'Dream' winter conditions, except it's summer

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=1...

Whatever happened to summer? Cardrona Alpine Resort woke up to its heaviest summer snowfall in living memory yesterday, 30cm covering the base.

Cardrona Resort marketing executive Matt McIvor said: "If this had been a winter's day we would have been calling it dream conditions; it's perfect powder snow."

With latest storm, Boise surpasses all-time record for snowfall so far this season

http://www.idahostatesman.com/news/weather/article128183704.html

With an additional 3 inches by Monday afternoon, Boise claimed the No. 1 spot for snow by this date in any year since the NWS started keeping records, meteorologist Dave Groenert.

The extra inches that fell Monday put the year-to-date snowfall total at 35.5 inches, ahead of the 35.1 inches that fell between Oct. 1 and Jan. 23 in the winter of 1985-1986.

http://floodlist.com/australia/french-polynesia-tahiti-moorea-janua...

French Polynesia – 100 Homes Destroyed, Airport Closed After Flooding in Tahiti and Moorea

Flooding affected parts of French Polynesia from 22 January 2017 after a period of heavy rain.

Over 200 mm of rain in 24 hours was recorded in Thaiti-Faa’a on Tahiti island between 22 and 23 January. Further warnings for heavy rain have been issued until at least 24 January, in particular for the islands of Tahiti and Moorea which have been the worst hit so far.

More than 100 houses have been destroyed. At least 3 people have been injured, one of them seriously. All schools in affected areas have been closed.

Around 300 households have evacuated their homes, with local authorities providing tents for temporary accommodation. At one point 6,000 people were left without power.

Major roads have been damaged or blocked by landslides and the military has been drafted in to help clear roads and repair damaged facilities.

Tahiti’s international airport has been closed as a result of the flooding and will remain so until at least Tuesday. Helicopter relief and rescue operations however have not been affected.

In a statement made on 23 January, the High Commissioner for French Polynesia called on the population to comply strictly with the weather warnings and security instructions limiting travel. The High Commissioner has been in contact with the mayors and local officials of some of the affected communities including Pirae, Pape’ete, Puna’auia, Mahina and Faa’a.

Floods in French Polynesia, January 2017. 

http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/more-than-9000-people-evac...

Floodwaters hit houses in a Perak village as three days of relentless rain in Malaysia brought floods to nine of the country's 13 states.

JOHOR BARU • Johor state was the worst hit as three days of relentless rain in Malaysia brought floods to nine of the country's thirteen states. More than 9,000 people were evacuated from their homes in Johor as at noon yesterday, mainly from Segamat and Kota Tinggi, as anxious residents hoped they would not see a repeat of the severe state floods in 2006 and 2011 which affected 40,000 people.

Segamat district, in the northern part of the state and a 21/2-hour drive from state capital Johor Baru, was the worst affected. More than two-thirds of the flood evacuees were in Segamat, and many of its roads were closed to light vehicles.

A Labis resident, Mr Chia, 59, said he hopes that this Chinese New Year will not be reminiscent of that in 2011, when he spent the festive period at an evacuation shelter.

"I remember the welfare department and volunteers bringing us mandarin oranges but nobody was in the mood to celebrate," he said.

According to Malaysia's Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia), Johor will see isolated thunderstorms in the afternoon over the Chinese New Year weekend, but no rain in the morning or at night.

While the main highways between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur were unaffected by the heavy rain, floodwaters of up to 1m high have submerged some roads in Segamat, including Jalan Jabi-Bukit Tempurung, Jalan Utama Felda Pemanis, Jalan Segamat-Kuantan (Tun Razak Expressway) and Jalan Felda Kemelah. Roads in Kota Tinggi and Kluang also saw some flooding.

Meanwhile, the floods in Selangor, Perak, Malacca, Kelantan, Sabah, Sarawak, Pahang and Negeri Sembilan brought almost 4,000 people to relief centres and shut nine schools.

MetMalaysia has predicted some rain this weekend in several places in the states along the east coast, western Sarawak and eastern Sabah in the mornings and evenings.

Rain is also on the cards in one or two places in Kedah, Perak, Pahang and Labuan, it said in a statement.

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/after-ice-storm-57-000-households-stil...

The images are strikingly beautiful: crystalline layers of ice coating trees, homes and power lines. But for the more than 57,000 households are still without power in New Brunswick, this week’s ice storm has been a cold and dark nightmare.

“Right now, our priority is making sure that everybody is safe,” New Brunswick Premier Brian Gallant told CTV Atlantic from a recently-opened warming centre in the province. “Everybody knows exactly what they can do to stay safe, and of course that we get everybody their electricity as quickly as possible.”

The ice storm that swept through the province began on Tuesday, with some of the heaviest freezing rain and ice hitting New Brunswick’s Acadian Peninsula Wednesday night.

A statue at the Pointe Sapin Church facing the Northumberland Strait is covered in ice in Pointe-Sapin N.B., Thursday, Jan.26, 2017.

NB Power crews work to remove a build up of ice on trees and power lines following an ice storm on Jan. 25, 2017. (NB Power)

On New Brunswick’s frozen streets, broken branches dangle from powerlines, ice-heavy trees have fallen and split, and in some cases, the weight of the accumulated ice has been enough to snap wooden hydro poles. In affected areas, falling tree limbs and ice has created a steady percussive cacophony.

At the peak of the storm, more than 133,000 households were without power in the province. Crews have been toiling non-stop to get people back on the grid, but the work is so complex that NB Power says that they can’t guarantee a restoration time at this point. More than half of affected households -- particularly those in Moncton and the Acadian Peninsula -- are still in the dark. NB Power is urging customers to remain patient.

In addition to 271 crews from NB Power, help is also coming from Maine, Quebec and Nova Scotia.

“Once we get there, we'll meet up with the supervisor from the team from that area and he’ll give us further direction,” Nova Scotia Power field supervisor Bruce Allen told CTV Atlantic as a convoy of 11 trucks headed towards the ice-caked city of Miramichi.

With widespread power outages, warming centres have been opened across the province and will keep their doors open as long as people are still without electricity.

Tired of bundling up at home, Amy Mather and her young son checked into one on Thursday.

“He's sick, so I don’t want him to get any worse,” Mather told CTV Atlantic.

At one warming centre, a Syrian refugee family were also among the dozens of people who showed up to escape the cold.

“This is their first winter,” the family’s sponsor, Wayne Mullin, told CTV Atlantic. “They arrived in February and the weather, as you recall last winter, was quite good and so they really didn't get a true taste of winter -- and they're getting it now.”

In Moncton, the local YMCA also invited in those affected by the storm.

“We opened up our doors and we said anybody that's in a situation that they have no electricity and no hot water to come down to the Y,” YMCA of Greater Moncton CEO Zane Korytko told CTV Atlantic. “They can warm up, they can come and take a hot shower and they can have a cup of coffee or tea, all on us.”

Authorities are warning people to be aware of falling ice and reminding residents of affected areas to avoid standing under telephone wires or trees. NB Power is also warning people to stay away from downed hydro lines.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/floods-lash-bolivia-peru-1701...

Floods lash Bolivia and Peru

Torrential downpours caused rivers to overflow in central Bolivia and southern Peru 

http://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2017/jan/27/kashmir-witnesse...

File picture of vehicles moving towards Jammu-Srinagar highway closed due to heavy snowfall in Kashmir valley. 

SRINAGAR: The snowfall in Kashmir in last few days has broken the record of over two decades.

A Meteorological department official said Kashmir has recorded heavy snowfall this year.

He said it was the heaviest snowfall recorded in the valley since 1992.

 “We had witnessed major snowfall in 1992 and 2006 but the present snowfall has broken the record of last 25 years,” the official said.

The upper reaches of the Valley including Keran, Karnah, Gurez, Machil, Tanghdar, Uri, Gulmarg, Yousmarg, Pahalgam, Sonarmarg have witnessed heavy snowfall. The ski resort of Gulmarg has recorded more than 7 ft of snowfall while Gurez, which has witnessed at least three snow avalanches in 72 hours, has experienced about 11 ft of snowfall.

The plains including Srinagar have also experienced heavy snowfall.

Many of the inter-district roads in the Valley are disconnected and there has also been breakdown of electricity with North Kashmir being the worst hit.

As was predicted by the weatherman, the weather conditions improved today after three days of continuous snowfall.

Due to improvement in weather conditions, the air traffic at Srinagar airport resumed today after remaining suspended for three days.

An airport official said there was a significant improvement in visibility and weather conditions today.

“Due to marked improvement in visibility, all the flights took off and landed at Srinagar airport today,” he said adding an additional flight was also operated today for the stranded passengers.

However, the Srinagar-Jammu national highway, the only link road connecting Kashmir with rest of the Valley, remained closed for all kinds of vehicular traffic for the 4th consecutive day today.

A traffic police official said snow avalanches hit the highway at Shaitani Nallah while the continuous rain and snowfall triggered landslides at many places including Digdol and Chesma, hampering the efforts to make the road traffic worthy.

He said it will take some time for the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), which is looking after maintenance of the highway, to make the road traffic worthy because there is snow depth of 10-12 feet at some places.

He said no fresh traffic would be allowed on the highway unless all the obstructions all cleared and road made traffic worthy.

Due to closure of Srinagar-Jammu national highway, the prices of essential commodities have shot up here and Valley is also facing shortage of cooking gas.

Valley is totally dependent on the highway for the supplies.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jan/26/chile-wildfires-destr...

Deadly wildfire razes entire town in Chile: 'Literally like Dante's Inferno'

An entire town has been consumed by flames in Chile as unusually hot, dry weather undermined efforts to combat the worst forest fires in the country’s recent history. 

More than 1,000 buildings, including schools, nurseries, shops and a post office were destroyed in Santa Olga, the biggest of several communities to be reduced to ashes in the Maule region.

One body was later recovered from the ruins. Two people are missing, but most of the residents were evacuated unharmed. Few will have a home to return to. 

Drone images showed entire neighbourhoods reduced to ashes. The roads are still neatly symmetrical, but the buildings in block after block lie in smouldering ruins under a hazy sky.

Even for a region that is frequently hit by earthquakes and floods, the extent of the destruction was shocking.

“Nobody can imagine what happened in Santa Olga. What we have experienced here is literally like Dante’s Inferno,” said the Carlos Valenzuela, the mayor of the encompassing municipality Constitución. “We were recovering after the last earthquake, but this tragedy has messed up everything.”

He said the smaller communities of Putú and Cabezalillo had also been damaged.

“The situation is awful. It’s the worst catastrophe we’ve had in a number of years. I believe that this surpasses any tragedy that we have had before, this is much worse than when it was the earthquake or the floods. It is a thing that does not stop, is advancing,” said Francisco Henríquez, director of Orca Chile, a civil organisation deployed in the area.

Residents expressed dismay and fury as they returned to charred livestock, collapsed buildings and blackened farm fields. Some felt abandoned by the authorities.

“When the politicians need our votes they come here, they put their face and expect us to vote for them. Now they’re not here,” Miguel Reyes, a resident of Santa Olga, told BioBioChile

But even with 5,000 firefighters, government resources have been overstretched.

More than 90 wildfires have broken out in the past few weeks and spread rapidly across vegetation that has been dried by unseasonably high temperatures. Many regions have suffered heatwaves. Santiago registered a record 37C on Wednesday.

At least four firefighters have been killed in the battle to control the blazes. Including police and civilians, the overall death toll is now seven, according to local media.

The economic impact is still to be calculated. According to the National Forestry Corporation, 238,000 hectares of forests in central and southern Chile have been burned, forcing the evacuation of at least 4,000 people and damaging farms, cattle ranches and vineyards.

President Michelle Bachelet has declared a state of emergency and called for international help in dealing with fire on a scale “never seen in the history of Chile”. Dozens of helicopters, light aircraft and a Boeing 747 “supertanker” have dumped water and flame retardants from the skies, but at least 30 fires continue to rage.

