WINTER STORMS, AVALANCHES, FORECASTS, COLD

11/12/07 -
AUSTRIA - The coldest winter in large parts of Austria has struck UNEXPECTEDLY EARLY, with meteorologists talking Sunday of weather conditions that occur in the Alpine republic once every 30 to 50 years. About 150 centimetres of fresh snow fell in the Alps within 48 hours. A storm brought on by a low pressure system moved across Upper Austria on Sunday afternoon, leaving houses and roads covered or blocked by fallen trees. The winter weather is expected to last for the rest of the week. Austria's avalanche warning system raised the alarm to the second- highest grade. A man reportedly became trapped in an avalanche in Gargellen in Vorarlberg on Sunday but was freed by a companion. Access to resorts was restored Sunday afternoon after avalanche authorities blasted dangerous snow masses. The previous time that Lech was cut off so early in the winter was 1974. Winds reached 140 kilometres per hour in parts. Hurricane-style storms caused serious damage in Upper Austria.

11/8/07 -
CALIFORNIA - The fog hadn't lifted from Monterey in two days, resulting in RECORD-BREAKING COLD days. The high temperatures recorded Monday and Tuesday were the lowest high temperatures ever recorded for Nov. 5 and Nov. 6. Tuesday's high of 52 degrees broke the old record of 56 degrees in 2001, while the high of 53 degrees Monday broke the "low-high" record of 55 degrees set in 1969. The low temperature recorded Tuesday was 49 degrees, only three degrees cooler than the high temperature.

11/6/07 -
UNITED KINGDOM - A cold and rainy summer has given seven bird species their WORST-EVER BREEDING SEASON, with ornithologists warning they are finding it difficult to adapt to the effects of climate change. Experts said some of Britain's commonest birds could soon find themselves on the red list of those which are a real cause for concern. Blue tits were one of the worst-hit species this year, with volunteer ringers catching just over half the young birds they would expect. "Each blue tit chick will need around 100 caterpillars every day, and finding enough caterpillars in the poor weather we've seen is no mean feat." "[The reed warbler, whitethroat and willow warbler] are already suffering problems both on migration and in Africa, so a poor breeding season just adds to their plight." Chicks have fewer feathers than their parents and are more susceptible to the wet and cold. Also, the rain washes caterpillars off the leaves, making it harder for juveniles to find food. 10/7/07 -
U.S. - Forecasters predicted winter-like weather in the central and western United States on Saturday, while unseasonably warm temperatures were in store for the eastern half of the country. Rain and snow, including up to a foot of snow at higher elevations, were expected in parts of the Great Basin and northern Rockies. Winter storm warnings were in effect for many high elevation counties in the region — UNUSUAL for this time of year.



La Nina will disrupt weather around the world for months to come - it's good or bad depending on where you live. (see link for list). The La Nina phenomenon starts when stronger trade winds produce cooler than average waters in the eastern and central Pacific Ocean, near the coast of South America - the opposite of El Nino. Right now, they are up to 1.5 C colder than normal. Ocean temperatures in Asia remain UNUSUALLY cool, too, and so may not produce the expected La Nina results in that region.

10/21/07 -
RUSSIA - A snow cyclone in Primorye, in Russia's Far East, has caused power outages in several areas and interrupted water supplies in Vladivostok. The snow cyclone swept through the region during the night Friday. The cyclone has left about 100 populated areas of almost 200,000 people without electricity. Repair teams continue to work day and night there, but it is difficult for them to reach some areas because of the heavy snowfall. While some electro-transmission lines are repaired, new line breaks occur. Specialists plan to resume electricity supply to most of the affected areas in 12 hours. The situation is also complicated on roads. The snowfall disrupted traffic on the Khorol-Yaroslavka-Sibirtsevo section where about 100 vehicles were trapped in snow and on the federal Khabarovsk-Vladivostok road where several hundred vehicles were blocked in a congestion. The cyclone is moving across the central and northern regions of the Primorsky Territory. According to meteorologists, it will move to the northeast and to the Sea of Okhotsk and then come to Sakhalin.

9/21/07 -
CALIFORNIA - A storm which originated in British Columbia passed through Northern California Wednesday, and brought rain and snow at higher elevations throughout Southern California Thursday and today, which will likely be the most active day. "This system is pretty much UNPRECEDENTED in terms of cold weather and snow levels for September for southwestern California," such a weather pattern HAS NOT BEEN RECORDED IN RECENT HISTORY. "This is a storm that we wouldn't typically see this time of year. It's a RARE and cold September storm, and is typically something we would see in January or December." With high temperatures expected to be no more than 70 degrees, and lows dipping into the 40s, the weather in the next few days strikingly differs from the heat wave that plagued Santa Clarita, and the rest of Southern California, just weeks ago. "That's one thing that is significant about this storm is that it's cooling everything off by between 10 to 15 degrees everywhere." The storm brings the first significant rainfall in about 150 days to southern California.

UNUSUAL COLD-
9/19/07 -
CALIFORNIA - An intense, winter-like storm is headed toward San Diego County, and the National Weather Service is growing increasingly confident it will pack a punch when it arrives. Forecasters are giving the storm a wide window – sometime between Thursday afternoon and Saturday morning. They say that when it hits, intense downpours, thunderstorms, hail and even snow in the higher mountains are all possible. Temperatures around the county will be well below seasonal averages, and the snow level could drop to 6,000 feet Friday. The storm is expected to be near the Bay Area today, then move down the Central California coast Thursday. It is forecast to pick up strength before moving inland over Southern California Thursday. Cold storms in September are EXTREMELY RARE in San Diego. The storm, if it develops as forecast, would be the strongest storm from the northern Pacific in September since 1986.

9/16/07 -
ILLINOIS - LOWEST MINIMUM TEMPERATURE RECORD SET at Chicago-O'Hare. The minimum temperature on Saturday, September 15th was 39. This sets a new record low minimum temperature for the date. The previous lowest minimum temperature recorded on September 15th was 40 in 1985. The normal low for the date is 54.

U.S. MIDWEST - Remnants of a Japanese typhoon playing role in weekend cool surge - The UNUSUALLY chilly air that crashed into the Midwest Friday and Saturday is being given a nudge by the remnants of a typhoon. Just over a week ago, Typhoon Fitow roared into Japan with 85+ m.p.h. winds and torrential downpours, disrupting travel and cutting power to an estimated 80,000 homes in the area around Tokyo. In the time since, the storm's northward-moving remnants have been absorbed into a mammoth Bering Sea storm which is responsible for big rains and coastal flooding across western Alaska. The extra measure of heat energy, which tropical systems contribute to such a storm, helped buckle western North America's jet stream far to the north, forming a huge ridge which has turned steering winds northerly. It's a development which is sending an UNUSUALLY strong punch of early season arctic air southward. Temps Friday night dropped to record lows in Chicago. Strong warming will arrive next week.

9/11/07 -
COLORADO - Overnight the summit of Pikes Peak - and several other high elevation areas - saw the season's first snowfall accumulating a few inches in some places. It is RARE weather for this time of year. "It's kind of strange to see snow up here in the beginning of September and a lot of people aren't real used to it yet." Park officials say a two mile stretch of the Pikes Peak Highway temporarily closed as a result of the light snow fall.

9/6/07 -
TIBET - 1 villager killed, 7 missing in super-avalanche - Nine other villagers were seriously injured when a super avalanche attacked a village of Bomi County in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region on Wednesday. Triggered by torrential rains and ice and snow thawing, the disaster occurred abruptly at about 9:00 a.m. near the Bitong village, 53 km from the county seat of Bomi, resulting in serious mud-rock flow. The mud-rock flow destroyed a 850-meter section of the highway linking Tibet and Sichuan Province. Continuous rains and snow-melting also aggravated mud-rock flows in the disaster area and hampered rescue operations.

2007 U.S. WINTER FORECAST / 2008 SPRING, SUMMER FORECAST -
9/2/07 -
The Farmers' Almanac recently released its 2008 edition, which predicts a "two-faced" season. People in the eastern half of the country will experience a colder than normal winter with a greater than average amount of precipitation, and states down most of the Atlantic coast and in the mid-Atlantic region will have temperatures that average 3 degrees below normal. Cold and snowy weather is going to settle over the Great Lakes region, and people in the southern and eastern Gulf Coast region will experience chilly temperatures. People in the western part of the country should see a relatively mild and drier winter. Snow is predicted from Dec. 20 to 23 from Pennsylvania to Maine and possibly for several days more with very cold temperatures after Dec. 23. Once spring arrives, most of the country will experience cool and wet weather, and Tornado Alley in the country's heartland should have an unusually active season. Most of the country will have a warmer-than-normal summer with average to below normal precipitation. However, those in the Midwest and Atlantic states could see occasional bouts of very heavy rainfall, from heavy showery rains and locally strong thunderstorms. Once hurricane season hits - a season predicted to be active - there could be excessive rainfall over many eastern states.

8/20/07 -
MINNESOTA - Saturday's high temperature in St. Cloud reached only 59 degrees, making it the COLDEST HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR AUGUST 18 SINCE AT LEAST 1885. The previous coldest high for the date was 62, set in 1924. Saturday's high temperature would be normal for mid-October, according to weather records.

8/10/07 -
CANADA - A massive slide that hit Mount Steele could be the LARGEST IN THE RECORDED HISTORY OF THE YUKON. Mount Steele recently had two slides take place in the same area, on the northern face of the mountain. The second slide was by far the larger of the two and occurred on July 24, two days after the original slide. It was the equivalent of a 3.5-magnitude earthquake and was big enough to generate a seismic signal that could be picked up around the world. “The first one was still very impressive and terrifying, but the second slide was just massive.” Using photographs, geologists have been able to estimate the debris spanned about seven kilometres and fell some 2,500 metres to the glacier below. The debris also covered the Steele glacier, which is a kilometre and a half wide. And it carried up a 300-metre ridge at the far side of the glacier, spilling down another 700 metres onto the neighbouring Hodgson Glacier. “It was an absolutely massive amount of rock that fell.” Studies have now begun to try and determine what caused the slide. It could have been triggered by several factors, including climate change and permafrost degradation, if the bedrock underneath had become weakened by frost shatter. "We're always interested in landslides involving glaciers or glacial ice because they move so fast, and because they've caused fairly substantial disasters worldwide...Thanks to glacier melt due to global warming, mountain areas have become more susceptible to changes and stress. This is a worldwide phenomenon taking place.” The 300-metre runup at the base of the initial slide and its descent to Hodgson Glacier indicate the Mount Steele slide had a minimum velocity of 70 metres per second or 252 kilometres an hour. (The fastest lap at the 2007 Hungarian Grand Prix was 51 metres per second.)

JULY - If you thought the weather was a bit UNUSUAL this July, you were not alone. The U.S. had the coolest July since 2004 with 89% of the U.S. trending colder than last year along with 898 RECORD LOW TEMPERATURES set or tied during the month. Of those, 159 record low temperatures occurred during the week of July 4th with temperatures in the 30s in the Great Lakes, 40s in the Northeast and 50s as far South as Texas and California. "Nationally, the number of hot days over 85 degrees F were down 12% vs last year, hot days over 90 degrees F were down 24% vs a year ago and really hot days over 100 degrees F were down a very significant 60% for the nation as a whole." In contrast, July 2006 was the 2nd hottest in 113 years with 2,300 record high temperatures set, so the change toward colder weather in the U.S. was significant. The unusual weather was not isolated to the U.S. as the G-20 countries showed the greatest change toward colder year-over-year weather in three years, with extreme cool and wet weather around the globe. The U.K. had the coldest July in seven years but also the wettest start to Summer in at least 240 years. The cool trends were not limited to the Northern Hemisphere as Argentina showed the greatest July year-over-year change toward colder weather in over 100 years with the first snow in 89 years in Buenos Aires. France also showed the greatest year-over-year change toward colder July weather in decades. Asia and parts of Russia were the exception where the month trended slightly warmer and much drier than a year ago.

8/5/07 -
AUSTRALIA - A RECORD COLD SNAP on June 20 across southern Queensland has triggered coral bleaching normally associated with the extremes of hot weather linked to climate change. Scientists say the bleaching has been caused by a combination of cold waters, winds and air temperatures hitting exposed reefs around the Capricorn-Bunker group of islands at the southern end of the reef. While other sections of the reef appear to have been spared by being fully submerged or far enough north to avoid the worst of the cold snaps in June and July, bleaching has also been recorded on Heron Island.

7/26/07 -
NEW JERSEY - Atlantic City International Airport in Egg Harbor Township had a RECORD LOW temperature for July 24. The thermometer dipped to 53 degrees, breaking a record low of 54 for the date set in 1985. A combination of events, including a cloudy day Monday and clear skies Monday night, contributed to the unusually cool temperatures. Low humidity, RARE in late July, made conditions ideal for a cool snap.

7/25/07 -
PENNSYLVANIA - The high temperature on Monday (7/23) was 62 degrees — enough to obliterate the RECORD-LOW MAXIMUM for the date, of 69 degrees at Avoca, reached in 1976 and the record-low maximum for July for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of 67, set in 1909. The mechanism for the extremely low temperatures was simple: rain, plus a flow from the east-southeast. The cool ocean water off the New Jersey coast is one of the controllers of temperature for Pennsylvania. In summer, during the rare time that the wind comes from the east or southeast, that cool air is advected toward them, and keeps the mercury from going very high. Rain is an obvious controller of temperature: The more rain that falls, the harder it becomes to warm up. The RECORD FOR 24-HOUR RAINFALL was broken for Avoca, as the 0.88 inches through 5 p.m. Monday already broke the 0.81 inches recorded in 1960.

PERU - Areas of Peru are in a critical situation due to FREAK winter temperatures, which have dropped as low as -25C. So far at least 40 children are reported to have died from pneumonia due to the cold, and the toll is expected to rise. The cold wave, which has persisted for three weeks in the Andean mountain regions of central and southern Peru, has led the government to declare a 60-day state of emergency in 13 territories. The emergency is expected to last through August, and the authorities are trying to distribute sufficient emergency supplies of clothing, medicines and food.

7/24/07 -
U.S. WEST - Researchers say desert dust from Arizona speeds up the snowpack melt. Colorado mountain snowpack is melting 18 to 35 days earlier than in the past. This is due to dust blowing in from nearby deserts, including Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. Researchers found a dramatic reduction in the ability of snow to reflect light in areas where dust was on or in the snow.

7/19/07 -
AUSTRALIA - South-east Queenslanders have woken to a RECORD-BREAKING COLD morning. Temperatures fell to a record low at Brisbane Airport shortly after sunrise today, with a temperature of -0.1 degrees celsius recorded at 6.39am (AEST). The previous record for the airport was 0.6 degrees, recorded in 1971 and 1994. There have been reports of -7 degrees in Stanthorpe, in Queensland's south, while nearby Warwick recorded a temperature of -6.4 degrees. The cold weather is a result of a combination of dry air and clear night skies as well cold air being pushed up from the south by a strong low pressure system in the Tasman Sea.

7/17/07 -
AUSTRALIA - Sydney has experienced its COLDEST START TO A JULY DAY FOR 21 YEARS. The temperature plunged to 3.7 degrees in the city at 6.54am (AEST), which was the most frigid recorded since 1986.

7/15/07 -
PERU - For the past 6 weeks Peru has been in the grip of extremly cold weather with temperatures ranging between -22º and -15º C. The RECORD-BREAKING COLD SPELL has already affected over 200,000 people, caused the death of 55 children under five and is responsible for over 6,000 cases of pneumonia. The Government of Peru has declared a National Emergency in 14 of the 24 Peruvian provinces as severe weather continues to sweep the country and has began moving large supplies of warm clothing, blankets and materials to the affected areas. In January this year, an unexpected cold spell hit the high Andean community of Peru and destroyed around 60% of the crops. The severe weather was then followed by the onset of Winter in June and now this second spell of extreme cold has wiped out the remainder of the crops and is causing considerable hardship for children and communities. The worst hit areas are in the provinces of Puno, Apurimac, Ancash, Cajamarca and Cusco. With ten weeks of Winter left, forecasters predict temperatures will drop further.

7/13/07 -
SWITZERLAND - An avalanche in central Switzerland has killed six army recruits. Eight others were rescued after the avalanche struck on the northern flank of the Jungfrau mountain, 90km (55 miles) south-east of the capital, Bern. The team was said to be on a routine training exercise and was following a commonly used route. The accident is ONE OF THE WORST IN THE SWISS MOUNTAINS in recent years.

ARGENTINA - Argentina faces an UNUSUAL cold winter this year, with temperatures far below zero degrees Celsius in most of its territory, including the first snowfall in the Capital Buenos Aires since 1918. The extreme temperatures, which have often reached –20 degrees Celsius in the southern Patagonia region has forced the government to reduce and even cut electricity and natural gas supplies to businesses. The President refuses to mention the word “crisis”, but lack of energy has led to the interruption of work in almost all Argentinean factories, highly dependant on gas supplies.

7/11/07 -
SWITZERLAND - Heavy rain and unseasonably low temperatures have marred the beginning of the summer holiday period in many parts of Switzerland. Authorities issued warnings as the levels of several lakes reached a critical point. Several weeks of bad weather with violent thunderstorms and intermittently heavy rain have filled up many riverbeds and lakes, particularly in the region around the capital, Bern, as well as in southwestern Switzerland. On Monday regions in central and eastern Switzerland were also hit by heavy rain. A drop in temperatures led to snow falling in the Alps above 1,800 meters at the beginning of the week. In lower-lying areas the mercury climbed to a maximum of 11 degrees Celsius on average. Experts have forecast a major improvement for the coming weekend with temperatures reaching more than 30 degrees. In April Switzerland recorded a heat wave followed by a period with heavy local thunderstorms. A freak storm in June caused damage worth hundreds of millions of francs. Farmers are concerned that the wet weather will lead to a poor harvest and difficulties in organizing work.

7/10/07 -
SOUTH AMERICA - A cold snap is continuing to grip several South American nations, reportedly killing three people. The temperatures plunged to -22C (-8F) in parts of Argentina's province of Rio Negro, while the capital, Buenos Aires, saw snow for the first time since 1918. Two exposure deaths were reported in Argentina and one in Chile. In Bolivia, heavy snowfall blocked the nation's main motorway and forced the closure of several airports. In Argentina, several provinces in the Andes have been placed under a storm alert. Thousands of people cheered in the streets of Buenos Aires as the capital saw its FIRST SNOW IN NEARLY 90 YEARS. In Chile, temperatures dropped to -18C (0F) in parts of Araucania region in the south. Meteorologists predict that the cold snap will last for several more days.
A blizzard with winds of up to 140 kilometers (87 miles) per hour shut down the Cristo Redentor tunnel between Chile and Argentina, stranding some 3,000 trucks. Even in Peru, where warm climate prevails, the cold snap forced authorities to place half of the country's 24 departments under a state of emergency. Weather forecasters expect this third cold snap in the southern hemisphere's winter season to last until Wednesday.

BRITAIN - Parts of Britain could see ground frost next week as summer weather continues to avoid northern Europe, lashing it instead with strong winds and heavy rain. After the wettest June since record began many Britons enjoyed a weekend of good weather. But more wind and rain forecast for this week is likely to be followed by plunging temperatures across the region next week as the abnormally bleak weather returns, including frost. "They are talking about rural areas in central England, the glens of Scotland and Northern Ireland. It is VERY UNUSUAL for the time of year." Before the frost bites Britain next week, most of northern Europe will be blanketed in dark clouds, chilled by cold fronts and doused by thunderstorms. "The weather over Europe and the eastern Atlantic continues to be plagued by low pressure, keeping many areas fairly unsettled and cool. Further out in the Atlantic, more cloud can be seen, and this is likely to arrive on Wednesday night."

7/6/07 -
AUSTRALIA - The Australian tropics experienced ONE OF THE COLDEST JUNE MONTHS ON RECORD, with many RECORD LOW TEMPERATURES for the month. The cold conditions, experienced from June 17 to 22, were accompanied by widespread unseasonable rain during what is normally the dry season. The cold snap resulted from the combination of an extensive and slow-moving middle-level cloud band associated with an upper-level trough. At the same time, there was a south-southeasterly surge over much of the tropics as a direct result of the circulation from the intense low-pressure system off the NSW coast that brought the flood rain to that region. In total, more than 31% of the land area of Australia recorded their LOWEST MAXIMUM TEMPERATURES FOR JUNE. They set a new RECORD FOR THE WETTEST JUNE in tropical Australia, with the area-averaged total of 46.9 millimetres to June 27, exceeding the previous record of 39.1 mm set in both 1939 and 1973. The cold snap is VERY UNUSUAL. “In the past, most of the notable events of this kind have occurred during the warmer months of the year."

6/28/07 -
SOUTH AFRICA - UNUSUAL heavy snowfall fell in Johannesburg for the FIRST TIME IN A QUARTER OF A CENTURY and was blamed for the death of a homeless man, and for delayed airline flights. While it snows frequently during the winter in more southerly mountainous regions of the country, the white wonderland that Johannesburg residents woke up to was a once-in-several-years occurrence. Semi-tropical gardens were topped with a powdery dusting of white crystals as residents reminisced about the last 'big snow,' dating back to the 1980s. The cold weather snap is expected to continue through today.
The last time it snowed in Johannesburg was on September 10, 1981. On top of the snow this week, a highly unseasonal and thunderous hailstorm had lashed the area on Tuesday night.

AUSTRALIA - Northern Territory residents are stocking up on jumpers and blankets as they shiver through the COLDEST JUNE ON RECORD. The wild weather further south has brought UNPRECEDENTED COLD and steady rain to much of the Top End in what is meant to be the sunny, dry season. With temperatures under 23 degrees Celsius, locals used to wearing shorts all year round have been wearing fleece-lined jackets. Tennant Creek and Katherine have had their COLDEST JUNE DAYS ON RECORD. The chilly conditions also playing havoc with the digestive system of salt water crocodiles. They cannot even eat. "It's tough for crocodiles when it gets cold, because they can't digest food."

