Freak Weather Hits the UK

Monday, forecasters warned Merseyside to expect some “extreme” weather after high-altitude twisters whipped across the region. Stormy conditions over the weekend created a “funnel cloud” in the sky above Burscough and Ormskirk. The meteorological phenomenon – a tornado that does not touch the ground – was sighted by residents at around 2.30pm on Sunday. Funnel clouds are formed when powerful storms and thunderstorms meet, causing wind to blow in different directions. In the UK they tend to be masked by heavy rain – which makes them difficult to detect.

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Weather warning

Dubai
FREAK weather could endanger the lives of anyone swimming in the sea or trekking in the desert, Dubai Police have warned. The Ports Police Station issued a “cautionary advisory” informing residents and visitors about potential weather changes and urged people to be careful when going to the beach or visiting the desert or hilly areas. They also warned people not to swim at night when the sea becomes rougher. People were advised not to go to remote, unsupervised beaches, which may have hidden dangers such as strong currents or whirlpools. Weather conditions are expected to change constantly over the coming days, meaning anyone going sailing should first inform the operations room at Dubai Police. “This will make it easier for the police to find them in case of any accident.”

Month Long Strange Weather Hits Alaska

Alaska, USA
Strange weather has hit Fairbanks all month long. Fairbanks residents have been experiencing some UNUSUAL weather lately. Throughout most of the month of May pellet sized hail has been falling from the skies over Fairbanks, a phenomenon officials said was VERY STRANGE. A combination of cumulus clouds and cold temperatures are responsible for producing many of the hail events. The BIZARRE WEATHER is the result of UNUSUAL WEATHER PATTERNS whereby extreme cold mixed with moisture from low hanging clouds to form the hail. Temperatures were reported to have dropped below freezing at 3,200 feet on Thursday. Cloud cover topped out at 10,000 feet. The result of this weather system is the formation of snow pellets as moisture in the clouds freezes and remains frozen by the time it hits the ground. Thus hail falls instead of rain.

Freak storm destroys dozens of houses

MALAYSIA - Freak storm destroys dozens of houses - Strong winds and heavy rain pounded several villages in Pokok Sena yesterday evening, leaving a trail of destruction in at least seven villages. Dozens of houses were damaged, including 14 badly, as powerful winds sped through Pondok Lama, Bendang Lanjut, Kampung Baru, Bendang Baru, Bukit Kecil, Batu 20 and Kampung Keda, sending roofs and planks into the air. There was no loss of life reported in the 30-minute incident, which also caused damage to furniture and electrical equipment. The storm was UNUSUAL as the rain was heavy but not widespread.

A Winter of Freaky Weather

A coating of snow turned the deserts of Jordan white in January, providing these men in the country's capital 'Amman with a rare chance to throw snowballs.

From National Geographic News
This winter saw the coolest December-February period both globally and in the U.S. since 2001. New York's Central Park saw its BIGGEST SINGLE SNOWFALL — 26.9 inches (68 centimeters) — SINCE RECORD-KEEPING BEGAN in the 1860s. But in Europe, Scandinavian countries have experienced their WARMEST WINTER ON RECORD. And two-thirds of the southeastern U.S., was officially experiencing drought conditions at the end of February, with more than 25% of the region suffering extreme-to-exceptional drought. Meanwhile, Arctic conditions and RECORD SNOWFALL hit the Middle East and China.


A map below depicts global variations in temperature over the past winter, as compared to 29-year averages. Temperatures in northern Europe (seen as red dots) were well above average, while those in the Middle East (seen as blue dots) were colder than usual.

The unusual season seems to be the result of a "perfect storm" of weather patterns occurring at once, experts say.