There have been successes. Penco, a town of 50,000 inhabitants, in the region of Bío Bío, was saved by firebreaks that kept the advancing flames at bay. But the threat continues.

The interior minister, Mahmud Aleuy, warned more fires might break out because weather forecasters predict several more days of high temperatures, strong winds and low humidity.

The government has pledged to investigate the cause of the fires and the effectiveness of the official response.

As well as climate change, tourist negligence and poor park management, the country’s timber and wood pulp industry may come under the spotlight.

Biologists say plantations of non-indigenous forests, such as eucalyptus and pine, help to spread the fires more quickly.

“About 42% of the forest fires are in plantation forests, which are like matchboxes,” said Mary Kalin Arroyo of the University of Chile. “They spread fire to native forests.”

Hotel Plunges into Peruvian River During Deluge (Jan 26)

Incredible footage has captured the horrifying moment when a three-story hotel was sent tumbling into a river in southern Peru during intense rainfall.

The La Hacienda hotel was located on the edge of the Sicra river in the town of Lircay in Peru’s Huancavelica region, built 200 years ago during colonial times.

The stunning collapse occurred after the area had been bombarded with heavy rains for more than 10 hours. The persistent downfall washed away the earth supporting the building’s foundations, which eventually dramatically gave away.

No one was injured in the collapse, as authorities had evacuated the 50-room hotel as weather conditions deteriorated. Several other buildings in the town were also damaged or destroyed during the deluge.

Three people were killed on January 26 when a mudslide sent a car careening into a truck in southern Peru. Hundreds of members of the Peruvian army, navy, and air force have been assisting with emergency relief efforts in the worst affected areas.

Sources

https://www.rt.com/viral/375384-hotel-collapses-river-video/

http://news.sky.com/story/peru-hotel-collapses-into-swollen-river-a...

Record-breaking snowfall wreaks havoc across Idaho

Source: idahostatejournal.com

24 January, 2017. Lots of heavy wet snow has wreaked havoc recently in Idaho and other states in the West. Locally, it’s broken some records, played a role in numerous accidents, shut down government offices and schools, and even collapsed a vacant building.

Jackie Wolfe, who works at Mickelsen Marble Inc. on Rollandet Street in Idaho Falls, said she got to work on Tuesday morning in time to hear a loud bang. It turned out to be the sound of the vacant building next door collapsing.

The snow-covered roof caved in and the walls fell outward. “Thank God there was nobody in there because it would have been a mess getting them out,” Wolfe said.

She’s glad Mickelsen Marble’s building is still doing OK, but even it has sprung a few leaks, she said. Others haven’t been so lucky.

The accumulated weight of snow has crushed an old lumber mill in Oregon, a sports complex in Alaska and a conference center in Colorado, among others. The collapses caused some injuries and at least one death, when the roof of a woman’s snow-laden porch in northern Idaho fell while she was under it, officials say.

In Washington County, Idaho, some 100 buildings have crashed down, including a grocery store in the town of Weiser, as well as its popular bowling alley and an antique shop. The only injury reported in Weiser so far is a man whose leg and hip broke when a carport collapsed, said Scott Penner, spokesman for Washington County’s disaster services.

Experts say the rare combination of greater snowfall at lower elevations and prolonged cold temperatures that allowed the snow to accumulate without melting away is partly to blame for the collapses. The combination builds up an amount of snow that exceeds building codes set for weather expected only twice a century, said Dell Winegar, president of the Idaho Onion Growers Association, whose industry has felt the pain at its facilities.

Nearly 20 buildings that store and package onions have crashed down in Idaho and Oregon, leading prices to spike from $3.50 to $6.50 for a 50-pound bag of yellow jumbo onions.

“It’s been a heartbreak for a lot of folks,” Winegar said. “It’s hard to prepare for something that has never happened before.” Storms this month have blanketed the West and kept dumping more snow on top of it.Wolfe said she shoveled her driveway on Monday night, but the blowing and drifting snow was already knee-deep again by Tuesday morning. She’s getting tired of it.

“(The snow) can turn off any time now,” Wolfe said.

The snow broke three records in the Pocatello area on Monday.

Officials with the National Weather Service forecast office in Pocatello said a new record for daily maximum rainfall was set at 0.52 inches, smashing the old record of 0.33 set on Jan. 23, 1950.

In addition, a new daily record was also set for snowfall. Weather officials say 8.6 inches fell on Jan. 23, breaking the old record of 2.8 inches set in 1993. That number also beat the greatest 24-hour record for the month of January, which was previously 8.3 inches on Jan. 8, 2005.

A post on the weather service’s website stated, “If it has to be this bad, at least we’re making the Record Books.” Source: idahostatejournal.com

'Januburied': Snow Breaks Records in the Sierra Nevada

25 January, 2017. Since the beginning of the year, California has dealt with storm after storm, each one piling up more snow on top of the last storm's snow.

It’s official – more snow has fallen in January than any other month in Mammoth’s recorded history with 246” (over 20 FEET!)  Source: weather.com

The last six winter storms — Gregory, Helena, Iras, Jupiter, Kori and Leo — all passed through California dumping feet of snow, while rainfall caused flooding in lower elevations. Some residents in the mountain West are calling this month #Januburied.

At Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, they've received more snow so far in January than any calendar month on record, as well as some recent entire seasons.

What an epic winter so far!  Here's a map of snow water content & official stats from @CA_DWR. 197% of avg for this date! #CAstorm #CAwater Source: twitter.com - NWSCNRFC

From Jan. 1-24, Mammoth Mountain received 245 and a half inches of snow. That crushes the previous monthly snowfall record of 209 inches set in December 2010.

Source: twitter.com - KirkwoodMtn

For perspective, over the last 48 snow seasons, Mammoth has received an average of 65 inches during the month of January.

The January snowfall total so far tops 11 other seasonal snowfall totals dating back to 1970. That includes the recent drought-ridden 2013-14 (238 inches) and 2014-15 (176 inches) snow seasons.

This doesn't sound like a problem for a ski resort, but on Monday, it was clear resort staff was running out of room to pile the epic snow.

In the Lake Tahoe region, it has been the snowiest January since 1952 in Tahoe City, California, with 135.5 inches. Last winter, the seasonal total from July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016 was 140 inches, only 4 and a half inches more that what has fallen just this January.

At Squaw Valley, California, more than 8 feet of snow fell Jan. 19-24 at 8,000 feet, bringing the seasonal snowfall total to 378 inches. That snowfall total, if it was the end of the season, would be higher than four of the last six seasonal snowfall totals. We still have 4 to 5 more months to go in this year's snow season.

Some ski resorts have even had too much of the drought-busting powder, enough snow to completely bury entire ski lifts and even close the slopes.

It's not just the mountains that have shoveled and plowed away hefty amounts of snow. Reno, Nevada, has had its snowiest month in 12 years, with 18.8 inches in January.

The snow has caused significant impacts to travel through Donner Pass on Interstate 80 at times.

Blizzard conditions from Winter Storm Jupiter forced that stretch of interstate to close during the height of the storm. According to the National Weather Service in Sacramento, the last closure of that magnitude on Interstate 80 over Donner Summit was in March 2011.

The series of storms these last few weeks have brought over 300% of normal January precip to most of the state. #CAstorm #CAwx. Source: twitter.com - NWSCNRFC

In the Truckee, California area, I-80 was closed for over 12 hours during Winter Storm Leo due to road and weather conditions. According to the California Highway Patrol-Truckee in a Facebook interview, the frequency of interstate closures has been "on about par with most normal winters" even with all of the extra snow. In addition to those closures, when I-80 was open, the road was restricted to cars with chains or four-wheel vehicles with snow-tread tires.

With as many storms as California and Nevada have seen, it is no surprise that precipitation has been well above average. The California Nevada River Forecast Center says precipitation is more than 300 percent of average in much of the Golden State so far in January.

The first 24 days of January were the wettest such period on record in Bakersfield and Sacramento, California, and the second-wettest in Reno, Nevada, and San Francisco, according to the Southeast Regional Climate Center. Source: weather.com

Jan was Sydney's hottest month ever: BoM

1 February, 2017. It's official - Sydneysiders have just sweated through the hottest month on record.

The city's average maximum temperature for January was 29.6C beating the previous mark of 29.5C recorded in 1896, the Bureau of Meteorology said on Wednesday.

Last month Sydney had 11 days when the temperature topped 30C, and five days above 35C, smashing not only all previous records for the month, but for any month since records began in 1858.

"Anyone that's been feeling really uncomfortable can feel 100 per cent justified in their complaints," Bureau of Meteorology climatologist Agata Imielska told AAP.

"It's the warmest month for Sydney."

January's average minimum was 21.6C, breaking the previous January record of 21C in 1991, and the previous average minimum for any month which had been 21.2C in February 2010.

"Only three days dropped below 25C as a maximum in January 2017 and that's the equal fewest on record with January 1994," Ms Imielska added.

The climatologist says Sydney's record-breaking temperatures were due to a combination of strong westerly winds, unusually dry conditions, less-than-average rainfall and climate change.

"One factor is the ongoing warming trend - we've warmed by a degree in the past century and it's not just about averages, we see increases in these extreme temperatures as well," Ms Imielska said.

"It doesn't just go for land temperatures, it also goes for ocean temperatures. In 2016 we saw the warmest ocean temperatures on record."

The persistent heat has been aggravated by dry conditions since October caused by a high pressure system sitting over the Tasman Sea which has increased westerly winds moving over southern Australia.

"We've also had warm offshore sea surface temperatures - that also keeps conditions warmer particularly at night," Ms Imielska said.

"As a result we have seen that back-to-back heat and the lack of relief - the surprising thing is that there haven't been any really cool days."

Sydney conditions are due to heat up again over the next few days with the mercury expected to hit 37C in the city and 43C in the west on Sunday. Source: weeklytimesnow.com.au

Hong Kong just had its warmest January on record

2 February, 2017. Average temperature of 18.5 degrees highest since records began, back in 1885.

The first month of this year was the warmest January in Hong Kong since records began in 1885, according to the Observatory.
Locals experienced a record-breaking average temperature of 18.5 degrees Celsius – 2.2 degrees warmer than the normal monthly average of 16.3 degrees, the Observatory said on Thursday. Li Kin-wai, chief experimental officer at the Observatory, said it was the hottest January since records began. Guangdong cities empty during Lunar New Year as Chinese migrant workers head home for the holiday The unseasonably hot weather was down to no substantial cold surge affecting the Guangdong coast, he said.

The second-warmest January was in 1901, when temperatures averaged 18.3 degrees – much warmer than last year’s 16 degrees. Last month’s average daily minimum temperature was also warmer than usual, at 17 degrees, 2.5 degrees higher than the average daily low in January. And the month was drier than usual, with only 7.8mm of total rainfall, less than a third of the normal 24.7mm.

The record-breaking January follows a relatively toasty December, which was the third-warmest in more than 130 years.
The hottest day of the month was January 6, when sunny skies saw temperatures hit 25.5 degrees.
January also saw more sunlight than usual, with 145.1 bright sunshine hours, 2.1 hours more than the average for January.
Northerly winds brought the city dry and cool weather towards the end of the month, bringing the temperature down to 13.6 degrees on January 22, the month’s coldest day.
There was only one tropical cyclone over the South China Sea and the western North Pacific last month. Source: scmp.com

January coldest in 30 years, Slovenia

2 February, 2017. Slovenia experienced this year its coldest January in over 30 years. The average temperature in Ljubljana stood at -3.2 degrees Celsius last month, which compares to a 1981-2010 average of 0.5 degrees.

According to meteorologist Andrej Velkavrh, the cold start to the year is nothing to worry about. "If we analysed previous Januaries, we'd see that temperatures jumped up and down considerably. A cold January is a sign that the weather was stable," he told the daily Dnevnik. <...>

In itself this would be nothing special, but almost all precipitation happened in 36 hours. "At first, rain fell, then there was snow and then it rained on frozen ground. The soil practically did not soak up any water," Velkavrh also told the paper.