6/19/07 -
NEW ZEALAND - Farmers in the Gisborne region see the latest rain as a mixed blessing, because of the cold conditions that came with it. Coastal areas had up to 200mms of rain in the past week. That's broken the drought, but the cold temperatures of the past few days have made the immediate outlook even worse for keeping stock fed, and more cattle will have to be sold or sent away for grazing. More than 100mm of rain in Hawke's Bay during the past week has broken the drought there too. It was the worst drought in the region in 125 years. It was followed by low temperatures and snow in the ranges at the weekend. Now farmers say this has added to worries about their stock. The rain was of some benefit, but the cold snap prevented any grass growth. The combination of rain, low temperatures and little feed will increase the chance of metabolic problems in stock.

VIRGINIA - Thursday's high was a RECORD LOW - the mercury stalled at 66 just before noon at the National Weather Service data station at Norfolk International Airport. That made for the LOWEST HIGH TEMPERATURE ON A JUNE 14 IN 133 YEARS of record-keeping. The coldest high temperature for the date had been 67, set in 1933. The normal high temperature in Norfolk at this time of year is 83. The day's high equaled what is typically the low temperature at this time of year.

6/18/07 -
TASMANIA shivered this morning with Hobart recording its COLDEST TEMPERATURE IN 12 YEARS. The temperature dropped to just below freezing in Hobart this morning, the lowest since June 6, 1995, when the minimum recorded was -1C. Bushy Park in the Derwent Valley, in the state's south east, also recorded its LOWEST TEMPERATURE FOR 35 YEARS since June 1972 with -6C.

6/14/07 -
COLORADO - Denver is running over 3 degrees below normal for the month and just recently had its LATEST SUB-FREEZING TEMPERATURE ON RECORD. Last Friday, June 8th, Denver recorded not only a RECORD LOW FOR THE DATE (31 degrees) , but also the 2nd lowest temperature ever recorded in June. Then afternoon highs reached 90 on Sunday, June 10th.

OREGON - Cold temperatures prompted a freeze warning Tuesday morning. Cold and dry air was set to move over Deschutes County and officials expected it to cause low temperatures to fall to near or below 32 degrees over much of the county, especially during the hours just before and after sunrise. The warning meant sub-freezing temperatures are imminent or highly likely. Those with agricultural interests in the warned areas were advised to harvest or protect tender vegetation.

6/6/07 -
PERU - At least 52 children had been killed by the cold wave that has hit central and south Peru in the past few days. Severe respiratory disease and pneumonia were the main cause of the deaths. The children killed were mainly from the families of poor herdsmen living in mountainous areas. The worst-hit was the Puno province, where 42,000 people got respiratory disease, 391 people caught pneumonia and 18 children died. Although it is now autumn in Peru, the temperature in some mountainous regions fell to below minus 16 degree celsius. The cold also killed livestock in the stricken areas.

5/30/07 -
BRITAIN - Arctic winds swept across the country at speeds of up to 50mph in ONE OF THE COLDEST Whitsun Bank Holidays SINCE RECORDS BEGAN IN 1772. Beaches were deserted as rain continued to pour down across the country. The average temperature in the Midlands and central England was 46f (8c), and 50f-55f (10c-13c) elsewhere - well under the May average of 63f (17c). In High Wycombe, the temperatures fell to as low as 41f (5c) - less than the January average of 43f (6c).

EUROPE - Freak snow, freezing temperatures and tropical storms hit across Europe - In Spitzing in Germany, locals have been forced to wrap up after ten centimetres of snow brought out the snowploughs for the first time this year. It was the same story in towns close to the Alps in Austria, Switzerland and even northern Italy where temperatures in May normally climb into the 80s. In one Swiss valley, 3,000 were trapped in hotels and guest houses because trains could not reach them in the snow. Ironically, the weather follows one of the worst winters ever for [lack of] snow at Alpine ski resorts. On the Mediterranean island of Corsica, two hikers died in freezing fog. Further north in cities like Berlin, tropical storms have brought four days of chaos, dumping hailstones as big as golf balls, uprooting trees and causing widespread flooding. There have been many fatalities across Germany from the weather, the most poignant being three workmen who sheltered beneath their bulldozer during a rainstorm only to die altogether from a single lightning strike. Britain was drenched over the weekend in some of the worst rain of the year. Thousands of people had to cut their long weekends short, to battle appalling conditions on motorways. Arctic winds hit the country on Monday at speeds of up to 50mph. (photos)

NEPAL - Dozens of people were feared killed in remote parts of north-western Nepal after the areas were hit by a FREAK snow storm. The casualties were reported in the remote north-western mountainous district of Dolpa, about 450 kilometres north-west of the Nepalese capital, on Monday. "We have reports that at least 16 people died and about a hundred others were blinded by a freak snow storm and blizzard." The snow storm is said to have hit a mountainous area where hundreds of people had gathered to collect an herb. Other reports in the Nepalese capital said up to 1,500 people were stranded in heavy snows. The rescue mission is expected to proceed slowly due to continuing bad weather in the area and lack of road access in the district.

5/27/07 -
CANADA - Mother Nature made a RARE wicked May appearance Thursday, punishing many parts of southern Alberta. Snow amounting to 10 cm and blustery winds took down trees and electrical and telephone lines, causing power outages for more than 7,000 homes and damaging cars and buildings around Calgary. More than 12 power lines fell and yards around town were wrecked, including some where trees punched holes in car windshields. The weather wreaked havoc across southern Alberta. Damage in Carstairs, about 50 km north of Calgary, was worse than what was being reported in the city. “It looks like a hurricane went through. Big trees that have been here forever are down, and they came down on cars, houses and buildings.”

5/24/07 -
SOUTH AFRICA - Millions of South Africa's poor living in homemade shacks tried to keep warm this week, and 22 people have died, mostly due to exposure or fire-related incidents. The South African Weather Service reported 54 NEW RECORD LOW TEMPERATURES nationwide. The lowest minimum temperature of 18 degrees was expected in the eastern town of Standerton today. Icy conditions are expected to persist for about another week as a series of cold fronts pass over the country.

5/20/07 -
MONGOLIA - A snowfall hit Bashang on Thursday, an UNUSUAL phenomenon in May in the area. (photos)

5/4/07 -
CHINA - An avalanche killed two tourists and injured another six in southwest China's Yunnan Province Wednesday afternoon. The avalanche occurred at about 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday in a scenic spot of the Meili Snow Mountain, about 10 km northeast of Deqen County in the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Deqen in Yunnan. Rescuers had to first carried the injured people to a village about two hours' walk from the scenic spot to receive medical treatment, because there is no highway linking the spot with the county seat. One person died at the scene and a second person died in an ambulance Thursday morning after being rescued from the avalanche area.

4/25/07 -
RUSSIA - Vehicles are not being allowed to travel on the Transcaucasian Highway, connecting Russia with Transcaucasia, because of an avalanche danger. “Snowfalls have continued for already 24 hours in the mountainous part of the Alagir Gorge, and the snow cover is over 70 centimetres high, which increases the danger of avalanches. So far visibility is zero in the mountains, and we have no information whether avalanches have hit the highway. However, our specialists are already moving on the road to make sure that nobody stayed on the highway at night.”

4/24/07 -
CANADA - Twenty-one ships carrying commercial seal hunters have been rescued by the Coast Guard from crushing ice off the coast of Canada's eastern Newfoundland province, but most of the fleet remains adrift or trapped after shifting winds and two storms stranded them in a massive ice pack offshore. There are still 43 boats trapped in the ice. About 35 ships managed to wiggle free themselves, but they remain adrift in the Atlantic, waiting on the edges for an ice-free route to open up to return to port.

4/22/07 -
CANADA - Seal hunters are still stranded on menacing pack-ice. Hundreds of boats were trapped by FREAK WEATHER as the hunters were returning from a cull of baby seals off the Canadian coast. The fleet of boats became blocked in as an on-shore wind blew the ice tighter and tighter together, creating SOME OF THE WORST CONDITIONS ON THE NEWFOUNDLAND COAST FOR NEARLY 30 YEARS. Up to 15 of the vessels were in danger of sinking Thursday as the enormous pressure of the compacting ice floe threatened to crack open their hulls. One crew has already been picked up by the Canadian coast guard. Icebreakers have been attempting to free the fleet. But rescuers fear the bad weather is set to continue into the weekend and stranded crews face running out of food and fuel. The United States has prohibited Canadian seal products since 1972 and the European Union banned the white pelts of baby seals in 1983. Hunters trade in the pelts mostly for the fashion industry in Norway, Russia and China. They also sell the seals’ blubber for oil.

4/19/07 -
CANADA - The ice that prevented some Newfoundland and Labrador fishermen from reaching harp seal herds during this year's seal hunt has continued to wreak havoc, five days after the hunt took place. Heaving ice continued Wednesday to put dozens of longliners at risk of being damaged or even crushed as they tried to free themselves from icy grips along Newfoundland's northeast coast. From the Northern Peninsula to Cape St. Francis on the east coast, more than 100 vessels have been stranded by heavy ice. Ice conditions were described as "more severe" than seen in many years. "I've never, ever experienced nothing like this."

4/16/07 -
KANSAS - It may be April, but it seemed more like February on Saturday. The cold snap with RECORD LOW TEMPERATURES has wreaked havoc on early-season crops. “I don’t know that we’ve ever had snow and 10 days of winter in April in Lawrence, Kansas.” The cold snap was unlike any other. “It was not just a minor freeze. It was a severe freeze. In talking to some of the older farmers around here, a lot of them say they’ve never seen a freeze quite like this.” Though apples and peaches were devastated, it’s too soon to predict the fate of berries, such as strawberries and blueberries. Farmers are waiting to see whether plants snap back after a few days of warm weather.

MAINE - On a typical mid-April day in southern Maine, flowers would be blooming, butterflies fluttering and bees buzzing. But this is no typical April. The stubborn chill and UNUSUAL series of spring snowstorms are shaking up natural rhythms, forcing animals to adapt, leave, or sit tight and wait. Nature is used to the unusual, of course, and a wintry April is not unprecedented. But forecasts of continuing cold and possibly more snow Sunday and Monday could put a lot of critters to the test. "We need some warm weather. Just one warm day," said a beekeeper with 700 hives around the state. "Usually, the bees start bringing pollen in by the last week of March and they haven't had a day yet." He hasn't even unwrapped his hives because the cold could kill the bees, or at least slow down the bees' process of laying eggs and hatching. Hives that don't get pollen at this time of year will produce smaller, weaker bees. Bees have generally eaten up all their winter honey stores by now. He has been feeding the bees an UNUSUAL amount of sugar - delivered to the hives as home-made sheets of hard candy - to keep them from starving. But the insects have got to get out of the hives soon to clean their systems and bring pollen back to the hatchlings. Many of the birds that arrive each spring are venturing into Maine despite the weather. Some birds seem to be staying to the south, waiting for the weather to break so they can forage. April's wintery weather is not likely to disrupt nesting and egg laying by most birds, assuming spring-like conditions really are somewhere around the corner. But the bald eagle is among the early nesters and appears to be having a tough spring fertility-wise. Eagles start laying their eggs in March, which this year was about when winter conditions really kicked in. The cold and the snow this spring may result in a drop in the number of new eaglets this year. The eggs generally start hatching in early April if they've incubated successfully. The spring of 1982 was similarly cold and snowy, and the number of babies dropped that year. A pair of eagles in Hancock County that are the subjects of a 24-hour Web cam (www.briloon.org) appeared to have lost their eggs to the cold weather, too, until the fuzzy head of a chick appeared in the nest on Thursday. Maine's biggest spring wildlife migration is basically on hold right now because of the weather. Salamanders and frogs are burrowed beneath the leaf litter in the forest floor, dormant but ready to emerge and crawl to vernal pools to breed and lay eggs. The annual migration, known as the Big Night, usually takes place right about now, whenever a heavy spring rain falls during a night when temperatures stay above 40 degrees. Another weather-related migration that few people see takes place this time of year on the ocean floor off the Maine coast. Lobsters usually crawl out of burrows and forage for food, and then move toward shore as water warms. But colder ocean temperatures have slowed them down, too. And, when lobsters are not eating and crawling, they're not trapping. That's a big reason why the price of a Maine lobster dinner is now HIGHER THAN ANYONE CAN REMEMBER. Vegetable farms are unable to plant and are also falling behind schedule.

4/15/07 -
INDIANA - Forecasters say Central Indiana will see an UNUSUALLY RARE weather phenomenon this weekend with about an inch of snowfall Friday and another inch on Saturday. "It's VERY, VERY RARE. It may stick, but it's going to have a hard time doing so because it's still warm on the ground." The Indianapolis area has seen an inch or more of snow in April just 10 times since forecasters began keeping the data more than a century ago. The last time was April 17, 1953, when 2.5 inches fell.

FLORIDA - Saturday in Orlando was expected to be 89 degrees and clear, but by dawn today a fast-moving cold front with severe storms and gale-force wind gusts will sweep through the area. The front, which will move at 40 to 50 mph, could clear the peninsula in three hours, though strong winds and storms will linger. Today's high is expected to be 77. The cold snap will be the latest turn in months of capricious weather. For instance, it snowed briefly in November, while December and January were unusually mild and February brought bitter cold. Bitter in Florida terms, that is. "As far as the ups and downs of weather, this winter was kind of UNUSUAL to some extent." So far, April has rehashed much of this strange season in a short two weeks. It brought cold more typical of January as well as the heat of May or June. On Monday, the high was 65 - the COLDEST HIGH EVER RECORDED in this area for that date.

CANADA - A near-record snowpack in the Rockies and a stretch of warm spring weather has people across Western Canada nervously watching for rising flood waters. Spring run-off warnings and water-level advisories have been popping up from British Columbia to Manitoba in recent weeks with potential for ice-jam flooding on major rivers. Unseasonably cool, wet weather in early April has delayed some of the normal melting and set the stage for flooding problems. Heavy rain is what's in the forecast for British Columbia's Lower Mainland. And with some parts of B.C. recording a snowpack 160 per cent higher than normal levels, the province is bracing for the worst. At higher elevations, most of the spring melting has yet to begin. In the Rockies, which has seen ONE OF THE HEAVIEST SNOWPACKS IN THE PAST 35 YEARS, the run-off could be significant. Historically, big floods require heavy rains that reach the mountain peaks for several days. And while there has been some rainfall, the bulk of the mountain run-off usually appears in May or early June.

4/13/07 -
CANADA - B.C. Hydro is urging residents of the North Coast to become power smart in the coming weeks after an avalanche on the morning of April 2 forced the company to rely on a less stable source of electricity to power the region. “There was an avalanche between Prince Rupert and Terrace that took out a transmission tower and brought down the transmission lines, and it is the supply from the transmission lines that normally provides electricity to the community and surrounding areas like Port Ed, Lax Kw’alaams, Digby Island and Kitkatla."

MICHIGAN - A snowstorm dumped a RECORD AMOUNT of snow on Muskegon - 5.1 inches between 1 a.m. Wednesday and 1 a.m. Thursday. Wednesday's snowfall more than doubled the previous record for snowfall on April 11 - the 2.3 inches recorded in 1944 - and more than doubled the 2 inches of snow that normally falls here during the entire month of April.

4/12/07 -
WISCONSIN - An April storm delivered enough punch to SET SNOWFALL RECORDS FOR THE DATE in Milwaukee and Madison. Milwaukee accumulated 5.6 inches of snow through 3 p.m., enough to top the previous mark for April 11, set in 1997. Madison had 4.7 inches by the same time, again enough to best the record set in '97. A snowstorm that spanned April 8 and 9, in 1973, dumped 13 inches in Madison and a foot in Milwaukee, with wind gusts above 50 mph.

4/10/07 -
AUSTRIA - Six people were injured, one seriously, when a landslide caused part of a hotel in the Austrian Alps to collapse early Monday. A dormitory for employees was buried in the rubble when the landslide happened just after 5am in Obertauern in mountainous Salzburg province. The pressure caused a reinforced concrete retaining wall, which was built in 2003, to give way, knocking down the outer wall of the dormitory where the employees slept and burying them in debris. Rescuers dug the victims out, and they were rushed to a hospital for treatment.

CANADA - People in Whitehorse have had to wade through even more snow than usual in past months: it was ONE OF THE SNOWIEST WINTERS SINCE RECORDS BEGAN in 1940s. From November to March, the city had 149.7 centimetres of snowfall. In comparison, the record was set in 1991-92, when the city had 177.7 centimetres of snow. And unlike many years when Whitehorse has seen a melt in December or January, this year the snow stuck around. Now that all the snow is about to melt, people are concerned about flooding.

KANSAS - On the 8th, it was the COLDEST EASTER MORNING ON RECORD in Topeka.

FLORIDA - Gainesville had a low temperature of 35 degrees Sunday morning, BEATING THE RECORD LOW of 38 degrees set in 1950. Jacksonville had a low of 31 degrees Sunday morning. That temperature beat the RECORD LOW FOR THE DAY of 37 degrees set in 1971 as well as the RECORD LOW FOR THE MONTH of 34 degrees set in 1987. "It's RARE to get temperatures that low at this time of year."

4/9/07 -
U.S. - Fruit growers in Missouri and Illinois face significant losses after record-low temperatures wreaked havoc on orchards. The growers said this could be the WORST DAMAGE THEY'VE HAD IN MORE THAN A DECADE. Fruits like apples, peaches and grapes in their early stages of development cannot survive several nights of below-freezing temperatures. Apples are in their most vulnerable stage in early April. "It hit at exactly the wrong time. There's going to be a light crop this year." "We have never had this much cold this far into the season. We've had cold snaps, but not like this." Warm weather in March caused primary and secondary grape buds to grow earlier than usual. Low temperatures froze both sets of buds, leading to greater loss.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Two weeks into the spring season, more than one-third of the U.S. received unseasonal snow showers in ONE OF THE WEIRDEST WEATHER PATTERNS SEEN IN THE US OVER THE LAST 50 YEARS. Both Saturday and Sunday saw ONE OF THE LOWEST APRIL TEMPERATURES RECORDED IN THE LAST FEW DECADES. The Washington capital region HAD NOT SEEN SNOW IN APRIL FOR 17 YEARS, and even parts of Texas received snow showers. Freeze warnings were issued for most of the eastern United States, and several highways reported dangerous driving conditions. The US-23 highway was shut down on Saturday as the level of ice kept rising.

TEXAS - Longview broke a 91-year-old weather record Saturday with the LOWEST RECORDED HIGH TEMPERATURE SINCE 1902, when weather data here was first recorded. But it was the lunchtime falling snow that seemed to grab everyone's attention. "We don't even get much snow in winter here, so when you see snow in April, that means there is some pretty cold air aloft." The snow and record-breaking temperatures were a result of polar vortex, which is stationary but spinning over the Great Lakes. "That vortex is pulling in cold air from Canada. Meanwhile, April is an active month for the jet stream in our part of the country and it's pulling the cold air (from the vortex) to us."

4/8/07 -
VIRGINIA - Flurries dusted the Norfolk area Saturday, and the high temperature was roughly 25 degrees below average. "It's way below normal for this time of year." It hadn't snowed in Norfolk in April since 1989. It hadn't snowed on April 7 in Norfolk SINCE OFFICIAL RECORD-KEEPING BEGAN in 1890. The weather service issued a freeze warning for the Mid-Atlantic region, meaning temperatures could drop enough to harm crops and sensitive vegetation.

A brutally cold surge of arctic air into the eastern half of the United States will easily bring RECORD-LOW temperatures on Easter morning and could cause significant losses in some of the nation's most prolific agricultural areas. High pressure building toward the Southeast will bring calm winds and clear skies, which combined with the very cold air mass in place, will allow temperatures in many cities to challenge THE COLDEST LOWS EVER REACHED DURING THE MONTH OF APRIL. The cold will severely tax peach orchards across Georgia, and strawberry orchards throughout the Southeast. Bitter cold will also be felt throughout the wheat-growing areas of the Midwest and central Plains. The springtime arctic outbreak will also allow for snow in areas that very rarely see wintry precipitation this late in the year.

4/6/07 -
MICHIGAN - Negaunee Township measured 24 inches of snowfall Wednesday, BREAKING A 1974 RECORD of 12 inches. In Houghton County, Painesdale was hit the hardest with a storm total of 38 inches. "The extended winds we've had have been pretty incredible in this storm." The snowfall total was the second-largest 24-hour total in their history. Spring storms are not uncommon, but an April storm with these winds and snowfall accumulation is UNUSUAL. "We've had spring storms like this, but this is RARE for April."

OHIO - Newly planted vegetables, recently sprouted flowers and fresh fruit tree blooms were thriving in balmy 80-degree weather just a couple of days ago. Now, that springtime bounty faces damage, or even death, from a sharp blast of Canadian air that is plunging temperatures into the 20s for several nights. The cold wave may hurt this year's peach, apple and cherry crops. While a sub-freezing night or two in April isn't unusual, a sustained cold snap in the 20s this time of year is. In two words, the sustained low temperatures are "NOT NORMAL," said the National Weather Service office in Wilmington. "Just like a few days ago when it was UNUSUAL to have temperatures in the 70s and 80s, it's not normal to have several nights in a row in the 20s." Average highs and lows this time of year are around 60 and 40. The cold is just the latest batch of UNUSUAL WEATHER over the past three months that has disrupted the normal pattern of plant life. "It all started back in January when we had unusually warm weather. I had daffodils blooming for three weeks in January. The problem is when plants have a warm January, they get tender and soft and that makes them more susceptible to cold damage. They think spring is here in January and start coming out of dormancy and get ready to grow. And then it turns cold." February's sustained temperatures around zero weakened the plants further. "Then we had a hot early spring and the plants came out again in all their glory. Now, with it getting really cold again, there could be a lot of blackened flowers and even blackened leaves."

4/4/07 -
The Arctic in 2005 saw little renewal of the thick, perennial sea ice that normally melts and is replenished every year, a NASA study has found. Renewing the layer is crucial to maintaining the summer ice cover's stability, and the new findings suggest it may continue to decrease by as much as 10 per cent a year. "The area of seasonal ice that survives the summer may no longer be large enough to sustain a stable perennial ice cover, especially in the face of accelerating climate warming and Arctic sea ice thinning." Perennial ice coverage was 14 per cent lower in January 2006 than it was at the same time in 2005 — only about four per cent of the 2.5 million square kilometers of seasonal ice formed the previous winter survived the summer. The depletion of the sea ice was also affected by ABNORMAL wind conditions that resulted in about seven per cent of the perennial ice coverage area migrating out of the Arctic — an UNUSUALLY HIGH amount.