Map courtesy NOAA

Freak winter weather has struck almost every area of the Northern Hemisphere with bizarre extremes in recent months. Snow fell on usually sweltering Baghdad and paralyzed central China, while the season barely registered in Scandinavia. The UNUSUAL season seems to be the result of a "perfect storm" of weather patterns occurring at once, experts say. Meteorologists in Sweden this month reported the country's mildest winter since record-keeping began in 1756. Neighboring Finland also registered its warmest winter on record. And Arctic Norway is heading for its mildest winter since monitoring started more than a century ago. Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, bluebell flowers bloomed in February for the first time. But elsewhere in the Northern Hemisphere, the winter has been notable for its severity

Weather wreaks havoc in Durban

South Africa
People were helping each other, breaking walls to get people out of houses. The water levels were up to 1.8 metres. Cars were floating and completely submerged

Homes, roads, railways, hospitals and courts were all affected by a flash flood across Durban when 166.8mm of rain was recorded within two hours. "People were helping each other, breaking walls to get people out of houses. The water levels were up to 1.8 metres. Cars were floating and completely submerged." Motorists were found sitting on top of their cars. Durban’s St Augustine’s Hospital was struck by lightning.

FREAK WEATHER /FLOODS
CHILE - This last weekend, Chile’s central region suffered from unexpected rain, in some places, such as Aconcagua valley, with hail (up to 2 cm in diameter). The amount of rainfall recorded was in the range of 13 mm up to 30 mm. The weather had the following consequences: Stains and cracking in the late stone fruit, nectarines and plums plus leaf removal from the trees. Diverse range of damage in grapes, producing stem + berry skin injuries (from flesh removal to bruising), also leaf removal and extra moisture that with the high sugar content makes the fruit highly sensitive to rot and other disease occurrence. The summer rain, being RARE at this time of the year, has been occurring more often year after year as the global weather is changing.

CHINA's northern region of Inner Mongolia is on high alert against a severe flood threat caused by ice blocking the Yellow River during the spring thaw. More than 70,000 people in the region were on standby for rescue and disaster relief efforts along the frozen 720-km (450-mile) stretch of China's second longest river. The river's ice flood was THE HEAVIEST IN 40 YEARS. The Yellow River in Inner Mongolia began to melt on Tuesday.

The Mysterious March Snow Storm

Missouri, USA
The mysterious March 2008 snowstorm...a snow day for some...a clear day for others - Models for days were painting 12+ inches in some parts of the Ozarks. Model run after model run showed an area southeast of I-44 that could see the heaviest snow. Well at the very last minute mother nature decided to throw a curve ball that not a single person could have seen and she set up a very thin 25 mile wide band of very heavy snow right over the Springfield metro. That thin band dropped snow at 2 inches per hour and then as it took a slow move to the SE it TOTALLY fell apart, leaving some areas with 8 inches of snow and just 20 miles away not even a dusting. This RARE event and FREAK WEATHER PHENOMENON could not have been predicted on such a small scale level. Even at the last minute models were trying to push nearly ALL of the snow to the SE of the region. It just goes to show that no matter how good our technology is and how educated we are as meteorologists, the weather and Mother Nature will do what it wants to do no matter what. Take a look at the visible Satellite image of the crazy, thin band of snow. Look how thin of a line that is that received the heavy snow.

Freak weather displaces hundreds

Breaking Earth News
Philippines
At least 10 people were killed and six were missing in flooding and landslides triggered by weeklong rains in the eastern Philippines. FREAK weather brought heavy rains and flooding to some parts of Visayas and Luzon, sending hundreds of villagers to rooftops as floodwaters rose. The rains may have abated on Tuesday but many people in remote areas in Samar have resorted to eating raw bananas. Relief goods could not reach them with many roads still blocked or submerged in water. Eastern Samar province reported estimated damages of over P34 million to rice crops and fruit-bearing trees. Nonstop rains in the mountain ranges of Oriental Mindoro Monday night caused flooding and swelling of the river known as Mag-asawang Tubig, and displaced 4,300 families. The Camarines provinces were beset with intermittent rains and occasional wind surges, while Legazpi City had ankle-deep floods.

RELATED NEWS
SOUTH AFRICA - Eastern Cape FREAK storm devastates village - A flash hailstorm, accompanied by strong winds, has left a youth dead and destroyed several homesteads at Mekeni village near Ngqamakwe in the Eastern Cape. The freak storm flattened some homes, leaving about 50 families destitute and causing damage estimated at thousands of rands.

