torches in the Cayagan valley in the island of Luzon where towns and villages are submerged. Some of the thousands of people stranded on rooftops have been rescued. The death toll has risen to at least 67 and dozens remain missing after Vamco hit on Wednesday, just one week after Goni, the most powerful typhoon seen in the country in seven years.
19th: A snowstorm has battered parts of the Russian Far-East, causing power cuts, transport chaos and school closures. The storm hit the Primorsky region. In the port city of Vladivostok winds brought down frozen trees and ice-laden power lines. A state of emergency has been declared across the region. Rescue services and the army are scrambling to deal with the fallout. At least 150,000 homes have been left without electricity. Wires and trees were encrusted in ice up to 0.4 inches thick, an occurrence not seen in 30 years. Local media said some hospitals in Vladivostok, including one treating coronavirus patients, had to use back-up generators for electricity. Meanwhile, there were long delays for public transport and flights as freezing conditions hampered travel.
20th: Severe weather, including tornadoes, strong winds, and heavy rains pounded the northern parts of the North Cyprus, causing widespread damage. Power lines, rooftops and trees were torn apart, and three people sustained injuries due to falling debris. Coastal settlements of Ozankoy, Catalkoy and Karsiyaka were particularly affected by strong winds that also damaged power grids.
20th-22nd: Dozens of people were rescued in several parts of Israel after exceptionally heavy rains triggered severe flooding. Up to 230 mm of rain fell in some parts of the country in just 24 hours, surpassing the average for the month of November of 70 mm. These rains came after a completely dry October.
24th: A late-evening tornado touched down in Arlington, Dallas-Forth Worth Metropolitan Area (USA), leaving a trail of damage to buildings and vehicles. The National Weather Service (NWS) said their survey team found EF-2 damage in south Arlington. This is the first significant November tornado to strike in North Texas since 1987, according to NWS. On 15 November 1987, an F3 tornado hit Palestine in Anderson County, killing 10 people and injuring 160.
25th: Cyclone Nivar killed three people and injured three more after making landfall in southern India, where torrential rainfall lashed coastal areas of Tamil Nadu. Officials said it reached wind speed of more than 120 km/h, but then weakened into a severe cyclonic storm. They said all essential services have now been restored. Tens of thousands of people from low lying areas had been evacuated ahead of its landfall. Heavy wind had already felled trees and strong rains flooded parts of Tamil Nadu and the capital, Chennai.
27th-28th: At least three people have been killed on the Italian island of Sardinia after flooding caused by heavy rains. Footage posted on social media shows rivers of mud flowing through the town of Bitti in Nuoro province. Italian media say the three who have died there include an older man who drowned at home and a man killed in his vehicle. Strong winds and rain afflicted the island, cutting off power and forcing some people to evacuate.
29th: Sydney has reported its hottest November night on record, with the official start of summer still days away. The city recorded a minimum overnight temperature of 25.4C and then hit 40C during the daytime on Sunday. Dozens of bush fires are already burning in New South Wales with hotter weather predicted on Tuesday. The states of Victoria and South Australia also reported soaring heat over the weekend. Sydney's record temperature was recorded at Observatory Hill in the Central Business District. By 0430 h the temperature had risen back up to 30C. The previous minimum temperature record at Observatory Hill was 24.8C in 1967.
30th: Heavy rains have fallen over the past few days in Kuwait. Al Sabriya received the highest amount of rain - around 134 mm or about six times the average rain for the month of November. The heavy rains have been affecting the country from Jahra to Salwa, clogging manholes and forcing authorities to activate an emergency plan. Homes, schools, and hospitals were damaged during the storm, while many motorists had to brave the flooded roads.

World weather news, October

2nd: Devastating wildfires have broken out across across Paraguay, as drought and record high temperatures continue to exacerbate blazes across South America. A total of 5,231 individual wildfires broke out across the country on 1 October up 3,000 on the previous day. Most of were concentrated in the arid Chaco region in the west of the country, but thick yellow smoke had reached as far as the capital, Asuncion. Paraguay's outbreak came as the southern hemisphere heads into summer and neighbouring countries also face unprecedented wildfires. The Brazilian Amazon is recording its worst blazes in a decade, with numbers up 61% on the widely reported fires of last year, and separate fires in the southern Pantanal region. Argentina has also seen record numbers of fires devastate the wetlands along the Parana River, with multiple areas of the country continuing to experience aggressive blazes. One of the country's worst droughts of recent decades has seen the River Paraguay one of its main waterways drop to 50-year lows. Meanwhile, the country is going through a heatwave, registering a record high temperature of 45.5C last Saturday.
2nd: Nice, France: Fierce winds drove heavy rain across large swathes of France, knocking out electricity for tens of thousands of homes along the western Atlantic coast and causing destructive flooding in the southeast, officials said. An autumn storm baptised Alex buffeted Brittany overnight, with wind gusts reaching 186 km/h at Belle-Ile-en-Mer, an island off the coast near Nantes. Le Talut has reported 162 km/h with Beg Melen recording 158 km/h. Emergency services have been mobilized to clear fallen trees and downed power lines, although no deaths have been reported in the area, authorities said. But many schools and parks have been closed, rail services have been cut off and access to the coast prohibited. In the southeast, a road bridge was destroyed as muddy waters churned through a valley near Saint-Martin-Vesubie, north of Nice near the Italian border, Eric Ciotti, an MP for the Alpes-Maritimes region, told AFP. "The service station was washed away, houses were severely damaged, and the stadium and the cemetery have been flooded" after some 235 mm of rain was dumped in just a few hours, Ciotti said. Beaches in Nice and other coastal cities were closed, and authorities asked people to stay at home and refrain from using their cars unless in case of emergency.
4th: At least two people have died and up to 20 are still missing after a powerful storm hit south-eastern France and north-western Italy. Named Alex, the storm brought fierce winds and torrential rain. A number of villages north of Nice in France suffered serious damage from floods and landslides, with roads, bridges and homes destroyed. In north-western Italy, flooding was described as "historic". A section of a bridge over the Sesia river collapsed. Meteo-France said 450 mm of rain fell in some areas over 24 hours - the equivalent of nearly four months at this time of year. The southern Alps region appeared the worst hit, with serious damage in the Roya, Tinee, Esteron and Vesubie valleys. The villages of Saint-Martin-Vesubie and Rimplas were cut off, with roads inaccessible. The two fatalities were a 53-year-old firefighter in the Aosta Valley who died during a rescue operation, and a 36-year-old man whose car was swept into a river in the Piedmont region. A section of a key bridge over the Sesia river in Piedmont's Vercelli province collapsed shortly after it had been reopened on Saturday afternoon. In the rest of Piedmont, several villages were cut off after the rains made roads impassable. The situation there was described as "extremely critical" by officials. Piedmont President Alberto Cirio told La Stampa that 630 mm of rain had fallen in 24 hours, an amount "unheard of since 1954". The storm also affected the north-western regions of Lombardy and Liguria. The Roja river in Ventimiglia has also flooded. Flood alerts remain for sections of the Po river which have swollen by 3 m in 24 hours.
5th-6th: Rounds of heavy rain hit parts of northern and central Vietnam, causing floods and landslides in which at least 8 people lost their lives or are considered missing. The northern province of Lao Cai, home to the resort town of Sa Pa, registered 400 mm of rain in just 9 hours, triggering flash floods in which one three-year-old girl lost its life. This is considered the heaviest October rain in 63 years. Floods have also destroyed tens of hectares of farmland and gardens, and damaged 35 houses. In 24 hours to October 7, Hong Linh in Quang Tri Province registered 435 mm of rain.
7th: The number of fatalities caused by heavy rain and strong winds produced by Storm Alex has risen to 15 on October 7, with 21 people still missing. The storm caused very strong winds and dropped exceptionally heavy rains, with some regions receiving their yearly average in less than 24 hours.
7th: A powerful thunderstorm hit New York's Capital District, leaving more than 200,000 customers without power and killing at least two people. The storm was described as an "unusual event" with winds of 68 mph - the highest daily gust for the month of October, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) Albany. According to National Grid spokeswoman Virginia Limmiatis, the region has not experienced outages this widespread in more than a decade.
8th: Northern Territory's capital Darwin was hit by up to 177 mm of rainfall, the city's highest daily rainfall for October since record-keeping began in 1941, the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) confirmed. The agency added that the rain came from multiple lines of storms consistent with La Nina conditions. Northern Territory had a flying start to the west season as rainfall in Darwin was 17 times greater than what fell during the same time in 2019. Marrara in north Darwin recorded 177 mm of rain on Thursday morning, Royal Darwin Hospital saw 137 mm, while Darwin airport received 113 mm. The previous record for the highest October daily rainfall was 95.5 mm set in 1969. Before modern data-keeping started in 1941, the Darwin Post Office registered 117 mm of rain in 1880.
9th: Hurricane Delta has made landfall in the US state of Louisiana, which is still recovering from the damage caused by a previous hurricane in August. This is the 10th named storm to make US landfall so far this year, breaking a record that has stood since 1916. Delta hit Creole, Louisiana as a Category 2 hurricane at 1800 h local time , with winds of 100 mph. It weakened to a Category 1 as it moved inland, causing widespread power cuts. The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) also warned of an eight-foot-high "life-threatening storm surge" across the Louisiana coast, caused by high winds from Delta. The hurricane first made landfall near Puerto Morelos on Mexico's Caribbean coast on Wednesday, forcing thousands of tourists and residents to move into shelters for safety. Having crossed the Gulf of Mexico, Delta is now moving across central and north-eastern Louisiana, and will enter northern Mississippi and the Tennessee Valley on Saturday. Many people left their homes to try to get out of the storm's path. Parts of the state were already severely storm-damaged from the more powerful Category 4 Hurricane Laura, which ripped through homes and uprooted trees when it hit on 20 August. More than 6,000 people are still displaced and living in temporary accommodation, such as hotels, after their homes were destroyed. Streets in cities such as Lake Charles, which was particularly badly-hit by Hurricane Laura, remain littered with debris.
12th: Heavy rains triggered flash floods and landslides in Garut District of West Java, Indonesia. Intense downpours began on Sunday 11th, and continued into Monday morning. This resulted in the overflow of the Cipalebuh and Cikaso rivers, sending floodwaters to surrounding houses, More than 900 houses were inundated, forcing around 800 families to evacuate. No casualties were reported, Imrania added. The affected districts were Cikelet, CIbalong, Peundeuy, Singjaya, Banjarawangi, and Pameungpeuk, which was hit the worst.
16th: Heavy rains affecting parts of India, including Telangana, Maharashtra, and Karnataka this week claimed the lives of at least 77 people by today. Meteorologists described the rains as rare and unseasonal. At least 50 people have died in Telangana, many of them in the capital Hyderabad, since Tuesday night, when a deep depression brought unprecedented rains and floods. According to the India Meteorological Office (IMD), Ghatkesar on the city outskirts received record rainfall of 322 mm from Tuesday night to Wednesday morning. IMD said Hyderabad has last seen such heavy October rains in 1891. 2020 is now the wettest year on record for Telangana, with 400% more than normal annual rainfall. Hyderabad itself has received 404% excess rainfall.
18th-19th: A winter storm hit parts of the northern U.S., breaking scores of snowfall records in Montana, Iowa, and Minnesota, where more than 1100 road accidents were reported due to heavy snow. Montana was the hardest hit, with up to 35 cm of snow through the 19th, setting a number of October snowfall records. This included the heaviest daily October snowfall of 20.8 cm on the 18th and the greatest October snow depth of 25 cm on the 19th, breaking the previous record set in 2019; earliest-in-season snow depth. Two rounds of snow covered parts of Iowa. On Sunday, Des Moines recorded its second earliest snow on record (since 1885). On Monday, central and eastern Iowa registered up to 23 cm of snow - the snowiest October day on record in Ankeny.
21st: Extensive flooding has left about 150000 families affected and at least 31 people dead across Cambodia, as heavy rains have been pounding much of the country since earlier this month. Around 13000 families have been displaced and more than 73000 houses flooded; wide swaths of agricultural land have been ravaged.
21st: Flooding and waterspout outbreak hit southern Greece after heavy rains struck the islands. Several people were trapped in floodwaters but were successfully rescued. No injuries were reported. According to the World Meteorological Organization, Crete's capital Heraklion recorded 138.1 mm of rain in a 24-hour period, while Karpathos in the Dodecanese registered 244 mm.
25th-26th: Widespread heavy snow falling across the central Rockies and central Plains (USA) is forecast to shift further south and develop into another major winter storm for the southern High Plains, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). The station in Potomac, Montana, recorded -33C on Sunday morning (25th), the lowest temperature at an official climate site in the U.S. this early in the season.
27th: Libya's capital Tripoli was hit by a sudden storm which generated exceptionally massive hail measuring more than 20 cm in diameter. Reports indicate that the hail could be one of the largest on record, along with the 2010 Dakota storm and the 2018 Argentina hail. Local reports said the sudden storm resulted in severe damage to properties as many trees were knocked down and hailstones struck several vehicles. The Libyan Port and Shipping Authority confirmed that the port of Tripoli sustained damage, including fallen containers in the squares and port basin.
28th-29th: Rescue teams in Vietnam have used heavy machinery to search for survivors buried under landslides triggered by torrential rains from Typhoon Molave, one of the strongest typhoons to hit the region for decades, the government said. The landslides, which hit remote areas in the central province of Quang Nam, have killed at least 15 and 38 people are missing with rescue efforts hampered by bad weather at the tail end of the storm, the government said.
29th: A moderate to strong La Nina weather event has developed in the Pacific Ocean, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The naturally occurring phenomenon results in the large scale cooling of ocean surface temperature, This La Nina, which is set to last through the first quarter of 2021, will likely have a cooling effect on global temperatures. But it won't prevent 2020 from being one of the warmest years on record.
29th: Hurricane Zeta is battering southeastern Louisiana and Mississippi with high winds, heavy rain and a life-threatening storm surge, according to the National Hurricane Center. The Category 2 storm made landfall with winds of 110 mph, though it had weakened to a Category 1 storm with 90 mph winds as of 9 p.m. ET, the hurricane center said. Zeta is moving quickly at 25 mph as it heads into southeastern Mississippi and that speed is expected to increase Wednesday evening. The eye of the storm passed over New Orleans at roughly 7:30 p.m., according to CNN crews in the city. Winds were beginning to pick back up after the eye's passing, according to a tweet from the New Orleans government. A weather station in Golden Meadow reported a wind gust of 110 mph, while the New Orleans Lakefront Airport has seen winds gusting more than 50 mph.