According to accessible data, the coldest January in Ljubljana was recorded in 1880, when the average temperature dropped to -9 degrees Celsius. Source: english.sta.si

January 2017 ranks as top 5 warmest in more than a dozen US states

The numbers represent how much above average January 2017 was based on average temperature (Image: Southeast Regional Climate Center)

1 February, 2017. Many are asking, “Where is winter?” We had a few very cold days in January in north Alabama: the stretch of days between January 6 and January 8 featured highs below freezing. Despite that bitterly cold weather, warm weather stole the headlines.

The number shown represents where January 2017 ranks in comparison to all years on record (Image: Southeast Climate Regional Center)

Huntsville had at least seven days where the high temperature was at least 20 degrees above average last month. The warmest day of the month was January 14; the high was 76. January 2017 was the third warmest January on record in Huntsville, according to climate data.

The unusually warm weather was not just happening where we live. At least a dozen states east of the Rocky Mountains logged a top-five warmest January last month. Even a few communities near the Canadian border experienced one of the warmest Januarys on record. If the first of February is any indication of what is to come for the final full month of winter, expect more warm than cold. Source: whnt.com

Temperature dips as strong winds hit UAE

February 3, 2017

Big events cancelled due to high winds, motorists cautioned as visibility drops to 100 meters in certain areas

http://gulfnews.com/news/uae/weather/temperature-dips-as-strong-win...

VIDEOS

Dubai: Motorists are being cautioned to drive carefully as visibility dips due to strong North-Westerly winds reaching up to 75-80 km/hr, kicking up blowing sand and dust over scattered areas.

A snowman on top of Jebel Jais. Thickness of the snow layer reached 10cm, states National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology.

The inclement weather affected a number of outdoor events in Dubai on Friday. The Global Village was closed on Friday while the Omega Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament was also suspended due to high winds.

The beginning of the snowfall over Jais mountain #NCMS station recorded 2.2 below zero at 9 am

The NCMS has also reported heavier snowfall up to 10cm thick on the mountain tops of Jebel Jais in Ras Al Khaimah, after temperatures reached sub-zero level on Friday morning.
CONTINUE...
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Four cars destroyed after crane falls on Shaikh Zayed Road - DUBAI

February 3, 2017

Teams from Dubai Police and Civil Defence are clearing the wreckage and redirecting traffic

http://gulfnews.com/news/uae/emergencies/four-cars-destroyed-after-... VIDEO

Four cars destroyed after crane falls on Shaikh Zayed Road
Teams from Dubai Police and Civil Defence are clearing the wreckage and redirecting traffic

A view of the construction crane that fell on Shaikh Zayed Road

Dubai: Four cars were destroyed, of which two went up in flames, after a construction crane fell in the middle of Shaikh Zayed Road due to strong winds and unstable weather, Dubai civil defense told Gulf News.

At least one person was injured.
The Dubai Metro service was also temporarily stopped on a segment of the Red Line between Jaffliya and Business Bay stations after debris that fell on the track caused sparks as a train rolled by. CONTINUE...
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Hammana ROADS Like Siberian areas. LEBANON- MIDDLE EAST
Translated

February 3, 2017

https://www.facebook.com/Khneisser.weather/photos/pcb.1007344882699...

Qatar witnesses the lowest temperature in its history

5 February, 2017. Qatar's weather station in Abu Samra recorded at early morning the lowest temperature in country's history at 1.5 degree celsius.

The new record low temperature is the lowest since the 3.8 degrees recorded in Mesaieed in January of 1964. Qatar Meteorology Department released a statement today said that the cold wave was a result of the advancement of a high-pressure area and an air mass close to regions in the country.

The statement added that Sunday dawn saw falling temperatures and decreasing wind speed, until 5:40 am when temperatures reached 9 degrees. The change in wind direction after that and a mass of cold air approaching the shore led to a prompt fall in temperatures to 7.5 degrees in thirty minutes. Source: thepeninsulaqatar.com

Drought declaration likely in Hawke's Bay as region records its driest-ever January

January saw a record low rainfall in Hawke's Bay, with temperatures reaching in to the 30s. VIVIENNE HALDANE

1 February, 2017. Hawke's Bay is teetering on the edge of adrought as January goes down as being the driest-ever on record in the region.

On average, 5.4 millimetres of rain fell in Napier and 4.3mm in Gisborne during January - the lowest amount recorded since records were kept, according to Met Service.

Local Labour MP Stuart Nash said he believed a drought would be declared soon. "I am aware they will declare a drought situation here within the next two weeks.

Federated Farmers says a drought should be declared in Hawke's Bay given the extremely dry conditions. JAN MACKENZIEC

The warm weather was being welcomed by local winemakers, but causing concern for farmers, he said.
"I was talking to a winemaker a week ago and he said the 2017 vintage is going to be outstanding. The other side of the coin is for dairy and dry stock farmers." Federated Farmers Hawke's Bay president Will Foley said the lack of rain meant it was reaching crunch time for land owners. He would be arguing for a drought to be declared at a meeting of the regional council on Thursday.
<...>
The last drought to be declared in Hawke's Bay was in 2013.

<...>

Helicopters fight a grass fire that spread through dry farm land near Napier on Tuesday. TOMMY LIVINGSTON/FAIRFAX NZ

Met Service meteorologist Tom Adams said the dry weather was set to last into February, with any reprieve not expected until later in the month. "It has been exceptionally dry," he said. "The first couple of weeks of February, looks like the pattern will continue."
<...>
HOW A DROUGHT IS DECLARED

* The Ministry of Primary Industries works in conjunction with other stakeholders to determine if a drought is taking place.

* Their advice is given to the Government, which determines and declares an official drought.

Once a drought is declared, farmers have access to a range of Government support, including access to a network of charitable rural support trusts that are set up throughout the country to co-ordinate drought recovery activities.

* Assistance around flexibility with tax payments through Inland Revenue and hardship assistance provided by Work and Income is also provided. Source: stuff.co.nz

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/articles/bc-digs-out-from-ma...

Digging Out: 70+ cm falls on parts of B.C. See the photos

Sunday, February 5, 2017, 8:29 PM - Meteorologists are calling it one of the most significant snowfalls to hit British Columbia in February history.

Places like Hope and Chilliwack have been hit the hardest with 70+ cm reported since 3 p.m. PT Sunday.

"Roof collapses can become a concern with these accumulations," says The Weather Network meteorologist Tyler Hamilton.

Thousands remain without power across the Lower Mainland, with snowfall warnings in effect for Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, and the Kootenays.

Highlights

• Snowfall warnings still widespread across the south. 
• Snow to ease into Monday. Surge of warmer air from the south may spell periods of rain and/or ice pellets depending on elevation.
• High avalanche risk for southern areas.
• In the interior, heavy snow intensifies Sunday night into Monday, affecting Alberta as well.

Wild weather swing could see record 60 degree temperatures on Wednesday followed HOURS later by 10 inches of snow in the Tri-State area

• Near-record warm weather in the Tri-State area is expected on Wednesday
• But Winter Storm Niko is going to hit the area with up to 10 inches of snow
• The storm is expected to begin late Wednesday night through Thursday
• Forecasters say Winter Storm Niko is going to make the commute difficult for those in major cities, including Boston and New York City

Wild weather over the next 48 hours could see near-record warm weather in the Tri-State area on Wednesday, followed by up to 10 inches of snow on Thursday thanks to Winter Storm Niko.

The Interstate 95 corridor in the Northeast is expected to be hit with heavy snow beginning late on Wednesday night through Thursday, as some areas could get up to six inches or more rapidly, according to the National Weather Service.

Forecasters say the storm is going to make the morning commute difficult for those in major cities, including Boston and New York City and possibly Baltimore, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia.

Much of the Tri-State area will be under a winter storm watch or winter weather advisory starting late Wednesday after experiencing record highs in the daytime as part of some wild weather over the next 48 hours

The Interstate 95 corridor in the Northeast is expected to be hit with heavy snow beginning late Wednesday night through Thursday

Forecasters say Winter Storm Niko is going to make the commute difficult for those in major cities, including Boston and New York City and possibly Baltimore, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia

Some states are expected to get up to 10 inches of snow as forecasters predict the snowfall to be heavy at times 

The National Weather Service has issued winter storm watches for part of southern New England southward into the New York City area as well as west towards south-central Pennsylvania. 

In addition, on Thursday gusty winds 'will also be on the increase across parts of the Northeast,' according to the National Weather Service.

However, like most winter storms, forecasters say the exact track and speed of this upcoming storm is still not 100 per cent certain. 

Winter Storm Niko does not appear to be a huge Northeast snowstorm, but it is expected to make travel difficult for the region as flight delays should be expected.

Boston is expected to reach a high of 32 degrees on Thursday, as it'll likely be 36 degrees in New York and 37 degrees in Philadelphia

Boston is expected to be hit with between five and eight inches of snow, as New York City could see the same amounts

Atlantic City is expected to get between three and five inches of snow, as Baltimore will only get between one and three inches of it through Thursday

But before the storm hits the region late Wednesday, the National Weather Service says it's expected to reach at least 60 degrees on Wednesday in New York City.

The record high temperature for Central Park on February 8th is 61 degrees, as the monthly average high is around 40 degrees for the second month of the year.

Officials say several cities in the region are experiencing low amounts of snowfall. 

Through February 5, Baltimore has only received 0.7 inches of snow this year, which is just over 11 inches below average for the season. 

By Thursday around 7pm (ET) temperatures in New York City will be around 24 degrees, while it will be slightly warmer in Washington, D.C. at 34 degrees

As of Wednesday evening, the above map shows the current snowcover across the country

This has been the third-least snowy start to the season on record for the city dating to 1949-1950, according to NOAA's ACIS database.

The 1972-1973 season saw zero inches of snow for Baltimore.

In addition, the last time Philadelphia saw one inch or more of snowfall was roughly one month ago, January 5-7, during Winter Storm Helena. 

For New York City, it hasn't snowed in Central Park since January 15, as Boston has only seen 1.4 inches of snow since January 8.  

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4202146/Wild-weather-48-hou...

https://www.rt.com/usa/376637-southern-louisiana-tornadoes-damage/

Flipped trucks & destroyed homes: State of emergency in Louisiana as tornadoes hit 

 

Southern Louisiana, including New Orleans, has suffered severe damage after seven tornadoes battered the area, causing dozens of injuries and leaving a wake of destruction. 
Governor John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency Tuesday morning following the onslaught that left about 10,000 homes without power and severely damaged NASA's Michaud Facility. 
New Orleans East, which was hit by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, was one of the hardest hit areas where at least 60 homes and businesses were reportedly damaged and about 25 people were injured. 
By declaring a state of emergency, the governor empowers himself and other officials to act faster to help ensure safety. This can include mobilizing law enforcement officers and the Louisiana National Guard in some cases. 

Impacted residents shared pictures of flipped cars, torn-off rooftops, broken power poles and piles of debris as the state tries to once again recover from extreme storms. 

The National Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma, said 2.7 million people in parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama would be at the highest risk of severe weather on Tuesday.

http://www.livetrucking.com/truck-driver-dies-after-being-blown-off...

Truck Driver Dies After Being Blown Off Chesapeake Bay Bridge

Winds up to 40 miles-per-hour were reported on the bridge at the time of the accident.

February 9, 2017

The driver of a semi truck has died after his rig was blown off the Chesapeake Bay Bridge by strong winds on Thursday.

According to Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel director Thomas Anderson, the truck broke through the bridge’s guardrail and plunged into the bay around 12:30 p.m. The driver was spotted standing on top of the floating rig and was picked up by a Navy helicopter around 12:45 p.m. He later died from his injuries while being transported to the hospital.

The accident happened around milepost 15 on the southbound lanes.