China's freak snowstorms: 'the new normal'?

A swimmer walks through snow near a stranded ship on the banks of the Yangtze River in Wuhan, China, on January 27, 2008

China
Photos from National Geographic

The UNPRECEDENTED SCALE, COST, AND HUMAN IMPACTS of China's FREAK MONTH of snowstorms, its worst in 50 years, herald a need for the world to get ready for 'new kinds of disasters,' according to the Director of the secretariat of the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction. 'So-called 'freak weather' is becoming more common and reducing vulnerability to these unexpected extremes must be a top priority for governments.' It is estimated that over 100 million people throughout China have been directly affected by the weather, such as through loss of power and water – equivalent to at least the population of the United Kingdom and South Africa combined. The UN/ISDR secretariat emphasized the growing importance of ensuring infrastructure can withstand WEATHER THAT WAS PREVIOUSLY UNTHINKABLE. When billions of dollars in potential losses are balanced against the low costs of prevention in the future, the choice should be clear. China's snow disaster cut across all sectors – power and water lifelines, communications, air, land and sea transport, agriculture, and the financial markets. Governments should learn from the shock of new types of disasters, and need to start examining how to best adapt to unpredictable, 'freak' conditions that may sadly become all too normal.'

Freak storm causes blizzard conditions in New Mexico

SAN JUAN COUNTY — The last blast of a storm that began Sunday and continued into Monday threw San Juan County a curve ball: blizzard conditions for about one and one-half hours.

The Wyoming-style blow topped out with a 58 mph gust recorded at 8:11 p.m. at Four Corners Regional Airport. In its wake was an inch-thick slab of ice with hail and snow grains embedded within it, and a deceptive inch to inch and a half covering of powdery, wind-blown snow.

San Juan County has been hit with several days of minus zero temperatures this month, along with more than a foot of snow over about a three-week period.

Freak Snowstorm Hits B.C's Fraser Valley

British Columbia
Canada
Photo Gallery: A Winter of Weird Weather
Some parts of British Columbia were hit with extreme weather conditions Sunday, while others basked in sunshine.

A freak snowstorm in the Fraser Valley caused treacherous driving conditions for local residents and caused power interruptions.

British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority was last night attempting to restore normal electricity service to 2,500 customers in Maple Ridge who were affected when a fire engine flipped over and ruptured a power line.

Despite blue skies in Vancouver, nearby Burnaby, Coquitlam and the Fraser Valley were all hit by the blizzard, and police told drivers to be careful following last night's fatal road accident in Coquitlam.

The Trans-Canada Highway was dangerous and the poor conditions resulted in several accidents, as the falling snow quickly turned to ice.

Environment Canada issued several winter weather warnings for most parts of the province.

Moon and Weather Combine to Create Wild Tides

Breaking Earth News
Australia
Image: Waves surge through Currumbin surf club car park with the high tide.

The Gold Coast is gearing up for a big Wednesday with large swells and king tides set to continue hitting the coastline. The wild conditions, caused by an UNUSUAL combination of moon and weather factors, had an impact yesterday as tides and wild surf caused sand erosion and the closure of many Gold Coast and northern NSW beaches. Yesterday morning, the king tide inundated the car park at the Currumbin Surf Life Saving Club, almost surrounding the building. On Currumbin beach, water reached the foreshore fenceline about 9am as lifeguards temporarily closed about half of the Gold Coast's beaches during the morning tidal surge. Surging swells engulfed the beaches reaching up to 3m by 8am and causing further erosion to escarpments that were already up to 3m high. The Seaway was one of the worst affected with sand cliffs reaching nearly 4m and lumpy swells making for dangerous, unpredictable beach conditions. Mermaid Beach was pummelled by the high tide, tearing down fences and forming severe erosion cliffs just metres from homes. Further south, what sand remained on Duranbah beach was quickly washed away by the tide. Lifeguards closed and reopened beaches throughout yesterday, basing their decisions on the amount of exposed sand on the beach. The UNUSUALLY high tides were brought about by two lunar factors causing what is known as a perigean spring tide. The full moon this month falls on the 22nd and usually around the full moon they get spring tides. What makes this tide particularly large this time around is that the proximity of the Earth to the moon is rather close. The point where the moon gets closest to Earth occurred on January 19th. The higher than usual tides were likely to continue into this week. The moon is wreaking havoc on the tides but weather events were largely responsible for the 2m waves which hit the Coast yesterday. Waves were likely to reach 3m today due to a weakened tropical cyclone off the coast of New Zealand and a low pressure system east of Tasmania."Not only will we have a big easterly swell but we'll have a fairly solid south swell. What it may do is create much more peaky conditions across the exposed beaches with a risk of larger rogue waves."