4/3/07 -
PAKISTAN - A fresh avalanche swept through a village in northern Pakistan and 11 people were missing and feared dead a day after 26 people were killed in another avalanche in the same area. The avalanche struck Mongi village in the Chitral region of the Hindu Kush mountains last night after heavy rain fell across deep snow blanketing the mountains. Many villages have been cut off for days by heavy snow and landslides.

4/2/07 -
PAKISTAN - Avalanches in remote northern Pakistan have left at least 29 people dead, with another 13 still missing. In the worst case, snow buried 26 houses in the village of Washik Chitral Tor yesterday. Another avalanche crashed down on a house in Garam Chashma village, killing five members of the same family. There were no further details about injuries, as communication systems in the area had broken down because of the bad weather. Rescue efforts were also hampered by heavy snowfall which had closed roads in the region.
Thirty hours of continuous torrential rain, with heavy snowfall, has wreaked havoc along the Chitral valley. Reports of houses collapsing and damage to cattle and property are coming in. Life is at a standstill in Chitral with people listless and petrified over this all-time FREAK WEATHER PHENOMENON, coupled with a total breakdown of services, particularly electricity and the road network.

3/30/07 -
AFGHANISTAN - At least 12 people were killed and 12 wounded when avalanches in the northern Badakhshan province of Afghanistan buried their houses under snow. This year Afghanistan has been experiencing greater rains and snowfalls after six years of severe drought. The rain has caused severe flooding and mudslides in various parts of the country, leaving at least a dozen of people dead in the past fortnight through out the country.

3/25/07 -
ALASKA - With a record snowfall and spring thaw under way, residents of Juneau are sweating over avalanche danger. Experts have long said Juneau has the highest risk of an avalanche disaster in the country. That's because more than 60 homes and a busy boat harbor lie below at least a dozen avalanche chutes that sweep off the steep sides of Mount Juneau. This year the Juneau area has gotten more than 16 feet of snow and spring is a particularly dangerous time of year for avalanches. So far several small slides have occurred but none have reached any homes.

3/22/07 -
ITALY - Snow, rain, hail and high winds continued to lash Italy Tuesday. Snow fell heavily across the Alps and Dolomites for the second day running but the brunt of the weather front moved down through central parts as far as the heel of the Italian boot, with most cities hit by rain, hail and gales and most coasts battered by angry seas. In Tuscany, wind and rain whipped Florence and Siena and kept all but the boldest tourists from venturing out of their hotels. To the east, even the Umbrian hills got a RARE taste of snow. In Perugia, the Umbrian capital, temperature fell as low as three degrees, from 20 degrees Celsius two days ago. In Rome, tourists scurried for cover from strong winds while gales toppled advertising boards and bent road signs around Naples. Winds of 20 knots and above grounded flights and prevented landings at Rome's Fiumicino airport. Ferries to Ischia and Capri cowered in port while sea links to Elba were also cut off. Rough seas and 50 km/h winds also raged around Sicily, blocking ferries to Lampedusa and other islands.

3/21/07 -
KASHMIR - The Kashmir Valley is facing acute shortage of essential goods with the closure of the national Jammu-Srinagar highway for the fifth straight day yesterday due to heavy rains and snow. The only surface link to the Kashmir Valley with the rest of India was closed on Sunday after a fresh spell of heavy rains and snow. State authorities say it will take at least two more days to clear the mud and landslides at Panthal, a trouble spot on the 300km-long highway. Around 1,000 vehicles carrying essential supplies and hundreds of Kashmir-bound passengers are stranded on the highway. Power supply continued to remain disrupted for the fourth day in major parts of capital Srinagar and other towns following the heavy snowfall here. The spring snowfall has caused extensive damage to the cherry, almond, apricot and apple orchards, which were in full blossom. Horticulture experts are keeping their fingers crossed but they admit the damage to these famous Kashmir fruits is colossal especially the famous Kashmir cherry. Officials say the water supply would be restored in the city by this evening. The snowfall has led to drastic fall in the temperature though the sky is now clearing up.

3/19/07 -
KASHMIR - three persons were killed and six other critically injured when an avalanche hit the village of Nawathana in Padder area of district Kishtwar. The avalanche hit Sunday morning hitting three houses and killing three villagers on the spot.

MASSACHUSETTS - Worcester had RECORD-SETTING snowfall Friday and Saturday. On Friday, 11.3 inches fell in the city, breaking the record of 10 inches set on March 16, 197. Saturday another 5.6 inches fell, breaking the record of 4.4 inches set in 1982. Through both days, 16.9 inches of snow fell during the nor’easter.

3/18/07 -
BRITAIN was bracing itself for Arctic winds and snowstorms on Saturday night as the unseasonal warm spell comes to an abrupt end. A cold front coming in from the north will bring wintry weather to the whole of the country. Scotland and the north of England will be worst hit but the whole of the UK can expect snow and freezing winds from today. Temperatures will plummet from the high in recent weeks of 14C (57F) to minus 4C (25F) in a cold spell expected to last until well into next week. Wildlife experts said animals such as moles, bats and hedgehogs that woke early from hibernation because of the unseasonal heat could be at risk of starvation because of the snow.

U.S. EAST COAST - Schools in Maryland and Virginia were let out early Friday as a late blast of winter weather moved across the region. The area was battered with a mix of rain and snow and temperatures dropped into the 30s. The cold followed a gorgeous week with temperatures that had soared into the 70s. “It’s UNUSUAL for this time of year. This is an unseasonably cold spell.” The winter weather, which struck throughout the mid-Atlantic and the northeast, wreaked havoc on air travel.
MARYLAND - The rain totals at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport topped 2.13 inches by 9 pm. That BROKE THE 131-YEAR-OLD RECORD of 1.14 inches for the date, set in 1876. It was the city's oldest daily rainfall record for March.
VIRGINIA - RECORD DAILY RAINFALLS occurred at Reagan Washington National and Washington Dulles International airports on the 16th. National Airport received 1.55 inches, breaking the 1896 record of 1.09 inches for the date, and Dulles got 1.49 inches to eclipse the old record of 0.9 inches for the day, set in 1972.

3/16/07 -
RUSSIA - Arrivals of all planes from the mainland to the Kamchatka Peninsula were delayed on Thursday due to a powerful cyclone affecting the region with heavy snowstorms. The eastern districts of the peninsula are still affected by a cyclone. It is snowing heavily everywhere and winds are reaching a speed of 20 metres per second. The fleet is staying at ports due to a storm warning. The avalanche descent hazard has increased in the mountainous areas of Kamchatka and within the limits of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Recommendations have been issued to all to be cautious and abstain from going to the mountains. Classes at schools and higher educational establishments were also cancelled in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on Thursday due to heavy snowstorms and winds. Traffic is impeded by low visibility and snowdrifts on local highways and there are traffic jams on the city roads. Specialists say that snowfalls on Kamchatka are possible for three more days.

3/14/07 -
INDIA, KASHMIR - At least 50 people were killed as snow engulfed Kashmir and torrential rain pounded the rest of northern India. Some 28 people were killed and 25 others received burn injuries in separate lightning strikes in Uttar Pradesh as rains crippled life in the populous northern Indian state. Seventeen people, including two children and a soldier died in landslides, cold and floods in Indian Kashmir and its summer capital Srinagar reported its HEAVIEST MARCH SNOWS IN 15 YEARS. Snowstorms have paralysed life in revolt-hit Kashmir, shutting schools, knocking out power and telephone lines and closing the region's main highway.

ICELAND - Four homes were vacated in Bolungarvík, in Iceland’s Westfjords, due to risk of avalanches. Snow layers are unstable and several minor avalanches have fallen in the northern Westfjords in the last few days. A larger avalanche fell in Hnífsdalur yesterday, but no buildings were hit. Ten buildings are in the danger zone in Bolungarvík, but only four of them are inhabited. “It has been like this since 1995 and I believe no winter has passed without us having to vacate our houses at some point.” The Icelandic Meteorological Office is observing the snow layers in the Westfjords and waiting for them to become more stable before the inhabitants can return to their homes. In 1995 avalanches hit two towns in the Westfjords, Súdavík and Flateyri, and nearly 40 people were killed. Since then precautionary measures have become tighter.

RUSSIA - A powerful cyclone that has covered the Sakhalin Island with a 1.5-metre deep snow layer has begun affecting southeast areas of the Kamchatka Peninsula. The cyclone will gradually move to the northwest part of the Pacific Ocean where the wind force is expected to grow to 15-20 metres per second, but no dangerous phenomena are expected on the peninsula, according to meteorologists. Nevertheless, snowstorms are possible on Kamchatka in the coming three days. Since the beginning of March, cyclones have been one after another bringing snowfalls to the south of Kamchatka. As much as 130 percent of the monthly precipitation norm has already occurred in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky where the snow is 140 centimetres deep. 14 snow avalanches have already descended from slopes. The largest of them had a volume of 20,000 cubic metres.

3/13/07 -
INDIA - Five pilgrims to the Vaishno Devi shrine in Jammu and Kashmir died yesterdy due to extreme cold as heavy unseasonable rains and snowfall surprised large swathes of north India, including the national capital, as spring played fugitive. The met office attributed the FREAK WEATHER to western disturbances. The five people on their way to the Vaishno Devi shrine died due to extreme cold even as nearly 1,000 vehicles were stranded on the strategic Jammu-Srinagar highway, cutting off the Kashmir Valley from the plains. The highway had remained closed for 10 days last month as well because of bad weather, leading to a scarcity of food products in the valley. The valley received the heaviest snowfall of the season yesterday with the popular resort town of Sonmarg receiving 4 feet of snow. Farmers maintained the late, untimely March snow had damaged their oilseed and fodder crops while fruit growers said almond and other fruit blossoms also suffered. Over 200cm of snowfall has accumulated at the 13,050-foot-high Rohtang Pass in the last three days. This year, Delhi has received more than 34.5 mm rainfall in March, as against its usual quota of 14.8 mm. “The rains are due to a cyclonic blip over north-west India."

RUSSIA - The cyclone that has been hovering over Russia’s Khabarovsk region since Saturday, has hit it with RECORD SNOWFALLS. Up to 28 millimetres of precipitations have fallen in southern parts of the region over the past 24 hours with a monthly norm of 13 millimetres, while in eastern parts of the region more than three monthly norms of snow have fallen. The cyclone is moving northeast. Winds in Khabarovsk are gradually losing their strength, but heavy snowfalls and snowdrifts persist on the seaside.

CHINA - Carcasses of about one million cattle and poultry that died during a severe snowstorm in northeastern China have been destroyed to prevent them from being processed for food. Earlier this month, northeastern China experienced its worst March snowstorm in 56 years, with severe cold and strong winds causing snow to drift up to two metres in some places. More than 978,000 chickens, 24,000 ducks and thousands of pigs, cattle and sheep were burnt and buried in the province of Liaoning.

3/12/07 -
RUSSIA - A new powerful cyclone battered Russia's Far-Eastern Khabarovsk territory, bringing along with it heavy snowstorms and gale of up to 20 to 25 meters per second. Storm warnings have been issued. The Far-Eastern Hydrometeorology Center says the territory is bound to sustain this kind of weather for at least two days in a row. Railway is the only kind of transport functioning normally, with dozens of special machines and more than 3,000 section men clearing the tracks. The previous cyclone evidenced snowstorms with amounts of snow exceeding the monthly usual by a factor of three. It also brought to standstill the aviation, automobile and maritime transport and put out of electricity supplies a number of population centers due to wire breaks.

3/8/07 -
VIRGINIA - it was the COLDEST FEBRUARY SINCE 1980 in Roanoke. During most of the past eight months, we've had a very amplified jet stream pattern. That's a fancy way of saying the jet stream, the fast-moving river of air 4 to 7 miles up, has been contorted into huge bulges toward the north and large dips toward the south.

MAINE - the minus 6 degrees reading at 7 a.m. on the 7th at the Portland Jetport broke the old RECORD LOW TEMPERATURE FOR THIS DATE of minus 3 set in 1989. The high temperature of 18 on Tuesday was the COLDEST HIGH TEMPERATURE EVER FOR MARCH 6, dating back to when weather records were first recorded at the Jetport in 1940. Previously, the record low high temperature was 26 degrees, set in 1972 and 1999. Although the low temperature of zero Tuesday morning was not a record, when combined with the record low high temperature, it gave Portland an average for the day of 9 degrees, breaking the record of 10 degrees for the LOWEST AVERAGE set on March 6, 1948. Ironically, it was exactly two months ago Tuesday, Jan. 6, when record high temperatures occurred throughout the Northeast. At New York City's Central Park, the temperature hit 74 degrees while in Portland it rose to 67 degrees, setting an all-time record for the month.

NEW HAMPSHIRE - March 6 was the COLDEST MARCH DAY IN STATE HISTORY. An abysmal high temperature of 7 degrees was recorded in Concord, shattering the previous record of 11 degrees set on March 3, 1950. "It's not something we haven't seen before, but it is UNUSUAL for this time of winter...Getting a cold blast like this in March is kind of unusual, but they've certainly happened before."

ILLINOIS - snowfall amounts in central and northern Illinois were typically 4-16 inches above normal, including 20 inches in Champaign-Urbana, the HIGHEST ON RECORD THERE SINCE 1903. Flooding will be a concern in portions of the state over the next several weeks due to snowmelt and rain falling on frozen or saturated soils.

3/7/07 -
CANADA - RECORD COLD hit in Hamilton. A reading of -22 at 7 o'clock am at John C Munro International Airport was good enough to smash the old record of -19.4 which stood since 1960. February was the COLDEST ON RECORD SINCE 1979. Not a single drop of rain fell last month - which has happened ONLY ONCE SINCE RECORD-KEEPING BEGAN.

MASSACHUSETTS - At the Taunton office of the National Weather Service at 11 a.m. it was 3 degrees above zero with a wind child of about 20 degrees below zero. The temperature at midnight was 16 degrees which is the March 6 RECORD FOR THE LOWEST MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE FOR THE DATE. The record low maximum temerature for the month of March is 10 degrees, set on March 3, 1950. With a high temperature of 9 degrees predicted for the rest of the day, today will rival that record even though it won't show in the record book because the high temperature was recorded at midnight. "Certainly, today is the coldest March day since 1950".

CONNECTICUTT - Tuesday's high temperature was below 20 degrees - for JUST THE THIRD TIME IN NEARLY A CENTURY. That's about 25 to 30 degrees below average temperatures for this time in March. The state's record low high temperature for the month of March at Windsor Locks is 17 degrees on March 7, 1913, and March 18, 1967.

3/6/07 -
RUSSIA - A state of emergency was declared all over Russia’s Primorsky Territory (Far East) due to the violent cyclone, which brought heavy snowfalls and stormy winds. More than two monthly amounts of precipitation were recorded in the southern districts of the Territory and in Vladivostok during the past twenty-four hours. Weather forecasters believe the cyclone will last for at least 12-16 more hours. The current snowfall was the HEAVIEST EVER IN THE ENTIRE 130-YEAR HISTORY of the local weather forecasting service.

CANADA - Bitter cold and driving winds combined Monday to unleash a wave of commuter chaos across parts of the Greater Toronto Area and beyond, still cleaning up from last week's vicious storm. As ice tumbling from the CN Tower forced Toronto Police to close a stretch of the Gardiner Expressway, whiteout conditions on Highway 400 near Newmarket, Ontario triggered an afternoon chain-reaction pileup that sent scores of vehicles skidding and slamming into each other. Elsewhere across the region, at least a dozen other major rural roads were closed as drivers battled near-zero visibility. In Toronto's downtown core, motorists struggled to and from work in the face of an unfamiliar hazard: big chunks of ice crashing to the ground from the 533-metre CN Tower and landing on the Gardiner Expressway, one of the busiest thoroughfares in the country. Several city blocks were also blocked off, as ice dislodged by freak weather conditions slid down to the street from other buildings. Some parked cars had damage to their windshields and roofs, but no injuries were reported. “We've seen ice before but never to this degree, this has been pretty extreme.” "Today it [the wind] was coming from the northwest and was quite strong, and was blowing the ice right in the direction of the Gardiner Expressway.... This [weather pattern] is EXTREMELY RARE.” Experts say this is the FIRST TIME in the CN Tower’s history - construction was completed in 1976 - the structure has seen such an ice buildup. One of the pieces appeared to be roughly 50 metres tall by 6 metres wide. Police warned that more severe weather is on the way. “This is only the beginning. It's getting colder and windier and there's another storm headed in from the west.” That storm is expected to produce more snow tonight and Wednesday, accompanied by a severe cold snap.

3/5/07 -
RUSSIA - An avalanche killed a child, and three other people are missing, in a Russian resort that is competing to host the 2014 Winter Olympics. The 10-year-old skier and the others were swept away after the avalanche hit a ski lift at the Krasnaya Polyana resort near the town of Sochi in the south of Russia. Russian authorities closed ski lifts for two days at the resort this year because of safety concerns just days before a team from the International Olympic Committee inspected Sochi.
Snow cyclone - Vladivostok enterprises and organizations have recommended having a day off today because of an approaching cyclone. School classes have been cancelled. The ferry line between the islands of Popov and Russky may be not operational either. The cyclone has reached the Primorye territory. It is snowing heavily, with the wind reaching 30 kilometers per second. Up to two monthly norms of precipitation may fall in Vladivostok alone.

CHINA - The STRONGEST MARCH SNOWSTORM IN 56 YEARS to hit northeast China's Liaoning province caused drifts up to 2m, and strong winds forced highway closures and flight cancellations. Rain and snow fell across many parts of northern China, including Beijing and Tianjin municipalities, Inner Mongolia and Ningxia autonomous regions over the past two days, bringing precipitation to areas that have experienced a serious drought.

3/2/07 -
CANADA - A snowstorm is expected to hit Quebec and the Atlantic provinces today, after pounding southern Ontario and causing a slew of traffic accidents, including one that killed two children.

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2/27/07 -
TAJIKISTAN - This year temperatures in Tajikistan reached an UNUSUAL minus-17 degrees Celsius, the lowest since 2002. The lowest temperature is usually between minus-five degrees to minus-seven degrees Celsius. Geologists say such cold weather is the result of global climate changes. UNUSUAL prolonged frost has also compounded the situation. The situation in many settlements and towns across Tajikistan is acute, with no gas or electricity.

WISCONSIN - According to a professor of atmospheric and oceanic sciences, the snow was UNUSUAL throughout the weekend in both its type and accumulation. “This is wildly out of the ordinary. We don’t get storms like this very often.” Nearly 18 inches fell from Friday evening to Sunday morning. With temperatures hovering around 32 degrees, the snow was an uncharacteristically wet mix when it arrived in the city. “That’s not common around here. Usually that’s the type that shows up in New England, with that concrete, mashed potato type of snow.” The irregular weather developed Friday from an upper-level disturbance over California.
This past weekend's storm SET A RECORD for the first time more than four inches of snowfall has been recorded on three consecutive days - the historical records date back to 1869. The National Weather Service reports six inches of snowfall for Madison on Friday, 4.4 inches for Saturday and another 4.9 inches on Sunday, for a weekend total of 15.3 inches. The high moisture content of this weekend's heavy snows has slowed snow plowing and removal efforts - almost doubling the usual time it takes to clear the city's streets. This is the fourth snowiest February on record, and with meteorologists forecasting another inch or two between now and March 1, third or even second snowiest may yet be within reach.

PENNSYLVANIA - The sleet that fell on Feb. 13 and 14 was a wild and extraordinary event. It was ONE OF THE MOST DISRUPTIVE NORTHEAST STORMS ON RECORD. People wound up stranded on I-78 for up to 24 hours. Atop an unexpectedly stubborn layer of cold air, the Valentine's Day storm created a strange and persistent atmospheric parfait. Warm air melted snow on the way down, but then cold air refroze it before it landed. What resulted was prodigious, perhaps RECORD, amounts of sleet. The models were calling for a major ice storm - with a "bull's-eye" of up to 2.5 inches of precipitation in northeastern Pennsylvania. That's the water equivalent of up to three feet of snow. The best estimate is that 4 of the 7 snow and ice inches measured at the Allentown station consisted of sleet. That is a phenomenal amount. Typically, it takes a forecast of a mere half-inch to trigger a "heavy sleet warning." So 4 inches would be eight times the warning criterion. Sustained sleet is at the very least UNUSUAL. Sleet suggests an atmosphere in transition. Ordinarily it occurs when warm air aloft is entering or exiting, as rain is changing to snow or vice versa. Rarely is it a main event.

2/26/07 -
WISCONSIN issued its second blizzard warning of the year this past weekend — the first coming before 8 inches of snow hit Sheboygan on Dec. 1 — an EXTREMELY UNCOMMON occurrence. "We usually issue a blizzard warning probably once every five years. It's pretty RARE." This is the first time since 1999 the weather service has issued a blizzard warning for its entire coverage area. The warnings are issued when the weather service expects sustained winds of at least 35 mph combined with falling snow for at least a three-hour period.

2/25/07 -
U.S. - A large, fast-moving snowstorm closed sections of major highways in parts of the central United States on Saturday, dumped more than 30 centimetres of snow on the Upper Midwest and caused seven traffic deaths in Wisconsin. The storms knocked out power to more than 145,000 customers, mostly in Iowa, where freezing rain coated trees, power and utility lines. The weather service posted blizzard and winter storm warnings for parts of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, northern Illinois and Wisconsin. "This is going to be a monster in the northern plains tonight and into the western Great Lakes." We're going to see six to 12 inches of wind-whipped snow." Between 15 inches to 18 inches of snow had fallen between Winona, Minn., and La Crosse, Wis., by Saturday evening, with more snow expected. Winds reaching 60 mph helped fuel dozens of grass fires across Texas, destroying three homes near Midland and forcing evacuations at Fort Hood.