Winds up to 40 mph were reported over the bridge at the time of the accident and a level 1 wind restriction was in effect. After the crash, winds up to 47 mph were reported and the wind restriction was elevated to level 2, which prevents tractor trailers hauling less than 30,000 pounds from crossing the bridge.

The name of the driver has not been released.

Video footage in link

BOM confirms Perth's (Australia) coldest ever February maximum, flooding hits South West; Perth records second wettest day ever

11 February, 2017. Perth has recorded its lowest maximum temperature for the month of February since records began more than 100 years ago. The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) confirmed Thursday's maximum of 17.4 degrees was reached just after 4:00pm. Heavy rain caused widespread flooding and power blackouts in Perth and the south-west of the state.

Source (old version of article, below updated): abc.net.au

Perth records second wettest day ever

PHOTO: Just 36mm of rain fell at South Kumminin in the Wheatbelt, but it was enough to flood some roads. (Supplied: Sheree Thomas).

11 February, 2017. Meanwhile, Perth has recorded its second wettest day ever, receiving 114 millimetres in a 24-hour period. The record was set on February 9, 1992, when the city recorded 120.6mm. The overnight rain caused flooding and traffic chaos early on Friday morning.

Perth also recorded its lowest maximum temperature for the month of February since records began more than 100 years ago on Thursday night. The BOM confirmed Thursday's maximum of 17.4 degrees was reached just after 4:00pm.

The heavy rain has caused widespread flooding and power blackouts in Perth and the south-west of the state. A tropical low which formed off the Pilbara coast earlier this week before dumping more than 200 millimetres of rain on Karratha is responsible for the wild weather. Source: abc.net.au

Record heat: Half of Australia bakes in temperatures over 100 degrees

Forecast high temperatures Saturday in Australia. (weatherbell.com)

10 February, 2017. A vast area of Australia, from the Great Sandy Desert to Sydney Harbor, sweltered under extreme heat Thursday and Friday. For some in the central part of the country, the heatwave is over; for others, it will continue into the weekend.

At least three significant records were broken on Friday.

• Sydney Airport reported its warmest February temperature at 109.2 degrees Fahrenheit. The previous February record was 108.7 degrees in 1980.
• The airport in Adelaide, South Australia, had its third day in a row of temperatures above 104 degrees, which is significant since it’s 40 degrees Celsius. Consecutive heat like this hasn’t happened since 1914 in that location — what is usually the colder, southern part of Australia.
• Mildura, Victoria, next to the border of New South Wales, reached 114.8 degrees (46 Celsius) for the second day in a row, which is also something that has never happened at that airport.
• A significant record not yet set: Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology expects a record for the entire state of New South Wales on Saturday — the hottest February day on record at 116.6 degrees in the western part of the state. It hasn’t been this dangerously hot in the region since 2013, the bureau said.

The shear extent of the heat is extreme, let alone peak temperatures, the Guardian reports:

Stephen Wood, a senior forecaster at the Bureau of Meteorology, said roughly 20 percent of Australia — an area equivalent to 1.5m sq km (roughly 580,000 square miles) — would experience peak temperatures of over [104 degrees Fahrenheit] on Saturday.

“To have such a large area of temperatures above [104 degrees Fahrenheit] and for so long is definitely unusual,” he said. “These next three days, large areas are going to suffer through the pain of it, unfortunately.”

Heat of this magnitude would put extreme stress on the U.S. power grid, but interestingly, energy experts in Australia are unconcerned. Cool heads prevail for one simple reason, ABC News Australia reports: “The high uptake of rooftop solar in the southern part of the state had reduced the overall load on the power network.” Source: washingtonpost.com

Source: cci-reanalyzer.org

With temperatures over 40C in parts of Sydney, it is now officially the hottest summer in the city’s 158 year recorded history — with 10 summer days over 35C.

10 Febraury, 2017. Source: dailytelegraph.com.au

Record highs are smashed across the central US Friday

10 February, 2017. Source: sercc.com

10 February, 2017

Description:
Map display of individual 'Local Station Perspectives' historical perspectives. Displays include displaying raw values, historical rankings, and historical percentiles. Source: sercc.com

Source: cci-reanalyzer.org

11 February, 2017. In an unprecedented wave, temperatures soared in the central part of the country Friday to a level never seen before in the month of February in some locations. While the metro came up just shy of a record high, many cities in southwest Minnesota hit daily record highs in the 50s and even some low 60s. This is in part because the snow has completely melted in many of these areas. While it was unseasonably mild in parts of Minnesota, it was HOT in other parts of the central US. Dozens of records fell from western Nebraska down to Texas and westward in to Arizona where temperatures peaked in the 90s… even too warm for them this time of year. In fact, it was the warmest February day EVER in Denver where the temperature hit 80°. Several other monthly record highs fell in Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico. In all, nearly 100 record highs were breached Friday making it the first true heat wave of the year. Source: fox9.com

Warmest recorded February day in Denver

10 February, 2017. Denver not only shattered a record high temperature on Friday, but it marked the warmest recorded February day ever as strong Chinook winds barreled out of the mountains and foothills and led to abnormal heating.

The temperature reached 79 degrees by 1:30 p.m. at Denver International Airport, the official reporting station for the city, the National Weather Service said.

The previous warmest temperature for any day in February was 77 degrees on Feb. 4, 1890 and Feb. 28, 2006.

Friday's mark broke the previous high for the date of 71 degrees set in 1951. The record fell when the temperature spiked to 74 degrees at 10:24 a.m., the National Weather Service said.

<...> Source: kdvr.com

70s in February: Record high temperatures surge in the Eastern U.S. (7 February)

7 February, 2017. Source: sercc.com

7 February, 2017. It does not feel like winter in the Eastern U.S. this week. Spring has already arrived in the Southeast and forecast highs are in the 70s as far north as Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, breaking records at dozens of climate-monitoring stations.

A strong, spring-like cold front is pushing east this week. Ahead of the storm, winds from the south are pumping warm air north into the Mid-Atlantic. Record highs for the date fell from Texas to Maryland Tuesday. In Washington, D.C., Tuesday’s morning temperature was 48 degrees, which sets a new record for warmest overnight low for the date. The old record was 47 degrees in 1904. At 3:31 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, Washington crushed its previous record high of 64 (set in 2008), rising to 73 degrees.

Records broken on Tuesday

Records that have already been broken or tied are crossed off. Temperatures will continue to rise through 3 or 4 p.m.

Washington D.C. — 64 degrees (1887)
Dulles Airport — 65 degrees (2009)
BWI Airport — 64 degrees (1904)
Paducah, Ky. — 66 degrees (1999)
Memphis, Tenn. — 72 degrees (1937)
Jacksonville, Fla. — 80 degrees (1904)
Houston — 80 degrees (1957)
Corpus Christi, Tex. — 83 degrees (2000)
Austin — 84 degrees (2013)
Brownsville, Tex. — 85 degrees (2013)

Monday record highs (old record)

Austin — 81 degrees (79 in 2009)
Oklahoma City — 77 degrees (73 in 2009)
Houston — 81 degrees (tie/1969)
Memphis — 73 degrees (tie/1928)

Source: washingtonpost.com

Animated map of (Unofficial) record-breaking temperature across the Globe for the last month

Important Notes:

• The source of the historical data here is the NCDC GSOD (updated through 2016 as of 16 January 2017).
• The records are defined here using GMT, with the day resetting at 00GMT (7PM EST;8PM EDT).
• These records are NOT official and differ from official records that use a longer database and local (not GMT) time.
• Only cities having an NCDC GSOD recorded history of at least 35 years are shown here.
• With the additional year of data available (2016), 284 new stations (for a total of 3287) now meet the 35 year minimum record.
• Of the now 1.2 million daily extremes in the database, approximately 70,000 were set in 2016 (~ 6%).
• Note that given the relatively short record used here (as small as 35 years), records will almost assuredly be set somewhere every day for the next several decades to centuries.
• Appreciation to R. Maue, among several others, for feedback.

Source of map: coolwx.com

Arkansas Storm creates *DRAMATIC* situation not far from Yellowstone!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dme-zxqvTTk&feature=youtu.be 

New Orleans East tornado was an EF-3 -- the strongest recorded in the city

Aerial photos of homes and businesses located along Chef Menteur Highway in New Orleans following a devastating tornado on Tuesday, February 7, 2017. (Photo by Chris Granger, Nola.com | The Times-Picayune)

8 February, 2017. The National Weather Service confirmed Wednesday (Feb. 8) that the severe damage in New Orleans East Tuesday was indicative of an EF-3 tornado -- the strongest reported in the city since recordkeeping began in 1950.

Survey crews from the Weather Service graded the tornado as EF-3 on the enhanced Fujita scale, which means wind speeds reached 136 to 165 miles per hour.

That's a severe category; the strongest is an EF-5 tornado with three-second wind gusts of more than 200 miles per hour. Jefferson Parish by comparison experienced an EF-0 tornado Tuesday that caused minor roof damage and downed tree limbs, according to preliminary Weather Service data.

At least 33 injuries were reported in the New Orleans area after the tornado hit neighborhoods around Chef Menteur Highway, amid an outbreak of several tornadoes across South Louisiana. New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu's office Wednesday said 300 structures were severely damaged over the 2 to 2.5 mile tornado path. Two injuries were also reported on the North Shore and nine injuries occurred in the Baton Rouge area, the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness said.

Before Tuesday, Orleans Parish had 18 recorded instances of tornado outbreaks since 1950, according to National Weather Service data. Those outbreaks only ranged from EF-0 to EF-2, meaning Tuesday's outbreak was the most powerful tornado to hit Orleans Parish since record-keeping began. Of those past events, only one fatality was reported after an EF-2 tornado hit Gentilly in 2007.

"An EF-3 tornado in Orleans Parish is a very, very rare event, fortunately," National Weather Service meteorologist Michael Koziara said. Although meteorologists are still in the process of collecting data on the tornado, Koziara said "yesterday's tornado was longer in path length and wider in path width than the 2007 tornado."

"If it's bigger and wider across a populated area, it's going to chew up and damage and destroy more real estate," he said. See below for a map of all of the tornadoes to hit Louisiana since 1950 that were rated EF-3 through EF-5, provided by Barry Keim, Coryn Collins and the Louisiana Office of State Climatology. Source: nola.com

https://sputniknews.com/asia/201702131050607694-australian-bushfire...

The heatwave that raised air temperatures in Australia to the highest in the history of the continent’s meteorology has led to massive bushfires all across the state of New South Wales.

Australia is being scorched by a massive "heatwave from hell," as air temperature across the continent spiked to some 45 degrees Celsius, with the highest, 48.5 C, registered in the town of Tarcoola. As Sputnik reported Friday, the Australian fire service announced a nationwide fire ban and bushfire warning. They were right to do so, but they didn't prevent New South Wales from being engulfed in flame.

According to media reports, there are more than 80 out of control bushfires ravaging the state at the moment. The largest of those is some 350 km from Sydney. Firefighters are reportedly going door to door urging residents to evacuate. Thankfully, no loss of life or injury has been reported so far, but there are reports of houses, machinery and other property already lost to fire some 370 km east of Sydney.

​The Bureau of Meteorology says the fires that started in the central region and are spreading northeast, producing hot, dry winds that also carry a lot of smoke.

"This will produce widespread severe to catastrophic fire conditions in central and northern districts," the bureau said.

According to NSW Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons, the extremity of fire ratings is "simply off the old conventional scale." He said that current fire conditions are worse than the notorious Black Saturday in 2009, which claimed 173 lives and has been described as one of Australia's worst peacetime disasters.

So far, only three teenagers have called for help from first responders. Despite the heat, they had apparently departed on a walking trip to Marramarra National Park, but ran out of water too fast. They were picked up suffering from heat exposure, but nothing worse. First responders are imploring people to stay out of national parks and woods and generally stay indoors to avoid heat stroke.