Weatherman calls deadly early-morning tornado unusual event

Arkansas, USA

The intensity of the tornado that struck the Ozark foothills on Tuesday, killing a man, could produce winds up to 135 mph and was UNUSUAL in its timing. The tornado was UNUSUAL in two ways — the time of day and the time of year. “It’s pretty UNUSUAL to have storms that early in the morning. Typically, early morning is one of the cooler times of the day." Add cooler weather to rising pressure at that time of the day and those two factors “tend to work against storms.” Midafternoon to midevening are the peak times for storms. January historically is one of Arkansas’ slower months for tornadoes. “If you exclude 1999 when we had so many storms that one January, January normally ranks second- or third-lowest of any month for tornadoes in Arkansas.” The peak month is usually April.

Tornadoes and Blizzards: A Tale of Two Cities

VANCOUVER, Wash. -- A rare January tornado downed power lines, uprooted trees, sent shopping carts flying into cars and demolished a rowing club Thursday in Vancouver.

Source: earthfrenzyradio.blogspot.com via steve468

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) - More snow was falling early Thursday following a record 24-hour snowfall for the metropolitan area, so much that city officials were seeing red.

Source: earthfrenzyradio.blogspot.com via steve468

NowPublic

Sudden cold and dusty winds lash city

Breaking Earth News
Kuwait
Image: Dusty climate prevailed in the city yesterday after a sudden weather change, causing poor visibility for motorists. (SHAIVAL DALAL)

People in Qatar were left shivering as the city of Doha and its outskirts witnessed a sudden cold spell accompanied by strong and dusty winds late evening yesterday. The phenomenon resulted from the unstable weather that country has been going through since Saturday. "The unstable weather has resulted from the high pressure that the region has been going through after a brief period of low pressure." This condition is expected to prevail throughout this week, with chances of temperature dipping further. The western and northern parts of the country may experience extreme weather conditions due the impact of the strong Northwesterly wind blowing from Iraq and Saudi Arabia. Kuwait remains the worst hit by the cold spell. Friends and families were exchanging mobile messages yesterday warning about strong winds and advising not to send children outside. Though scattered rains are predicted today in the northern parts of the country, the unstable weather makes the situation complicated. Rains have so far eluded the country.

Victoria Plagued by Bizarre Weather

Breaking Storm News
Australia
Victoria's emergency workers are being stretched to the limit by wild weather hitting the state – and more of the same is forecast. The State Emergency Service has so far responded to some 1600 calls for assistance around the state after heavy rain caused flash flooding in parts of Victoria. And it seems there will be no respite. Melbourne was bracing for another lashing last night, with the weather bureau saying storms and a band of heavy rain are on track for the city from the north-west. A Bureau of Meteorology spokesman said the storms expected could be even worse. The city was lashed with torrential rain about 4.30pm (AEDT) yesterday with public transport thrown into chaos and localised flooding delaying traffic. The worst-hit metropolitan areas so far have been Waverley in the east and Moorabbin, in Melbourne's southeast.

Rain this week of 25mm to 50mm in southwest Western Australia and more than 100mm in the state's eastern interior was UNUSUAL. "It's normally the dry season in that area."

RELATED NEWS

Wild Weather Keeps Coming

The bureau says damaging winds, heavy rainfall, flash flooding and large hailstones are likely.