World weather news, September

3rd: A peninsula that typically sees one typhoon per year might face three landfalling storms in two weeks. One week after Typhoon Bavi brought fierce winds and rain to North and South Korea, Typhoon Maysak ploughed into South Korea as a category 2 storm. Shortly before landfall, in the early hours of September 3, the U.S. Joint Typhoon Warning Center reported sustained winds of 170 km/h as the eye of the storm was southwest of Busan, South Korea's second-largest city. It is believed to be just the sixth typhoon of category 2 strength or higher to hit the Korean Peninsula since 1951. Maysak reached typhoon strength on 29 August and intensified to become the strongest typhoon so far in the 2020 Western Pacific season. At peak intensity on September 1, Maysak's winds measured 230 km/h, a category 4 storm. The typhoon battered Okinawa, the Ryukyu Islands, and Jeju Island before moving ashore on the Korean Peninsula. Forecasters called for widespread rainfall of 100 to 200 mm. That rain will fall upon ground that has been soaked by South Korea's second-wettest monsoon season on record and by rains from Typhoon Bavi.
3rd: A cargo ship carrying 43 crew members and nearly 6000 cattle sank off the coast of Japan after reportedly losing an engine in rough seas caused by Typhoon Maysak, a survivor has said. Strong winds and torrential rain from the typhoon had initially hampered the search operation, but the weather has improved.
3rd: Record-high temperatures are expected across California for the holiday weekend, increasing fire risk and exacerbating poor air quality for residents yearning to go outside because of the pandemic but forced indoors because of smoke from nearby fires. As fires continue to burn throughout the state, the National Weather Service declared excessive heat watches in the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento starting on Saturday and lasting until Monday. In Los Angeles, where temperatures of 100F to 115F were expected away from the beaches, dangerous heat was declared.
5th: Some 190000 people across Chad have been affected by severe flooding triggered by record downpours since early August. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), nearly 120000 of these victims have been displaced - much of the affected were in the capital city of N'Djamena, where 10 people have died across seven departments due to flash flood-related incidents. Flooding also struck other parts of the country, including the Lac Province. This year, the Lake Region has had its highest rainfall in almost 30 years with 400 mm having fallen so far.
7th: Residents of Narok in Kenya, woke up to a blanket of snow and a trail of destruction today, following a heavy hailstorm that struck the town overnight. Wide swaths of crops were severely damaged, leaving farmers devastated as they estimate huge losses. The storm, accompanied by low temperatures, began Sunday night, September 6, engulfing streets and roads with ice. According to Narok County Meteorology director Peter Runanu, the hailstones measured around 2 to 5 cm in diameter. "It is true that lower parts of Mau such as Enaibelbel, Olokurto, and Kisiriri as well as the upper Mau of Melili ward witnessed the hailstorms. This happened as the cloud billow that covers sides of Mau all the way to Nyandarua fell causing the storm." Locals, as well as farmers, have started counting losses after the storm left a path of destruction, particularly destroying wheat, potatoes, and maize crops.
7th-8th: Heavy rains triggered flash floods in Algeria's northern provinces, killing at least one person and leaving more than 800 homes inundated. A number of road accidents were also reported, causing major traffic disruption in at least five municipalities. The flooding came as torrential rains hit the north, with Baraki recording 63 mm of rain in a 24-hour period.
7th-9th: An unusual early-September snowstorm dumped snow from Montana to New Mexico, a record early-in-season snow in several locations roughly two weeks before summer officially ended. At least nine locations had their earliest snowfall on record from this system, including Casper, Wyoming (2.3 inches of snow the 7th, 5.2 inches the 8th, leapfrogging by one day their previous record earliest measurable snow from 8 September 1962) and Pueblo, Colorado (which saw its record-earliest snowfall on the morning of the 9th, a record that had stood since 1898). Denver International Airport picked up 1 inch of snowfall from this system. The last time snow fell in Denver in September was on 21 September 1994. The snow in Denver also came just days after the city hit an all-time September record high of 101F on the 5th. In the Black Hills of South Dakota, 10 to 15 inches of snow was reported from this storm. Parts of the high country of southern and central Colorado picked up 12 to 16 inches of snow. The heaviest total from this system was 17 inches just south of Casper, Wyoming. On the 8th Denver tied and Rapid City, South Dakota, broke their record earliest freezes. The September 8 "high" temperature in Grand Island, Nebraska (52F), was the coldest daily high so early in the season, topping a record that had stood since 9 September 1898.
10th: About 200,000 people remain homeless as of today, after severe floods struck the Far North Region of Cameroon. At least five fatalities have been reported, livestock and crops have been affected, and thousands of houses have been damaged or destroyed. Flooding over the past week has swept away livestock and damaged plantations. An embankment along the Logone River has also been washed away. Many bridges have collapsed, isolating some residents.
5th-11th: At least six people lost their lives in deadly flooding after heavy rains fell for six days across Tunisia. Numerous regions in the country were hit by severe weather, from north to the east. Heavy rains began around the 5th, drenching Kairouan with 88.9 mm of rain in 24 hours. According to the civil protection agency, the affected governorates were Monastir, Jendouba, Mahdia, Sidi Bouzid, and Tunis. Sidi Bouzid registered 58 mm, Monastir 47.8 mm and Mahdia 44.4 mm during the same period. In four separate days between September 5 to 11, Mahdia recorded more than 40 mm of rain in 24 hours. Flooding struck several districts of the capital Tunis on September 10. Some areas were submerged in 1 m floods, leaving roads impassable. Floodwaters caused damage to homes, market stalls, and a hospital.
12th: Heavy rains triggered flash flooding in Praia, Cabo Verde, resulting in property damage in several districts and one casualty. The city recorded 80 mm of rain in a 24-hour period, which is nearly three times its average rain for the month of September. Flooding hit Praia and other parts of the Santiago Island, blocking major roads. The government reported damage in several districts, including Achada Mato, Fonton, Jamaica, and Sao Paulo, particularly to farmlands, cars, buildings, and bridges.
15th: At least 42 people lost their lives in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, India, after getting struck by lightning today. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) warned of further rains in most parts of the country over the next three days. Lightning strikes killed 29 people and injured 11 others in various districts across Bihar, while 13 deaths were reported in Uttar Pradesh, bringing the toll to 42, according to media.
16th: Hurricane Sally has brought "historic and catastrophic flooding" to the southern US after making landfall. The storm's sluggish speed, roughly 5 mph, increases its capacity for destruction, pummelling coastal states with heavy rain. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) reported flooding from Tallahassee, Florida to Mobile Bay in Alabama. It also warned of a "life-threatening" storm surge and river flooding inland as far as Georgia. Hurricane Sally is one of several storms in the Atlantic Ocean, with officials running out of letters to name the hurricanes as they near the end of their annual alphabetic list. Alabama, Florida and Mississippi have all declared states of emergency. Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards, whose state is still recovering from Hurricane Laura last month, tweeted on Tuesday that resident should all have a "game plan in place for whatever the rest of hurricane season has in store". The NHC has downgraded the storm from a Category 2 hurricane to a Category 1, but cautioned that the threat from heavy rain and "catastrophic" flooding remained. A hurricane advisory is currently in place from the Alabama and Mississippi border to northwestern Florida. "Sally has a characteristic that isn't often seen, and that's a slow forward speed and that's going to exacerbate the flooding," NHC deputy director Ed Rappaport said. Rain appeared to fall sideways in Alabama, which led to submerged roads as the storm inched ashore. Other areas along the coast were also affected, with beaches and highways swamped in Mississippi and low-lying properties in Louisiana covered by the rising waters. According to the website poweroutage.us, more than 500,000 homes and businesses in Alabama and Florida had reported power cuts by Wednesday morning.
16th: Smoke from the wildfires ravaging much of the US West Coast has spread to the east of the country, casting a haze over New York and Washington DC. The blazes have burned vast areas of land and killed at least 36 people since early August. They have also caused some of the most unhealthy air on the planet in several western states. Scientists said the smoke on the East Coast was so high that it would not impact air quality. Satellite images showed the smoke being carried to the East Coast by the jet stream. The National Weather Service in New York said smoke passing over the state was 25,000 ft high on Tuesday.
16th-17th: A powerful autumn storm named Aila swept through Finland's central and southwestern regions late Wednesday into Thursday, bringing winds of up to 125 km/h, high waves up to 5.8 m, and heavy rains up to 60 mm, mainly in Kajaani - equivalent to the area's average rain for the whole month. Ferry traffic was disrupted on the northern part of the Baltic Sea, material damage was reported, and more than 90 000 households were left without electricity. The storm began battering Finland's west coast late on Wednesday, toppling down trees and damaging properties. More than 90,000 homes were left without power.
18th: Storm Sally has brought heavy rain and flooding to the Carolinas and Georgia, as it continues its path of destruction north from the US Gulf Coast. Sally has now weakened to a post-tropical cyclone, but meteorologists warn that tornadoes are still possible. Besides the fatality reported in Orange Beach, Alabama, one person is also missing from the small coastal city in south-west Alabama. Pensacola, Florida, 50 km east of Orange Beach, was also badly hit, with a loose barge bringing down part of the city's Bay Bridge. Downtown Pensacola was hit with up to 5ft of flooding and saw the highest storm surge on record. The storm brought "four months of rain in four hours" to the city, Pensacola fire chief Ginny Cranor told CNN. In Gulf Shores, Alabama - near where Sally first made landfall as a hurricane on Wednesday - the storm sheared off the face of a beachside apartment complex. And 80 km north-west in Mobile, Alabama, the large steeple of El-Bethel Primitive Baptist Church toppled after the storm.
18th: The National Hurricane Center have just initiated advisories on Subtropical Storm Alpha, located just off the coast of Portugal. This is only the second time on record that the Greek alphabet has been used, with 2005 the only other year. In 2005, Alpha was named much later on 22 October (although a post-season analysis revealed an earlier storm had been missed, so Alpha in 2005 should have been Beta).
18th-20th: Three people have been confirmed dead and two are missing after a hurricane-like storm swept across Greece. Hundreds of people were trapped in flooded buildings as Cyclone Ianos, known as a "medicane" (Mediterranean hurricane), battered areas north of Athens. Train services linking the north and south of the country have been cut. Footage on social media showed huge waves lashing the beaches on the Ionian islands of Kefalonia and Zakynthos on Friday as the storm headed in. Flights and ferry services were cancelled and tourists were advised to stay indoors. As Ianos churned eastwards overnight Friday/Saturday, the city of Karditsa north of Athens was lashed by winds of up to 120 km/h that brought down trees and power lines and triggered landslides. Medicanes - tropical-like cyclones - have only been categorised by meteorologists in the past 40 years, according to Kostas Lagouvardos, an expert at the Athens Observatory. "Mediterranean cyclones or hurricanes have tropical characteristics like those in the Atlantic, but they often have a smaller volume and are less intense," he told AFP news agency.
19th: At least two people are missing after torrential rains triggered flash flooding in several departments of southern France. Valleraugue commune in Gard Department recorded up to 468 mm of rain in just a 6-hour period, which is over six times the average rainfall for September of 75 mm - the worst fall since 1900. Meteo France reported violent storms in the foothills of the Cevennes mountains on Saturday, with the worst affected departments Gard, Lozere, and Herault. In a six-hour period, Vigan recorded 196 mm of rain, Saumane 175 mm, and an exceptional 468 mm in Valleraugue, including 361 mm in three hours.
24th-26th: Severe weather affecting southeastern Europe resulted in a significant drop in temperatures, strong winds, hail and high elevation snow, very heavy rain, floods, landslides, and dozens of waterspouts, of which some turned into damaging tornadoes. In Italy, at least 5 people lost their lives; seven regions were on Orange alert - Lombardy, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Tuscany, Lazio, Campania, Basilicata, and Sardinia. Across the country, at least three landfalling waterspouts were reported on the 26th - in Genoa, Salerno, and Rosignano. In the city of Salerno, south of Napoli, locals recorded a giant waterspout coming ashore, uprooting trees and causing damage to vehicles and buildings. At least 8 people were injured after a tornado hit Rosignano, Toskana. Numerous waterspouts were spotted over the northern Adriatic Sea, from northern Italy to Umag, Pula, and Rijeka, Croatia.
27th: A rapidly intensifying severe weather system brought thick snow and wind gusts of over 100 km/h to parts of New Zealand, resulting in closed roads and dozens of flight cancelations. Met Service described the storm as "the worst of the season." In Queenstown, most flights in and out were canceled as heavy snow blanketed roads. Flurries also fell at sea level in several areas, such as Wanaka, Te Anau, and Dunedin. Snow also engulfed Oban beach on Stewart Island. Multiple weather warnings and watches were posted for the bottom half of South Island and the capital city of Wellington. The storm was the result of a low-pressure system moving up New Zealand from Antarctica.
26th-28th: Extremely heavy rainfall hit the city of Rangpur, Bangladesh over the weekend, paralyzing normal life across the city. In just 12 hours to 1000 LT on the 27th, the district of Rangpur was hit by a record 433 mm of rain. According to Rangpur Met Office, this is a record rainfall in the last 60 years. Most of the district was under the water Saturday to Monday, September 28, including croplands, roads, and houses in at least 60 wards, leaving 100,000 people stranded. 500,000 people were under knee to waist-deep water after the district's water drainage system collapsed, with firefighters rescuing them since Sunday morning.