As Sputnik reported previously, the residents of Australian cities are urged to switch off all electric appliances when not in use and set their air conditioning systems to the highest temperature setting to reduce energy consumption to prevent blackouts. The beaches in urban areas are reportedly closed due to massive biological contamination of littoral waters, which could cause severe health damage when combined with high water temperatures.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-14/queensland-storm-clean-up-und...

Queensland storm clean-up underway after lightning, heavy rain lashes south-east

More than 170,000 lightning strikes were recorded during Monday's storms around south-east Queensland, as the clean-up gets into full swing this morning.

After a weekend of record temperatures, the rain set in on Monday afternoon.

Temperatures dropped 14 degrees Celsius in two hours at Gatton, west of Brisbane, as the storm rolled in.

Storm chaser Thomas Hinterdorfer was at Toogoolawah, west of Brisbane, when the storm hit.

"Complete whiteout, absolute carnage," he said.

The State Emergency Service (SES) was called out to nearly 50 jobs around the south-east.

The SES dealt with a number of tree falls and damaged roofs, while 22,000 properties lost power at the height of the storm.

About half the homes affected were in Ipswich, with the city west of Brisbane being hit with strong winds and hail.

Energex spokesman Rob Preston said extra crews had been rostered to repair damaged power lines.

"A lot of our network is overhead so you're having vegetation coming down on power lines and taking lines down, touching lines together," he said.

"But of course the underground network doesn't get off scot-free, either, because you've got to consider things like localised flooding and things like that."

http://www.euronews.com/2017/02/13/flood-alert-in-hungary

Flood alert issued in Hungary with melting ice causing mayhem

Floodwater in Hungary

Parts of Hungary are on flood alert, with melting ice causing mayhem. 

It is the flip side of a rise in temperatures, after weeks of freezing conditions. 

Some homes are submerged in the east of the country, with boats and piers also damaged.. 

When blocks of ice came dangerously close to a power plant, icebreaker vessels were deployed. 

On the frozen Tisza River, a ferry was trapped after being swept away by ice floes. Fortunately a military helicopter was at hand to rescue the night watchman on board. 
Earlier this month, media reports raised the alarm about the flooding risk.
Hundreds of kilometres of waterways are affected by the flood alert. And while there are no reports of injuries yet, authorities are urging the utmost vigilance.

http://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20170213/p2a/00m/0na/010000c

Disruptions from heavy snow continue to strike Tottori

A traffic jam is seen in front of JR Tottori Station in Tottori, on Feb. 13, 2017. 

http://gulfbusiness.com/at-least-one-killed-10-injured-after-saudis...

At least one killed, 10 injured after Saudi’s Asir region hit by floods

At least one person has been killed and 10 injured after severe floods hit Saudi's Asir region on Wednesday, according to local reports. The Saudi Civil Defense said the agency rescued over 280 people from the region, reported local daily Arab News. 

The agency also said it received more than 900 emergency calls in the southern cities of Abha and Khamis Mushayt. Social media was filled with pictures of flooded roads, with several cars completely submerged in water. 

A report by Al Arabiya claimed that at least 45 students were safely pulled out of a school bus which drowned in the floods. Many schools were closed and warning sirens were also reportedly launched in the Abha dam area. 

Asir governor Prince Faisal bin Khalid has directed the Emergency and Civil Defense Committee to follow up on rescue efforts, Arab News reported. Saad bin Abdullah Al-Thabet, spokesman of the governor's office, urged people in the area to be cautious and avoid going near valleys. 

According to weather reports, Saudi capital Riyadh was also hit by rain with thunderstorms on Wednesday.

http://www.ifrc.org/en/news-and-media/news-stories/asia-pacific/mon...

Mongolian herder Munkhbat Bazarragchaa dragging two recently perished sheeps to a pile of dead animals behind his Ger in northern Mongolia. Mr. Bazarragchaa has already lost ten of his animals due to starvation and cold. 

Severe winter conditions in Mongolia, known as Dzud, are threatening the livelihoods of thousands of Mongolian herders in eastern and northern parts of the country. Dzud is caused by the twin impacts of drought in the summer, resulting in insufficient grass in pastures and low production of hay, and harsh conditions in the winter, including heavy snowfall and extremely low temperatures.

More than 157,000 people are affected across 17 of Mongolia’s 21 provinces. Livestock deaths have risen in recent weeks and according to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), by 7 February over 46,000 animals had perished from starvation and cold.

Today the IFRC launched an International Emergency Appeal to support the Mongolian Red Cross who are responding to the crisis in four of the worst-affected provinces - Uvs, Zavkhan, Khuvsgul and Selenge. The IFRC appeal aims to raise 655,500 Swiss francs (Euros 614,000 Euros, USD 654,000) to target assistance at more than 11,000 people considered to be most at risk.

Herder Uranchimeg Terbish, from Khuvsgul province has already lost dozens of her animals due to starvation and cold.

"Dzud is impacting almost all the herders in this region. Winter started early and we had heavy snowfall already in November. Since January, I've lost 22 cattle and around 30 goats and sheep”, she says.

Uranchimeg Terbish is afraid she will lose even more animals if the cold weather persists in the coming months.

“Most of my livestock are already weak and exhausted. In the spring, when the animals start to give birth, they become even more vulnerable. I don’t have enough hay and fodder to feed them and keep them alive”, she explains.

Under the IFRC appeal, each family will receive an unconditional cash grant of 245,000 Mongolian Tugrik (100 Swiss francs) to be used to purchase food, clothing, fodder for their livestock, or for any other priority they see fit. The appeal will also support a range of health interventions and initiatives designed to prepare herder communities against future Dzuds.

“Livestock is the only source of food, transport and income for almost half of the Mongolian population and we have to act now to help herders survive over the coming months”, explains Madame Nordov Bolormaa, Secretary General of the Mongolian Red Cross.

This is the second successive year in a row that Mongolia is experiencing Dzud. Last year’s disaster caused the death of over one million animals.

 “We are concerned that we will see a repeat of last year when many herders sold their animals while they were still alive and oversupply of livestock resulted in very low market prices”, explains Gwendolyn Pang, Head of the IFRC’s Country Cluster Support Team in Beijing.

“Families with fewer animals to sell are particularly vulnerable. Many will lose their livelihoods and will have no choice but to migrate to slum areas on the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar and other urban centres where they will face great social and economic hardship”.

Nearly a half of one months rainfall in just one hour causes chaos in Sydney after thunderstorms dumped more than two month's worth of rain on the city.

Photo The Australian
Records tumble as nearly half of a months rain was dumped on Sydney in just one hour this week
Sydney has experienced a week of extreme rainfall and flooding after thunderstorms dumped more than two month's worth of rain on the city.
In just one hour on Tuesday morning, 48mm of rain fell in Marrickville, 45mm in Canterbury, and 35mm in Sydney's CBD.
This equalled the 48mm total that fell in January, with 32mm between 10.30 and 11am today and more than 50mm has fallen since 9am, making it the wettest day in Sydney since August 4 last year. Flooding was reported in Penrith, Parramatta, Wollongong, Campbelltown and Port Kembla, Marrickville, Zetland, Woollahra and Sydney's CBD. The State Emergency Service had to rescue 13 people trapped by floodwaters, mostly in Marrickville and Zetland.
An apartment building on Ewart Street in Marrickville was in danger of collapsing after a waterhole next to it filled up with water.
Seventeen residents have been evacuated but the threat has since eased and the building will be monitored overnight.

http://www.thebigwobble.org/2017/02/nearly-half-of-one-months-rainf...

Spring is sprung! Fair weather arrives early for much of the US as Chicago temperatures break 137-year record and Washington experiences highs in the 70s

• Chicago recorded temperatures as high as 67 degrees on Saturday
• The previous record high was 62 degrees, which was set 137 years ago 
• Temperatures in frigid Minnesota were 34 degrees above normal
• Mild air to remain throughout eastern two-thirds of US until at least next month
• Washington, DC saw highs above 70 degrees

A pair of anglers navigate the channel that connects the north and south pools of the lake at Shadyside Park in Anderson, Indiana on Saturday. The weather throughout the Midwest was unseasonably warm, and it will remain so through the holiday weekend. Source: dailymail.co.uk

18 February, 2016. The calendar says we are in the middle of February, but unseasonably high temperatures in the Midwest and along the eastern seaboard on Saturday made it feel like spring.

Source: Climate Reanalyzer

Chicago recorded temperatures as high as 67 degrees on Saturday, shattering a 137-year record of 62, according to The Chicago Tribune. Temperatures were even higher throughout Illinois and neighboring Iowa, where residents saw the barometer easily surpass 70 degrees.

USA animation over the past week. Source: coolwx

In Minnesota, one of the coldest states in the country, temperatures reached as high as 57 degrees, which is 34 degrees above normal. Even the Dakotas, which saw temperatures dip to the single digs and below double-digit wind chills during the winter, are enjoying 50- and 60-degree highs. The milder temperatures are expected to last well into the President’s Day holiday weekend, according to The Weather Channel.

Temperature historical ranking 17 February, 2017. Source: Southeast Climate Perspectives Map

The pocket of warmer air stretches from just east of the Rocky Mountains all the way to the East Coast and New England.
Detroit was expecting to see temperatures in the upper 50s to lower 60s, well within range of the 40-year record set in 1976, according to WWJ-TV. <...> Source: dailymail.co.uk

Record-breaking warmth disrupts typical Chicago winter

The warm weather has been the impetus for the restart of architecture tours. Shoreline Sightseeing is beginning its architecture river boat tour Feb. 17, 2017.

17 February, 2017. The unseasonably warm weather broke a century-old record on Friday, drawing Chicago area residents and tourists outdoors — many ditching their coats — as other typical winter activities like ice skating rinks closed shop.

Friday's temperature climbed up to 67 degrees, breaking the 60-degree record for the date set in 1880, said National Weather Service meteorologist Charles Mott.

<...>

"The river is not frozen so we're taking advantage," said Amy Hartnett, Shoreline's director of sales and marketing. "We're certainly hoping for a great crowd."

<...> Source: chicagotribune.com

Baguio, Philippines - coldest in 46 years

Frost blankets portions of vegetable farms in Baguio. Sources: instagram/kiko.pangilinan; ibtimes.ph

16 February, 2017. The mercury here dropped to 7.3 degrees Celsius on Wednesday, from 8 degrees on Valentine’s Day, making it the coldest day so far this year.
It almost matched the 7.1 degrees recorded on Jan. 9, 1971, and qualified as one of the lowest temperatures yet in the city in 46 years. <...> Source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Denver Smashes 47 Year Old Record High Reaching 75 Degrees!

16 Ferbuary, 2017. After setting a record high temperature in Denver of 67° on Wednesday, the high soared to 75 degrees on Thursday setting yet another record high – breaking the 1970 record of 70 degrees. Source: denver.cbslocal.com

Oklahoma hits 100° in the dead of winter, because climate change is real
<...>
15 Feburary, 2017. Oklahoma just endured a spell of exceptionally hot weather. Mangum, Oklahoma saw temperatures close to 100º F, setting a state record. The average February high in Mangum is 56º F.

It is extremely unusual to see such sweltering temperatures in the dead of winter, but climate change is loading the dice for record-breaking heat. Source: thinkprogress.org

Record-Setting Warmth Settles Over Minnesota

Source: voiceofalexandria.com

18 February, 2017. The National Weather Service reports Friday's high temperature of 63 degree in the Twin Cities broke a record for the date and fell just one degree short of the all-time record for the month of February. <...>
Last year on February 17th, the Minneapolis-St. Paul high temperature was 29 degrees. There have only been four days on record previously when the temperature has reached 60 in February -- in 1896, 1921, 1981 and 2000. The southern part of the state may not have a temperature reading under freezing before next Friday. Source: voiceofalexandria.com

Australia’s new normal … as city temperatures hit 47C people shelter from the deadly heat

Acquired February 7 - 14, 2017. Source: earthobservatory.nasa.gov

19 February, 2017. <...> Australians are no strangers to hot weather. But for the past week large parts of the continent have suffered a heatwave of unusual length and intensity. Temperature records were beaten in cities and rural towns around the country. Shops across Sydney ran out of fans, and New South Wales energy minister Don Harwin urged people to beat the heat by going to the movies. More than 40,000 homes in South Australia experienced blackouts as electricity networks struggled to cope with the increased demand placed on the grid by air conditioners.
<...>
But in the far-western Sydney suburb of Penrith – 60km from the coast – options for getting out of the heat are few. Penrith has the dubious honour of being Sydney’s hottest suburb, with summer daytime temperatures four or five degrees higher than in the inner city. During last week’s heatwave, the suburb sweltered through an unheard-of 46.9°C – a record for the city. “Penrith has had about 12 days above 40 degrees this summer, which is clearly unusual,” says Karl Braganza, climate monitoring manager at the Bureau of Meteorology.