VERMONT - Nearly 15 years ago, an ice jam in the Winooski River caused catastrophic flooding in Vermont's capital. Now, officials are warning it could happen again and telling people to prepare for it. Sections of the river are frozen solid, triggering fears of a repeat of the March 11, 1992 flood that caused millions of dollars in damage. Engineers say it's the FIRST TIME SINCE RECORDS HAVE BEEN KEPT that the river in Montpelier has been so packed with ice in what is called a "freeze up jam". This year's jam was caused by unseasonably warm weather through mid-January followed by an extended period of bitter cold. Now, stretches of the Winooski are frozen solid with what experts call "frazzle ice". If the weather turns suddenly warm or heavy rains fall, it could be trouble. For years, the city left a crane parked on the edge of town, to be used to break up ice jams. The crane remains there, but it may not do much good this time around because it would have to clear solid ice from a mile of river.

2/23/07 -
MONTANA and much of the rest of the U.S. West are seeing ONE OF THE WORST AVALANCHE SEASONS IN YEARS and there still is a lot of winter left. "We are going to keep getting winter storms and we are going to have avalanche danger for the remainder of the winter." Last weekend, avalanches killed six people in Montana, Utah and Idaho. Nationwide, avalanches have killed 14 people. Another person died in Canada. There are two types of snow avalanches: Loose snow avalanches that begin in a small area, but grow larger, taking on more snow as they descend; and slab avalanches that start as a large slide.

2/20/07 -
RUSSIA - A storm warning was declared in Kamchatka over an approaching strong snow cyclone. The hurricane is moving from Japan to Kamchatka with a velocity of 60 kilometers per hour. The cyclone will reach the peninsula by today. A heavy snowfall and blizzards are expected there. The wind velocity will reach 25-30 meters per second on the south-western and south-eastern coasts. Hurricane winds of 40-45 meters per second will be registered in the north-western part of the Pacific. Vessels were warned about the approaching cyclone. The impact of the cyclone will be strong in southern Kamchatka for three days. The storm will begin subsiding after February 22, specialists said.
After weeks of rain and unprecedented high temperatures, cold and snow finally hit back in central Russia, sending bears to their winter slumber and endangering other hibernating species like hedgehogs. "As soon as snow covered the earth, the brown bear that stayed awake all this time returned to his lair and fell asleep." However, hedgehogs - who also failed to go into hibernation and are unlikely to do so now - risk "dying of cold and hunger" with the return of proper Russian winter. Temperatures registered in Russia this winter since November 20 have TOPPED EVERY RECORD. Frost did not come back to Russia until earlier this week, with snow finally covering the green grass and mushrooms that all this while grew in suburban Moscow's forests.

2/19/07 -
FLORIDA - A freeze Friday night BROKE A RECORD in place since 1920, but growers in the area say it did little damage to their crops. Temperatures Friday night fell to 23 degrees at Gainesville Regional Airport, two degrees colder than 1920's previous record for the day. The dryness of the air and the lack of cloud cover have contributed to both the colder nights and milder days. The biggest losses are in peaches, which bloomed early because of the warm January. As the temperature dropped below freezing Friday, the cold damaged the new blossoms.

2/16 -
RUSSIA - A snow cyclone approaching from Russia’s Far Eastern Primorsky (Maritime) territory the Sakhalin and Kurile islands has caused closure of all airports and the Vanino-Kholmsk ferry service on the islands. A powerful storm has affected the Tatar Strait through which major ferry boats sail, and motor ships carrying passengers and cargoes have had to find shelter from bad weather at the Khabarovsk territory coast line.

ILLINOIS - a veteran weather observer professed amazement Wednesday over the rain, ice and snow that all hit the area one right after another Tuesday. “As long as I’ve lived in Charleston, since 1958, I’ve never seen that combination. I’ve never seen it piled up in the same storm.”

VERMONT - A new 24-hour SNOWFALL RECORD was set yesterday, when Burlington received 25.3 inches. The previous record was set on Jan. 14, 1934, when the city received 23.1 inches. A ferocious nor'easter lived up to its advanced billing Wednesday, belting the state with record snowfall and biting winds. The winter that mostly wasn't for December and January now boasts one of the biggest snowstorms on Vermont's books. "We went from the early season famine to a full-blown winter feast. This is just phenomenal." The storm was Burlington's BIGGEST FEBRUARY SNOWSTORM SINCE 1883. With a RECORD 17.4 inches of snowfall in the Queen City at 6 p.m., it surpassed the previous February snowstorm record of 16.8 inches set in 1995.

2/15 -
NORTH AMERICA - Massive snow storms have battered North America, cancelling hundreds of flights and closing schools across the region. Snow, sleet and rain slammed into Canada and the north-eastern United States in the worst storms this winter. At least 12 people have died in the blizzard, which has caused traffic chaos on dangerous, icy roads. The snow storm started in the US Midwest on Tuesday, leaving an icy trail of destruction as it blanketed the north-eastern states on Wednesday. Up to 65cm (25.5 inches) of snow was expected in both Quebec and Vermont. The Gulf Coast was also hit by the severe weather. Thunderstorms lashed the region and a tornado killed one person in Louisiana. More than 50 people have died in the US since the cold snap first hit in January.

INDIA - Shimla, over the last few days, has recorded over two-and-a-half feet of snow. It is the MAXIMUM IN 17 YEARS with chilling temperatures to 10 degrees below normal. The people in New Delhi waited most of December and January for that familiar freeze and then just when the woollies were being packed away it began to rain and hail and the temperatures dipped.

2/13/07 -
NEW YORK - A 10-day stretch of intense lake-effect squalls finally ended Monday for communities along eastern Lake Ontario, leaving behind from 7 to 12 feet of snow and the problem of what to do with it all. The National Weather Service said the 11 feet, 9 inches of snow that fell in Redfield was a NEW STATE 'SINGLE EVENT' RECORD. Redfield's 10-day total eclipsed the 10 feet, 7 inches of snow that fell in nearby Montague over seven days ending Jan. 1, 2002. "It's not an unusual amount, it's just UNUSUAL that fell it fell in such a short period of time." Redfield receives an annual average of 270 inches - more than 22 feet. A new storm system is approaching from the Midwest. Forecasters said the storm could bring 8 to 20 inches of snow to upstate New York. "Unfortunately, they're not going to get much of a breather."

2/12/07 -
INDIA - New Delhi: FREAK WEATHER CONDITIONS claimed at least 14 lives across north India as torrential rains threw normal life out of gear in the region. Cold conditions have revived due to a strong western disturbance currently lying over Jammu and Kashmir and adjoining areas. Uttar Pradesh: eight persons were killed and over a dozen injured in different incidents of house collapse and lightning in UP. While three persons were killed and one was injured as a wall collapsed in Chitrakoot town, two persons were killed and four injured in a similar incident in Varanasi. An old man died of cold in Fatehpur while a man was killed after being struck by lightning in Barabanki. Punjab and Haryana: Heavy rain accompanied by thunder squalls lashed both the states for the second consecutive, uprooting trees, snapping telecommunication lines and crippling normal life. (photos)

2/11/07 -
NEW YORK - Residents in northern New York state were facing more heavy snowfalls as they struggle to clear up to eight feet (2.4m) of snow. Forecasters said an additional foot of snow could fall. In some areas, snow has been falling at a rate of 5in (12cm) an hour. A state of emergency has been declared in and around Oswego county, which has seen more than a week of snow squalls. The so-called lake-effect snow is caused by the cold air picking up moisture as it moves over the warmer Great Lakes, and depositing it as snow inland. Meteorologists say the storms in the Lake Ontario area normally last a couple of days, and it is UNUSUAL for them to last so long. Extreme cold weather has also been affecting other north-eastern and central areas of the country. Freezing conditions elsewhere in the US were blamed for at least 20 deaths. Deaths linked to the cold have been reported in Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Wisconsin, New York and Maryland.

ARIZONA - Record cold temperatures have caused some UNUSUAL WEATHER CONDITIONS, the likes of which haven’t been seen since December 1990 – the last date of measurable snow fall at Sky Harbor Airport.

HEAT -
2/11/07 -
OREGON - Snowpack in the central Cascades, which ultimately keeps the Willamette River and its tributaries flowing, was at 87 percent of average Friday. At this time last year, the snowpack was at 130 percent of average. “We’ve seen well-above-average temperatures in mountains the last couple weeks, and that’s contributing to unseasonal snowmelt."

2/9 -
MISSOURI - The cold snap that’s delivered below-average temperatures the past two weeks is expected to last through the better part of February. Temperatures the past week have ranged from 20 to 25 degrees below normal in Columbia. The forecast high for Thursday was 25 compared to an average high of 41. A west-to-east pattern of the jet stream that contributed to milder temperatures earlier this winter has shifted to a more north-south pattern, bringing harsh winter temperatures. The west-to-east pattern seen earlier this winter was consistent with milder winter weather that’s often associated with El Nino. El Nino, a warm current of water near the coast of Peru and Ecuador that causes the jet stream to shift, was much weaker than normal this year, causing UNUSUAL WEATHER CONDITIONS - Missouri does not usually have below-normal temperature readings like this with El Nino.

2/6 -
PAKISTAN - Dozens feared dead as cold grips Badakhshan - Dozens of people, mostly children and aged ones, have been killed due to scarcity of food and the prevailing cold weather during the previouse two months. Some 40 residents died of famine and cold weather since early December and more deaths are feared if urgent measures are not taken by the government and aid organisations. All roads connecting the district to other towns and the central city of Faizabad had been blocked due to heavy snow, leaving the residents locked up.

U.S. - A bone-chilling arctic cold wave with temperatures as low as 42 below zero shut down schools for thousands of youngsters, sent homeless people into shelters and put car batteries on the disabled list from the northern Plains across the Great Lakes. At least four deaths were linked to the cold weather. With temperatures near zero and a wind chill of 25 below, school districts across Ohio canceled classes. With a temperature of 12 below zero and wind chill of 31 below, Wisconsin's largest school district, Milwaukee Public Schools, also shut down, idling some 90,000 children. In upstate New York, 34,000 kids got the day off in Rochester because of temperatures near zero. Schools also closed in parts of Michigan and Illinois. A few schools closed even in Minnesota, where February cold is the norm and people are accustomed to coping. By noon, subzero temperatures had blanketed the Minneapolis-St. Paul area for 58 straight hours - the LONGEST STRETCH IN 11 YEARS. In northern Minnesota, the temperature crashed to 42 below Monday morning at Embarrass [reportedly colder than the North Pole at the time.] Grand Forks, North Dakota, also registered 30 below. "For this time of year, this isn't that unusual, as far as temperatures go." Amtrak shut down passenger service in parts of western and northern New York state, where the cold was accompanied by as much as 2 feet of snow. At least 30 water main breaks were blamed on the cold in Detroit, Michigan.

2/4 -
RUSSIA - Hundreds of fishermen have been rescued from ice-floes which began to drift after breaking away from the shore in the Russian Far East. Boats and helicopters were used to reach the stranded anglers off Sakhalin island in the Sea of Okhotsk. The anglers had been fishing through holes drilled in the ice, a traditional winter pursuit for many Russians. About a third of Sakhalin is estimated to live off fishing, often carried out in perilous conditions. The ice supporting the anglers - said to include women and children - broke free in a number of places in Mordvinov bay, on the south-east coast of Sakhalin. Pushed by strong winds, it began drifting out to sea. Operations mounted by the Emergencies Ministry rescued all 442 people who were adrift, although about 70 had initially refused to leave without their gear. One ministry official was quoted as saying many of those rescued were in a state of "heavy alcoholic intoxication".

2/2 -
CANADA - Two people were killed on a stretch of Canada's busiest highway Thursday in a spectacular crash at the height of a FREAK blizzard that turned more than a dozen vehicles into a twisted heap of wreckage and left a fuel-laden tanker truck spewing flames and smoke into a snow-filled sky. Provincial police described the scene as one of "utter devastation." The wreckage of charred vehicles littered the highway, with many cars reduced to little more than hollow shells with exposed engines and transmissions. The crash happened at the height of an intense blizzard that likely reduced visibility to zero and made the road surface very treacherous.

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1/31/07 -
U.S. - For the first time since last winter, meteorologists are finally able to forecast some snowfall for the northeast and mid-Atlantic region. And this time it won’t be just a dusting. The jet stream is shaping itself to allow a large cyclone to develop northwest of the Louisiana Gulf Coast. This storm will have the moisture to produce a significant snowfall provided cold air is in place. So what we will be watching is a timing issue. This gulf storm will have to combine forces with a clipper that will be diving into the Plains tonight. If this happens west of the Ohio Valley, a plowable snowfall will fall in Pennsylvania early Friday. This storm has been on the map since the 10- to-14 day outlook came out two weeks ago.

1/30 -
CZECH REPUBLIC - Winter showed up with a vengeance, bringing heavy snow and strong winds that grounded operations at Prague’s international airport last week (1/24). It was a quick one-two punch. First hurricane-strength winds wrought havoc as they raced through the country, then a sudden severe snowfall did its worst, bringing much of the Czech Republic to a halt. Ruzyne suffered the worst weather circumstances of all airports in the region with some 25 centimeters of snow falling in 24 hours. The Czech Hydrometeorological Institute classifies a calamity situation when just 10 centimeters fall within a full day. The snow just kept on coming, remaining constant throughout Jan. 24. Eventually, workers cleared more than 400,000 tons of snow from an area equivalent to 335 football fields. A vicious wind storm swept across Europe Jan. 18–21. Wind speeds of up to 200 kilometers an hour were recorded in some Czech localities. The combination of wind and snow left the country’s forests in a critical state. Government officials estimated more than 10 million cubic meters of timber were felled by the winds. The winds also took a toll on homeowners. As of Jan. 25, insurance costs from the wind storms were estimated at Kc 1.3 billion, with 46,000 claims filed. Damaged roofs were the most common claim.

UTAH - Sunday was another bad day of heavy smog inhalation across the Wasatch Front, as the RECORD BREAKING inversion continued to sock the entire area. Health experts say this is THE WORST WINTER FOR UTAH'S INVERSION EVER. Conditions Sunday were nearly three times over the level that triggers a "no-burn day". Health experts suggest taking public transportation to keep levels from rising even further. "Every time I come down here it's beginning to look more and more like California." Meteorologists say they do not see a break from the bad air in the near future. (PHOTO / VIDEO)

1/26 -
RUSSIA - Moscow is stuck in a fierce blizzard - Thursday’s blizzard in Moscow was the heaviest this winter, bringing the traffic to a standstill and shutting airports to incoming flights. Weather forecasters say a real winter has finally come to the Moscow Region. A cyclone from southern Europe swept through central Russia late Wednesday night, bringing a snow blanket which reached 10 to 15 centimeters by Thursday night. The cyclone nearly brought all Moscow airports south of the city to a halt. The snowfall is expected to be over by this morning. “The cyclone will leave, the snow will cease and cold Artic air will follow from the north. The temperature will fall to -13 to -15°.” Normal winter weather will have finally set in.

1/25 -
ROMANIA - A return of winter in Romania could damage rare bird populations in the Danube Delta where nesting is beginning early this year due to UNUSUALLY warm weather. Meteorologists expect temperatures to drop below zero in coming days, threatening colonies of Dalmatians Pelicans, Pygmy Cormorants and Spoonbills in the vast marshlands of the delta, one of the most biodiverse regions in Europe. "Some species, which were supposed to come at the end of February, are already here." Some birds are returning early to the delta, which lies on a key migratory route for wild birds, and many never left when temperatures rose as high as 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit) earlier in January.

NEW MEXICO - RARE “snow rollers” were all over several sections of Tucumcari. Women likened them to jellyrolls, or rolls of batting. Men described them as looking like logs or cylinders. “They look like a roll of insulation,” except they are snow. Snow rollers are nature’s way of creating snowballs. In addition to a perfect temperature that’s near freezing, the ratio of water to snow has to be just right for snow rollers to kick up and be formed. The ground surface must have an icy, crusty snow, on which falling snow cannot stick. About an inch or so of loose, wet snow must accumulate. Gusty and strong winds are needed to scoop out chunks of snow. “Once the initial ‘seed’ of the roller is started, it begins to roll. It collects additional snow from the ground as it rolls along, leaving trails behind it. ... many times they are hollow. They can be as small as a golf ball, or as large as a 30 gallon drum, but typically they are about 10 to 12 inches in diameter.” Those conditions were apparently just right on Saturday night because on Sunday, there were hundreds and hundreds of them in pastures off of Highway 104. “I even kicked a few because I thought there was tumbleweed inside them. But there wasn’t anything in them. I estimate they were about two feet thick and two feet long.” One had been created on the roof of a livestock shed. Some meteorologists go their whole life without observing them. Explorers saw them on trips to the Artic. (photo)

1/24 -
SPAIN - The Department for Civil Protection and Emergencies has issued a warning to the governments of ten Autonomous Communities in Spain following the the National Meteorological Institute’s forcast for heavy snow and very low temperatures over the next few days. The extreme weather conditions are predicted to worsen from today onwards. As a result many cities in Spain are on high alert and as a precaution around 50 mountain passes have been closed to heavy traffic. Andalucía is on alert for extremely low temperaturas, notably in Granada where temperaturas are predicted to fall to - 4ºC. A new weather front will be crossing the country from the Northeast. These extreme weather conditions come following a spell of unusually warm, dry weather for this time of year. Many Spanish ski resorts are experiencing their worst season for years and the snowfall this week will be the first proper one all Winter.

1/22 -
NEVADA - RECORD-BREAKING COLD - Chilly Las Vegas was shivering last week beneath a blanket of cold the likes of which it hasn't seen for a decade. A fountain at a casino east of the Las Vegas Strip froze into a four-tiered ice sculpture and landscaping pipes in some neighborhoods burst, flooding roads and creating automotive skating rinks that sent cars skidding to curbs. The UNUSUAL cold snap sent overnight temperatures plunging into the low 20s. Sunday only warmed up to 39 degrees at McCarran International Airport, setting a RECORD FOR THE LOWEST MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE EVER FOR A JANUARY 14. The previous record was 42 degrees in 1997.

1/19 -
U.S. - Harsh winter weather gripping parts of the US in recent days has spread to the normally balmy south-west, as storms threaten south-eastern states. At least 65 people have died since storms began last Friday, most in weather-related road accidents. Rare snow fell on the hills above the popular Malibu resort in California, as temperatures reached near-record lows. Areas of the central US have been warned to brace for a second wave of cold temperatures and snow today. Storm warnings have gone out in Georgia and the Carolinas, states previously little affected by the weather. Temperatures are expected to remain low for several more days.
1/17 -
CALIFORNIA - A deep freeze that already may have ruined as much as three-quarters of California's citrus crop, threatened the few surviving fruits as the region endured a fourth night of icy temperatures. A large arctic air mass continued hovering over the western states early Tuesday morning, icing up the San Joaquin Valley's billion-dollar orange and lemon crop. Other crops, including avocados and strawberries, also have suffered damage in the cold snap. While growers hastened to pick as much of the $960 million in fruit still hanging on trees before the cold hit Friday, an industry labor shortage meant much of the crop went unharvested. The UNUSUAL weather pattern bringing such low temperatures to California only comes about once every eight years. “It's a RARE pattern that we get an arctic outbreak like that." After a weeklong freeze in 1990, the industry took two years to recover. The extreme cold also was being blamed for burst pipes that cut off water to residents and business in several California communities, including Bakersfield, where 24-degree temperatures reported Monday BROKE THE PREVIOUS RECORD low set in 1972 by two degrees.

A cold front moving down from Canada and butting up against moisture out of the Gulf of Mexico has produced freezing rain, snow and flash floods from Kansas down to Texas and eastward into Missouri. Cars and trucks skidding on icy roads have caused dozens of serious accidents, particularly in northern Texas and across Oklahoma. Across much of the storm's path, wind gusts have knocked down ice-coated power lines leaving hundreds of thousands of people without electricity, and, in many cases, without heat for their homes. Missouri has been through a lot this winter. "Missouri has been one of the hardest hit, in terms of weather in the nation. Particularly, the St. Louis metropolitan area has had more weather events than any other National Weather Service office in the nation. It has SET THE RECORD FOR BAD WEATHER with 765 events." In Texas the cold front came through the Dallas-Fort Worth area Sunday night and led to road closures in some places. In central Texas, temperatures remained above freezing, but there was heavy rain and flash flooding. A wave of freezing cold air is now moving south toward Houston and forecasters predict freezing rain and sleet for the city over the next couple of days. If the forecasts hold true, it will be the first major ice storm to hit this semi-tropical area since 1997.

1/16 -
U.S. - A storm blamed for at least 41 deaths in six states spread into the Northeast on Monday, coating trees, power lines and roads with a shell of ice up to a half-inch thick and knocking out power to more than half a million homes and businesses. About 100,000 homes and businesses blacked out in Oklahoma, some of them since the storm's first wave struck on Friday, were still waiting for power Monday. Ice built up by sleet and freezing rain was 4 inches thick in places. A wave of arctic air trailed the storm and was expected to push temperatures into the single digits in some areas. Waves of freezing rain, sleet and snow since Friday had been blamed for at least 17 deaths in Oklahoma, eight in Missouri, eight in Iowa, four in New York, three in Texas and one in Maine. In California, three nights of freezing temperatures have destroyed up to three-quarters of California's $1 billion citrus crop, according to an estimate issued Monday. Other crops, including avocados and strawberries, also suffered damage.

1/15 -
U.S. - The ice storms blamed for at least 19 deaths in the U.S. continued to lash much of the nation Sunday, as crews tried to restore power to hundreds of thousands and slick roads spawned accidents.

CANADA - An Arctic air mass continued to bring frigid temperatures and high wind chill values to much of Saskatchewan and Manitoba on Sunday.