World weather news, August

2nd: Tropical Storm Isaias is moving along Florida's east coast, bringing strong winds and rain to the US state. Isaias, the ninth named storm of 2020, was downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm after battering the Turks and Caicos Islands and the Bahamas. It caused the deaths of two people in the Caribbean. Early bands of heavy rain lashed the state's Atlantic coast early on Sunday morning. The storm is now moving slowly offshore along the eastern coast, with winds gusting up to 105 km/h. Thousands of power cuts have already been reported in Florida. Mr De Santis told residents to have a week's supply of food, water and medicine prepared. People in affected areas were advised to stay indoors, or to evacuate if living in mobile homes.
4th: Hurricane Isaias has come ashore in North Carolina, crossing the coast 40 miles south-west of Wilmington. It made landfall at 0310 GMT today with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. Isaias was downgraded to a tropical storm after hitting islands in the Caribbean, but was recategorised as a category-one hurricane on Monday.
7th: Italian authorities have evacuated about 75 people, mostly tourists, from an Alpine valley as huge blocks of ice threaten to crash down from a glacier. Planpincieux glacier, in the Mont Blanc massif, has weakened because of intense summer heat alternating with night-time cold. It lies above Val Ferret valley, near Courmayeur ski resort. A local environmental risk expert said the fragile ice could fall at any time. The threatening glacier section is about the size of Milan cathedral.
8th: A second heatwave has hit Europe in the space of a week and experts have warned that temperatures will continue to rise across the continent in the years ahead. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) says the heat has been caused by a stream of hot air blown across Europe from North Africa. Laura Paterson, a WMO meteorologist, said: "At the moment, there is extreme heat developing across large parts of Western Europe and this is related to a buckling of the jet stream. Across the eastern Atlantic, the jet stream is diving south and then coming further north again and that's dragging very warm, very hot air up from close to northern Africa, up northwards, across Spain, across France and heading into parts of the UK." France has also been sweltering through a heatwave since Thursday, with temperatures pushing towards 40C in several areas. In SW France, Brive-la-Gaillarde broke its own record with temperatures of 40.8C on Friday as did Cognac with 39.8C while Nantes posted a new all-time record of 39.6C.
9th: At least five people have been killed in flooding caused by thunderstorms and torrential rains on the Greek island of Evia. Officials said victims included an eight-month-old baby and two people in their 80s. Rescuers found their bodies in houses in the village of Politika. Search efforts are continuing for two other people reported missing.
10th: A devastating derecho ripped through several Midwest (USA) states, leaving a path of destruction, more than 1.5 million customers without power, and more than 400000 hectares of destroyed or damaged crops. Northern Illinois University meteorology professor Victor Gensini described the event as one of the worst weather events of 2020 in the United States. The storm ripped through the heart of the Corn Belt - a region of the Midwestern United States that has dominated corn production in the country since the 1850s, with winds gusts up to 180 km/h, causing huge economic impact which is expected to be widespread across the farming community.
13th: Tropical Storm Josephine became the earliest-forming J-named storm in the Atlantic basin. The previous earliest J-named storm was Tropical Storm Jose in 2005.
16th: What could be the highest temperature ever reliably recorded on Earth - 130F (54.4C) - may have been reached in Death Valley National Park, California. The recording is being verified by the US National Weather Service. It comes amid a heatwave on the US's west coast, where temperatures are forecast to rise further this week. The scorching conditions have led to two days of blackouts in California, after a power plant malfunctioned on Saturday. Sunday's reading was recorded in Furnace Creek in Death Valley. Before this, the hottest temperature reliably recorded on Earth was 129.2F (54C) - also in Death Valley in 2013.
17th: The UK's wheat harvest is likely to be down markedly this year, according to the National Farmers' Union, capping a tumultuous year for British farming after consecutive seasons of extreme weather. Yields could be down by about a third, with the worst harvest since the 1980s predicted. Good growing conditions over the summer, when about half the wheat harvest was brought in across the country, ended for many regions in the past week with severe thunderstorms following the mini-heatwave, which saw the longest period of temperatures over 34C since comparable records began in 1961. But the problems with the harvest started at the beginning of the year. While this spring was the sunniest since comparable measurements began in 1929, and substantially drier than usual, it followed the wettest February ever recorded.
20th: Persistent heavy monsoon rains hit Pakistan's Punjab Province overnight into today, leaving at least 24 people dead and 18 hurt. In Lahore, more than 200 mm of rain fell in 24 hours, which is more than the average August rainfall of 164 mm. Torrential rains left several houses damaged or destroyed as many homes in rural Pakistan are made of sun-baked mud and flimsy cinder block construction.
20th: At least three people lost their lives while around 1500 were displaced by severe flooding in Chad's capital N'Djamena, which began today. Floods struck after several hours of heavy rains and were worsened by poor drainage system in the city. Around 230 houses were destroyed while 100 others were damaged in the Dembe quartier in the 7th arrondissement, displacing 1500 people from 327 families. Three people died in flood-related incidents.
22nd: Heavy rainfall caused destructive flooding in NE Turkey's Giresun Province, leaving huge infrastructural damage, at least 4 people dead and 11 missing. Officials said heavy rains in the district of Dereli started at 1500 LT, with 137 mm accumulating before the end of the day. The rains caused the Aksu Creek, which runs through the district's centre, to overflow, turning roads into raging rivers, sweeping away vehicles, and destroying buildings. Roads to 118 villages in Giresun are closed.
23rd: At least 12 people have been killed as two storms tore through the Caribbean on Sunday. Hurricane Marco and Tropical Storm Laura brought high winds and rough seas leaving at least nine people dead in Haiti and another three in the Dominican Republic. Heavy rains have also battered Cuba and the US territory of Puerto Rico. Marco is expected to make landfall in the US state of Louisiana on Monday, with Laura hitting Texas by Thursday.
23rd: A violent storm struck Italy's northern region, bringing hail, floods, strong winds, and a tornado. In a statement on Monday, August 24, the National Confederation of Farmers (Coldiretti) said the severe weather caused "millions of euros in damages." On the same day, a state of emergency has been declared in several provinces, with authorities saying the consequences were "devastating." The severe storm struck Verona on Sunday afternoon, causing waterlogging and road blockage. Strong winds of up to 80 km/h caused considerable damage to homes and uprooted hundreds of trees.
26th: Wildfires are raging across Northern California, which were sparked by dry lightning during a heatwave. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced and 1.5million acres of land has been burnt. Two major wildfires are being tackled by 14,000 firefighters, according to Cal Fire, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
27th: Hurricane Laura has struck the US state of Louisiana, causing flash floods, severe damage to buildings and power cuts to more than half a million homes. By Friday evening 14 people had been killed by the effects of the hurricane, most by falling trees. It is one of the strongest to ever hit the US Gulf Coast, striking at category four with winds up to 150 mph. Laura's storm surge has not reached the levels feared but is still considered life-threatening, and could spread 40 miles inland. Half a million residents had been told to leave parts of Texas and Louisiana. More than half a million homes in Louisiana were reported to be without power Laura and another storm, Marco, earlier swept across the Caribbean, killing 24 people. Hurricane Laura made landfall shortly after midnight local time (0500 GMT) near the district of Cameron, in Louisiana. It tracked north, just east of the Texas-Louisiana border. Four hours later it had been downgraded to a category three storm, the National Weather Service (NWS) reported, before weakening again. At 1400 GMT it was a category one hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph. But the NWS said "a catastrophic storm surge, hurricane force winds and flash flooding will continue". Lake Charles, a city of 78,000, and its surrounding areas have been badly hit. Trees and electricity pylons have been ripped from the ground and vehicles overturned. More than 420,000 Texas residents were ordered to leave, while an additional 200,000 were told to evacuate Calcasieu Parish in south-western Louisiana. Haiti and the Dominican Republic were both earlier badly hit by storms Marco and Laura, with at least 24 fatalities and severe flooding. Thousands of homes were damaged and there were extensive power cuts. Cuba suffered material damage but did not record any deaths. In Jamaica, there were reports of landslides and flooded roads. The US territory of Puerto Rico was also hit.
27th-28th: Three people - including a four-year-old boy - have been killed by falling trees after a storm lashed the Australian state of Victoria. Gusts of up to 100 mph were recorded, causing widespread damage and knocking out power to 95,000 homes. The deaths happened in suburbs across the state capital, Melbourne - a city already reeling from a Covid outbreak. On Friday, residents in 88 suburbs were also warned that the storm had contaminated drinking water. Locals made more than 2,100 calls for emergency assistance after the storm crossed the state late on Thursday, bringing down power lines and damaging buildings.
28th: Pakistan is seeing the worst rainfall since records began 89 years ago. The annual monsoon rain is particularly bad this year and the city of Karachi is largely underwater. Roads have turned to rivers, houses have been destroyed and people had to flee to shelters.
29th: A violent storm hit Mallorca, Spain's largest island over the weekend, bringing strong winds, heavy rain, hail, and a damaging tornado. The regional government's emergency department officials said they recorded 101 incidents. The Majorca Fire Brigade said floods and landslides caused damage in parts of the Tramuntana - Banyalbufar, Esporles, Estellencs, Valldemossa, blocking roads and causing power outages. A damaging tornado hit Banyalbufar, causing major damage.