Bathers cool off at Sydney’s Bondi Beach. Photograph: William West/AFP/Getty Images. Source: theguardian.com

<...>

The heatwave is officially over, but the reality of Australian summers getting hotter is much more serious and far-reaching than a few more hot days each year. Almost every Australian capital city experienced higher-than-average temperatures in January; in Sydney and Brisbane, it was the hottest month on record. That scorching January came after 2016 was the country’s fourth-hottest year on record – a year that, in turn, followed on from 2013, the hottest year the country has ever recorded.

That increasing heat has made an already dry continent even more prone to devastating bushfires. NSW Rural Fire Service commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons describes fire conditions during the heatwave as “the worst possible... they are catastrophic. We haven’t seen this in NSW to this extent, ever.” Fire conditions were even worse than on “black Saturday”, Australia’s worst-ever bushfire disaster, in 2009, in which 173 people died. Less dramatic, but just as worrying, is the rising number of deaths from heat stress, which already kills more Australians than all other natural disasters combined.
<...>
“There’s a clear trend where those extreme hot days across the continent are increasing, and quite dramatically over the past 20 years,” Braganza says. “Regarding fire weather – which includes things like wind speed, humidity, the drought factor – we’ve seen a shift in most of Australia’s fire-prone regions towards a longer fire season and an increase in the frequency and extremity of fire events, as well as fire danger days.” Source: theguardian.com

'Atmospheric river' drives ANOTHER catastrophic rain storm towards stricken California dam as the state braces for MORE flooding and officials warn residents they could have just 15 minutes to evacuate

• Rain and wind picked up in Northern California on Saturday renewing flood fears
• Sections of Interstate-5 in Williams, CA overflowed, blocking traffic for hours
• A Pacific storm is expected to hit the area again on Sunday
• Rain is expected to continue through Tuesday prompting evacuations

Engineers at the stricken Oroville Dam in Northern California have increased the rate at which they are draining water from the reservoir as a powerful rain storm driven by the phenomenon known as an 'atmospheric river' hits the state.

In anticipation of the storm which threatens widespread flooding in many areas, supervisors increased the amount of water being channeled out of the dam to accommodate incoming rain.

The amount of water flowing down the spillway was increased from 55,000 cubic feet a second (cfs) to 60,000 cfs Sunday afternoon. Earlier this week, outflows were at nearly 100,000 cfs.

However, an evacuation warning is still being issued as residents immediately below the dam could be at a major risk if the dam were to abruptly fail - as they would not be able to receive warning quickly enough to evacuate.  

As rainstorms return to Northern California, engineers at the Oroville Dam are working on overdrive to ensure that the troubled barrier doesn't overflow

The first outer rain bands from a powerful Pacific storm headed to Northern California on Sunday brought light rain and wind and renewed warnings of possibly dangerous flooding in the already soggy region

In this view looking north, flood water crosses over Interstate 5 at Williams backing up traffic in both north and southbound lanes for hours on Saturday

The National Weather Service has reportedly urged California residents to be ready to leave their homes on a moment's notice

The first outer rain bands from the powerful Pacific storm headed to Northern California brought light rain and wind and renewed warnings of possibly dangerous flooding in the already soggy region on Sunday.

More wet weather is expected on Monday and Tuesday, and officials are preparing for the worst after Southern California was devastated by the strongest storm in decades earlier this week. 

The National Weather Service has reportedly urged California residents to be ready to leave their homes on a moment's notice.

Flood water crosses over Interstate 5 at Williams backing up traffic in both north and southbound lanes for hours on Saturday in Williams, Calif. Northern California and the San Francisco Bay Area were facing a weekend return of heavy rain and winds that lashed them earlier in the week before the storm moves out

A discussion post said: 'If you were given less than 15 minutes to evacuate your home would you have everything you need and gas in your vehicle?'

It continued: 'Northern California has become very vulnerable since being hit continuously with storms since early January and we want all residents in our region to plan ahead and be prepared.'

The San Joaquin River at a measuring station near Vernalis remained at 'danger stage,' meaning it keeps approaching the top of levees, said Tim Daly, a spokesman with San Joaquin County Office of Emergency Services.

Northwest of Sacramento, several hundred people were evacuated Saturday as overflowing creeks turned the town of Maxwell into a brown pond, with some homes getting 2 feet of water

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4240042/Flood-fears-renewed... 

LIVE STORM BLOG: Damage Reported in Multiple Areas of Central Texas as Storms Move Out

http://www.twcnews.com/tx/austin/weather-stories/2017/02/20/live-st...

Energy companies throughout central Texas are working to restore power to the thousands of customers that experienced outages.

Over 50 low water crossings remain closed.

The squall line of storms swept into the Interstate 35 corridor just prior to midnight, then a secondary round of storms blew into the area around 2 a.m. 

- Tornado Touchdown Causes Damage in Bexar County --

Storms tore through San Antonio overnight causing significant damage.

A tornado damaged homes in Alamo Heights.

-- Storm Damage in Williamson County --

Williamson County emergency responders are trying to figure out if a possible tornado tore through the southeastern part of the county from Coupland to Thrall overnight.

-- Damage in Travis County --

Clifford Power, a generator equipment and service provider, lost its entire roof on Burleson Road due to storms overnight.

- Water Levels Rising -- 

ATXFloods reports over 50 low water crossing closures due to last night’s severe weather.

-- Train Derailment in Williamson County --

A train derailed between Thrall and Thronedale in Williamson County at around 1 a.m. Monday morning, reports say.

Harsh weather in Afghanistan kills dozens in blizzard, rainstorms

http://af.reuters.com/article/idAFL4N1G53I5

KABUL Feb 20 (Reuters) - As many as 50 people have died in storms over the past three days in Afghanistan, including 25 shepherds lost in a blizzard, a government disaster management official said on Monday.

Also among the dead were 11 people killed in separate incidents in roof collapses in heavy rain in Kabul province, said Omar Mohammadi, a spokesman for the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Agency.

Another 44 people were hurt in weather-related accidents.

On Sunday, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said the bad weather had forced him to scrap a visit to Afghanistan.

Amid a war that has displaced hundreds of thousands of people, the United Nations estimates that more than 9 million Afghans are in need of humanitarian aid, including basic food and housing.

The deprivation has been exacerbated by bad weather that has taken a heavy toll, especially in remote areas.

"At least 239 people have been killed and 214 wounded during the past two months of heavy snow and rain in 22 provinces of Afghanistan," Mohammadi said.

More than 520 houses were destroyed and about 420 damaged over the same period, he added. (Writing by Josh Smith; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Scores dead in heavy snowfall in Afghanistan, Pakistan

NOAA Global Analysis - January 2017

The globally averaged temperature over land and ocean surfaces for January 2017 was 0.88°C (1.58°F) above the 20th century average of 12.0°C (53.6°F). This was the third highest January temperature in the 1880–2017 record, behind 2016 (highest) and 2007 (second highest). Separately, the global land surface temperature was also third highest for the month of January at 1.54°C (2.77°F) above the 20th century average of 2.8°C (37.0°F). The first month of the year was characterized by warmer to much-warmer-than-average conditions across much of the world's land surface, with the largest positive temperature departures from average across the eastern half of the contiguous U.S., eastern Asia, and much of Canada where temperature departures were 3.0°C (5.4°F) or greater.

Cooler-than-average conditions were observed across New Zealand, the western half of the contiguous U.S., central and western Australia, northern and southern parts of Africa, western and southern Asia, and much of Europe. The most notable below-average temperature departures from average were observed across the northwestern contiguous U.S. and central Europe (-3.0 °C [-5.4°F] or colder). According to NCEI's Regional analysis, three of the six continents had at least a top six warm January, with South America having its second warmest January since continental records began in 1910, behind 2016. Meanwhile, Europe had its coldest January since 2010.

Select national information is highlighted below:

• The January 2017 mean temperature for Hong Kong, China was 18.5°C (65.3°F) or 2.2°C (4.0°F) above average—the warmest January on record.
• Cold temperatures engulfed much of Europe during January 2017. Austria had one of the coldest Januarys since 1987, while the Netherlands had the coldest January since 2010.
• Above-average temperatures were present across much of eastern Australia, while the western part of Australia had cooler-than-average conditions during January 2017. Averaged as a whole, the Australian mean temperature for January was 0.77°C (1.39°F) above the 1961–1990 average and the 17th highest January temperature in the 108-year record. Regionally, New South Wales had its third warmest January, while Queensland had its sixth warmest on record. Minimum temperatures were also above average. The nation had its third highest January minimum temperature at 1.29°C (2.32°F) above average. Queensland had its second highest minimum temperature, behind 2006, while New South Wales had its fourth highest January minimum temperature on record.
• New Zealand experienced the coldest January temperature since 2014 at 16.4°C (61.5°F), which is 0.7°C (1.3°F) below the 1981–2010 average.

For the oceans, the globally-averaged temperature departure of +0.65°C (+1.17°F) from the 20thcentury average was the second highest on record for January, behind 2016. Much-warmer-than-average temperatures were present across most of the ocean surfaces, with near- to cooler-than-average conditions across the northern, central, and southern parts of the Pacific Ocean, central Indian Ocean and along the western coast of Australia, and the northern and southern Atlantic Ocean.

According to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, ENSO-neutral conditions were present during January 2017 and are favored to continue through the Northern Hemisphere spring (March–May) 2017.

References:

• Peterson, T.C. and R.S. Vose, 1997: An Overview of the Global Historical Climatology Network Database. Bull. Amer. Meteorol. Soc., 78, 2837-2849.
• Huang, B., V.F. Banzon, E. Freeman, J. Lawrimore, W. Liu, T.C. Peterson, T.M. Smith, P.W. Thorne, S.D. Woodruff, and H-M. Zhang, 2016: Extended Reconstructed Sea Surface Temperature Version 4 (ERSST.v4)... J. Climate, 28, 911-930.

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, State of the Climate: Global Analysis for January 2017, published online February 2017, retrieved on February 21, 2017 from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/201701. Link: ncdc.noaa.gov

Snow cover duration is declining in northern hemisphere since 1981

Spatial distributions of the (a) 30-year average (1982–2013, excluding 1994 and 1995) of snow cover duration (SCD, in month), (b) 30-year trend of SCD (day/year) in the Northern Hemisphere derived from the long-term satellite-derived SCE, (c) the same as (b) except that only the areas with statistically significant SCD trends (Kendall-Mankind test a > 0.05) are shown, and (d) SCD trend derived from in-situ snow data measured at the ground stations that have complete annual snow depth observation records during the 32-year analysis period.