1/14 -
U.S. - A brutal winter storm is expected to dump waves of freezing rain through the weekend in a line stretching from Minnesota to Nevada. Minneapolis, where temperatures have been near record highs for weeks, is shivering at 7 degrees. Lakes in Maine and Minnesota are just now freezing over.
This storm is the first true plunge of arctic air since the beginning of winter. Temperatures in parts of the northern Plains have dropped by as much as 50 degrees. The temperature in Grand Forks, North Dakota reached 24 on Thursday, and by Friday morning it had plummeted to -18.
CALIFORNIA - citrus growers braced for potential disaster Saturday as temperatures across the state dropped to RECORD LOWS that forecasters predicted could linger until the middle of next week. Temperatures in the San Joaquin Valley, where much of the state's nearly $1 billion citrus crop is grown, dropped into the teens overnight as growers burned fires, sprayed warm irrigation water and ran giant fans to keep cold air away from their oranges, lemons and tangerines. A three-day freeze in December 1998 destroyed 85 percent of California's citrus crop, a loss valued at $700 million. Monterey experienced lows of 27 degrees, one degree colder than the previous RECORD of 28 degrees in 1963. Sacramento tied its record low of 22 degrees, last measured in 1949. In the current cold snap, the warmer air moving in off the Pacific Ocean that typically keeps California's winter temperatures above freezing has been replaced by colder air from Canada.

CANADA - near-record snowfalls combined with extraordinary winds have resulted in the Canadian Avalanche Centre in Revelstoke issuing a special avalanche warning for vast areas of British Columbia. Most at risk are the Skeena and Coast Mountains near Smithers, Stewart and Terrace, the Columbia Mountains all the way from Prince George to Nelson and Kimberley, and the South Coast and Cascade Mountains in southwest B.C. The centre calls the conditions "UNPRECEDENTED" and is advising people to avoid spending time in natural avalanche paths in the mountains. "Over the past several days, we've seen isolated but significant SUPER-SIZED avalanches releasing the entire winter's snowpack. "They run all the way to the valley floor below and are large enough to take out an entire group of people."

1/12 -
CALIFORNIA - With forecasters projecting the WORST COLD SNAP IN FOUR DECADES, the state took the unusual step Wednesday of alerting all local health departments and social service agencies and nursing homes to monitor those who might be vulnerable to effects of the cold. As the blast of icy air headed for California, the governor's office issued a dire warning Wednesday to "brrrrace" for RECORD COLD WEATHER that could ruin crops and threaten the state's frail, elderly and homeless. The coldest spots likely will be in the far north and Central Valley, where temperatures could drop into the teens and 20s. On average, the lows for this time of year are in the low 40s and the average highs in the low 60s. State agriculture officials also were worried about the impact of the cold spell on the state's crops, in particular oranges, lemons and grapefruit. About a quarter of the crop already is harvested, but about $850 million worth of citrus fruits are still hanging on the trees, and could be ruined by frigid air. Artichokes, avocados and other vegetable staples also are vulnerable to damage. The longer the cold spell, the more likely it will significantly damage crops. In 1998, the state lost 25 to 30 percent of its citrus crop to frost.

CANADA - For a second straight day Thursday in British Columbia, severe weather wreaked havoc and snarled traffic, forcing officials to close roads and emergency crews to rescue stranded motorists. The scene was repeated through to Manitoba as Old Man Winter balled up his fist and delivered a roundhouse white-knuckled wallop of wicked winds and towering drifts that were blamed for at least two deaths and gridlock on roads and at airports. About a dozen destructive storms have battered Canada's West Coast since the fall. In November, the B.C. coast was hit hard and often by drenching rain, howling winds and high tides that prompted a RARE tsunami warning. The month ended in bitter cold and deep snow. Forty centimetres of snow gave the province its second-deepest November snowfall in 66 years of weather-keeping. Three ferocious wind storms in mid-December caused more damage, toppling more than 1,000 trees in Vancouver's Stanley Park. Snowfall in B.C., which followed a wild windstorm on Tuesday that caused widespread power failures, has left many asking why they're being slammed with non-stop weather. "Its like a big black cloud has been hanging over that part of the world. They've set records in terms of warmth, wind and snow. And, we're still looking for weather in Toronto. ... It's as if Toronto has gotten Vancouver weather and Vancouver has gotten Toronto weather." To date this winter, Toronto has had just 1.6 centimetres of snow, while Vancouver has had to shovel out from under about 45 centimetres. "It's been ONE OF THE MOST SIGNIFICANT WEATHER WINTERS ANYONE HAS SEEN IN RECENT MEMORY...There's been a trio of weather wars: rain, snow and wind."

1/11 -
RUSSIA - Several districts in the Sakhalin city of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk are still facing electricity shortages after a cyclone hit the island on January 7 to 8. Road services are restoring a highway section near the port of Nevelsk, where about 100 meters of the road were washed out by stormy waves. Work is to be finished in three days. A woman in Yuzhno-Kurilsk on Kunashir Island was injured during the cyclone, when the roof was torn off from a house and a piece of it hit her head, causing concussion. Five to six cyclones hit the Sakhalin and Kuriles in the wintertime, triggering avalanches. The worst avalanche was registered in Sakhalin in 1945, when 149 people were buried under the snow. In 1950, an avalanche killed 20 people.

CANADA - From Vancouver Island to Saskatchewan, winter lashed much of Western Canada on Wednesday with a blizzard near Saskatoon being blamed for two deaths. The two apparently died of exposure sometime overnight. Police suspect they were attempting to walk home after their vehicle had become stuck. Across much of northern and central Saskatchewan and into Alberta and B.C.’s Peace River district, highway visibility was poor to nil Wednesday. Along the Yellowhead Highway, hundreds of big rigs and other vehicles were pulled over at truck stops and rest areas waiting for the whiteout to ebb or snowplows to materialize. And in southern British Columbia, snow pummelled commuters in the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island, which is still cleaning up from a series of hammering wind storms recently. The icy blast that was still savaging Saskatoon on Wednesday night will go down as ONE OF THE MOST INTENSE IN THE CITY'S HISTORY. “We’re ranking right up there with a first-class prairie blizzard. It’s an extreme event.”

1/10 -
RUSSIA - A cyclone that on January 8 brought hurricane winds to the south of Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula is moving to the north and has begun influencing the peninsula’s central and northern areas. The cyclone is affecting the Ust-Kamchatsky district of the region, as well as Karginsky and Olyutorsky districts of the Koryak Autonomous Area. There is a heavy snowfall there and snowstorms have been registered with fond force up to 20 metres. The peninsula’s southeast and southwest were the worst hit by the cyclone on Monday. The wind force there reached 48-51 metres per second and in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky – 25 metres per second. The area had from 13 to 26 percent of the monthly precipitation norm in a day. Due to zero visibility on roads transport connection with remote areas was disrupted. The bad weather has caused power supply disruptions from the Mutnovskaya geothermal power plant to the regional energy system.

CANADA - For the second time in a week, a massive avalanche has closed the TransCanada Highway in the rockies. This time, the road is shutdown between Revelstoke and Golden in B.C. because of the snowslide. No word yet, when that stretch will be cleared and re-opened. A long stretch of the No. 1 was closed last week because of bad weather and the avalanche risk.

1/8 -
RUSSIA - A powerful cyclone has imposed a transport blockade on Sakhalin and the Kuriles again. Planes do not fly to the island, and ships cannot reach them. The ferry service between Vanino and Kholmsk is halted. The vessels that carry people and cargo between the island and the mainland have taken shelter. Wet snow covers the south of Sakhalin. Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk's airport is closed. The Transaero plane on the flight from Moscow to Sakhalin had to land on Kamchatka. The work of all the Sakhalin Region's ports is halted. The wind speed reached 21 metres a second on Kunashir Island. Fishing and transport ships working in the Sea of Okhotsk and the Bering Sea have escaped from the storm to the safer side of the Kuriles. The cyclone will rage on Sakhalin and the Kuriles until January 9 and then will leave for Kamchatka.

1/7 -
COLORADO - Monster avalanche in Colorado takes no lives - The BIGGEST AVALANCHE IN COLORADO'S HISTORY affected eight people, but mercifully, all survived the experience. The avalanche happened on US 40 near the Berthoud Pass, an area busy with Saturday ski traffic and feeling the effects of three major snow storms in three weeks. The snow plunged more than 600 vertical metres, rolling down the mountainside in three separate paths. One such pass was about 30 metres wide and 4.5 metres deep. A normal slide in the area usually involves snow about one metre deep, Two vehicles got knocked off the road. There were also fears that the avalanche swept other vehicles over the edge of the highway. The site of the avalanche is about 95 kilometres west of Denver. (photos)

UTAH - Thursday, Salt Lake City broke its DAILY MAXIMUM SNOWFALL RECORD when it received nearly 6 inches of snow. This breaks the city's old record of 3.3 inches of snow which was set back in 1929. Meanwhile, ANOTHER RECORD WAS BROKEN following the major snow storm. Salt Lake City received 0.44 inches of water from the melted snow. The old record was 0.27 inches of snow set back in 1978.

PAKISTAN / KASHMIR - Like most other parts of the province, Provincial Metropolis remained in the grip of cold wave on Saturday with mercury dipping below the freezing point in the city for THE FIRST TIME SINCE 1935. Minimum temperature dropped from Friday's 0.0 Celsius to -01.0 C on Saturday, making the weather extremely chilly, while humidity was recorded at 82 per cent in the morning and 30 per cent in the evening. The whole area including India and Nepal are in the grip of a cold wave due to a high pressure area. Presently there is no rain-yielding system in the region but the high pressure area is followed by a low pressure area which leads to change in wind direction that not only brings moisture but also leads to rise in temperature. Meanwhile, the mercury further dropped as a severe cold wave persists in most parts of the country including the quake-hit zone in Azad Kashmir, Northern Areas and northern Balochistan. The UNUSUAL drop in the temperature has affected water and gas supply and local people have started migration to other areas. Several parts of the country have been hit by severe cold for the last few days and the lowest temperature –15 degree centigrade has been recorded at Mahtarzai area of northern Balochistan. The bone chilling cold killed two persons in Lahore on Friday and many more were hospitalized due to cold related illnesses. The cold wave that started last week has crippled life all across Pakistan resulting in fog in plain areas of Punjab and other parts of the country, creating difficulties for traffic.

THUNDERSNOW - Snow accumulations of 6 inches or more are almost guaranteed when a snowstorm is accompanied by flashes of lightning and crashes of thunder, according to an analysis of 30 years' worth of Midwest storms. Although it's known that at any given moment there are 2,000 thunderstorms occurring around the globe, the combination of warm moist air being forced upward into cold regions to condense, freeze and stay frozen as snow and ice as it comes down is thought to be PRETTY RARE. Reports of the phenomenon are most common in Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Oklahoma and northern Texas. And many people may have been in a thundersnow storm and not realized it, since the snow muffles the sound of thunder and obscures the lightning down to a few miles, producing a much smaller signature than summer squalls. Official weather records recorded only about 375 thundersnow events in the United States between 1961 and 1990. Six or more inches of snow fell in 86 percent of the storms and almost half of the storms led to 10 or more inches.

1/5 -
BANGLADESH - At least 56 people, mostly beggars and homeless, have died during a cold snap in poor areas of northern Bangladesh this week. Nearly 40 deaths were reported yesterday alone, when the temperature dropped to 6C. Temperatures at this time of year usually hover around 8-10C. Weather officials said the cold spell, which began on Monday, was likely to continue for another week.
1/3 -
U.S. - National Guard helicopters have been dropping food and hay bales in central parts of the US for people and cattle stranded by a major snowstorm. The blizzard, which began on Friday, brought up to 35 inches (90cm) of snow to parts of the region. At least 12 deaths have been blamed on the weather, and farmers fear the heavy snow could kill thousands of cattle. The states of Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska and Oklahoma have all been badly affected. The snowstorm has left thousands of people without electricity, while telecommunications have also been affected. The largest amount of snow fell in areas of western Kansas and eastern Colorado, and high winds caused drifts of up to 15 feet (5m). It is the second blizzard to hit the region in as many weeks.

COLORADO - Fort Collins residents are still digging out and warming up from the biggest story of 2006: two major snowstorms in the waning weeks of the year. The snowstorms, which dumped nearly 3 feet of snow and could cost the city upward of $1 million in cleanup costs, came during a RARE weather cycle that hasn't happened in Colorado in recent memory. "It's VERY UNLIKELY and VERY UNCOMMON to see two major snows like this in a row. This is something that doesn't come around too often." "December will most likely be THE SNOWIEST for Fort Collins to date, depending on the final numbers." The snowiest December ever on record in Fort Collins was 38.7 in 1913. For the month to date as of 7 a.m. Friday, Fort Collins recorded 38.3 inches of snow - a pounding when compared to the average total for December of 6.1 inches. The season-to-date totals, which measure snowfall levels from Sept. 1 on, are also abnormally high. From Sept. 1 to Friday morning, Fort Collins recorded 49.1 inches of snow - a high total when compared to the city's average of 15.7 inches. The total amounts of precipitation were also skyrocketing when compared to normal years. Precipitation from the snow this month has been high in that we have received 2.6 inches of perceptible water for the month of December. That compares to a normal of 0.46 inches for the month." December 2006 could also be THE SNOWIEST MONTH EVER ON RECORD for Fort Collins. Until 2006, the other record months for snow were April 1920 when there was 35.8 inches of snowfall and March 1988, which brought the city 35.4 inches.

1/1 -
NEW MEXICO - Mother Nature slammed New Mexico with a RECORD-SETTING SNOWSTORM. It closed portions of the interstate highways overnight Friday, caused airlines to cancel hundreds of flights and dropped at least 2 feet of snow in many parts of Santa Fe. It's a PRETTY RARE event to have this much snow." The storm of the last three days will easily eclipse the previous 24-hour record of 16 inches reported in Santa Fe Nov. 23, 1986. More snow is forecast in the area for late tonight and Tuesday. The storm paralyzed much of the Santa Fe area heading into the long New Year's weekend. The state closed major highways, airlines canceled flights, emergency shelters went up, and people in need stretched social services to the limit. Storm totals, added to 6 inches from another severe storm a week earlier, probably will break a record for snowfall in December once totals are tabulated. The only other month that came close was December 1985, when 35 inches of snow fell during the whole month.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - The December just finished was the COLDEST FOR AT LEAST TWO DECADES. The average maximum temperature last month was just 23.0C, which is 4.7C down on December 2005. The cold weather of recent weeks has been caused by a 'blocking pattern' that has trapped cold air in the Gulf region's atmosphere. "It has been UNUSUAL weather and it's been caused by an UNUSUAL weather pattern, but there is nothing abnormal about having unusual weather. We just happened to be in a certain position in relation to this blocking pattern."

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2006 -
12/31 -
NEW ZEALAND - Wild, unseasonal weather is marking the final days of 2006 - an apt ending to ONE OF THE COLDEST YEARS ON RECORD. New Year's Eve is likely to be accompanied by rain, thunder and shivering southerlies around most areas. Wellington can expect rain, cold southerlies and a frigid high of 14 degrees. Westerlies and south-westerlies in January would bring a cooler than average summer for most of the country, except for the North Island's east coast, which is sheltered by mountain ranges. Auckland and Northland would be drier than normal, with average, warm temperatures as anti-cyclones came over the north of the country. The coldest spots would be on the South Island's west and south coast, with temperatures "just a shade lower than usual".

RUSSIA - The powerful snowy cyclone formed over Sakhalin two days ago is slowly leaving the island for Kamchatka and the Pacific Ocean. Only one serious incident was reported when the cyclone raged on Sakhalin. The fishing vessel Sofia was thrown on rocks on the island's western coast. All the crewmembers, 12 people, were rescued.

12/29 -
TURKEY - One person was killed and another injured on in an avalanche in eastern Turkey on Wednesday as heavy snowfalls severely disrupted life across the country. The heavy snowfalls cut off some 2,500 villages across the country and traffic on the main highway between the capital Ankara and Turkey's biggest city Istanbul was moving at a snail's pace.

ISRAEL - Jerusalem and the West Bank saw RARE snowfalls on Wednesday night. The extreme weather caused road accidents and several Bedouin were injured as tents collapsed. The Holy Land has seen its first heavy snowfalls since 2004, causing widespread disruption, blocked roads and several injuries. Eight centimeters (3 to 4 inches) of snow fell in Jerusalem. The sudden heavy rainfall was "excellent" for the country. Israel needed the rain "badly," after parts of the country had gone 38 days without it and underground water reserves had become depleted.

12/28 -
RUSSIA - Russia’s Sakhalin and Kurile islands have been affected by a powerful snow cyclone with strong winds and snowfalls that has caused a transport blockade. The cyclone, almost 2,000 kilometres in diameter, approached the Kamchatka peninsula from Japan. Sakhalin meteorologists have reported that the weather is the worst on the Kuriles chain. The wind force has reached 32 metres per second on the Iturup island and in Kurilsk city. Visibility is everywhere just 500-1,000 metres. All the islands are affected by snowstorms.

12/27 -
TURKEY - UNUSUAL cold, snow and high winds caused havoc across Turkey on Tuesday, with shipping disrupted, flights cancelled and roads being closed. Turkey is being warned of a very cold winter season with the temperature notably dropping to four below zero Celsius.

AUSTRALIA - UNUSUALLY chilly weather in Queensland during the traditionally white-hot Christmas period has been BREAKING RECORDS. Virtually every location under a cloud band hovering over the state's southeast through to the central highlands had either stooped to a new low or was close to eclipsing records. Rainy, overcast weather has provided a welcome reprieve from the dreaded blistering heat revellers are usually forced to endure during festive celebrations. The maximum temperature at Brisbane's airport today plunged to 19.1C, dropping below the previous record low of 20.2C in 1960 and well below the average high 20s. Emerald, in central Queensland, broke a 100-year record, with the mercury reaching a maximum of only 16.7C, compared to 18.3C in 1907. Boxing Day temperatures also set records in parts of Queensland.

NEW ZEALAND - The unpredictable rain and cold snaps New Zealand has felt in December will continue right through to January 2007.

12/26 -
NEW ZEALAND - The thermometer should have hit the 20s around much of Canterbury on Christmas Day but this is still shaping up as THE COLDEST DECEMBER ON RECORD. This month 96mm of rain has fallen in the city of Christchurch, compared with the long-term average of 49mm. But it is the cold that has been most noticeable. Christchurch's mean temperature this month has been 12 degrees, 4 degrees below the average. "That could be a record-breaker." In Australia on the other hand, Melbourne, which reached 36deg on Thursday, had ITS HOTTEST NIGHT IN 45 YEARS, with temperatures staying around 29deg.

NEW YORK - The weather has been so unseasonably warm experts are wondering if this month will be the first December without snow in Central Park since 1891. There was about 0% chance of snow for Christmas. Although four Decembers in the past 10 years have produced less than 1/10th of an inch of snow each in Central Park, the lack of even a single flurry is EXTREMELY UNUSUAL.