World weather news, July

3rd: Unusually intense rainfall has swept away buildings and ruined homes in southern China, affecting about 15 million residents. In the inland Chinese city of Yichang, the murky water ran waist-high, stranding people in their cars and turning streets into canals. Near the metropolis of Chongqing, torrents of water swept away country roads. The tourist town of Yangshuo experienced a cloudburst that an official called a once-in-two-centuries event. Weeks of abnormally intense rains have wrought destruction across southern China, leaving at least 106 people dead or missing and affecting 15 million residents in the worst flooding that parts of the region have seen in decades. One of the hardest-hit provinces has been Hubei.
5th: At least 14 people are feared dead at a nursing home on Japan's southern island of Kyushu as unprecedented rainfall caused landslides and massive floods. Tens of thousands of people have been told to evacuate homes. The Kuma river in Kumamoto prefecture burst its banks. PM Shinzo Abe ordered 10,000 troops to be deployed, after rescue services were overwhelmed with calls for help. Another two people were feared to have been killed in a landslide in the town of Tsunagi. The NHK broadcaster says there are reports eight homes in the town's Takinoue district were washed away. 412 mm of rain fell in the 24 hours ending 0600 GMT at Ushibuka on the island. On Saturday night, the Kuma river burst through its levees in numerous places inundating low-lying settlements. Fourteen victims were found in one nursing home, after river waters flooded the ground floor. Another 50 were rescued. It is Japan's worst disaster since Typhoon Hagibis struck in October 2019, killing some 90 people.
11th: Farmers and agriculture experts are counting the financial impacts incurred by a severe thunderstorm in Minnesota. Winds of up to 80 km/h and hail as big as 63.5 mm in diameter battered thousands of hectares of land in counties from Kandiyohi to Nicollet, at a time when commodity prices are already down. "We had a wonderful crop. Best we've had in this area in five years," said farmer and crop consultant Curt Burns. With an early planting season and unseasonably warm temperatures in late June and early July, corn and soybean crops were developmentally more advanced, relative to previous years. The storm, which was up to 60 miles long and 6 miles wide, caused extensive damage to corn, soybeans, kidney beans, alfalfa, sweet corn, sugar beets, and peas.
12th: China raised its flood response alert to the second highest level as heavy rain battered regions along the Yangtze River, with the eastern provinces of Jiangsu and Jiangxi among the worst hit, state media reported. Flooding in the Poyang county of Jiangxi pushed water levels of Lake Poyang, China's biggest freshwater lake, to above 22.52 m, a historical high and well above the alert level of 19.50 m. By Saturday evening, provincial military authorities had dispatched thousands of soldiers to help bolster nearly 9 km of the lake's banks, state television said. China has a four-tier flood control emergency response system, with level one representing the most severe. So far this year, some 141 people have died or gone missing in the floods, which have ravaged 3.53 million hectares of farmland and flattened 28,000 homes.
14th: A large tornado ripped through Mineo in Sicily, Italy, in the afternoon, causing major damage. The tornado occurred during violent storms that battered southern Italy, including Sardinia and Calabria. Sicily was the most affected region as 30 mm of rain fell in the area.
14th: A severe storm accompanied by hurricane-force winds and heavy rain hit parts of western Russia, prompting officials to declare a state of emergency in Saratov's St. Petersburg area. Power was disrupted to about 52 000 residents, including in Balakovo and Marx. Valery Radaev, head of the Saratov region, ordered municipal services to tackle the aftermath of the storm as soon as possible, noting that one of the most affected was Balakovo. Strong winds also affected other areas, including Ershov and Krasnokutsky.
15th: At least 50 people have been killed and more than two million affected by heavy monsoon flooding in the north-eastern Indian state of Assam, officials say. Heavy rain has submerged thousands of villages. Hundreds of relief camps have been set up to shelter those displaced. A heavy monsoon in the region is common, but this year comes as India battles rising Covid-19 infections.
16th: Rounds of wet weather have been drenching parts of southern Japan since the end of June, with one of the most severe incidents occurring duing 3-4 July when devastating flooding and landslides battered the island of Kyushu. "Historic heavy rain has been hitting Japan. Kanoya had 1082 mm of rain within a week, which is about a half of the annual rainfall," according to Sayaka Mori, a meteorologist for NHK. Kyushu is Japan's third-largest island and home to more than 12 million people. Approximately 3 million of those residents were advised to evacuate. Sixty people have been confirmed dead in Kumamoto Prefecture, two in Fukuoka Prefecture and one in Oita Prefecture due to the flooding. Thirty-five people were found indoors and it is believed that most could not escape flooded houses, according to NHK. The Kuma River, which flows through the Kumamoto Prefecture and Kuma Village, rose well above its banks on the 4th, washing away at least one bridge and cutting off citizens from rescue crews and causing widespread power outages.
16th: A record-breaking heatwave in Siberia would have been almost impossible without human-caused climate change, a study has found. The Russian region's temperatures were more than 5C above average between January and June of this year. Temperatures exceeded 38C in the Russian town of Verkhoyansk on 20 June, the highest temperature ever recorded north of the Arctic circle. The Arctic is believed to be warming twice as fast as the global average. An international team of climate scientists, led by the UK Met Office, found the record average temperatures were likely to happen less than once every 80,000 years without human-induced climate change. That makes such an event "almost impossible" had the world not been warmed by greenhouse gas emissions, they conclude in the study. The scientists described the finding as "unequivocal evidence of the impact of climate change on the planet".
17th-18th: An unusual interaction between two low-pressure zones caused intense storms over New Zealand's Northland area. The worst affected was Whangarei, where emergency services responded to more than 220 calls. "This is just diabolical for our people. We've gone from drought to dealing with a 1 in 500-year event. Unbelievable," Whangārei Mayor Sheryl Mai said. According to MetService meteorologists, the storm dropped 220 mm of rain on Whangarei from 1900 LT/17th to 0700 LT/18th. 'We call this a greater-than-500-year return period,' the service said. The worst of the storm came around 1900 LT, with about 50 mm/h fall rates. Several gauges exceeded 250 mm of rain in 24 hours, including over 150 mm in just 4 hours at Whangarei Aero and 56.8 mm at Kaikohe in just 1 hour. According to NIWA, Whangarei recorded its wettest July hour on record between 2000 and 2100 LT on the 17th, with 39.6 mm. 132.6 mm fell in just 4 hours between 1800 and 2200 LT, which is 78% of the monthly normal.
21st: Heavy rains have been affecting northern parts of Vietnam over the past three days, particularly the Ha Giang Province, causing severe floods and landslides that resulted in property damage and five casualties. The rains came after the region experienced its longest heatwave in 49 years, with temperatures up to 2.5 degC higher than average. The Ha Giang Province has been affected by flooding during the past three days due to heavy rains. As a result, traffic jams and landslides occurred in many areas. Most streets were inundated to a depth of about 1 metre. In nearby Quan Ba District, floods and landslides buried structures in Thai An Hydropower Plant, prompting officials to pause operations. The National Center for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting (NCHMF) issued a level 1 warning for floods, flash floods, and landslide due to heavy rain across the provinces of Lai Chau, Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Ha Giang, Tuyen Quang, Cao Bang, and Bac Kan, Son La, Ho Binh, and Thai Nguyen. NCHMF revealed that the region recorded 21 days of hot spells in June, with average temperatures 1.5 to 2.5 degC higher than the past years. This is considered the longest heatwave in the area since 1971. Temperatures between 36C to 39C were recorded in the provinces of Lang Son, Bac Ninh, Bac Giang, Hai Duong, Hung Yen, Ha Nam, and Ninh Binh. The heatwave was caused by a low-pressure from the west and a Foehn wind, according to NCHMF head Nguyen Van Huong.
22nd: The extensive flood situation due to seasonal monsoon rains remains severe in India as the death toll has crossed 470 this week, according to the National Emergency Response Center (NDMI). West Bengal is the worst-hit state, with 142 fatalities. More than 6 million people are now affected and more than 91 000 have been displaced. About 470 fatalities have been reported across nine states - 142 in West Bengal, 111 in Assam, 81 in Gujarat, 46 in Maharashtra, 44 in Madhya Pradesh, 25 in Kerala, 19 in Uttarakhand, and two in Uttar Pradesh. In Delhi alone, floodwaters have washed away more than 10,000 homes, prompting authorities to set up 300 relief camps. Several hundred villages have been totally cut off by high waters, hampering relief and rescue operations.
22nd: At least 19 houses were swept away by a huge landslide following persistent heavy rainfall in Lamjung District in Gandaki Pradesh, Nepal. No fatalities were reported, but six people sustained injuries, and around 62 more residential properties are at high risk as the land is still sliding, posing threats of a further unprecedented mudslide. Incessant rains in the past days triggered the landslide at around 03:15 UTC (09:00 LT) in Tarapu Pallotari.
23rd: At least two people lost their lives after widespread, intense rainfall triggered flash flooding in Busan, South Korea. As heavy rain lashed the city, an underpass was inundated by up to 2.5 m of floodwaters. With vehicles stuck under, firemen had to rescue eight people and take them to the hospital for treatment. However, two of the victims eventually died. Rescue operations were underway in other parts of the city as flooding swept through various areas. More people were rescued from a flooded hotel garage and a basement of a nursing home. By midnight, firefighters reported that a total of 32 people had been rescued. The Korea Meteorological Administration has issued heavy rain warnings for many parts of the country, including Seoul and Busan, as the severe weather is expected to continue in the following days.
24th: Croatian capital Zagreb battled widespread flooding on Friday night, following torrential rains and strong winds that left the city in chaos. The emergency department received more than 1,000 calls from the public as the city was submerged underwater, stranding many motorists on the road and residents in their homes. Torrential rains struck the city around 1900 UTC, triggering extensive floods. According to the Zagreb Emergency Management Office, the Fire Brigade conducted more than 80 interventions by midnight and accommodated more than 1,000 emergency calls. One firefighter died during an intervention.
24th: Heavy rains triggered widespread severe flooding that paralyzed the city of Taif in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. The traffic in Taif City was brought to a standstill as floodwaters trapped many vehicles on roads and streets. The Civil Defence said they responded to about 30 reports of stranded cars as a result of the accumulated waters, 14 of which had people stuck inside. Stranded individuals were successfully rescued. Residents in Taif's district of AL-Muntazah were forced to stay indoors due to intense downpours, the Civil Defence added.
25th-26th: Heavy rain is likely to lead to "life-threatening" flash flooding in southern Texas and north-eastern Mexico even as Hurricane Hanna weakens, US officials have warned. The hurricane made landfall on Saturday but has since been downgraded to a tropical storm. But the US National Hurricane Centre (NHC) says that rains and strong winds "remain a threat". Hanna was initially classified as a Category One hurricane, the lowest level on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, before being downgraded. It made landfall on Padre Island on Saturday, and on Sunday moved into Mexico. At 22:00 local time on Saturday (03:00 GMT Sunday), maximum sustained winds were near 75 mph, the NHC said. It added that "rapid weakening is expected as Hanna moves farther inland" over Texas and into north-eastern Mexico on Sunday.
26th-27th: The first hurricane this season in the Central Pacific skirted just north of Hawaii on Sunday night, sparing the island chain of the worst effects from the storm. The core of the system just missed the Islands without making a landfall. As the storm made it's way past the Hawaiian islands on Sunday, heavy rain and wind gusts battered Maui. On Oahu, home to the state's biggest city, Honolulu, gentle rain fell and blustery winds swayed trees.
27th: A coastal low brought strong winds, heavy rainfall, flooding, and damaging surf to parts of New South Wales, Australia, over the weekend. The severe weather prompted volunteers to respond to more than 2,200 calls for rescue and left about 15,000 properties without power on Monday.
28th: Mumbai, India, surpassed its July 2014 record (1468.5 mm) for the all-time high monthly rainfall on Tuesday with intermittent intense rain spells, taking the monthly rain tally to 1,474.3 mm by 5.30pm. Meanwhile, the city had surpassed its July average rainfall of 840 mm by the 15th. Mumbai has witnessed a total of eight heavy to very heavy rain days this month, which paved the way for previous records to be broken. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) maintains rain data from 1959 onwards. Other landmark years over the past 61 years include 1455.5 mm in 1965, 1385.5 mm in 1961, 1312.9 mm in 2011, 1250.4 mm in 2010, and 1226.1 mm in 1988. IMD classifies 15.6-64.4 mm as moderate rain while 64.5-115.5 mm rain as heavy, 115.6-204.4 mm as very heavy, and over 204.5 mm as extremely heavy rain for a period of 24-hours. The city had seen five 'very heavy' rain days through July 2020 so far with maximum rainfall recorded between July 4 and 5 of 200.8 mm. Apart from July 2, the city has received rainfall every day of the month so far.
29th: Almost 2,500 people have been evacuated as record-high rainfall poured over northern Japan, causing damaging floods and landslides, including in the Yamagata Prefecture, where the Mogami River burst its banks and a mudslide left 540 people isolated. Heavy rain has been battering the northern region of the country since the 27th, triggering several landslides and causing rivers to overflow. In Yamagata, as many as 540 people were left isolated due to mudslides. In Nagai City, 206.5 mm of rain was recorded into 27th-28th, which was the highest 24-hour July rainfall since 1976, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA). Meanwhile, Okura village recorded 95.5 mm of rain in only a three-hour period on the same day. Numerous areas in Yamagata recorded more than 200 mm of rain in 24 hours to Wednesday, 29th, including Tsuruoka, Nishimura, Oguni, and Nagai, according to the JMA.