This article is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY).  s100.copyright.com

Hori, Masahiro, Konosuke Sugiura, Kazufumi Kobayashi, Teruo Aoki, Tomonori Tanikawa, Katsuyuki Kuchiki, Masashi Niwano, and Hiroyuki Enomoto. "A 38-year (1978–2015) Northern Hemisphere daily snow cover extent product derived using consistent objective criteria from satellite-borne optical sensors." Remote Sensing of Environment 191 (2017): 402-18. Web. Link

Is it summer yet? Balmy temperatures in Edmonton break 100-year-old record (Canada)

It's the hottest it's been on Feb. 15 in more than 100 years. (Sam Martin/CBC)

15 February, 2017. It sure didn't feel like winter at all in Edmonton on Wednesday. In fact, temperatures climbed high enough to break a 100-year-old record. As of 4 p.m., the temperature at Edmonton Blatchford hit 15.4 C. That's 1.5 C higher than the previous record for this day, set in 1916. Edmonton wasn't the only city to experience unusually balmy winter weather on Wednesday — Environment Canada said temperature records were also broken in Banff, Calgary, Grande Prairie and High Level. Source: cbc.ca

Chicago's Unseasonable Warmth Continues to Break Records (US)

19 February, 2017. For the third consecutive day, Chicago’s unseasonably high temperatures broke records on Sunday.
At 1:02 p.m., the temperature at O’Hare International Airport hit 66 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. That balmy number just beat the record of 65 degrees set in 1930 – though temperatures on Sunday continued to climb, meaning the final record could be even higher.
About an hour before that, Rockford saw a temperature of 64 degrees, eclipsing the previous record that was also set in 1930. Source: nbcchicago.com

Snow in Australia's hottest ever summer? It’s happening

19 February, 2017. Source: digitaljournal.com

Snow in FEBRUARY! A touch of frost snaps record heatwave as snow falls on the mountains in Victoria (Australia)

20 February, 2017.  The Victorian Alpine region was unexpectedly covered in snow over the weekend.  Social media pictures showed wintry landscapes at Mount Hotham, Mount Buller, and Falls Creek.

'The weather in this country is nuts,' a woman commented on a video showing snowfall in Mount Buller.

The Victorian Alpine region was unexpectedly covered in snow over the weekend

Skiers should think twice before rushing over to the High Country, however. The snow is likely to melt away before Monday ends, according to forecasts.  Meteorologists said it's not uncommon to see snow in the summer - but the fact that it happens in February is 'a bit rare.'
'We can get cold outbreaks in Victoria any time of the year, but now it happens to be in the middle of summer,' said Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Dean Stewart. Source: dailymail.co.uk

Record-breaking rainfall recorded for the month (Australia)
20 February, 2017. Wet weather has belted Western Australia over the last two weeks with record-breaking rainfall recorded in many parts of the State.

Towns became isolated, roads and bridges were washed away, fences damaged, dams were overflowing, one man was swept away in Esperance floodwaters, and at the time of going to press, the search continued for another man who was missing after an attempted water crossing. Source: esperanceexpress.com.au

Friday breaks Pueblo's all-time high temperature record for February (US)

10 February, 2017. Summer is months away, but Puebloans got a little bit of a taste of it on Friday with an all-time record-breaking temperature for the month.

Temperatures on Friday reached above 80, topping out at 82 degrees just before 2 p.m., making it the hottest February day in recorded history in Pueblo, according to the National Weather Service's Pueblo office.

Previously, the hottest February day ever occurred just last year on Feb. 18 when the temperature got up to 81 degrees. Source: chieftain.com

Mangaluru records all time high temperature for February month (India)

16 February, 2017. The west coast has been witnessing an abnormal increase in day temperature since past few days. On Wednesday, the evening temperature was 38.7 degree C for Mangaluru city, recorded at Panambur Weather Observatory, which is a seven degree C rise in the normal maximum. This, incidentally, is an all-time high record for the February month since Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) started recording temperatures for this region. Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Detroit broke a 133-year high temperature record Sunday

In this May 27, 2012 photo, people take in the warm weather on the Detroit River and Belle Isle in Detroit. A gem to some and wreck to others, Detroit's Belle Isle has become the latest bone of contention between state officials offering to operate the poorly managed park and what some in the city see as too much outside interference. (AP Photo/Detroit News, David Coates)

20 February, 2017. Source: mlive.com

Waterloo's weekend warmth melts a 137-year record (Canada)

There will be spring-like temperatures this week, including a forecasted high of 16 C on Wednesday which could "shatter" records across southern Ontario. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press)

21 February, 2017. The warm temperatures over the weekend broke one weather record and Wednesday's high of 16 C is set to break another.

Saturday's temperature reached 11.9 C, which broke the record for Feb. 18 of 9.4 C set in 1880, making it the warmest Feb. 18 in Waterloo Region since record keeping began. Source: cbc.ca

Qatar records coldest February since 1962

21 February, 2017. This month is turning out to be the coldest February on record in Qatar since 1962.

The Met department informed in a tweet that the temperatures recorded this month have been lower than the normal range for February by 2-3C, based on a comparison of climate records since 1962. It has been a month of cold spells in the country, marked by temperatures well below 10C at a number of places with strong winds adding to the chill factor.

Early in February, the country was affected by a “cold wave” for a few days due to the extension of a Siberian high-pressure system, accompanied by fresh to strong northwesterly winds. It was during this period (February 5) that the lowest ever temperature – 1.5C – in Qatar’s history was recorded in Abu Samra. The previous record was set in 1964, when the temperature had dropped to 3.8C in Mesaieed. Source: gulf-times.com

Chicago has most 70-degree days in February since 1871

20 February, 2017. The mercury soared to 70 degrees Monday for the second time in three days making it the fourth straight day for rewriting Chicago’s record book. The NORMAL high in Chicago does not reach 70 degrees until May 15th, which underscores how unusual this warmth truly is.

Never before in 146 Februarys dating back to 1871 have there been two 70 degree or warmer days. And, while clouds and light rain Tuesday morning are likely to keep readings a bit cooler than Monday, it appears a third 70 degree or warmer temperature is likely on Wednesday, which would not only break the day’s 95 year old record high of 68 degrees set in 1922, but equal the TOTAL February 70s previously observed here in 146 years! A bit of a reality check arrives this weekend as more typical late February returns to the area. Source: wgntv.com

America is set for one of the warmest February days in 30 YEARS: Temperature records smashed across the country as the US basks in an early spring

• Forecasters predicted the average temperature for the Lower 48 states would reach a balmy 59 degrees on Wednesday
• A meteorologist say you would have to go back three decades to find a February day as warm
• There have been over 2,800 record highs recorded throughout US this month
• Change most extreme in Midwest, where Chicago is seeing 70-degree days
• Record highs or near-record highs also recorded in Wisconsin and Detroit

Cities and towns across the continental US have recorded 2,805 record high temperatures so far in February, continuing a trend of higher-than-normal temperatures that began in January

22 Feburary, 2017. Wednesday is set to be one of the warmest February days in the United States in 30 years. Forecasters predicted the average temperature across the country on Wednesday would soar to 59 degrees in the Lower 48 states, well above the average for this time of year.

(Unofficial) Record-breaking temperature across the US. US animation over the past month. Source: (Unofficial) Record-breaking temperature across the Globe - coolwx.com

Ryan Maue, a meteorologist for Weather Bell, said you would have to go back three decades to find a February day as unseasonably warm.

Source: Past 3 weeks historical rankings, mean temperature. Source: Southeast Regional Climate Center

The rise in temperatures came as large parts of the United States continued to bask in an early spring, and the good weather is set to continue.

Daily historical rankings, mean temperature. Source: Southeast Regional Climate Center

Cities and towns across the continental US have recorded 2,805 record high temperatures so far in February.
And the warmth is set to continue throughout the remainder of the week and into the weekend, with more records expected to fall.

Chicagoans walk in the Windy City, where record-busting temperatures have taken hold this week. Source: dailymail.co.uk

The areas where the change is most surprising is the Midwest, where cities like Chicago are experiencing balmy 70-degree days.

Between Friday and Monday, the Windy City recorded record highs on consecutive days.
On Sunday, the barometer read 70 degrees in Chicago – making it just the fourth time the city has been that warm at this time of year since 1871.

Source: Climate Reanalyzer

The warm days are threatening the all-time high temperature Chicago in February – 75 degrees, which was recorded on February 27, 1976.
Record or near-record warmth has also been recorded in other towns in the Midwest, including Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, Omaha, Minneapolis, and Detroit.

Minneapolis, which is normally in the grip of Arctic chills at this time of the year, could see temperatures rise to as much as 59 degrees. Even St. Louis is expected to reach the mid-70s several times this week, according to The Weather Channel. The warmer-than-usual February is also being felt in places like Denver, Colorado, and Lincoln, Nebraska. Source: dailymail.co.uk

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-san-jose-floods-2017022...

Hit by worst floods in a century, San Jose got little warning of impending disaster

Floodwater surrounds homes in San Jose on Wednesday. Thousands of people were ordered to evacuate their homes as neighborhoods were inundated.

Over the last two weeks, heavy rains pushed water levels at Santa Clara County's largest reservoir into the danger zone, with officials warning it could overflow. 

That happened over the weekend, sending massive amounts of water into the Coyote Creek, which runs through the heart of San Jose. 

By Tuesday, the creek was overflowing at numerous locations, inundating neighborhoods, flooding hundreds of homes and forcing the frantic evacuations of more than 14,000 residents, who remained out of their homes Wednesday. 

The worst flooding to hit Silicon Valley in a century left San Jose reeling and residents angry about why they were not given more warning that a disaster was imminent. Even city officials on Wednesday conceded they were caught off guard by the severity of the flooding and vowed a full investigation into what went wrong. 

"If the first time a resident is aware that they need to get out of a home is when they see a firefighter in a boat, then clearly there has been a failure," said San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo. "There is no question that we'll need to do things differently next time." 

Late Wednesday, Assistant City Manager Dave Sykes said officials had learned that the information they had on the capacity of Coyote Creek channel was not accurate. He also said the city was working with the Santa Clara Valley Water District to determine whether debris caused blockages that contributed to flooding. 
"The creek spilled over the banks faster and higher than anybody expected," said city spokesman David Vossbrink. 
Residents told harrowing stories of water flowing into homes and flooding streets. Many had to be rescued by boat. Some said they were surprised they did not get urgent warnings about the extent of the flooding. 
"They didn't say it was going to go up as high as it did," said Louis Silva, 48. He said that his possessions were swallowed up in the flood and that the city should have warned people about the scale of the disaster with a cellphone text alert or by knocking on doors. 
"They should've put the footwork in to show the urgency of the situation," Silva said. "It hurt everyone. ... When Mother Nature shows up, she shows up." 
Dawn Rogers, 47, said she was in the mandatory evacuation zone but decided to hunker down instead of leave. She watched as firefighters took a boat down the street to rescue residents in homes that were flooded. 
By 1 p.m. Tuesday, residents were rushing to fill up their cars with priceless valuables. 
"It was scary," Rogers said. "Being in a drought for all these years, you don't ever think you're ever in danger of a flood." 

Record drought to record rain in 3 months: Many rivers in northern ... 

Rob Souza, 49, thought he was prepared. He knew exactly where the floodwaters had previously risen on his William Street property, just west of Coyote Creek. 
He spent eight hours Monday painstakingly building 3-foot walls of sandbags to protect his newly renovated cottage and his two-story home. 
But by Tuesday morning, rising waters burst through the first sandbag wall, wrecking the cottage. Then Souza watched as the water rose to two feet above his home's windowsill. 
"It was like I was looking at an aquarium," Souza said. 
Then a window broke. 
And then, Souza said, "it was all over." 
Anderson Reservoir, which is located in Morgan Hill about 22 miles south of downtown San Jose, had been releasing as much water as possible through its main outlet since Jan. 9, said Rachel Gibson, a spokeswoman for Santa Clara Valley Water District. The district was releasing water at a rate of 420 cubic feet per second through the reservoir's outlet. 
"We were trying to flood out as much water as we could in advance of any storms," Gibson told reporters. "We have been pummeled by a number of storms since Jan. 9, so Anderson Reservoir was slowly filling up because more water was coming into it than we could practically let out of that outlet." 
Santa Clara water's chief operating officer, Jim Fiedler, said his agency had been working in recent days with San Jose city officials on possible flood control options in case of a major event. He said the district had been in regular contact with city officials. 
The situation came to a head over the weekend, when another round of heavy rain sent Anderson Reservoir over its tipping point, causing water to spill out of the lake and into Coyote Creek. 