Image: Motorists ignore warning signs in York Street, South Melbourne after thunderstorms caused flash flooding.
Photo: Craig Abraham

No hurricane, but still a monster

Pacific Northwest, USA
Once in a great while, a tropical storm can make it close to San Diego, but none on record has made it farther north. But this past week, the Pacific Northwest experienced a storm that caused more destruction, death and hardship than many hurricanes have. At least eight people have died in Washington and Oregon from the storm, with damage expected to reach the billions of dollars from flooding and high winds. Washington's governor said THE TREE DAMAGE WAS LIKE NOTHING ELSE he had seen since Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980. The same storm brought less rain than expected to Southern California on Friday but was forecast to bring a swath of rain and snow to the nation's midsection over the weekend and early next week. A strong northern Pacific low pressure system can be a fearsome beast. While never as intense as the worst hurricanes, the storms can have winds equal to many weak to moderate hurricanes, and those winds can cover a much greater area. Late fall and early winter in the northern Pacific is a prime time to see storms like this develop, as the jet stream dips farther and farther southward after its summer retreat into the high northern latitudes. That allows cold air from the North Pole to sink farther south and collide with warm, moist subtropical air from the central Pacific. The Pacific Northwest typically experiences one or two pretty large storms of this nature each year, but this last one was particularly severe, owing some of its strength to two typhoons whose remnants were pulled into the developing system. Thousands of people remained without power on Friday.

Freak weather floods northeast Australia

Breaking Earth News
Australia

EMERGENCY workers were cleaning up parts of northeastern Australia today after widespread flooding caused by what meteorologists said was a freak, once-in-a-century weather event.

Dozens of people were evacuated from homes and cars and many roads closed because of rising flood waters and fallen trees after the Sunshine Coast was lashed with days of torrential rain, officials said.

"Major flooding has affected residents in the Noosa River, Lake Cooroibah and Lake Cootharaba area and even though we are confident the worst is now past us, it may take several days for waters to return to normal levels,'' he said.

The dumping of more than 1000mm of rain on the Sunshine Coast has been attributed to a once-in-a-century weather event.

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Jeff Callaghan said the low pressure system over southeast Queensland that caused the downpour was a freak event not seen at this time of year since the 1800s.

"They are very rare in August and the last one we can find was probably in the 1880s,'' Mr Callaghan said on the ABC.

Freak storm wreaks havoc

Long Island, New York
Photo: Close up of a car stuck in the water at the Long Island Railroad underpass on Nassau Blvd in Garden City, from the downpour this morning.

(Newsday Photo/Karen Wiles Stabile)

Jul 18, 2007 MORE PHOTOS

The skies opened up just after 8 a.m. Wednesday, unleashing a torrential downpour that has wreaked havoc on the metro-New York area, closing most major roads and most major north shore branches of the Long Island Rail Road due to excessive flooding, knocking out electrical power to more than 40,000 Long Island Power Authority customers and causing delays of more than four hours on flights at Kennedy and LaGuardia airports, as well as causing excessive delays at Newark-Liberty International.
The storm caused 42,000 LIPA customers across Long Island to lose power due to downed lines, according to LIPA CEO and President Richard Kessel.

RELATED VIDEO

Freak storm batters south London

UKPhoto: Eyewitnesses said it was like being in the eye of a tornado

It was one of the biggest storms I've ever seen in my life
Simon Ranshaw, Fulham

July 03, 2007

Parts of south London were hit by flash floods following a massive storm that swept across the South East.

The storm broke out at about 1700 BST on Tuesday and lasted about 20 minutes.
Eyewitnesses reported seeing the sky suddenly turn dark before the torrential downpour of rain and hailstones began.
Emergency services were indundated with calls after several areas including South Wimbledon, Putney, Clapham and Brixton were hit.

The weather caused travel chaos and delays for commuters as roads in south London struggled with the heavy rain.

Click the photo at left to see more images

Photo: "Really large pieces of hail the size of 20 pence pieces tore through the sky" - Olivia Young, Battersea