World weather news, June

8th: Heavy rains and hail accompanied by winds of 40 to 50 km/h hit Mexico City, causing severe flooding in various parts of the city. Rapidly rising waters flooded streets and stranded drivers, leading to emergency rescues.
6th-8th: At least 800,000 people have been affected by heavy rains and flooding in central and southern China over the past couple of days. At least 2 people have been killed and 4 are still missing. The worst affected provinces are Hunan, Jiangxi, and Guangxi. Neighboring Jiangxi has been under heavy rain since 2 June. Flooding in the province has affected almost 380,000 people and forced 21 000 to evacuate. Provincial authorities said 117 homes were destroyed and wide areas of crops damaged.
7th-8th: At least one person died while dozens were rescued as flash flooding hit Czech Republic's eastern region due to overnight torrential rains. The Oskava river has hit 3.3 m, almost reaching the extreme danger level of 3.4 m. On Sunday evening, fire services in the Olomouc region evacuated dozens of residents in several villages, including Sumvald, Dolni Sukolom, Brevenec, and Oskava. Local media said up to 1 m of floodwater inundated some areas. Images posted by the police and fire departments showed extensive damage as streets were covered in mud and debris.
9th: A severe sandstorm hit Mongolia's Dundgobi Province. The storm packed winds of up to 126 km/h, according to the meteorological agency. It swept through areas in Deren, Gurvansaikhan, and Mandalgobi. This type of sandstorm, known to Mongolian herders as "nuulug", typically whips across the Gobi Desert before intense rain.
8th-9th: After warm weather over the weekend drove temperatures into summer territory, a rare June snowstorm pushed through the Rocky Mountain region, bringing accumulating snowfall to several states. Ahead of the cold and snow, portions of the area experienced temperatures well above average to start the week. On Sunday, the temperature at Colorado Springs Airport reached 88F, 12 degF above average for this time of year. Once the heat moved out, high-wind warnings covered Colorado and Wyoming on Monday night as a weather system rolled through the area with thunderstorms and even hail for portions of the Denver metro area. A storm that produced snowfall for parts of Nevada and Utah started to push toward the Rocky Mountain states during the overnight hours and into Tuesday morning. Alta, Utah, picked up more than a foot of snow, with a three-day storm total of 16.6 inches, as of Monday, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).
11th: Floods and mudslides in south China have uprooted hundreds of thousands of people and left dozens dead or missing, according to state media. The bad weather has wreaked havoc on popular tourist areas that had already suffered through months of travel restrictions during the coronavirus outbreak. Torrential downpours unleashed floods and mudslides that caused nearly 230,000 people to be relocated and destroyed more than 1,300 houses, official state news agency Xinhua reported, citing the ministry of emergency management. In southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, six people were reported dead and one missing, Xinhua said. Streets were waterlogged in popular tourist destination Yangshuo, forcing residents and visitors to evacuate on bamboo rafts. The local government said more than 1,000 hotels had been flooded and more than 30 tourist sites damaged.
11th: In just a few hours, nearly two months' worth of rain deluged portions of Ajaccio, the capital city of Corsica. Training thunderstorms, or storms that impact the same area repeatedly, formed over the city of Ajaccio, Corsica, late on Thursday morning. According to Meteo France, 44 mm of rain fell in just four hours at the Ajaccio reporting station. This rainfall amount is the equivalent of double the typical rainfall recorded for the entire month of June, according to Meteo France. At the onset of heavy rain, flash flooding became an issue for the coastal city almost immediately. Roads essentially became rivers while parked cars and large recycling bins alike were swept away during the torrential rains. Due to the very localized nature of the heavy downpours from these training thunderstorms, some portions of Ajaccio received much more rain than the official reporting station. Portions of the city received up to 120 mm of rainfall during the event, according to Meteo France.
11th: After an early start to summer across much of Siberia, winter weather made a dramatic return across southern parts of the region during the first days of June. Meteorological summer began on June 1, but people across western Siberia have reported signs of summer since the middle of May. Many record high temperatures were set across the region last month. Residents reported orchids blooming in the Krasnoyarsk region as well as being able to harvest berries and mushrooms in the Novosibirsk region weeks ahead of schedule, according to The Siberian Times. Heavy thunderstorms in recent weeks also caused several state of emergency declarations to be issued by separate districts in Krasnoyarsk as flooding destroyed buildings and washed away three bridges, the Siberian Times reported. Meanwhile, areas in south-central Russia reported accumulating snow to start the month. Khakassia, nicknamed "Warm Siberia" due to the mild climate compared to locations farther north in Siberia, reported enough snow to cover roads and impact travel in early June.
13th: A severe hailstorm pounded Calgary, Canada, turning a summer day into a virtual winter wonderland as chunks of ice the size of tennis balls ricocheted out of the sky. Wind-driven hailstones shattered windows and windshields, peeled the siding off homes and businesses, and coated the ground several inches thick, making it a monochromatic icy landscape. Trees were stripped bare in some areas where heavy hail shredded vegetation. Elsewhere, reports of funnel clouds accompanied the storm. The same storms produced serious flooding, inundating streets and leaving numerous vehicles up to their canopies in water. The region had been under a severe thunderstorm watch for much of the afternoon. Calgary International Airport first reported thunder at 6:40 p.m.. Hail began falling at the airport at 7:02 p.m., the temperature slipping 3 degC in six minutes as ice piled up and cooled the ground.
14th: It's been a very wet start to the wet season in southern China as rounds of flooding rain and thunderstorms continue to track across the region. Multiple deaths and a massive evacuation for hundreds of thousands of people are being blamed on the persistent deluge. Heavy rainfall tracked across southern China last week and over the weekend. Guizhou, Hunan and Guangxi provinces as well as Chongqing municipality were, and continue to be, some of the hardest hit provinces. The downpours turned streets into rivers and flooded buildings in parts of Chongqing on Sunday. More than 30,000 people have been affected by the flooding in the municipality, including over 7,000 who were forced from their homes. Hundreds of thousands of hectares of farmland have been destroyed by the deluge of rain.
20th: Temperatures in the Arctic Circle are likely to have hit an all-time record today, reaching 38C in Verkhoyansk, a Siberian town. The record still needs to be verified, but it appears to have been 18 degC higher than the average maximum daily temperature in June. Hot summer weather is not uncommon in the Arctic Circle, but recent months have seen abnormally high temperatures. The Arctic is believed to be warming twice as fast as the global average. Verkhoyansk, home to about 1,300 people, sits just inside the Arctic Circle, in Siberia. It has an extreme climate with temperatures falling in January to an average maximum of -42C and then rising in June to 20C. But a persistent heatwave this year in the Arctic Circle has worried meteorologists. In March, April and May, the Copernicus Climate Change service reported that the average temperature was around 10 degC above normal.
24th: Over the weekend, Saharan dust moved into the Caribbean. By Monday, it had changed the tropical blue skies into a hazy brown-gray colour. These islands are experiencing one the most significant dust events seen in the Caribbean. Aerosols, measured in PM10, at Mayol-Bracero's research station in northeastern Puerto Rico, have never reached the levels they have seen the past few days. Records at this station go back 15 years. The initial dust outbreak was driven by a few different smaller storm systems over central and west Africa. Several of these thunderstorms caused downdrafts and large-scale haboobs (dust storms) to develop. This led to a large amount of dust being uplifted into the atmosphere from the Sahara. At the same time, these smaller dust storms were happening. The African Easterly Jet, strong winds higher in the atmosphere which usually transports dust westwards, was anomalously weak this June. The result was that a larger amount of dust than usual was able to accumulate just off the west coast of Africa. It was able to then was transported westwards in a very dense plume when the jet picked up speed again.
25th: UV levels were forecast to reach record levels in the UK today. The UV Index (or UVI) is a standard international measure of ultraviolet radiation emitted by the Sun. Index values start at zero and then can rise above 10. The higher the UVI, the greater the potential for damage to the skin and eyes - and also the less time it takes for harm to occur. Highest readings occur in the four-hour period around solar noon. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Nairobi in Kenya can see UV levels above 10 all year. Majorca in Spain, will normally hit nine in June and July. But the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic never usually gets above five in December and January - when it's summer in the southern hemisphere. UV levels increase in the spring across the UK, reaching a peak in late June. Normally they're about six or seven in the summer months but were foreasct to reach nine today. There are a number of factors - not just because most of the UK is cloud-free at the moment. The sun is high in the sky as we were close to the summer solstice. There has also been ozone depletion at exceptional levels across the northern hemisphere during the winter and spring, mainly due to natural weather patterns. And with much of the northern hemisphere being under lockdown recently, pollution levels are lower. That stops the UV being scattered quite so much.
25th: More than 100 people in northern India have been killed by dozens of lightning strikes across two states in recent days, officials say. The disaster management team in Bihar state said 83 were killed there, while another 20 were in hospital with injuries. At least 20 more people are reported dead in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh. Lightning strikes are common in India during heavy monsoon rains. Meanwhile the rain and thunderstorms have caused widespread damage to trees and property.
28th: Miami, Florida, had its warmest week on record for any month, with the mean temperature over a seven-day span averaging 88.1F ending today, according to the NWS. The previous seven-day record was 87.8F, set last year in the final week of June, according to Eric Blake, a hurricane scientist with the NWS. Records date back to 1895.