12/22 -
COLORADO - A storm that began Wednesday and continued into Thursday afternoon dumped more than half a metre of snow on Colorado, bringing much of the state to a halt.
12/20 -
CALIFORNIA - Southern California remains in the grip of a cold spell with near-record breaking low temperatures. RECORDS WERE BROKEN in many areas early yesterday. The city of Lancaster shivered at 16 degrees, two degrees below the record low set in 1965. Nearby Palmdale was an icy 18. The old mark was 22 set in 1992. Along the coast, early morning lows were 28 at Santa Barbara airport, 31 in Camarillo and 36 in Long Beach. The temperature at Los Angeles International Airport fell to 39 degrees, tying the 1924 mark.
12/17 -
SOUTH KOREA - Heavy snow blanketed South Korea today, disrupting air flights and causing traffic accidents that left five dead and 30 others injured. Up to 25 centimetres of snow had fallen across South Korea between late yesterday and early today.
12/14 -
CANADA - The high winds that were forecast to blast through the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island Tuesday night were expected to ease later Wednesday, but the worst may be yet to come, an Environment Canada forecaster warned. A warm front today is expected to bring yet another bout of roaring winds, reaching around 60 to 80 kilometers per hour in Vancouver. "It could be easily as bad or worse than any of the wind storms so far this week. It's very volatile weather." Strong winds left some 190,000 homes without power on Monday, as trees fell onto powerlines. The storm was also linked to the death of at least one motorist. It's not unusual for the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island to experience strong storms in November and December, but the recent storms appear to be more damaging and are occurring more frequently than previous years. "There seems to be an UNUSUAL NUMBER AND FEROCITY (of storms) this year," a forecaster said, but added that he did not know why.
12/5 -
RUSSIA - A warning has been issued for housing and communal services of Russia’s Sakhalin Island hit by a snow cyclone arriving from the Sea on Monday. Snowstorms accompanied by gale-force winds are registered in the region, where temperatures have dropped to minus 17 degrees Celsius. Housing and communal services have been warned about possible emergency situations. Sakhalin meteorologists report that visibility will be restricted to 500 meters in the region. The snow cyclone will hover over northern Sakhalin for about one day.
MISSOURI - Four more deaths pushed the death toll from a devastating Midwest ice and snow storm to 19 as hundreds of thousands waited another day for electricity to be restored. Nearly 300,000 customers in Illinois and Missouri were still in the dark Monday.
CANADA - Snowy weather and continued cold temperatures are on the agenda for early this week with the largest accumulations expected to be along the South Shore in an UNUSUAL twist from winter winds. Normally, “Alberta Clipper” events bring quick layers of snow to “lake effect” areas exposed to northwest winds and Lake Superior. “This is not a typical wind set.”
12/3 -
CANADA - Residents in Ontario and Quebec are cleaning up Saturday after freezing rain, snow and high winds pummelled the regions, at one time knocking out power to more than 250,000 people.
A surprisingly early winter storm rolled across the central United States, stranding airline passengers, shutting schools and leaving hundreds of thousands of households in darkness because of ice and wet snow. Dallas, Texas, encountered RARE sleet. Snowfall in Amarillo, Texas, reached seven inches, topping the totals in downtown Chicago, Illinois, though the Windy City's northwestern suburbs registered more than a foot of snow.
OKLAHOMA - A RECORD-BREAKING SNOWSTORM caused cancellations, closures and traffic problems across the region. The two-day storm dropped 10.4 inches of snow in Tulsa and 15 inches in Bartlesville, breaking a November snowfall record set in 1972 when 5.6 inches fell in Tulsa. "It's an historic storm." "We're used to ice; we're used to wet snow. This is powder. It's difficult to drive on. It's not something we've seen in Oklahoma for a long time."
12/1 -
KANSAS - RARE Double Snowstorm - A winter storm that weather officials are calling "VERY RARE" in its makeup blew across Kansas on Wednesday. The first storm rolled through Kansas on Wednesday afternoon on the heels of near-record high temperatures earlier in the week. It dumped half an inch of ice on tree limbs and power lines in eastern Kansas. The second system was moving northeast from Oklahoma on Thursday afternoon on the way to Illinois. Storms have left 2 dead in the Plains and Midwest as sleet, snow, and freezing rain hit Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, Colorado, Washington.
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11/30 -
WASHINGTON - Wednesday began with RECORD COLD TEMPERATURES across much of western Washington. Seattle dropped to 18 overnight, breaking the old record of 22 set in 1975. They've now broken the RECORD FOR WETTEST MONTH EVER IN SEATTLE, no matter where the rain was recorded. And as so apropos for November, they broke it with the VERY-RARE-for-Seattle freezing rain.
OREGON - Mother Nature went a little wild in the north Oregon coast town of Beachside this past week, with the surreal sight of snow covering the beach, masses of bull kelp washing up on shore (the stranding of these was some of the biggest the crew at the aquarium had seen in a while) and a RARE, tropical fish getting tossed up by the tide. The snow is a RARITY on the Oregon coast. The white stuff lasted through most of Monday and Tuesday, finally completely melting off on Tuesday morning. The technical name for the rare Ocean Sun Fish is Mola mola, and it’s mostly found in tropical and warmer waters than those off Oregon. “They are not uncommon to this area, however, because they live a ways off shore we don't see them on the beach that often. They usually frequent the northern coast in the summer or fall when the ocean is a bit warmer, so for the Mola mola to wash in during this time of year is a bit ODD.” In Manzanita, about 25 miles south, the area received quite a mixed bag of weather on Monday. “Pretty FREAKY weather. We have had everything: rain, hail, snow, wind, sun, black clouds. All were taking turns and alternating.”
CANADA, West Coast - The great snow storm of November, 2006 will be one to remember. While snow in November is not unusual, it is VERY RARE IF NOT UNIQUE to have this much so early in the winter season. It isn’t even winter yet — that doesn’t arrive until Dec. 21. In addition, the intense cold weather that came in with the snow is HIGHLY UNUSUAL. While below zero temperatures are common in November, it is RARE that overnight lows hit -10 or below.
11/22 -
PAKISTAN - Traffic remained closed for the third day on Neelam Highway due to land sliding, intermittent rains and extreme snow fall in the quake hit areas of Azad Kashmir. Due to extreme cold and wet weather the quake affectees are facing more hardships and several earthquake affectees have become victims of seasonal diseases.
MEXICO - According to the National Meteorological Service, the bitter cold weather that has plagued Mexico City and much of the nation´s north will continue unabated this week. A stream of low pressure that extends from the northeast of the Gulf of Mexico to the middle of the Pacific Ocean is the cause of the low temperatures. The threat of rain across this area was also a contributing factor to the freezing climate. Heavy cloud cover in the nation´s central regions was creating icy conditions in mountainous areas 3,500 meters above sea-level. The State Civil Defense Director said it was UNUSUAL to experience such cold weather at this time of year. He said temperatures do not generally drop this low until mid-December, which is the coldest time of the year for the region. The official added that the abnormally cold weather being endured in the State of Mexico and the capital was attributed to a combination of a cold front with the last remnants of Tropical Storm Sergio.
SOUTH CAROLINA - Wintery weather arrived earlier than usual this holiday season, dumping rain mixed with sleet, snow and ice across South Carolina on Tuesday. The weather caused turmoil on the roads, as more than 50 accidents were reported across the region. It was the EARLIEST RECORDED SNOWFALL in the Midlands since a trace amount fell on Nov. 9, 1913. Measurable snowfall in the Midlands has only occurred twice in November - once in 1901 and the last time in 1912. "It's VERY UNUSUAL." The culprit of Tuesday's UNUSUAL wintery mix was an ABNORMAL, relatively strong low pressure system circulating off the South Carolina coast. And more of the same could be on its way in the coming months. "I think the winter forecast is for precipitation to be above normal and temperatures to be below normal."
AUSTRALIA - Just a week after the Illawarra shivered through an unseasonal spell of wintry weather, the mercury soared again yesterday as the region experienced a fiery taste of summer. Temperatures were well up on November averages, reaching 40 degrees at Nowra. The heatwave is forecast to continue today. A Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster said the recent extremes in temperature were typical of spring's topsy-turvy weather patterns. But he added last week's cold snap was more exceptional than this week's heat.
11/21 -
AUSTRALIA - snow, which fell on the Granite Belt district near the Queensland-NSW border, was described by forecasters as a ONCE IN 50 YEARS PHENOMENON FOR NOVEMBER. The last time snow or sleet was reported there was in 1941. The "VERY UNUSUAL" weather had been caused by a cold front which had travelled from Victoria. It was the same front which caused violent hail and thunderstorms in Queensland's southeast and snow in Victoria and Tasmania on Wednesday. "The storms formed ahead of the cold front and now the cold front's coming through with very, very cold air. It happens, but not very frequently. The atmosphere keeps on repeating itself for extreme events every 50 or 100 years or so." Sydney, meanwhile, recorded its LOWEST MINIMUM TEMPERATURE IN NOVEMBER FOR MORE THAN 100 YEARS – with the mercury dropping as low as 8C.
11/16 -
AUSTRALIA - Yesterday, Antarctic winds produced snow across Victoria at levels as low as 400 metres, just two weeks before summer. The big chill marked the coldest November day in Melbourne since the 7th in 1994, when it dropped to 12.7C. This follows the hottest October recorded. Such a strong cold change so late in the year was UNUSUAL. "It's pretty unseasonable. Snow in the alps is one thing but this snow is low." In the alpine regions, as much as 28 centimetres of snow had ski resorts cringing - it was six weeks past the ski season's official end. "Basically, I think it's snowed more today that what it did through most of the season." In Queensland, wild weather brought havoc to south-east areas of the State yesterday, unroofing buildings, felling trees and blacking out power supplies to more than 30,000 homes. The storms began with large hailstones in the Wide Bay area, but caused little damage before another storm cell lashed the Brisbane area shortly after noon.
11/5 -
Power cuts have struck several countries in western Europe, leaving millions of people without electricity. Power companies said the outage started in Germany with a surge in demand prompted by cold weather, and then spread to other parts of Europe. Some five million people in France lost power, mainly in the east of the country and including parts of Paris. "We weren't very far from a European blackout." Two German high-voltage transmission lines failed, causing problems across western Europe. This triggered a "house of cards" style system breakdown. Automatic security systems cut supplies to some customers to avoid a complete blackout. Italy, Belgium and Spain were also affected by the power cuts.
TENNESSEE - (This is part of an old Appalachian tradition that has been practiced for generations by most pioneer families of old, dating back to lore they learned from the Indians.) If the woolly worms are right, get ready for a cold winter. Not many woolly worms were spotted, but those seen were black on the ends and brown in the middle, indicating a harsh beginning and end of winter with a mild spell in between. This already seems to be panning out as this has been one of the coolest Octobers in a number of years. Tennessee had their first frost on October 13, exactly 3 months from when they heard their first katydid call on July 13, which is pretty early in the season. Also -
•Hornets nests were built on the ground, indicating cold weather ahead.
•Heavy foliage and mast crops indicate a colder, harder winter.
•Five early morning fogs were counted in August, with only two of them heavy. This points to five snows for the winter, with two heavy snows.
Other signs to watch for -
•the thickness of spider webs; when it's going to be a bad winter, there will be an abundance of spider webs. The early morning dew will reveal them scattered on top of the grass in yards and fields.
•the thickness of bark on trees; if the bark on a tree is particularly thick and gnarly, it's going to be a bad winter.
•if the foliage on the trees is thick and hangs on late in the fall, it's going to be a hard winter. The reasoning on that is that the heavier foliage creates more ground cover which in turn protects the little larva and other organisms below the earth's surface.
•if the mast crop (hickory nuts, acorns, etc.) is particularly heavy, it's going to be a hard winter.
•if cornhusks are thick, it'll be a bad winter.
•if fur on animals (such as squirrels, rabbits, deer, fox, and bear — or even domestic fur-bearing animals, if they stay outside all the time) is thick, it's going to be a hard winter.
•if squirrels are busier than usual gathering nuts without chattering, it's going to be a bad winter.
11/3 -
EUROPE - The first heavy snow of winter has caught central Europe by surprise this year as temperatures suddenly dropped 20 degrees. After enjoying a balmy September and October, where temperatures reached 68F in places, people woke up to up to eight inches of snow. Poland, Southern Germany and Austria were hit by the UNSEASONAL snowfall and by black ice on the roads. Even in countries where it’s obligatory to have winter tires, such as the three Baltic states in northeastern Europe, the cold snap arrived a month before the December deadline for motorists to get their winter tires out of mothballs and put them on their vehicles.
POLAND - Storms of up to 12 on the Beaufort scale and gale-force winds have struck the Polish Baltic Sea coast. Winds of between 80 and 120 kms/h were recorded in Pomerania and on the central part of the coast, felling trees and damaging roofs. The winds which are coming in off the sea from a northerly direction have pushed water back into river estuaries, causing floods in some areas. Meteorologists warn that high winds can still be expected over the next few days and also predict snowfalls or intensive rains for all of Poland except the west.
11/2 -
SCANDINAVIA - A Swedish cargo ship has capsized and sunk in the Baltic Sea, as storms continue to batter Scandinavia. Helicopters lifted 13 crew members from the ship despite heavy winds, snow and 5m (16ft) waves, officials say. One crew member is still missing. On Tuesday, an oil rig broke away from a tow ship in the North sea during stormy weather. The oil platform carrying 75 people is still drifting off the coast of Norway. Land, sea and air transport was widely disrupted on Wednesday across Scandinavia. Northern Europe experienced heavy snowfalls, high winds and freezing temperatures. In southern and central Sweden, power cuts affected some 50,000 people.
11/1 -
CANADA - a dramatic change in the weather happened 10 days ago. Vancouver has seen a dry, sunnier fall compared to last year but has become colder. The statistics from Environment Canada show the average minimum temperature is 4.8 degrees for this time of year, but has fallen to -2 this year.
10/29 -
PAKISTAN - One officer of the Pakistan army and 2 Jawans were killed and 16 jawans were injured after an avalanche hit an army post located in Baltar at a glacier close to Skardu.
AUSTRALIA - A fast-moving cold snap from the Antarctic has swept across south eastern Australia sending temperatures plummeting and causing snow and hail to fall across three states. Tasmania copped the brunt of the chilly weather last night, with snow settling in hills 400m above sea level and falls reported in some beachside suburbs. Launceston experienced its COLDEST OCTOBER NIGHT ON RECORD at -1C while temperatures on Mt Wellington near Hobart dropped to -6C, not quite reaching the coldest ever October evening of -7.7C. In Victoria hail fell across the southern parts of the state with snow reported at 600m in Mt Dandenong, Mt Macedon and Kinglake. "It's moved very quickly from a very long way south." Weather forecasters are predicting even colder temperatures today and say tonight may meet the city's October record low of 0C recorded in 1889. Heavy frosts are expected and fruit farmers have been warned to keep an eye on their crops. The weather is a reminder that summer is still some time off despite a recent spate of hot weather. Two weeks ago the Tasmanian weather bureau was issuing extreme fire danger alerts as Hobart recorded 33.1C, the city's third warmest October day ever. Victoria had also experienced a mild to warm month with high than average temperatures. "Relative to the higher temperatures we've seen this (cold snap) does come as a bit of a shock."
10/27 -
COLORADO - A fall storm hit parts of Colorado with as much as 25 inches of snow on Thursday, setting off avalanches and rockslides and closing roads and schools. “Actually, it’s not unusual for us to get snowfalls at this time of year. What is UNUSUAL IS THE AMOUNTS, and we are seeing RECORD SNOWFALL for the month of October.”
10/25 -
INDIA - UNUSUAL autumn showers over the weekend have caused the temperature in the Himachal Pradesh capital to plummet to a RECORD LOW Monday, making it the COLDEST OCTOBER DAY IN 33 YEARS. Shimla recorded a maximum temperature of 11 degrees Celsius and a minimum of six degrees Monday. Normally October is marked by clear blue skies and the temperature here hovers between 19 degrees and 25 degrees. But heavy rains last week set the mercury to decrease as icy winds lashed the town. The higher reaches in the state have been receiving snowfall while the mid and lower hills have been getting rain and hail.
10/19 -
NEW YORK - the number of homes and businesses still without power finally dipped below 100,000 on Wednesday after last week's surprise snowstorm. Storm-related deaths stood at 12 after the nearly two-foot snowfall. Several hospitals reported overcrowding over the weekend because they were unable to discharge patients to homes without electricity or on streets blocked by trees or downed power lines. The storm last Thursday and Friday knocked out electricity to more than 380,000 homes and businesses.
UTAH - An unexpected autumn storm dumped about five inches of snow in Cedar City and surrounding areas early Tuesday morning, causing numerous automobile accidents and wreaking havoc on some trees. The storm that surprised Southern Utahns on Tuesday morning was caused by a RARE weather occurrence in which the precipitation is so heavy and intense that it drops the freezing level by a few hundred feet. "It's uncommon and a fairly difficult forecasting problem." "I haven't seen the damage in trees like this before. ... This is tremendously wet (snow)."
10/15 -
CANADA - Thousands of people in Ontario's Niagara region were still without electricity Saturday after a fall snowstorm Environment Canada describes as of "historic proportions." The outages continued more than 24 hours after a RECORD-BREAKING snowstorm roared across Lake Erie into southern Ontario and western New York.
NEW YORK - Having just set a RECORD for the "snowiest" October day, the city of Buffalo in western New York state braced for more Friday as the season's first snowfall closed schools and left 155,000 customers without electricity.
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9/25 -
Western Colorado was greeted by a wintry blast Friday that soaked Grand Junction in a steady rain, dumped several inches of snow in the mountains and knocked out power to areas south. It is UNUSUAL to have this much snow to begin the fall season. “What has been UNUSUAL is the frequency of storms like this. (This is the third storm in the last few days to hit the mountains.) They just keep zipping down from the Northwest.”

UTAH also got snow last week. While the storm producing the snow didn't take the forecasters by surprise, the general weather pattern for the past week has gotten their attention. "It is UNUSUAL. It is early." The Salt Lake City area tied record low temperatures Wednesday and Thursday. "In Salt Lake City [this time of year] the normal high is 76 degrees and a low of 48. Sitting here now, we're at 41 degrees and forecasting a high of 52. That's almost 25 degrees below normal." It's a pattern seen around Utah.
9/6 -
INDIA - Unprecedented rain in the Himalayas has led to heavy snowfall in large parts of Uttaranchal and Kashmir. In the Uttaranchal Himalayas, which usually gets snowfall in late October, the hills turned white after two days of snow during the first days of September, the FIRST TIME IN A DECADE that they had a white weekend. The unseasonal rain and snow were caused by a westerly trough and a low pressure area. With temperatures dropping to between sub-zero and five degrees centigrade in the region, people geared for an early winter.
9/5 -
INDIA - Cold gusts of wind and rain buffeted the Himachal Pradesh tourist town of Shimla, sending the temperature plummeting to an UNUSUAL 15 degrees Celsius, as the upper mountainous areas received rain and snow over the past two days. Peaks in the high altitudes and in the tribal Lahaul valley, some 350 km from here, received fresh snowfall Saturday setting off a cold spell in the mid hills of the state. Most areas of the state have been lashed by rain for the past few days. The gusty winds are being described as UNUSUAL for this time of the year. The standing apple crop has been damaged in several parts of the apple belt in the mid hills of the state.
BRITAIN - changes are occurring even sooner than anticipated. From 1961-2000 extreme cloudbursts have become much more frequent and intense. The length of periods of storms and heavy rain have doubled over parts of the UK since the 1960s and where they once occurred every 25 years they now come around in six-year intervals. There has also been a change in the arrival of extreme rainfall with the majority now occurring in autumn. Scotland and Northern England have begun to get many more five-or 10-day periods of heavy rain. The south, on the other hand, got fewer periods of protracted rain - but many more heavy cloud bursts. "We are looking at an UNHEARD-OF RATE OF CHANGE in weather patterns which usually take place over tens of thousands of years."
AUSTRALIA has recorded its DRIEST AUGUST ON RECORD since accurate record-keeping began in 1900, increasing the chance of severe bushfires and giving little hope of an end to the crippling drought. It was also the WARMEST AUGUST since detailed monthly temperature data came on line in 1950. RECORD LOW WINTER RAINFALL was recorded over a large area of southern Western Australia and in parts of the eastern states.
8/22 -
SOUTH AFRICA - Half a metre (20 inches) of snow has fallen again on the mountains of the Eastern Cape and in the gullies and cliffs of the Ben McDhui Mountains in ONE OF THE COUNTRY'S BEST WINTERS IN LIVING MEMORY FOR SNOW. But there is a downside, previous snows from two weeks ago have crystallized and frozen. Fresh snow falling on these frozen snow shelves could become easily dislodged. Off piste skiers and snowboarders are being warned of avalanches and can experience dangerous conditions in the steep gullies.
8/20 -
NEW ZEALAND - New South Wales has suffered its WORST SNOWFALL IN MORE THAN 20 YEARS. Snow coverage in the NSW Alps was LOWER THAN THE LOWEST EVER RECORDED LEVEL in 1982.
FRANCE - An avalanche on Mont Blanc in the French Alps killed two French men and injured four Swiss climbers Saturday.
8/17 -
SIBERIA - One Ukrainian national was killed and another injured by an avalanche in southeast Siberia. "On August 14, in the Kosh-Agach district [in the southeast] of the Republic of Altai, a group of 12 Ukrainian tourists was hit by an avalanche near the Levy Maashei glacier, below the Nadezhda mountain pass, killing one Ukrainian and injuring another." A Russian Emergencies Ministry helicopter would be sent to the area to evacuate eight Ukrainian citizens still on the mountain pass.
8/16 -
PAKISTAN - An avalanche hit K2's upper summit slope on Sunday, August 13, killing 4. At least one of the climbers was on the summit when the avalanche struck. This is the second largest single-day tragedy on K2. On August 13, 1995, six climbers disappeared during a storm.In spite of unusually good weather this season, K2 has had only 4 confirmed summits in 2006. Most climbers reported they were forced to abort their summit pushes in fear of constant avalanches and rock falls, triggered by the warm temperatures.
8/4 -
SOUTH AFRICA - Heavy snow has fallen on Johannesburg for the FIRST TIME IN 25 YEARS as South Africa faces SOME OF ITS HARSHEST WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR DECADES. At least four South Africans have been reported dead. Snow, rain and rockfalls have closed mountain roads across the country. Torrential rains caused flooding in the eastern and southern Cape. Snow, freezing temperatures and gale force winds were expected to persist in parts of the country yesterday. “It [the snow] is by no means freakish but I would certainly classify it as RARE." Johannesburg last had snow on September 11, 1981. Widespread snow across the country had been recorded only twice in the past 20 years, in 1981 and 1988. Meteorologists were investigating whether a severe storm that swept through the northern town of Dullstroom on Tuesday night was a tornado. At least six people were injured in the heavy winds and rain, which also ripped roofs off homes.
7/21 -
Scientists are dismissing any link between weather extremes that have left New Zealanders shivering in a freezing winter and Europeans wilting in a summer heatwave. The MetService yesterday issued another severe-weather warning, with a polar blast likely to bring snow to sea level today, closing roads and putting stress on livestock. Authorities in Britain have taken the rare step of issuing a nationwide health warning as temperatures top 37deg – with 47deg on the London Underground on Wednesday. New Zealand scientists and weather forecasters say the climatic extremes are not connected, and Kiwis enduring bitterly cold winds and snow today are assured warmer weather is on the way. New Zealand had been hit by a "cluster" of weather events in the past month, but those conditions would not be sustained all winter. The cold snaps had been caused when high-pressure systems hovering near Tasmania had clashed with low-pressure systems sweeping in over the North Island. "There is no relation to what is happening in the northern hemisphere, and the hot summer in Europe doesn't mean a hot summer ahead for New Zealand...We are part of the Pacific weather pattern and that is what determines our weather. It simply can't be related to the northern hemisphere. The hot weather there is caused by anti-cyclones, not a mix of highs and lows."
7/17 -
AUSTRALIA - Townsville recorded its coldest day of the year yesterday. Residents were pulling out the winter woolies, with the mercury stopping its climb at 20.2C - the coldest maximum temperature this year and a far cry from the 25C average maximum for July. The recent overcast, still and rainy days have been far from typical Townsville weather. Unseasonal rain, cloudy conditions and high daily minimums have left locals scratching their heads for days. Persistent cloud covering over the twin cities has kept minimum temperatures about seven degrees higher than usual. "The record (highest) minimum temperature for July is 21.7C - we didn't break that but we came within a degree or so." On Saturday, Townsville recorded a minimum of 20C and a maximum of 27C. Average temperatures for this time of year are 25C maximums and 13.6C minimums. Townsville meteorologists said winter rain was not typical for this time of year.
7/9 -
NEW ZEALAND - A second avalanche in 24 hours has thundered down Mt Taranaki's Manganui Gorge. The first, estimated at 1000 tonnes, came down on Thursday, narrowly missing three climbers. Another, more than twice that size, followed some time during the night.