On Tuesday, rescuers in chest-deep water steer boats carrying dozens of people, some with babies and pets, from a San Jose neighborhood inundated by water from an overflowing creek.

The first major flooding occurred Tuesday in the Rock Springs area of San Jose. San Jose firefighters paddled on rafts and waded through the chest-deep deluge, rescuing hundreds of residents trapped in homes and in trees. 
Evacuation centers were set up at two community centers, where more than 300 residents stayed overnight. Two high schools were converted into overnight shelters, with dry clothes, food and cots. 
Meanwhile, a damaged levee allowed water to flow onto U.S. 101 on Tuesday, forcing its temporary closure. 
Coyote Creek slithers its way northwest from the reservoir to San Jose's doorstep, where it proceeded to flood neighborhood after neighborhood, carving a destructive path through the heart of the city. 
The creek crested to a height of 13.6 feet at a South San Jose river gauge point on Tuesday evening — nearly four feet above flood stage. The height shattered a previous record that had stood since 1922. 
"This is a once-in-a-100-year flood event," National Weather Service meteorologist Roger Gass said, referring to Coyote Creek's surging height in South San Jose. 
By Wednesday, the creek was no longer rising, but it was too late for some evacuees. 
City officials said some residents could be allowed home as early as Wednesday night, though Liccardo had warned earlier in the day that the water was highly contaminated with fuel, oil and possible sewage and posed a potential health risk. 
Officials said that on Thursday they would focus on assessing the damage and getting residents back home. 
The approximately 14,000 people under mandatory evacuations hailed mostly from central San Jose. Evacuation advisories were also issued to 36,000 residents in a zone that covered a business and industrial area along a roughly seven-mile stretch of Coyote Creek. 
By Wednesday evening, city officials had lifted some mandatory evacuations for homes north of Interstate 280. They also revised the number of residents impacted by evacuation advisories down to 22,000. 
"We haven't really had anything quite like this before," Vossbrink said.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2017/02...

500 inches and counting: Snow has clobbered California ski resorts this winter

Scene at Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows ski resort: The snow is so high that it's burying chairlifts, forcing ski resorts to close.

The snow amounts in California's Sierra Nevada mountain range this winter are difficult to wrap your head around. In many cases topping 500 inches, they are some of the highest totals in memory. 

At the Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows resort, seven feet fell in just the past week. The snow is so high that it buried chairlifts and ski patrol shacks. 

Snow blankets the Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows resort, which has been hit with 565 inches (47 feet) of the white stuff this season.

The resort has received 565 inches (47 feet) this season, including a 45-year record of 282 inches in January. On Thursday, it announced that its ski area would remain open through July 4. Since 1962, it will mark just the fourth instance of Independence Day skiing (the other years were 1998, 1999, and 2011), according to a resort spokesperson. 

Other ski areas in the Sierra Nevada also have seen mind-boggling amounts of snow (totals via SnowBrains.com):

• 636 inches at the Mount Rose ski area in Nevada.
• 584 inches at Boreal Mountain.
• 556 inches at Kirkwood, including 80 inches this week.
• 544 inches at Heavenly, including 81 inches this week.
• 534 inches at Northstar, including 84 inches this week (61 inches in 48 hours).
• 510 inches at Mammoth.

The prolific snowfall has resulted from phenomena known as atmospheric rivers, which are essentially rivers in the sky that carry vast amounts of moisture. Like a fire hose, they have bombarded central and northern California, repeatedly. 

"We usually see three or four atmospheric rivers in a season," Scott McGuire, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Reno, told the San Francisco Chronicle. "We've already had 10. We've had so much snow to the point where it's getting hard to measure." 

California's Natural Resources Agency said Wednesday that the water contained in the state's snowpack is 188 percent of normal. 

The mountain snow and low-elevation rain have ended the multiyear drought over large parts of the state. Only 17 percent of California remains in drought, according to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor data. 

California's record drought is officially over thanks to record precipitation

More snow and rain are on the way Sunday and Monday as the next Pacific storm system rolls ashore. 

Record-breaking temperature across the Globe. Source: coolwx.com

Source: coolwx.com

It Just Hit 73 Degrees In Boston. That's The Warmest Ever For February

Robyn Wessman, 12, of Belmont, scooped up melting ice water at the Boston Common’s Frog Pond on Friday. By Maddie Kilgannon GLOBE CORRESPONDENT  FEBRUARY 24, 2017. Source: bostonglobe.com

24 February, 2017. Some see it as a welcome winter respite. Some might also see it as an unnerving sign of a warming planet.

It hit 71 degrees in Boston just after noon on Friday - the city's warmest temperature ever recorded for the month of February. The temperature ticked all the way up to 73 after 3 p.m.

That surpasses the 70 degrees reached on Feb. 24, 1985. Boston temperature records go back to 1872, according to the National Weather Service.

Worcester on Friday also set an all-time record for February, at 68 degrees. That city's temperature then edged up to 69.

Additionally, the weather service said records were close to breaking in Providence, Rhode Island, and Hartford, Connecticut. The day before, Thursday, reached 68 degrees in Boston - a record for Feb. 23, and now a tie for the third-highest temperature ever recorded in February.

Boston was among many places in the Eastern United States to set a single-day temperature record for Feb. 23. Farther south, a different record was set: the earliest calendar-year occurrence for a 100-degree day in McAllen, Texas. In Massachusetts, the unseasonably warm temperatures continue Saturday, WBUR meteorologist David Epstein forecasts, before more normal readings in the 40s return Sunday. Source: wbur.org

Milwaukee reaches warmest winter temperature ever (US)

22 February, 2017. The 71-degree temperature recorded at Mitchell International Airport shortly before 3 p.m. Wednesday is the warmest temperature ever recorded in Milwaukee during meteorological winter — or December through February — the National Weather Service in Sullivan said. Source: jsonline.com

All-time high temperature for February recorded at Westover (US)

24 February, 2017. If you don’t remember the weather in February being this warm, you are right!

As of 2:00 P.M., the temperature at Westover Air Reserve Base in Chicopee reached 72 degrees. That beats the previous high for this date of 71 degrees, which was set back in 1985.

More than that though, Friday’s record-breaking temperature is actually the highest temperature ever recorded at Westover in the month of February. Source: wwlp.com

Britain enjoys one of the hottest winter days ever as balmy Caribbean air sends temperatures rising to 65F (but snow, gales and rain are on the way)

Daffodils in full bloom at Tenby, West Wales, where visitors arrived in the area as unseasonably warm weather takes hold

20 February, 2017. A balmy Caribbean blast saw temperatures hit an astonishingly mild 65F (18.3C) in Britain today, making some parts of the country hotter than Spain and Greece.
The UK had already recorded its warmest day of the year by 9am, with London being the country's mildest spot this afternoon, and the surprisingly mild weather comes just one week after snowfall on the south coast.
<...>
By this afternoon Kew Gardens in South West London and Northolt in West London had hit 65F (18.3C), making it the hottest February 20 on record. This also made it the seventh warmest winter day on record, based on annual records from December 1 to February 28 going back 160 years. Britons abroad might be wishing they stayed at home, as Alicante reached 59F (14.8C), Menorca 63F (17.1C) and Ibiza 59F (15.1C), MeteoGroup said.
Elsewhere temperatures were 61F (16C) in Athens and Barcelona today, while it was 59F (15C) in Corfu and 57F (14C) in Malta, Rome and Marrakesh.
But the warm UK temperatures were mainly found in London - Edinburgh reached 57F (13.7C), Exeter 56F (13.6C), and Blackpool 50F (10C).
Today's high in London edged towards the highest February temperature since records began - 67F (19.7C) at Greenwich Observatory in South East London, on February 13, 1998. <...> Source: dailymail.co.uk

Iceland gets record breaking snowfall

http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/39104230/iceland-gets-record-...

The snow in the capital peaked at 51 cm.

Only once in history has this been topped, when snowfall in the city reached 55 cm in January 1937.

Chicago records no snow on ground in January, February for 1st time in 146 years

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-no-snow-januar...

"This is occurring against a backdrop of a changing climate," Skilling said. "I think the door is open to additional unusual weather events as we go forward."

Typically, January and February are the snowiest months of the year, said Jim Angel, state climatologist at the University of Illinois' Illinois State Water Survey.

"It's pretty impressive for any place in the northern part of the state to go both January and February with no snow on the ground," he said.

http://www.thelocal.ch/20170224/switzerland-breaks-records-with-bri...

Switzerland breaks records with brief spring in February

Thursday was exceptionally warm in Switzerland with many places across the country seeing temperatures of around 20 degrees, breaking previous records for the month of February. 

The unseasonal weather, due to a mass of dry, hot air moving up from Spain, meant it felt more like the end of April than February, with temperatures on the Swiss lowlands some 12 degrees warmer than usual for this time of year, said MeteoNews. 

The cities of Nyon, Sion, Aigle and Neuchâtel all broke their previous February records. In Sion, the mercury rose to 21.2 degrees, smashing its previous record of 19.8 set in 1998. Nyon reached 18.4 degrees and Aigle 19.5. 

Cities in German-speaking Switzerland were also affected, with Thun, Interlaken and Basel-Binningen all surpassing 20 degrees. Lucerne wasn't far behind with 19.9 degrees, Zurich reached 19.5 and Bern set a new city record for February with 18.5 degrees. 

The temperatures were helped by a strong foehn wind which brought gusts of up to 90km/hr in some places, said MeteoNews. However the brief spring has already disappeared as quickly as it arrived. The arrival of a cold front in the night of Thursday to Friday saw temperatures fall rapidly back to the norm for this time of year.

Antarctic temperatures hit unprecedented high of 17.5C as continent's warming accelerates

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/antarctica-temperature-hi...

Temperatures in Antarctica have reached a record high, hitting an unprecedented 17.5C, the United Nations weather agency has announced.

An Argentine research base near the northern tip of the Antarctic recorded the temperature in March 2015, new analysis has revealed.

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) announced the finding after analysing data from a number of recording stations.

The temperature, more common in the Mediterranean than near the South Pole, is a significant departure from Antarctic averages, which range from -10C on the continent’s coast to -60C in the interior.

The region is made up of ice 4.8 kilometres thick, which contains 90 per cent of the world’s fresh water. If it were all to melt, experts say sea levels would rise by 60 metres.

http://www.13newsnow.com/news/hawaii-picks-up-8-inches-of-snow-over...

Hawaii picks up 8 inches of snow overnight after blizzard

Do you want to build a snowman in paradise? Hawaii's mountainous peaks picked up 8 inches of snow overnight this week after a blizzard hit the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii.

Most of the snow fell late Tuesday into early Wednesday, and a blizzard warning for Mauna Kea and its sister peak Mauna Loa was canceled Thursday. A few additional snow showers were forecast, with no accumulation expected.

While the summits received snow, the rest of the Big Island dealt with heavy rain and thunderstorms that pelted the lower elevations. Both Oahu and Kauai were under flash flood warnings. Temperatures were mild, with highs in the 70s and 80s.

Snow on Hawaii's peaks is not uncommon in the colder months because they are nearly 14,000 feet high. Mauna Kea has a sub-Arctic climate, the weather service said.

“As long as we have deep enough clouds to support ice crystals, and when you have cold enough temperatures at the summit level, you can get snowfall,” said Matthew Foster, a staff meteorologist with the weather service in Honolulu.

Snow fell on both mountains on at least two occasions in December. Mauna Loa and its sister peak of Mauna Kea are both volcanoes. Mauna Kea is the highest point in the state.

The only other area of Hawaii that gets snow with any regularity is the Haleakalā volcano on Maui, which at about 10,000 feet gets snow once every five years or so.

The coldest temperature ever recorded in Hawaii was 12 degrees on Mauna Kea on May 17, 1979, the weather service said.