World weather news, May

1st: Intense rains accompanied by powerful winds and sandstorms wreaked havoc in Qatar over the past few days. On 1 May, severe storms destroyed a field hospital at the Umm Salal area, north of Doha. It was constructed just two weeks ago, specifically for accommodating patients with coronavirus. A video posted by Arab News showed violent winds ripping through the establishment. The aftermath was captured in another video, showing the hospital shredded in crumbles, with a few people captured running away from the area. In a separate incident, two expansion tents at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital collapsed after winds of 45 mph hit the area, according to the Ministry of Public Health.
1st: A cold front originating from Antarctica is sweeping across Australia, with states in the southeast set to see their coldest start to May. The wintry conditions came after the country recorded its fifth warmest April on record, according to the BOM's monthly review. New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, ACT, South Australia, and Queensland already experienced cool temperatures on Friday morning. In Victoria, residents woke up to the coldest start to May ever recorded, with -4C in some areas. Mount Hotham experienced blizzards amid the coldest temperature at -4C.
4th: Dangerous thunderstorms developed across portions of western France and northern Spain on Monday afternoon into Monday night. Thunderstorms first developed on Monday afternoon across northern Spain. As storms strengthened and tracked to the northeast, they raced across western France Monday evening and Monday night. The strongest storms brought frequent lightning strikes and strong wind gusts to the region. The strongest wind gusts led to damage in parts of northwestern Spain. A wind gust of 130 km/h was reported as the Port Estaca de Bares along the northern coast of Spain.
4th: Heavy rains battering much of Rwanda since 1 May triggered severe flooding and landslides, resulting in eight fatalities and hundreds of damaged homes and roads, the Ministry of Emergency Situations reported on May 4. The affected areas are mostly the mountainous and hilly areas in the country's northern and western, particularly the low-lying and plain areas in those regions. As of today there eight fatalities from floods and landslides, five others injured, more than 100 damaged houses and several roads closed across the country. In the Rutsiro District in the Western Province, the Mushubati weather station recorded 81 mm of rain on 2 May.
9th: Mother's Day weekend got off to an unseasonably snowy start in the NE USA thanks to the polar vortex. Some higher elevation areas in northern New York and New England reported snowfall accumulations of up to 9 inches, while areas as far south as New York City reported a dusting. The spring snow and accompanying low temperatures came courtesy of the polar vortex, a batch of cold air being pulled down from the north. Massachusetts hadn't seen measurable snow in May since 2002, while in Manhattan's Central Park, the flakes tied a record set in 1977 for latest snow. Nine inches of snow were reported near Maine's Sugarloaf Mountain, while rural regions near the New York-Vermont border reported similar accumulations. Weather service observers reported 8 inches in northern New York's Washington County and 9 inches in Shaftsbury, Vermont.
9th: Flooding as a result of recent heavy rains has killed more than 260 people across East Africa. Kenya has been the hardest hit with the government recording 194 deaths. In Rwanda, 55 people have died and floods have killed 16 in Somalia. In Uganda high water levels have trapped an estimated 200 patients inside a hospital. East African countries have also been hit by a locust invasion and Covid-19. The water has also washed away 8,000 acres of crops and some vital infrastructure, the government has said.
14th: Lockdown restrictions in the Philippines are impeding efforts to help victims of Typhoon Vongfong, which struck the east of the country on Thursday. Relief workers are trying to move hundreds of thousands of people into evacuation centres, but social distancing rules have thrown up complications. Some 200,000 people need to be rescued from their homes amid fears of flooding or landslides. Typhoon Vongfong is the first to hit the country this year.
16th: Tropical Storm Arthur become the first named storm of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season on Saturday evening over the warm waters offshore of Florida. Tropical Storm Arthur is currently producing sustained winds of 40 mph. Although the official start of hurricane season is June 1, there has been a preseason tropical system for most of the last 10 years, so it is not uncommon to have tropical activity this early. Residents in South Florida saw impacts from Tropical Storm Arthur before it fully developed. A number of flash flood warnings were triggered along the southeastern coast of Florida as heavy downpours and thunderstorms continued on Friday night. Street flooding was reported across the Miami metro area. Thursday was the second wettest May day on record for the city of Marathon in the Florida Keys. Heavy rain totalled 5.76 inches, stopping short of the city's rainiest May day record of 6.60 inches set on the 27th in 1959. Marathon picked up a total of 6.45 inches during 14-15 May, when the normal precipitation for all of May is 3.35 inches.
16th: Tropical Depression Ambo, also known as Vongfong, gave parts of the northern Philippines torrential rain and high winds late last week and into the weekend as it made landfall across several areas in the region. The risk for flash flooding will continue for some as the storm begins to move away. Ambo strengthened throughout the week as it tracked over the warm waters of the Philippine Sea and became the first-named tropical system in the Northern Pacific Ocean of 2020. On Thursday afternoon, the former typhoon had wind speeds around 155 km/h. As of Friday afternoon, 13,000 have been forced to leave their homes, according to the Philippine News Agency. A total of 48 towns also suffered power cuts across Samar and Biliran. The PAGASA issued heavy rainfall warnings and flooding advisories issued across regions of Luzon, including a red warning in Metro Manila on Friday evening. A total of 93 mm of rain fell in parts of the city on Friday.
20th: About 10,000 residents have been evacuated in the US state of Michigan after two dams collapsed following days of heavy rain, officials say. The National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency for areas near the Tittabawassee River after the Edenville and Sanford dams burst. Governor Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency for Midland County in mid-Michigan after the dams collapsed on Tuesday, and said the city of Midland - of population of more than 40,000 - could see a "historic high water level".
20th: The eastern Indian city of Kolkata has been devastated by a powerful cyclone which has killed at least 22 people across India and Bangladesh. Storm Amphan struck land on Wednesday, lashing coastal areas with ferocious wind and rain. It is now weakening as it moves north into Bhutan. Thousands of trees were uprooted in the gales, electricity and telephone lines brought down and houses flattened. Many of Kolkata's roads are flooded and its 14 million people without power. The storm is the first super cyclone to form in the Bay of Bengal since 1999. Though its winds had weakened by the time it struck, it was still classified as a very severe cyclone.
24th: Australia's western coast is being battered by a huge storm, with strong winds buffeting the main city of Perth. Torrential rains and waves of up to eight metres are forecast in some areas. The severe weather is the result of the remnants of tropical cyclone Mangga interacting with a cold front, according to the Bureau of Meteorology. A senior official in the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) said it would be a "once-in-a-decade" storm. "Normally our storms come from the south-west and this will come from the north-west," DFES acting assistant commissioner Jon Broomhall told journalists. A severe weather warning is in place for much of Western Australia. More than 60,000 homes and businesses are without power across the state, ABC News reports. Wind gusts of 117 km/h have been recorded in Perth, the Bureau of Meteorology said. Some areas could see up to 100 mm of rain.
26th: The Indian capital, Delhi, saw temperatures rise to 47.6C today, as most of north India faced severe heatwave conditions. The heatwave, which officials say is likely to last until the weekend, comes even as the region struggles with rising Covid-19 infections and swarms of locusts that are ravaging crops. Churu in Rajasthan state recorded a temperature of 50C - India's highest. Officials have warned people to stay indoors as far as possible. The temperatures are the highest that the country has seen in decades for this time of the year.

World weather news, April

2nd: The coronavirus pandemic may affect the accuracy of the initial weather forecast model output originating from national and global weather prediction centers because of a cutback in the number of aircraft flights that generate vital weather data, according to the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) and other experts. The aircraft collect temperature and wind data, among other information, that help improve the initial atmospheric conditions that drive global and regional weather forecast models. This data is used routinely to improve the forecasts created by national weather prediction centers across the globe. However, the pandemic has drastically reduced the number of such flights in Europe and increasingly in the U.S. This impact will be a reduction in global forecast performance. For regional models, the impact may be even greater. The announcement from ECMWF notes, "At ECMWF, aircraft reports are second only to satellite data in their impact on forecasts. However, recently added satellite wind observations will help to mitigate the drop in the number of aircraft-based observations." The AMDAR program (Aircraft Meteorological Data Relay) uses existing aircraft onboard sensors, computers and communications systems to collect, process, format and transmit meteorological data to ground stations via satellite or radio links. The global AMDAR system, during typical air traffic, produces more than 700,000 high-quality observations a day of air temperature and wind speed and direction, together with the required positional and temporal information and with an increasing number of humidity and turbulence measurements being made. More than 3,500 commercial aircraft provide more than 250 million observations per year in the U.S., National Weather Service (NWS) spokesperson Susan Buchanan told the Washington Post.
2nd: Dozens of people are missing and feared dead after a ferry in the Solomon Islands set sail despite warnings not to embark during a cyclone. The MV Taimareho was travelling on Thursday night from the capital Honiara, on the island of Guadalcanal, to West Are'are, on Malaita island. The vessel hit choppy seas whipped up by Cyclone Harold. Up to 60 people are reported to have been on board. Rescue efforts are under way but have been hampered by the bad weather. Cyclone Harold has brought flooding and run boats aground in the Solomon Islands. 2020
6th: A cyclone bringing winds of 135 mph has arrived in the Pacific nation of Vanuatu. Cyclone Harold is a category five storm - the most severe - and has already killed 27 people in the neighbouring Solomon Islands. The victims were swept off a ferry that defied cyclone warnings. Vanuatu, home to around 300,000 people, is already in a state of emergency because of the coronavirus - and is awaiting general election results. The storm is particularly affecting Sanma province, home to the country's second biggest city, Luganville. Although there have been no injuries reported, photos showed roofs blown off buildings and power lines brought down. Some people took shelter in caves. The Vanuatu meteorology department recorded winds of 135 mph in Sanma but said gusts were reaching 145 mph.
8th: Despite being spared a direct hit from Tropical Cyclone Harold, the island of Fiji suffered extensive damage from high winds, heavy rain and a battering storm surge mid-week. After battering Vanuatu, Harold passed just south of Fiji. Ahead of the cyclone, Fiji Airways moved several aircraft overseas to avoid damage. Fiji's National Disaster Management Office announced evacuation orders on Tuesday afternoon, local time, asking those in low-lying areas to move to higher ground ahead of Harold. Early reports coming out of Fiji state that popular tourist destinations on the island have suffered heavy damage from the cyclone's storm surge and high winds as well as by the high tide that followed the storm. Power cuts and road closures were also reported.
10th: Thousands of swallows and swifts migrating from Africa to Europe have been left dead by high winds battering Greece, bird watchers say. The birds have been found in the streets of Athens, on apartment balconies in the capital, in the north, on Aegean islands and around a lake close to the seaport of Nauplia in the Peloponnese. "It's a major disaster," said Maria Ganoti of the wildlife protection group Anima. "Over the last three days because of high winds in the north and over the Aegean Sea, thousands of small birds have been found dead or gravely injured," she said. The Greek ornithologist association said: "The night of April 5-6 was disastrous for migrating birds due to strong winds, low temperatures and rain in some regions. "Southerly winds pushed flocks of birds from north Africa into air currents from the north of the Aegean sea and particularly the islands. "To escape, exhausted birds, mainly swallows and swifts, which catch flying insects for food, headed for the Greek mainland." Greece is on the flight path for hundreds of thousands of birds which migrate north in spring and south in autumn.
12th: At least 26 people have died after storms triggered tornadoes and flooding across several southern US states. As many as 60 tornadoes ripped through Louisiana, Texas and Mississippi on Sunday, while severe storms also hit parts of Alabama, Georgia and the Carolinas. In Louisiana, a number of homes were destroyed in the city of Monroe. Last week, the American Meteorological Society issued guidelines for taking shelter during the coronavirus pandemic. "Do not let the virus prevent you from seeking refuge from a tornado," the society said. Public shelters in many communities are closed because of lockdown measures. People were urged to still follow social distancing guidelines if they must seek safety in a public space like a school.
16th: Acrid smoke from wildfires, including blazes near the defunct Chernobyl nuclear plant, has blanketed Ukraine's capital Kyiv, making its air pollution among the worst in the world. Kyiv's pollution now ranks alongside that of several Chinese cities, Swiss monitoring group IQAir reports. Ukraine's health ministry says radiation levels remain normal and Chernobyl faces no immediate threat. At one point during the day Kyiv's air pollution was the worst in the world, according to the IQAir index. But the dramatic global slump in economic activity, caused by the coronavirus pandemic, has made the air in many cities cleaner. That partly explains why Kyiv's smog looks especially bad now.
22nd: Europe is heating faster than the global average as new data indicates that last year was the warmest on record. While globally the year was the second warmest, a series of heatwaves helped push the region to a new high mark. Over the past five years, global temperatures were, on average, just over 1 degC warmer than at the end of the 19th century. In Europe, in the same period, temperatures were almost 2 degC warmer. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) says the physical signs of climate change and impacts on our planet have gathered pace in the past five years, which were the hottest on record. The European data, which comes from the EU's Copernicus Climate Service, indicates that 11 of the 12 warmest years on record on the continent have occurred since 2000.
22nd: At least six people were killed after severe storms tore through a number of southern states late in the day, adding to weeks of extreme weather that had already killed more than two dozen people and destroyed hundreds of homes. Some areas in Louisiana had experienced "extreme flooding". Wednesday's storms caused havoc in many rural communities, causing damage to factories at multiple facilities across the south. At least two factory workers have been killed. In Louisiana, a worker's body was found more than a quarter-mile away after an apparent tornado struck, severely damaging the factory and nearby town. A tornado in Marshall county, Oklahoma, killed a worker after a storm hit the Oklahoma Steel and Wire plant as employees were leaving for the day. Elsewhere, at least three people were killed when an apparent tornado touched down in south-east Texas near Onalaska, about 120 km north of Houston, the Polk county emergency management system said.
22nd: Heavy thunderstorms caused flooding as well as large hail in southeastern Turkey. There are reports that one person was killed after being struck by lightning and three others were injured after another lightning strike. In addition to Turkey, much of Georgia, Armenia and western Azerbaijan had unsettled weather conditions during the middle of the week.
24th: High winds caused trouble across Egypt, as a major sandstorm forced the closure of several Red Sea Ports and major highways across the country. Authorities urged Egyptians with respiratory illnesses to stay inside. The storm was so significant it turned skies of Cairo an eerie yellow colour.
27th: Heavy rains triggered flooding in the city of Najran in southwestern Saudi Arabia. The rains were dumped by a storm system from the Mediterranean Sea which merged with a cold front, bringing wet and windy conditions from Turkey to Saudi Arabia. This caused an unsettled weather pattern that unfolded across the region.
30th: Melbourne recorded 138 mm of rain in April 2020, making it the city's wettest April since 1960 when 195 mm was recorded. Unseasonably low temperatures were also recorded and almost 50 cm of snow across Victoria's ski resorts.
30th: This April is set to be one of the driest Aprils on record for Germany, and there are worries a second drought in two years could be just around the corner. According to DWD, the German Meteorological Service, less than 10 mm of rain had fallen across the country between 14 March and 18 April. In areas of the lower Rhine just 4 mm of rain has fallen this April - that's only 9% of the monthly average. Aprils in Germany have been trending drier over the long term and it's notable that the last eleven Aprils have been much drier than average - but it remains unclear whether this is natural climate variability or a symptom of climate change. The lack of rainfall has also contributed to the plummeting of some river levels. The Rhine is a vital transport artery for the German economy and with water falling to such low levels, river barges cannot be loaded to full capacity so transport costs of goods are rising. In Geneva in Switzerland, a record-breaking 43-day drought has recently ended. In Spain, spring has seen exceptionally wet weather. According to AEMET, in Barcelona between 1 March and 26 April over 300 mm of rain has been recorded, more than four times the usual amount.