FRANCE - A mountaineer has died in an avalanche on Mont Blanc. He was killed on a glacier on the mountain near Chamonix in France while climbing on Wednesday. He had been climbing out of a glacier up one of the ice walls, roped up with his partner, when they heard a "tremendous cracking noise". "A great rock came hurtling towards them. They dodged the rock but it was followed by an avalanche."
7/7 -
NEW ZEALAND - Three climbers ran for their lives as an avalanche ploughed down Mt Taranaki yesterday. The 1000-tonne avalanche thundered down the Manganui Gorge about 2.10pm, narrowly missing the three men, who were on the mountain checking conditions. Avalanches usually happen in spring, but this season is shaping up to be an exceptional year for snow, with two smaller slips in the Manganui Gorge already. The avalanche was believed to be the biggest since 2001.
7/4 -
SOUTH AFRICA - The UNUSUAL icy cold weather made residents of the Soutpansberg put on every piece of warm clothing they could lay their hands on. “This cold weather for your area is VERY UNUSUAL. A cold front moved through the area and behind the cold front is normally a surface high pressure. This one is particularly strong and brings in air from far south, like polar air.” Temperatures have definitely dropped, compared to last year. Although it was unusually cold, it was not the coldest June ever.
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6/30 -
NEW ZEALAND - the low-pressure system on Monday June 12th was a major system, bringing severe wind, rain and snow. It was followed by a sustained blast of polar-chilled southwesterly winds that kept some snow on the ground for longer than a week. "Such sustained cold is EXTREMELY RARE". This is the first occasion we have seen it happen this decade, but there were two notable examples during the nineties."
6/21 -
NEW ZEALAND - Civil defence authorities in New Zealand have warned snowbound South Island communities to prepare for another severe storm. About 800 homes in the Canterbury region are facing their 10th day without power as a result of the HEAVIEST SNOW DUMP IN 50 YEARS. Weather forecasters predict the worst-affected areas of the South Island might be in for another 15 to 20 centimetres of snow due to a cold front that is sweeping over the country.
6/15 -
AUSTRALIA - Adelaide has shivered through its COLDEST NIGHT FOR MORE THAN 25 YEARS with a temperature of 0.2 degrees this morning. That was the coldest overnight temperature since Adelaide recorded -0.4 degrees on June 8, 1982. Many outlying areas were even colder, with the temperature dropping to -1.9 degrees at Parafield Airport in the northern suburbs and the mercury dropping as low as -5 degrees in some towns.
6/13-
NEW ZEALAND - Some parts of the region experienced their DEEPEST SNOWFALLS FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS. The MetService is under fire after failing to warn Cantabrians of heavy snow to sea level – until there was already half a metre lying on the ground. The heavy snow in Canterbury and a landslip in the Buller Gorge had closed almost all South Island rail lines. Some highway traffic was at a standstill. In the North Island, too, the weather was wreaking havoc. A Chinese sailor was swept overboard south of the Wellington Harbour entrance as strong southerlies and big seas hit the capital. Flooding also caused problems in some parts of the city. Some roofs and verandahs in Timaru's central business district collapsed under the weight of the snow. Thousands of houses and rural properties went without power as the snow toppled trees, snapped branches and brought down power lines throughout the province. In the 30 hours to 3pm Monday, Greymouth was soaked in 186mm of rain, the most since 2000. Near gale-force winds sent rain flying horizontally off roofs, giving Greymouth THE WORST STORM IN AT LEAST 15 YEARS. Storm-driven waves threatened cars and waves also battered at the new sea wall protecting homes in Ruby Bay, Tasman.
There is a warning this winter could be a big one for avalanches in the wake of an avalanche alert for the Mount Cook region. Up to two metres of snow was dumped on the Main Divide over 36 hours, making conditions extremely dangerous. The New Zealand Mountain Safety Council is warning against all back country travel.
6/7 -
ALASKA - A rare June frost damaged vegetables planted by commercial growers in Fairbanks. The temperature at Fairbanks International Airport dropped to 29 degrees early Sunday morning, BREAKING THE OLD RECORD of 33 degrees in 1982. Several areas around Fairbanks reported below-freezing temperatures Monday. "I haven't ever seen temperatures this cold at this time of year. Usually if you get down to 26 or 27 degrees, it will be fine, but 18 degrees for six hours, that's major."
5/25 -
AUSTRALIA - RECORD COLD TEMPERATURES FOR MAY of up to 10C below average have hit parts of Queensland on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. An extremely dry air mass across Queensland was causing the cold snap. " Humidity is sitting in the single figures so when night-time comes there is no moisture for the air to hold. This results in reasonably warm days with a sharp drop in temperatures at night."
5/19 -
SOUTH AFRICA - Cold snap looms - Tshwane residents can expect to start feeling the effects of the front tonight with cloudy and windy conditions, and even some rain. Rain is UNUSUAL for this time of year. The wind and rain could start letting up as early as Sunday, but low temperatures are expected to continue until the middle of next week. Many of Tshwane's homeless are in dire straits as the country enters winter. Homeless shelters are already pushed to their limits, and have to turn away scores of people every day. In Johannesburg, temperatures are forecast to plummet to as low as 1°C on Tuesday, with maximums as low as 13°C over the weekend. Maximum temperatures were about five or six degrees higher at the same time last year. "For Johannesburg, a maximum of 11, 12 or even 13°C is ALMOST EXCEPTIONAL. There are only a few days in winter in any particular year where it will get that cold...At this juncture, all indications point to a very cold winter."
ISRAEL - An unseasonably cool night and a pleasant day are expected throughout Israel today, but raindrops may fall along with the thermometer on Saturday, particularly in the north and possibly in the eastern regions. Temperatures will rise on Sunday but scattered precipitation may fall again in the middle of the week. The UNUSUAL weather has allowed the Kinneret to hold its own level, without evaporation and depletion for farm irrigation. Temperatures usually soar into the upper 30s Celsius (upper 90s Fahrenheit) for several days at a time from mid-April.
5/17 -
COLORADO - Avalanche monitors issued an UNUSUAL spring avalanche watch for Colorado on Monday amid fast-rising spring temperatures. "With this rapid warmup we have maybe a greater potential for wet-slab avalanches than we typically do this time of year." The avalanche watch applies to the mountains statewide above 11,000 feet through Thursday morning. A watch means weather conditions could produce avalanches. Wet-slab avalanches occur when weak layers of snow become damp as temperatures rise. The avalanche center reported more than 24 avalanches last week, including one Saturday afternoon that swept a climber 1,000 feet down Torreys Peak in Clear Creek County. He was treated for minor injuries.
5/3 -
SCOTLAND - FREAK weather sent Scots to the ski slopes on May Day for the first time this century in the wake of weekend snow showers. And while skiers relished snow in May for the FIRST TIME IN A DECADE, others were admiring their tans from Saturday's sunshine in more southern parts. Parts of the country basked in temperatures topping 15C as snow fell elsewhere. Experts blame the conditions on a combination of cold air and easterly winds. This year has been ONE OF THE SHORTEST SKIING SEASONS ON RECORD with no snow over Christmas, New Year and February half-term.
5/2 -
JAPAN - Three people were killed in an avalanche in central Japan while climbing a mountain on Monday. A group of five were climbing Mt. Harinokidake in Omachi, Nagano prefecture when an avalanche occurred at around 11:30 a.m. The other two climbers were safe, with one slightly injured. The avalanche, at 2,000 meters above sea level, was about 40 meters wide and 300 meters long. An overnight shower and a higher-than-usual temperature might be the cause of the snowslide.
IDAHO - A skier from Spokane, Washington, died in an avalanche near Stevens Peak. Deputies say he apparently died from being hit by trees or rocks in the avalanche.
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4/27 -
CANADA - A top pro snowboarder is dead after being caught in an avalanche Friday while riding the mountains near Bella Coola in British Columbia. The Austrian has been sponsored by Quiksilver since 1995 and is considered to be one of the most experienced backcountry riders in Europe.
4/23 -
NEPAL - Three Sherpas went missing in an avalanche in mountainous Khumbu region on Friday afternoon. "The Sherpas en route to climb Mt. Everest lost their trail due to the two-day long snowfall." The snow foot-trails in Khumbu area have been disturbed by the continuous snowfall in the region.
KOREA - Koreans are struggling with nippy weather conditions as temperatures dropped at one point on Thursday morning to -10 degrees Celsius in the eastern mountainous region. Even a snowfall warning was issued in the eastern province of Gangwon Province and weather experts said more snow would fall in the area until Thursday evening. It's RARE to see a sudden cold spell like this and snow around this time of year in Korea. Meteorologists say the chilly conditions will stay until today, with strong winds whipping up seasonal sandstorms.
NORTH DAKOTA - Crews were working to restore electricity and clear highways Thursday after a powerful spring snowstorm swept through the northwestern Plains, leaving four people dead and snow up to 5 feet in some areas. The heaviest snow was reported in far western South Dakota near the Wyoming border, where the National Weather Service reported snow that was 44 inches deep in the city of Lead. Crews struggling with the weight and volume of snow also had to find a place to put it after scooping it up. North Dakota ranchers in the middle of calving season worked long hours to help their calves survive the storm. Wind gusting to 84 mph overturned a mobile home in the Nebraska Panhandle, and gusts to 71 mph were reported in eastern Montana. Spring storms with heavy snow are not unusual in North Dakota. "We don't get them every year, but every five to 10 years, we usually get a big dump."
4/18 -
THAILAND - It's summertime, and the weather is cooler than expected as cold winds from China have brought unseasonal rain. The director general of the Meteorological Department said that the seasonal rains would arrive sooner than usual and would stay longer this year, continuing until May, as the country has been under the influence of cold winds from China and the seasonal monsoon. All regi ons except southern Thailand would be affected. Thailand has seen higher than expected levels of rain during this hot summer month, which was QUITE UNUSUAL, especially in upper Thailand.
4/17 -
KASHMIR - In occupied Kashmir, two persons were killed and six others wounded when they were buried under a snow slide near Captain Crossing.
4/14 -
CHINA - A landslide measuring eight kilometers occurred in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Wednesday, leaving no human casualties. The landslide, which occurred at around 2:00 p.m. in Nilka County in the Kazak Autonomous Prefecture of Ili, killed and injured more than 300 sheep, damaged some houses and ruined four kilometers of rural roads. The landslide was triggered by thawing snow.
BANGLADESH - At the time when most of Bangladesh is reeling from sweltering heat, chilly weather continues to prevail in the northern districts of the country, resulting in various diseases like cough, asthma, fever, and diarrhoea. Even now the people in Rangpur, Dinajpur, Panchagarh, Thakurgaon, Lalmonirhat, Kurigram, and Nilphamari districts are using quilts, blankets, and other warm clothes to protect themselves from cold. The winter season usually begins in the region from November and continues till mid-February. But this year UNUSUAL weather is now visible in the entire region.
AVALANCHES -
4/12 -
KASHMIR - A Jammu and Kashmir government official died due to snow avalanche in Gurez-Bandipora belt of Varmul district while six others were rescued by the Army. Official sources said a group of officials of the state Agriculture Department were caught in a snow avalanche while on the way to Bandipora from border area of Gurez.
RUSSIA - The search-and-rescue operation at the Chimbulak mountain skiing base near Almaty was stopped on Tuesday and no other victims were found. An avalanche of some 20,000 cubic meters, the LARGEST IN THE ENTIRE HISTORY of Chimbulak, went down on April 8. The avalanche buried a 53-year-old employee of the skiing base. A sniffer dog found him under 1.5 meters of snow several hours later. Two Russians survived the disaster. Rescuers thought that the avalanche might have hurt seven to ten people. The avalanche hit a tower of a ropeway to the height of 3,200 meters.

ITALY - An avalanche swept over a group of German skiers high in the Alps in the South Tyrol in northeastern Italy on Tuesday, killing three of them.
NEW ZEALAND - The Routeburn Track was closed on Monday after two trampers were caught in a FREAK avalanche. A couple were caught about 11am while tramping through a narrow section of track above Lake Harris, near the top of the alpine section of the Southern Alps crossing. "They were walking the track with two friends when they were suddenly caught up in a slow-moving slough of soft, wet snow, which pushed them across the track." Their slide was stopped by a large rock. "Any avalanche activity was totally unexpected. We couldn't believe what had happened and thank goodness no one was hurt." "The avalanche was caused by snow sliding off a ledge above the track into a small gully, then sloughing across the track."
4/11 -
BRITAIN - Two weeks after spring officially started, winter returned to parts of southern Britain Monday with unseasonal snowfall of up to 12 cm. The sudden cold snap, which struck as trees were in blossom and spring flowers covered the ground, affected the southern counties of Kent, East Sussex and West Sussex.
FRANCE - Unseasonably cold weather with unseasonal snow has meant a far from ideal lead-up for world track cycling in Bordeaux, France.
AVALANCHES -
4/11 -
KAZAKHSTAN - One man was killed and several more were feared dead after an avalanche hit a ski resort outside Kazakhstan's commercial capital Almaty. The avalanche, triggered by heavy snow, buried up to 10 skiers and workers at the Shymbulak ski resort on Saturday. The death toll was likely to rise. The search for other victims was suspended Saturday evening and wasn't resumed until Monday because of poor weather conditions and the possibility of another avalanche.
RUSSIA - Several mountain skiers are believed to be buried under an avalanche in the northern Russian region of Murmansk on the northern slope of Mt. Aikuiaivencher.
NORWAY - Three skiers escaped serious injury after one of them set off an avalanche Monday morning in a popular off-piste area of the Hemsedal ski center. Avalanche warnings remained in effect all over southern Norway. Around 20 centimeters of new snow and strong winds contributed to the unstable snow. Snow slid down mountainsides elsewhere over the weekend as well. An avalanche at Vinje in Telemark crashed down not far from a ski lift on Sunday, but officials later determined that no skiers were caught in it. In Tromsø, however, a 28-year-old woman was badly injured after she was caught in an avalanche at Hamneidet in Nordreisa township. The woman had been out walking her dog with her brother when snow crashed down on them.
AVALANCHES -
4/10 -
JAPAN - Six men died, four went missing and one was seriously injured in a series of avalanches which occurred over the weekend in mountainous areas in Nagano and Gifu. The death toll includes three skiers, aged between 57 and 68, in a five-man group that was hit by an avalanche Saturday around the village of Otari, Niigata Prefecture. In Nagano's village of Hakuba on Sunday, a 34-year-old and a 41-year-old man were killed by an avalanche while they were skiing in early afternoon. Two others were seriously injured while the other two in the six-person group were safe. One man was killed by an avalanche which occurred early afternoon on Sunday in a slope of Mt. Abo, which straddles Nagano and Gifu. The police also said four climbers have apparently gone missing after an avalanche occurred in a valley of Mt. Kasagatake in Takayama of Gifu at 11 a.m. Sunday.
FRANCE - Two skiers have been hurt in an avalanche on the Bellecôte at la Plagne around midday. The accident happened at 2500 meters altitude in the Couloir Pepin under the Dôme des Picherès. The victims were part of a group of eight skiing off piste at the time of the incident. The victims were not deeply buried by the slide and were rescued very quickly thanks to their avalanche beacons. The avalanche risk for the region was 1 on a scale of 5 at the time. Two members of a group of five ski tourers have been killed after a cornice collapse in the Mont-Blanc range. The group were making a tour to the Pointe Alphons Favre and decided to venture on foot onto the Aiguille du Belvédère ridge to take some photos. Three of the group walked onto the cornice which collapsed under their weight. By luck one of the group was able to save himself and escaped with light injuries but two friends fell 300 meters and were killed by injuries received.
COLORADO - "We are going to see an avalanche problem coming up as the temperatures warm up." Experts say conditions typically get more dangerous has the day goes on especially after two in the afternoon. "You should be home drinking a margarita by two in the afternoon. You should never be out late afternoon skiing in the backcountry." One week is all that's left of the Colorado ski season, with most resorts closing by Easter. That means more people will start to head into the backcountry. The back country has RECORD snowfall, approaching 400 inches at Copper Mountain.
4/7 -
NEW YORK - A FREAK April snowstorm yesterday plowed a mild New York winter into the record books - only days after city temperatures soared into the 70s. The season's snow total was 40 inches for the fourth consecutive year - the FIRST TIME THAT HAS HAPPENED SINCE RECORD BEGAN 138 years ago. And there just might be more to come. "This has never happened before." Yesterday's flurries confused New Yorkers after last week's warm sunshine - and blindsided forecasters who failed to predict winter's return. "This climate is crazy. Last week I was outside in shorts, this week's like the middle of January. I don't know what I should wear when I leave the house." Although this year's winter was not among New York's coldest, a snowstorm in February dumped 26.9 inches - the heaviest ever recorded in the city.
AUSTRALIA - Winter has arrived a little early. Despite there being 65 days until the start of winter, temperatures on the Border have gone from summery to freezing overnight. The chilly conditions were the result of a series of cold fronts coming through from Antarctica. “This is QUITE UNUSUAL because normally we wouldn’t get these sorts of conditions until late May or June.” And the cold snap looks set to continue. "There will be another burst of cold weather around Tuesday and Wednesday of next week, which will probably result in more snow on the ski fields.” With strong winds and dry temperatures, fire danger alerts were very high.
4/5 -
RUSSIA - A powerful cyclone that came from the Pacific Ocean hit the Kuril Islands on Tuesday. Gusts of wind on all the islands are up to 17-22 metres per second. It is heavily snowing and there are snow blizzards on the Southern Kuriles. Airports on Iturup and Kunashir islands are closed to air traffic.Weather forecasts have it that the cyclone will continue to rage on the Kuriles until April 7. (PHOTO)
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3/31 -
RUSSIA - A helicopter carrying aid to a group of tourists hit by an avalanche has arrived in southeast Siberia. The heavy-duty Mi-8 brought rescuers and paramedics to the Irkutsk Region to attend to eight tourists who sustained various injuries in the slide on Wednesday. All of the group's 18 tourists are alive. Springtime is an avalanche-hazardous season, and another snow-slide claimed three lives on the Kamchatka Peninsula on the Pacific Ocean on Sunday.
SWEDEN - A man in his 30s died in an avalanche in the Swedish ski resort of Åre on Thursday. The avalanche struck around lunchtime. Early reports say that skiers released the avalanche, which was around 50 metres wide, onto an off-piste area between two pistes. Heavy snowfall has created an unstable snow layer, leading to an increased risk that it will give way on steeper sections. The avalanche risk was 3 on the 5 point scale.
3/29 -
CANADA - A spring blizzard continued to pound eastern Newfoundland Tuesday with another 15 centimetres of snow expected to fall. Monday's storm dumped 20 centimetres of snow and caused heavy drifting on the Burin, Bonavista and Avalon peninsulas. "What we're looking at today is an additional 10 to 15 centimetres through overnight, and winds gusting to 100 km/h." High tides and heavy waves along the east and northeast coasts were also a concern until today. While the snow should melt this week, another unpredictable weather system is expected next Monday. "We're not quite sure how much rain and how much snow is going to be with that one." Early spring snowstorms are not uncommon in Newfoundland. "It's been known on the May 24th weekend to get six inches of snow."
HAWAII - Freezing winds in Hawaii? The summit of Haleakala National Park on Maui sustained 70 mile per hour gusts, hale and ice Tuesday forcing the closure of the visitor center. The National Park Service says the wind chill at the ten-thousand-foot summit reached minus-two degrees. Restrooms and heaters in the center were also out due to a power outage. The temperature for the coastal areas of Maui was a balmy 80 degrees.
3/28 -
CANADA, NEWFOUNDLAND - A late-season blizzard shut down schools, banks and many businesses in eastern Newfoundland Monday. Compared to some of the blizzards that struck the island earlier this year, Monday's storm was modest. But high winds reduced visibility to near zero in some areas. In central Newfoundland and along the northeast coast, wind warnings were in effect.
CALIFORNIA - Spring arrived on Monday, and only several hours later, it felt like winter again. Snow pounded Oakhurst and its surrounding communities Monday afternoon, causing power outages, road closures and chain restrictions, the latest in a series of storms to hit during the past month. Two more storms were forecasted for the next five days. In Yosemite National Park, snow accumulation continues to extend from the higher accumulations to the valley floor. "On the valley floor, it's probably compacted about six inches and that's fairly significant. It means that we will have water in the falls for longer because the water is kind of stored in the higher elevations and released over a longer period of time."
3/27 -
RUSSIA - Two people died and three others were missing after a group of snowmobiles was caught in an avalanche on the Russian Pacific peninsula of Kamchatka Sunday. About 10 snowmobiles were riding near a volcano about 35 miles south of the regional capital, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, when the avalanche hit around 10am.
PAKISTAN - In occupied Kashmir, two persons were killed and another injured in a snow avalanche in Poonch district. The three persons, who were on their way from their native village Barari to Dholewali of the district, were trapped in a snow slide near Dholewali. Two persons died and another was seriously injured.
3/26 -
NEPAL - Locals near Everest fret about Mother Nature’s next surprise. Trekkers and Sherpas in Khumbu were asking last week, "If there is all this global warming how come it snowed so much this spring?", as an UNPRECEDENTED and UNSEASONAL blizzard dumped heavy snow at the tail end of a bone-dry winter. Meterologists explain it is not so much climate change but climate variability associated with the greenhouse effect. No one we spoke to in Khumbu last week could remember a winter like this without snow, or a spring with so much. “This is something we never saw and heard about,” said an 80-year-old. “It’s quite ominous.”
3/24 -
FLORIDA - patchy frost was possible late last night through early this morning across the coastal portions of Northwest Florida and southwest Alabama. Lows are expected to reach the mid-30s in coastal areas, with lows near freezing in northern parts of the area counties. "Frost can form in those temperatures. It's a little STRANGE for this time of year."

OKLAHOMA - Snow fell across a wide section of Oklahoma on Wednesday night and early Thursday, causing hazardous conditions on roadways and a number of traffic accidents. A freeze warning was in effect for much of the region, with temperatures expected to dip into the 20s by Thursday night. The wintry blast is UNUSUAL for this time of year in Oklahoma. The forecast low in Oklahoma City on Thursday evening was 24 degrees, just one degree warmer than a record low set in 1965.

CALIFORNIA - the first two-thirds of March yielded nearly 150 percent of the normal rainfall for the entire month, so the appearance of the sun last Saturday and Sunday was cause for great wonder locally as were temperatures which actually reached their average highs for this time of year - mid to upper 60s. The break was short-lived, and yet another front in a seemingly endless progression of fronts brought rain back to the Valley. In the high latitudes over Greenland and northern Canada, a persistent blocking high has forced the jet stream to dip sharply over the steep ridge to their west and dive directly into the coast bringing round after round of perfectly awful weather while practically ruining a month that almost always can be counted on to provide more than just a few days of beautifully benign sun and warmth. These copious late-winter rains have been a boon to northern California's lakes and reservoirs which are filling rapidly with all the runoff. The high Sierra sports more than 20 feet of snow in some locations - a snowpack that is almost guaranteed to last well into the summer. The Climate Prediction Center's long range outlook, for more than a few months now, has been touting a spring, summer, fall and winter marked by above normal temperatures with near normal precipitation (except for below normal during the July, August, September period). With the way the pattern has been here for the last month or so, there will have to be a major shift in the upper air flow to effect that sort of a radical change before the first of April.