World weather news, March 2020

3rd: Two powerful tornadoes that ripped through central Tennessee on Tuesday killed 24 people, according to the state's Emergency Management Authority. In Nashville, Tennessee's biggest city, the tornadoes caused widespread damage to homes and other buildings. The storm hit after midnight and moved so quickly that many people sleeping didn't have time to take shelter. Much of the damage is centred in Putnam County - 80 miles (130km) east of Nashville - where 18 deaths, including five children, were reported. There was also "significant damage" to John C Tune Airport, about eight miles from the city centre, the airport said. The National Weather Service reported that winds of 165 mph hit Nashville. The storms were the deadliest to hit Tennessee since 2011.
8th: Scientists have recorded a massive reduction in pollution over China during the last two months, which is believed to be a result of measures taken to stop the coronavirus outbreak. A pair of images captured by NASA and European Space Agency pollution monitoring satellites reveal a significant change in nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels in the air over the country between Jan. 1 and Feb. 25. The timeline for the improvement in air quality coincides with when health and government officials in China acknowledged the threat of coronavirus and put Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, on lockdown. NO2 is emitted by motor vehicles, power plants and industrial facilities - and the quarantine placed on the city shut most of these things down, likely leading to the improved air quality. According to NASA, the reduction in NO2 pollution was first apparent near Wuhan but eventually spread across the country. The drop in nitrogen dioxide in 2020 also coincided with Lunar New Year celebrations in China and much of Asia, experts said. During this celebration, businesses and factories will often close from the last week in January into early February. While previous observations from NASA have shown a dip in pollution during this period, it is typically followed by a return to normal levels later in the month.
12th-13th: An unusually deep area of low pressure, nicknamed the "dragon" on social media, brought severe disruption to western parts of the Mediterranean and the Middle East. The low formed rapidly across Egypt, before moving slowly north-eastwards into Israel and Lebanon, bringing outbreaks of heavy rain and strong winds. Thunderstorms caused particularly severe flooding in parts of Egypt, forcing authorities to shut schools and urge people to remain at home. Latest reports indicate at least 21 people have died. A mosque in the city of Qena, Upper Egypt, collapsed. The storms dumped at least 2.4 inches of rain on Cairo, which normally receives just 0.15 inches for the entire month. The storm also kicked up a dust storm to the south of the city.
15th: About 150 people have been killed or are missing following record-breaking heavy rains, landslides and flooding in three Brazilian states this year. Monsoon rains kill Brazilians every summer, with floodwaters filling streets and landslides afflicting poorer communities and favelas built on steep hillsides, often without proper drainage or sanitation. In Guaruja, a coastal town 25 miles from Sao Paulo, 282 mm fell in just 12 hours last week more than the total expected for the entire month of March. Days earlier, five people died during heavy rains across Rio de Janeiro. One man drowned when the Acari favela in north Rio was flooded.
19th: Levels of air pollutants and warming gases over some cities and regions are showing significant drops as coronavirus impacts work and travel. Researchers in New York said their early results showed carbon monoxide mainly from cars had been reduced by nearly 50% compared with last year. Emissions of the planet-heating gas CO2 have also fallen sharply. With global economic activity ramping down as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, it is hardly surprising that emissions of a variety of gases related to energy and transport would be reduced. Scientists say that by May, when CO2 emissions are at their peak thanks to the decomposition of leaves, the levels recorded might be the lowest since the financial crisis over a decade ago. While it is early days, data collected in New York this week suggests that instructions to curb unnecessary travel are having a significant impact. Traffic levels in the city were estimated to be down 35% compared with a year ago. Emissions of carbon monoxide, mainly due to cars and trucks, have fallen by around 50% for a couple of days this week according to researchers at Columbia University.
25th: Australia's Great Barrier Reef has suffered another mass bleaching event - the third in just five years. Warmer sea temperatures - particularly in February - are feared to have caused huge coral loss across the world's largest reef system. Scientists say they have detected widespread bleaching, including extensive patches of severe damage. But they have also found healthy pockets. Two-thirds of the reef was damaged by similar events in 2016 and 2017. The reef system, which extends over 2300 km, is a World Heritage site recognised for its "enormous scientific and intrinsic importance".
28th: Jonesboro, Arkansas, took a direct hit from a tornado that left buildings flattened in its wake on Saturday. At least 22 injuries were caused. Rounds of severe thunderstorms erupted from the southern Plains to the Ohio Valley, with the dangerous weather packing damaging winds, hail the size of softballs and destructive tornadoes like the one seen in Jonesboro. The tornado ripped through Race and Caraway Streets, destroyed many homes and continued to Brookland, and the Arkansas/Missouri border after destroying the Mall at Turtle Creek.

World weather news, February 2020

2nd-4th: Storm Herve marked the end of unseasonable warmth across parts of France and Germany last week as the system brought a cooler airmass, strong winds, and fresh, heavy snowfall to the Alps. Prior to this, south-west Europe as a whole was experiencing exceptional heat, and temperatures rocketed to 29.6C in Valencia in Spain on Tuesday (4th), setting a new all-time February record. The official station in the city of Alicante has hit 28.6C which is the fifth highest winter temperature ever recorded at this location since 1859. Back in 1910, Alicante reported a hot day with 30.0C recorded.
3rd: Severe flooding and heavy rainfall in New Zealand have forced evacuations to be carried out, after nearly 200 tourists were left stranded. A landslide hit the Howden Hut, near Fiorland's Lake Howden at around 1.30 am the 3rd, leaving two people with minor injuries and more than 30 people awaiting evacuation from the site. A state of emergency was declared on Monday 3 February after 382 people were left trapped in the Fiordland region, with torrential rain causing slips and flooding damage, restricting access to roads. A further 195 tourists in Milford Sound are also still stranded and will remain there until Wednesday when they can be safely evacuated. Elsewhere in Gore, fire and emergency staff have been working to help a number of houses that have been hit by surface flooding.
4th-5th: Rescue efforts have been put on hold after two avalanches killed at least 39 people in eastern Turkey. Most of the dead were hit by an avalanche on the 5th while trying to recover the victims of another downslide which happened a day earlier. Further rescue work continued but was paused because of concerns about a possible third avalanche. The operation, involving more than 700 personnel, is expected to continue on Thursday after inspections.
2nd-5th: Early Wednesday morning, temperatures in Denver (Colorado, USA) plunged doen to -5F after a jarring cold front gripped the region. This reading came fewer than three days after the city saw temperatures soar into the mid-70s on Sunday. The cold front also brought snow accumulations of around 3 to 5 inches in and around Denver, and a range of totals in the Boulder area of anywhere between 3 and 21 inches, depending on elevation, according to the National Weather Service. Farther to the south, places around Colorado Springs saw a general 3 to 5 inches of snow, with a few pockets picking up a little bit more. Sunday (2nd) was an unseasonably warm day across parts of the western United States. In Denver, temperatures rose to 30 degF above average, tying an 86-year-old record for the warmest 2 February on record. With temperatures hitting 74F, the Mile High City was also warmer than Miami on Sunday, which topped out at 68F.
6th: A record high temperature of 18.3C has been logged on the continent of Antarctica. The reading, taken on Thursday by Argentine research base Esperanza, is 0.8 degC hotter than the previous peak temperature of 17.5C, in March 2015. The temperature was recorded in the Antarctic Peninsula, on the continent's north-west tip - one of the fastest-warming regions on earth. It is being verified by the UN World Meteorological Organisation (WMO). While 18.3C is a record for the Antarctic continent, the record in the wider Antarctic region - which includes the continent, islands and ocean that are in the Antarctic climatic zone - is 19.8C, logged in January 1982.
7th: Torrential rain across the east coast of Australia has extinguished a third of the fires in the region - and could put more out, officials say. A wide band of rain sweeping New South Wales (NSW) has put out 20 of about 60 fires in the state in the past day. Authorities have welcomed the downpour, but warned of flash flooding in Sydney and other cities along the coast. Some of the affected areas had received the most rain recorded in over a year, said the Bureau of Meteorology. Australia's largest city, Sydney, recorded its wettest day in over 15 months on Friday. Authorities have issued a severe wet weather warning for a 1,000 km stretch of the state - with damaging winds, heavy rainfall, and "abnormally high" tides forecast. Over 280 mm of rain was recorded at the holiday town of Byron Bay in northern NSW. Locals there described the downburst on Thursday night as heavier than that experienced in a 2017 cyclone. Nationally, blazes have killed at least 33 people and destroyed thousands of homes. More than 11 million hectares of land - an area comparable to the size of England - has been scorched.
7th: More than 300,000 homes and businesses in the south-eastern US were without power early in the day after a powerful storm raked the region. At least five people were killed. North Carolina had the most customers without electricity, followed by Pennsylvania, according to the data website poweroutages.us. The outages matched states that were under high wind and winter weather advisories issued by the National Weather Service. As much as 10 cm of snow fell overnight in Ohio, part of a band of snowy weather stretching from Tennessee to Maine. Blowing snow contributed to several accidents in the Akron area, and the Ohio department of transportation urged people to make room for nearly 1,300 state crews working to improve the icy conditions. The weather destroyed mobile homes in Mississippi and Alabama, caused mudslides in Tennessee and Kentucky and flooded communities that shoulder waterways across the Appalachian region. Rain kept falling over a path of splintered trees and sagging power lines that stretched from Louisiana into Virginia.
9th: Antarctica has exceeded 20C for the first time, after researchers logged a temperature of 20.75C on an island off the coast of the continent. This latest reading was taken at a monitoring station on Seymour Island, part of a chain of islands off the same peninsula, at the northernmost point of the continent. The previous record for the entire Antarctic region - which includes the continent, islands and ocean that are in the Antarctic climatic zone - was 19.8C, logged in January 1982.
10th: A powerful storm is battering parts of north-west Europe with heavy rainfall and strong winds of up to 150 km/h. Storm Ciara - known as Sabine in Germany and Switzerland and Elsa in Norway - has caused hundreds of flights to be grounded and rail services cancelled in Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and the UK. Access to exposed areas such as parks and coastlines has been restricted and motorists have been warned to take care as the weather continues to cause severe travel disruption. On Monday, large parts of northern France were placed on an orange weather alert - the second highest warning - with thousands of homes in Brittany left without power.
10th: Sydney has been hit by its heaviest rain in 30 years, bringing widespread flooding but also putting out two massive bushfires in New South Wales. Australia's weather agency said 391.6 mm of rain had fallen in the past four days in Sydney, more than three times the average rainfall for February. About 100,000 homes are without power, and officials have warned flash floods could be life-threatening. But the rainfall means only 17 fires are still burning across the state. The NSW Rural Fire Service said on Monday afternoon that the rains had extinguished more than 30 fires over the weekend, calling it "the most positive news we've had in some time". The latest to be declared out is the Gospers Mountain blaze, north-west of Sydney. Since October it has burned 512,000 hectares, and was considered a mega-blaze that was "too big to put out". On Sunday, the Currowan fire, around the town of Shoalhaven, was also put out. It had burned for 74 days, destroying nearly 500,000 hectares and 312 homes. However, the Bureau of Meteorology has warned that fire-hit areas can be particularly prone to flooding, and that fast-moving waters can carry large amounts of debris.
10th-11th: At least seven people have died across Europe as Storm Ciara moves east, shutting down transport and leaving hundreds of thousands without power. High winds in Poland ripped the roof off a ski rental shop, killing a woman and her two daughters. Their father was injured. One man died after his boat capsized in southern Sweden. One other person on board remains missing. Two people were killed in their cars - one in Germany and one in Slovenia. A 58-year-old British man was killed on Sunday after a tree fell on his car. France's Mediterranean island of Corsica recorded winds of more than 220 km/h on Monday night, as heavy rains, powerful winds and flooding spread across the continent. Authorities there said the winds fuelled a fire in the north of the island. Corsican ports and flights remained disrupted on Tuesday. Wind speeds of up to 200 km/h were also recorded in northern Italy. A woman of 71 was killed when she was hit by debris from a roof in Traona in the Lombardy region. After first sweeping across Ireland and the UK on Sunday, the storm thrashed the north coast of mainland Europe. Transport shut down and schools were forced to close across Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Dutch authorities reported traffic jams of more than 720 km across the country on Monday, and there was still some flight disruption on Tuesday after airlines cancelled hundreds of journeys. Austria has also seen high winds, which caused waves to crash over a pier on Lake Constance. In Germany, a crane smashed into Frankfurt Cathedral, damaging parts of the roof. Hamburg's fish market remained flooded on Tuesday after a storm surge reportedly forced the tide 2.7 metres above the norm. The Oresund bridge between Denmark and Sweden was closed for several hours on Monday while winds in the Czech Republic reached 180 km/h. Police in the country said the storm was probably to blame for a car accident which killed a man. However, the powerful gusts did bring one unexpected benefit in Germany. Wind turbines there produced a record amount of electricity, reportedly equivalent to 44 nuclear power plants.
16th: A French ski resort has used helicopters to deliver snow after mild weather dried out its slopes, threatening it with closure. The Luchon-Superbagneres resort in the Pyrenees arranged for around 50 tonnes of snow to be dropped on its slopes. Taken from higher mountains, the snow was dumped on slopes for beginners and children on Friday and Saturday. Temperatures have risen above 10C across the Pyrenees this week, leaving ski slopes devoid of snow.
19th: One man died, dead, thousands of people were without power and transport services were disrupted on Wednesday morning after thunderstorms wreaked havoc across Sydney (Australia) and coastal regions, just weeks after record downpours caused major flooding. Damaging winds of about 110 km/h hit North Head, with other areas also blasted by gusts over 100 km/h on Tuesday night. A 37-year-old man died after being hit by an airborne gas bottle that struck him around midnight when he was walking in Harrington Street in The Rocks. Transport for NSW said commuters on the North Shore line should plan their trips, with delays expected on several routes affected by a fallen tree at Pymble.
23rd: Strong winds carrying sand from the Sahara have affected airports in the Canary Islands. Poor visibility led to AENA, Spain's airport operator, cancelling, suspending or diverting flights. The country's national weather service has warned that winds of up to 120 km/h could hit the Canaries until Monday (24th). The winds have also affected ferry services, and hampered efforts to fight a wildfire in Tasarte, Gran Canaria.
25th: Over a thousand families are displaced in Indonesia's capital city of Jakarta as heavy rain filled the streets with floodwaters into Tuesday. Areas of rain and thunderstorms developed across the islands of Indonesia Monday night into Tuesday. Northerly winds along the northern coast of the island of Java ushered in tropical moisture, fueling tropical downpours across the island. Widespread rainfall totals of 50-100 mm were reported across western Java. The heaviest downpours produced 100-275 mm of rain across Jakarta. Of the 275 mm of rain reported at the Jakarta Observatory, about 156 mm came within about 3 hours.
26th: Residents have had to evacuate their homes as flood waters rose above defensive barriers in Worcestershire (England). It comes as two severe flood warnings remain in place in Shropshire with the River Severn at risk of breaching defences in Ironbridge. Ironbridge, Shrewsbury and Worcester are among the areas at risk of flooding along the River Severn. Rescue operations are under way to get people from their homes in Bewdley Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service is going house-to-house in the area with a dingy and helping people from their homes. The flood barriers in Bewdley are temporary barriers, they were overtopped last night at about 19:00 GMT. It started as a trickle then turned into a torrent. Train lines remain closed out of Shrewsbury railway station due to high water levels under the Severn Railway Bridge and trains are only running out of the station towards Crewe and Chester. Roads around the Ironbridge Gorge have also been closed to stop people driving in floodwater, Telford and Wrekin Council said. River levels are also continuing to rise in Worcester, however the city's main bridge remains open.

World weather news, January 2020

1st: At least 21 people have died in flooding in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, after the city had its most intense rainfall for at least 24 years. The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) measured 377 mm of rainfall in a day at an airport in East Jakarta. That's the most rain in a single day since at least 1996, when records supplied by the agency began. "The rain falling on New Year's Eve... is not ordinary rain," said the agency. The agency said the intensity of the rain was due to several factors, including the monsoon season, as well as a high amount of water vapour in the air. At least 62,000 people have been evacuated out of the city. Some people spent the night on the roofs of their buildings while awaiting rescue. Elsewhere in East Jakarta, 335 mm was recorded, while in Bekasi, further east, 259 mm fell. Rainfall above 150 mm per day is considered extreme by the agency.
2nd: Western Norway is experiencing a rare heatwave for early January, at a time when temperatures should normally be below freezing. The highest temperature of 19C - more than 25C above the monthly average - was measured in the village of Sunndalsora. This makes it Norway's warmest January day since records began.
4th: Skies reddened and darkened in areas of south-eastern Australia as wind gusts exacerbated the fires. Temperatures passed 40C in some areas. In Penrith, west of Sydney, the temperature reached 48.9C.
9th: The Bureau of Meteorology has released its 2019 Annual Climate Statement, showing 2019 was both the warmest and driest year on record for Australia. Australia's average mean temperature in 2019 was 1.52 degC above average, making it the warmest on record since consistent national temperature records began in 1910 and surpassing the previous record in 2013 of 1.33 degC above average. Meanwhile the national average rainfall total in 2019 was 277 mm, the lowest since consistent national records began in 1900. The previous record low was 314 mm set during the Federation drought in 1902. Bureau of Meteorology head of climate monitoring Dr Karl Braganza said the record warm and dry year was one of the key factors influencing recent and current fire conditions in large parts of the country.
10th-12th: At least 11 people have died as a result of severe storms sweeping across parts of the southern US, bringing high winds and heavy rain. Deaths were reported in the states of Alabama, Louisiana and Texas. Hundreds of thousands of people have been affected by power cuts as a result of the storms, while homes have been destroyed and roads flooded. Several tornado warnings were in place on Saturday, with Alabama said to be most at risk. The storms have also brought the threat of ice and snow to parts of the Midwest. Hundreds of flights were cancelled on Saturday at Chicago's two main airports. The Bossier Parish Sheriff's Office in Louisiana said an elderly couple died on Friday, when a tornado destroyed their mobile home, carrying it some 200ft (61m) from its foundations. The couple's three dogs remained unaccounted for. The National Weather Service (NWS) confirmed that three people were killed in Pickens County, Alabama. Details were not immediately clear, but local media reported that they died as a result of an apparent tornado. Authorities say buildings have been damaged in the extreme weather, while there were widespread reports of trees and power lines being felled. The states of Missouri, Oklahoma and Arkansas suffered property damage on Friday but reported no injuries.
11th-14th: At least 62 people have been killed and more are missing after avalanches and landslides hit Pakistan-administered Kashmir over the past three days. The region's Neelum Valley was particularly hard hit, with many people left cut off from help. While the area is prone to weather disasters, the current toll is one of the deadliest in recent history. The harsh weather has also killed dozens in other parts of Pakistan, and in India and Afghanistan. In most places the weather improved on Tuesday, but many of the worst affected areas remain cut off.
15th: Dalila Jakupovic, who retired from her Australian Open qualifying match because of the air quality, says every player she has spoken to had "headaches and problems breathing". The Slovenian had to be helped off court after suffering a coughing fit in her first-round match in Melbourne. Wednesday's qualifying was delayed because of the "very poor" air quality from the ongoing bushfire crisis.
16th: Cities across southern Europe are experiencing dangerously high levels of smog caused by a prolonged period of dry sunny weather and light winds. Temporary bans on diesel vehicles have been ordered in major Italian cities, including the capital, Rome, in an effort to reduce the pollution. The restrictions, which are set to remain in place over the next three days, are expected to affect about one million vehicles. At least nine of the 13 areas in Rome that monitor particulate matter - a fine dust known as PM10 - have recorded levels this week in excess of the legal limit, Italy's Il Messaggero reported. Further north, where air pollution is typically worse, Milan, Turin and Bologna are among other cities to take similar action after recording a sharp rise in particulate matter. Meanwhile, protests have been taking place in cities and towns across Bosnia-Herzegovina. On Wednesday, hundreds of people wearing respirators and face-masks gathered in the northern city of Tuzla to demand urgent action to improve air quality. In the capital, Sarajevo, government officials have been holding emergency meetings to discuss measures to curb the pollution. Local residents have also been advised to head for the mountains, where the air is cleaner, with cheap tickets made available for cable cars.
17th-18th: Parts of eastern Newfoundland remain under a state of emergency as residents dig out from a storm unlike anything seen in decades or more. Environment Canada says 76 cm of snow was measured at St. John's International Airport on Friday the most for any day since records started being kept in 1942. All flights in and out of St. John's were cancelled, and the airport remains closed until at least Sunday night. Businesses in the capital city, as well as other municipalities in the Northeast Avalon Peninsula, were ordered to stay closed for a second day. Given the high levels of snowfall there are some cases of snow drifts as deep as 5 metres the extent of the damage is not known at this point.
18th: Torrential rains and thunderstorms caused further misery for Australians in states already suffering from devastating bushfires. Several major highways were cut off, while theme parks closed in southeastern Queensland after some of the heaviest rain in months fell in the state. Local media showed video footage of dozens of vehicles being swept away in flash flooding. Standing water reached 30 cm in some areas and Australia's Bureau of Meteorology tweeted that over 100 mm of rain was expected to fall across the night and early Saturday morning in many other locations. Major highways were cut and residents flooded in as more than 300 mm of torrential rain bucketed down on south-east Queensland overnight. The deluge hit the Gold Coast the hardest with 325 mm of rain falling at Loders Creek and more than 200 mm in the Gold Coast hinterland.
20th: Storms have brought heavy rain to fire-hit regions of eastern Australia - but authorities warn the nation's bushfire crisis is still "far from over". More than 80 blazes were still burning across New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria, despite the downpours. Melbourne and Canberra have been hit by heavy storms, with hail as big as golf balls falling in some areas. Hundreds of emergency calls were made as hail smashed office windows and car windshields in the nation's capital.
20th-21st: Powerful storm Gloria has battered much of eastern Spain, with officials linking at least four deaths to it. The region around Valencia and the Balearic Islands were the worst-hit on Monday, with heavy flooding and strong winds causing havoc. More than 30 provinces in Spain were put on high alert. The storm later moved into southern France. Social media users in Spain have been publishing footage of flooded streets in Valencia and other cities and towns in Spain. Spanish forecasters on Monday reported winds of up to 115 km/h, and huge waves on the Mediterranean coast. Alicante airport was forced to close, resulting in the cancellations of many flights. Storm Gloria then moved to Pyrenees-Orientales, France's southernmost Mediterranean department, which was placed on high alert. Dozens of extra police and firefighters have been deployed in the region. The A9 motorway on the French side of the border was closed as a precautionary measure. Gloria was the worst storm to have hit the region in the winter period since January 1982, Meteo France forecaster Olivier Proust told Franceinfo.
22nd: A storm surge on the east coast of Spain has swept 3 km inland, devastating rice paddies in the Ebro river delta south of Barcelona. Storm Gloria began wreaking havoc on Monday and five people have died. The storm has wrecked beach facilities, blocked roads and caused power cuts. Seawater has caused major damage to beaches around Barcelona, Valencia and on the Balearic Islands. The mayor of the delta region, Lluis Soler, said "we've never had anything like this before". Seawater has flooded about 30 sq km of rice plants. The Barcelona port authorities say it is too dangerous for boats to venture out to sea.
24th: The UN has called for international help to fight huge swarms of desert locusts sweeping through east Africa. Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are all struggling with "unprecedented" and "devastating" swarms of the food-devouring insects. The agency fears locust numbers could grow 500 times by June. Ethiopia and Somalia have not faced an infestation on this scale for 25 years, while Kenya has not seen a locust threat this size for 70 years, the FAO said earlier this week. South Sudan and Uganda are also at risk if the swarms continue to grow and spread. The swarms have spread from Yemen across the Red Sea. Heavy rainfall at the end of 2019 created ideal conditions for the food-devouring insects to flourish. And the problem could get worse as the year goes on. Aside from growing numbers in east Africa, locusts have also been breeding in India, Iran and Pakistan, which could turn into swarms in the spring. Locusts can travel up to 150 km in a day. Each adult insect can eat its own weight in food each day.
24th-26th: At least 30 people have died during severe rainstorms in Brazil's Minas Gerais state, the country's emergency services said on the 26th. Many of the victims were buried in landslides or washed away in floods after intense rain on Friday and Saturday. More than 2,500 people were evacuated from their homes, and local TV showed images of ruined houses under red mud. Rescue work continued overnight into Sunday, with 17 people missing. The Brazilian weather service said on Saturday that the state capital of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, had 17 cm of rain in one 24-hour period - the heaviest rainfall since records were first kept there 110 years ago.

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Last updated 1 January 2021.