3/22 -
ARKANSAS - cooler temperatures forecast for the region this week are UNUSUAL. High temperatures should climb to about 65 by the end of the weekend, which is normal for this time of year.
WASHINGTON - The warmest high temperature and the coolest low temperature of the regular reporting stations Monday were both west of the Cascades, which is UNUSUAL.
3/21 -
U.S. - A storm system barreled across the Plains states on the last day of winter, piling snow more than a foot deep that stalled highway and train travelers in South Dakota and Colorado and causing flooding in Texas. Hundreds of schools were closed Monday in Nebraska, Kansas, Colorado and South Dakota, and six-foot snowdrifts were reported in western South Dakota. At least two deaths were blamed on the storm, one in Colorado and the other in Dallas. About 200 miles of Interstate 90 was closed Monday across South Dakota from Rapid City to Chamberlain because of the heavy snow and stuck trailer-trailer rigs. It had been shut down since Sunday afternoon. "It's pretty RARE." In Council Bluffs, Iowa, the storm is expected to be the worst of this winter for the area, as they were expecting 16 inches of snow. Up to 13 inches of snow was reported in Nebraska and South Dakota, with 11 inches in eastern Colorado. The rains were the first real relief in weeks for wildfire-ravaged Texas, but falling at 2 inches an hour, one problem just replaced another. Up to 8 inches of rain was reported in North Texas, causing weekend flooding around the Dallas area.
3/19 -
RUSSIA - A powerful cyclone, the second this week, hit the Khabarovsk Territory on Saturday. Snowfalls and winds of up to 15 metres a second are raging all over the territory from the western borders to the Okhotsk Sea coast. According to meteorologists, the cyclone will move east during the day and next night, and good weather is expected to set in by Monday. The previous cyclone raging in the territory for three days brought six weeks' level of precipitation and impeded air and road traffic.
FRANCE - The French authorities' battle to convince British skiers and snow boarders to abandon the growing trend of "free-riding", or leaving set ski runs, reached desperation point this week when a 35-year-old snow boarder from Cumbria became the latest tourist to die in a spate of snow slides that have killed a RECORD-BREAKING NUMBER OF PEOPLE, more than 80 people across the Alps this season. Within the past two weeks Les Arcs has seen two metres of snow in eight days, the FASTEST SNOWFALL FOR 20 YEARS. A combination of deep snow and cold fierce winds has triggered almost 100 small avalanches across the Alps.
3/17 -
FRANCE - A British woman has been killed in an avalanche in France, taking the Alps death toll to 87, the HIGHEST ON RECORD.
NORTH DAKOTA - Saturday's snowfall brought with it UNUSUAL snow formations. Spontaneous snowballs blowing over the plains were reported in more than one location, according to the National Weather Service. The snowballs settled after the wind died down and made for an interesting sight in rural fields. Meteorologists speculated that the unusual formations were the result of wet snow and light winds. They suspect the snow phenomenon happened because the snow was sticky and wet. When it started to blow, it picked up more snow, much like a manmade snowball would. "I had never heard of this until now. Maybe it has to do with the rate of snowfall. There was enough of it to work with."(photo)
3/16 -
ENGLAND - The Arctic cold gripping Wales has delayed spring and could have a devastating impact on the nation's wildlife, experts have warned. For the past five years spring has been arriving earlier than usual because of what is widely accepted as the effect of global warming and climate change. But 2006's freezing temperatures have led to a seasonal delay that is already confusing Wales' rich variety of flora and fauna. Migratory birds have usually arrived from the Sahara by now. So far they have failed to show up. Insects are yet to hatch, and the spring flowers they depend on, including daffodils, primroses and pussy willow, are late to flower. Now conservationists are worried about a lack of food for the nation's wildlife during the breeding season. Weather forecasters' warnings of more snow to come have heightened these concerns. Wales was currently around 4C colder than average temperatures.
FRANCE - Fierce winds and heavy snowfall have unleashed a rash of avalanches in the French Alps, sweeping away skiers seeking off-piste thrills and making this ski season THE MOST DEADLY IN AT LEAST 35 YEARS. The rough weather this year is the culprit. "The dangers were in place from the start of the season." 53 peole have been killed this season. Usually, snowslides kill about 25 people on France's slopes each season. The surge in avalanches has been concentrated in the southern reaches of the French Alps and appears largely confined to France. In neighboring Switzerland, there have been 21 avalanche fatalities this season, eight fewer than last season's final total.
WESTERN U.S. - Yet another powerful March snowstorm swept across the region Tuesday, bringing several feet of fresh snow to the Sierra and covering the valleys in the Reno-Carson City area in white. Roads were snarled with accidents and two residential areas of north Lake Tahoe were put under an avalanche advisory. About 30 homes in the Crystal Bay area were in danger while several homes and a fire station on Mount Rose Highway were threatened in Incline Village. March is on pace to become one of the snowier Marches on record with another storm expected to hit today. There's no immediate letup in sight, forecasters said. The unending snowfall makes the weather feel unlike spring is only a week away. "It feels like January."
3/15 -
CALIFORNIA - the parade of icy Alaskan low-pressure cells that have chilled California since late February is likely to keep blowing through the Bay Area and the rest of Northern California into the early weekend, bringing rain with it, forecasters say. In recent days, average Bay Area temperatures have been about 15 degrees below normal. So the hills surrounding the Bay Area get dusted with snow, the lower levels are hit with bone-chilling rain or hail and some of the roads become dangerously icy. "We have had a series of these areas of low pressure that have drifted out of the Gulf of Alaska. And thanks to a fairly persistent cloud cover, "when you have cold air like we've had, the sun just can't warm it up." From March 1 to March 13, Ski resorts in the Sierras got 40 inches to 76 inches of snow in various locations in the area, compared to 5 to 9 inches during the same period last year. At Kirkwood Mountain Resort, 35 miles southwest of Lake Tahoe, the snowpack is also expected to linger UNUSUALLY long this year. In early February Californians were expecting a slightly drier, warmer period into April because of La Niña, but as of March 1, the amount of rainfall in San Francisco was 135 percent higher than the winter average to that point.
UKRAINE - Four avalanches, including one that blocked the Mukachevo-Rogatin road near the village of Yasinya, have been reported from the Carpathian Mountains. An avalanche in western Ukraine killed two skiers and another three are missing. A group of eight lost their way in thick fog while skiing in the Carpathian Mountains on Monday and got caught in the avalanche. Rescuers began searching for the skiers – all from the western Ukrainian city of Chernivtsi - after they failed to return to their hotel. The crews found one of the skiers early Tuesday morning, then located three others, one of whom was dead. Rescuers later recovered a second body.
ARGENTINA - Huge chunks of ice have tumbled off Argentina's Perito Moreno glacier - a rare spectacle that prompted a vigil by hundreds of tourists. Argentine television stations interrupted regular programming with live coverage of the break-up of the glacier known as the "White Giant," which was caused by building water pressure in the lake that it extends across. Perito Moreno forms a natural ice dam extending across a part of the lake. Occasionally, rapidly flowing water beneath the ice leaves a fragile bridge that eventually collapses. Perito Moreno is the world's only expanding glacier, and spreads across a large swathe of southern Patagonia, ending in a translucent blue wall of ice along the Lago Argentino.
3/14 -
UTAH - After three days of searching, rescue crews recovered the body of a snowboarder swept away in an avalanche near the Snowbasin Ski Resort.
RUSSIA - The Oktyabrsky settlement with a population of some 2,800 people on Monday found itself totally isolated from the outside world due to the Kamchatka cyclone. The road linking this settlement with the rest territory of the region is closed for all kinds of transport. There is zero visibility on the road running along the sand spit on the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk due to squall wind and heavy snowstorm, which makes traffic impossible. The south of the Kamchatka region remains under the influence of the cyclone that came from the Sakhalin Island. A storm warning is in effect. The fleet is staying at Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky ports. Classes in primary schools have been cancelled. Flights on local air routes have also been cancelled.
3/13 -
RUSSIA - A powerful cyclone has paralyzed the traffic in central and northern Sakhalin. Even the snow cleaning machinery cannot move. The drivers cannot tell where the road ends and a ditch starts. The wind reached 24 meters per second in the north. A gale is on in the Tatar Strait, and the Vanino-Kholmsk ferry line that connects the island to the mainland has been stopped. Two cyclones that clashed above Sakhalin caused the heavy snowfalls and blizzards. One of the cyclones came from Japan, and the other approached from the Khabarovsk territory. About a dozen avalanches went down in southern Sakhalin on Saturday. No one was hurt.
CALIFORNIA - A huge 28-vehicle pileup on Highway 101 in Sausalito killed two people and injured more than a dozen. The unusually brisk weather is the product of a massive trough of cold air that's blown in from the Arctic. While such cold air masses are not uncommon in the Bay Area during the winter, this one is UNUSUALLY LARGE - covering most of the West Coast and reaching as far southeast as Arizona - and UNSEASONLY LATE. Indeed, the last time it snowed in the Bay Area in March was in 1896. Rain is expected to return Tuesday, but it will be a significantly warmer storm, with the snow level rising to a more seasonal 4,000 feet. "We don't often see something this big or this late in the season. It's VERY UNUSUAL."
SCOTLAND AND WALES have woken up to a blanket of snow, in what is an UNUSUAL end to the winter season. Western Scotland was worst hit by heavy blizzards Saturday night, leaving around 3,000 partygoers stranded in a nightclub and a bus station in Glasgow. Bitterly cold temperatures have also spread across the north of England, and snowstorms could reach the West Midlands and Bristol. The Met Office has issued a severe weather warning, and officials say there is an increased risk of flooding as the snow begins to melt. Up to six to eight inches of snow could have fallen on higher ground by Sunday night. The cold snap is caused by cool air from Scandinavia. 'This is quite late in the winter season to be seeing snow of this magnitude.'
3/12 -
RUSSIA - A powerful cyclone with heavy snowfalls and windstorms has hit huge regions in the Far East. The precipitation in the city of Khabarovsk and the Khabarovsk Territory Friday and Saturday exceeded a month's normal level. The wind speed was up to 20 metres a second.
INDIA - Friday Himachal Pradesh recieved fresh snow in the backtracking winter and unseasonal rains continued to lash several places in north India while Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka got a respite from the downpours which claimed over 70 lives in the past three days. The higher reaches of Lahaul, Spiti and Pangi valleys in Himachal Pradesh groaned under freezing weather with the mercury plunging to minus 5-13 degrees Celsius. Many areas had a heavy bout of snowfall while widespread rains swept across the mid hills. The Rohtang Pass (13,050 ft) had 50 cm snow.
CALIFORNIA - Wave after wave of snow-bearing dark clouds bore down on the coastal cities, dropping loads of flakes and icy pellets on roads, roofs and trees. Inland, in higher, colder places like Hoopa, several inches coated the hills. Blue moons are far more frequent than sea-level snowfall on the North Coast, so snow showers in Arcata, Eureka, McKinleyville and other seaside towns Friday were a giddy spectacle for some and a hazard for others. On Woodley Island the last time it snowed this much was in 1990. Friday's storm came out of the Gulf of Alaska, bringing with it super-cold air. The air at the upper levels of the system was around minus-38 degrees. The precipitation was drawing that cold air down with it, so it didn't have a chance to melt in the warmer air near the surface.
RECORD COLD - Friday's "frigid" high of 48 BROKE THE PREVIOUS RECORD of 53 degrees for the day, recorded in 1999."We beat the record big time." The morning's low of 37 degrees tied the low of the same day in 1999, according to area temperature records that date to 1949. While weather patterns this late in the winter season are UNUSUAL, they aren't unheard of.

OREGON - On Friday morning the Oregon coast saw a fair amount of snow, which was a RARE event. The cold weather pattern is expected to last through this morning before warmer temperatures return.
WASHINGTON - The wind has quieted from full-out howl on Thursday to a growl. The snow is melting and power has been restored in Grays Harbor County. The air is still a little chilly, but it appears the worst of the storm is over. A RARE lightening storm left 25,000 residences from Montesano to Ocean Shores without power Thursday morning. “It’s VERY RARE that we have lightning here. That was a pretty good-sized hit.”
3/10 -
CANADA - An UNUSUAL late-winter storm brought high winds, heavy rains and snow to southern British Columbia on Wednesday, and is also being linked to the crash of a small plane. The storm also dumped heavy rain in some areas, bringing more than 50 millimetres to North Vancouver.
CALIFORNIA - Weather reports for the Tollhouse area indicated a strong cold front would move into the area Thursday night, and the snow level may descend as low as 500 feet. Snow accumulations may be anywhere from a trace to a couple of inches. This is a HIGHLY UNUSUAL WEATHER PATTERN for this time of year in central California.
GEORGIA - Heavy snowfalls and the danger of avalanches in the area of the Kazbegsky district interrupted motor traffic at the Gudari-Kovi section of the Military Georgian Highway leading to Russia (North Ossetia Republic). Snow is one meter thick at that section of the highway. Several dozens of motor vehicles are waiting for the opening of the highway. The traffic at this section of the highway was sealed off last time for several days in mid-February. In March, traffic blocked over snowfalls is very RARE, as temperatures are usually warm. Traffic is also very slow on the highway in the Ninotsmindksy district, connecting this area of southern Georgia with Armenia.
SWITZERLAND - Friends in Garmisch, Germany, are mourning the loss of a popular ski instructor from Idaho who died Monday in Switzerland when he fell hundreds of meters in an avalanche. The area had received much snow over the weekend and conditions were ripe for avalanches, especially away from marked trails.
FRANCE - A member of the high mountain police based at Saint-Sauveur-sur-Tinée in the Alpes-Maritimes department has been killed by an avalanche during a mountain rescue excercise to practice the evacuation of a chair lift. Two others suffered multiple fractures.
EUROPE - Avalanches have killed at least 86 people in Europe's Alps this winter. The French government reported a RECORD NUMBER of avalanche-related fatalities. A large avalanche nearly hit the village of Oberried in Switzerland on Thursday. The avalanches are being triggered by UNUSUAL late-season snowstorms coupled with more backcountry skiing and snowboarding. Adding to the risk: This winter has been UNUSUALLY dry and cold. "In an avalanche, your first 15 minutes are your golden window of rescue ... with a 92% chance of surviving." After that, victims usually die from suffocation or carbon dioxide poisoning from breathing their own expelled air in the space where they are trapped. The off-piste community has been stunned by the number of people killed who were experienced skiers.
MONTANA - A skier was injured in an avalanche on the back side of Big Mountain.
3/9 -
RUSSIA - A Siberian avalanche has killed two snowboarders, one from France and one from Switzerland. The avalanche buried six of a group of 19 snowboarders and two Russian instructors snowboarding in the mountains near Lake Baikal. Rescuers pulled four people out alive from under the snow.
3/7 -
EUROPE - Alpine ski resorts were on high alert after heavy weekend snowfalls caused avalanches that killed at least five people in the last three days. In the Swiss resort of Lauterbrunnen, an American resident of Germany who was skiing well off the marked run, was swept away by a snowslide and killed. Another US national died across the border in the French resort of Tignes, after apparently falling into a frozen lake while snowboarding on unmarked territory. The force of the avalanche projected him through a 20-centimetre-thick layer of ice on frozen Tignes Lake. The victim's companion, a French woman, was injured. In nearby Val d'Isere, a 19-year-old Swede who was skiing off marked trails was swept away by an avalanche and killed. Avalanches also were responsible for a number of injuries in France and Switzerland, where four skiers were hurt near the popular resort of Verbier after being caught up in a 300-metre wide snowslide. On Saturday, a 45-year-old woman was killed while snow-shoeing near the Alpine resort of Les Diablerets. Together with Monday's death near Lauterbrunnen, there have been 18 avalanche victims in Switzerland this season. Almost all of those killed by avalanches had ventured outside marked ski runs. A 28-year-old Norwegian tourist also died in a landslide on an Italian mountain while sightseeing.
CANADA - One snowmobiler is dead - the third in as many days in the B.C. Interior - after he and a friend were swept away yesterday in an avalanche near Fernie. The pair had been snowmobiling in the Three Sisters area north of the town, about 200 km southwest of Calgary, when the slide was triggered about 3 p.m.
SPAIN - Three British climbers were found dead in Spain's Sierra Nevada mountains, a day after one of the group battled blizzards and freezing temperatures to raise the alarm. The three died of hypothermia after a snowstorm battered the mountains east of Granada, in the southern region of Andalucia.
3/6 -
SWITZERLAND struggled to dig itself out after RECORD SNOWFALL overnight Saturday set off avalanches, collapsed roofs, left the country's two main highways blocked and caused three deaths. Near the largest city, Zurich, 21 inches of new snow was recorded on the heights of Zuerichberg, the HIGHEST IN A 24-HOUR PERIOD SINCE RECORDS BEGAN in 1931.
FRANCE, GERMANY - Thousands of people spent a night trapped in their cars, trains or emergency shelters after heavy snow blanketed the Alps. Heavy snow and high winds lashed Europe over the weekend, causing the deaths of at least 17 people in weather-related accidents and avalanches. Hessen state in the south was dealing with THE HEAVIEST SNOWFALL IN 15 YEARS, saw five accident-related deaths, while four were killed in neighbouring Baden-Wuerttemberg.
FRANCE - A website which monitors off-piste conditions calls the recent period "the WORST IN LIVING MEMORY" for avalanches. This weekend, the avalanche risk in many resorts was classified as "extreme". Since January, heavy snow has fallen across the region, creating the best skiing conditions for many seasons. But temperature fluctuations have also brought masses of snow cascading down mountains.
SCOTLAND - Heavy snow was due to bombard the North-east as the big freeze continued. Extreme weather has brought the area to a standstill. More than 10 inches of snow have fallen since the start of March - the MOST SEEN IN MARCH SINCE RECORDS BEGAN in 1958.
3/5 -
ITALY - Dozens of people have been rescued after an avalanche struck during a skiing competition in northern Italy. The avalanche swept down a mountainside near Italy's border with France. Rescue workers said around 20 people were buried by tons of snow which swallowed competitors and officials taking part in a ski competition in Artesina near Cuneo. This winter looks set to be ONE OF THE WORST ON RECORD FOR THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE KILLED IN AVALANCHES ACROSS EUROPE. Already 39 people have died in the French Alps, while in the whole of last season the total was just 25. Last week 20 people died in France and Switzerland alone. The avalanche risk has grown because of sharp temperature fluctuations - which have made the snow very unstable - and greater numbers of inexperienced skiers venturing into powder snow.
BULGARIA - A mighty avalanche in the Rila Mountain has swept six Slovak tourists, who skipped warnings of local people on possible snow-downs. The 600m-long avalanche was caused by the mountain-trotters themselves, after they took on climbing a slope. Only one woman was injured, both her arms are broken. Two weeks ago a twenty-year-old man from Sofia died in an avalanche which went down on Vitosha Mountain. Days earlier a snowboarder, who spent the night buried in the snow near the Bulgarian winter resort of Bansko, had survived amid temperatures of -15 Celsius. With a continuously warming weather across the country, the threat of avalanches in the mountains become more and more real, rescuers said.
COLORADO - Two snowboarders triggered a wet slab avalanche within the city limits of Steamboat Springs. "It happened so quickly. It didn't hesitate, and it came in a big way. Right there in the middle of town." Warm temperatures this week "wreaked havoc on a fairly stable snowpack and produced a significant wet slide cycle."
3/3 -
FRANCE - There were two further avalanche deaths yesterday in the French Alps and police have warned off-piste skiers and snowboarders as well as ski mountaineers to be extremely careful especially on north faces. There has been 40-60cm of fresh snow in the pre-Alps and the avalanche risk is considerable across the whole region. There have been 43 avalanche deaths in France so far this season.
IDAHO - An Idaho man who was snowmobiling is dead after being caught in an avalanche in Butte County. He was carried about 200 yards down the hill. His riding companion found him under about three feet of snow and tried to revive him, but was unable. The avalanche happened around 2:30 Wednesday afternoon in the Antelope Valley. Avalanche danger was considerable throughout the mountains of Idaho Wednesday. The danger level is expected to remain at 'considerable' throughout the weekend.
CANADA - British Columbia - The avalanche hazard in the Alpine is considerable - at treeline and below treeline. Extended periods of 100 kph winds and fluctuating freezing levels have loaded a variable mix of soft slabs, stiff upside down windslabs and scoured old snow in their wake. Slab avalanches up to 80 cm deep were releasing with the weight of a skier within the ski area over the past two days. A natural avalanche cycle occurred early in the storm and those start zones have reloaded since then. Within the ski area SLOPES RAN THAT HAVE NOT SLID IN 10 YEARS.
3/2 -
ALASKA - A 24-year-old snowboarder was buried in an avalanche Tuesday and presumed dead. Conditions were too severe to launch an immediate search. The avalanche fell from the 1,600-foot level of Marmot Mountain, cascading down over the snowboarder and into a ravine. The area, located 50 miles north of Anchorage, has been the site of previous avalanches.
INDIA - Four officials of the Border Roads Organisation were buried alive under a huge snow avalanche in Kargil Wednesday. Another similar incident occurred near the Line of Control at Lato, three porters working with the army were buried under a snow avalanche. However, two of them were rescued and admitted to hospital in an injured condition, search for the third is ongoing.
CANADA - Most Canadians will have to endure a very slow start to spring, according to Environment Canada's latest three-month forecast. Most of the country will experience cooler than normal temperatures during the spring. The prediction is for cooler than normal temperatures from the west coast clear through to Quebec over the next 90 days. Atlantic Canada and eastern regions of Canada's North will enjoy warmer than average temperatures in the next three months, however. "A late arctic vortex" that moved in on northern parts of Hudson Bay last month is to blame for the cold temperatures in southern Ontario and Western Canada. "It's doing some very strange things. It's pulling the cool air down across the Prairies and into Ontario, but on the other side it's pulling very warm air off the Atlantic. And actually, places like Iqaluit and Baffin Island are setting record warm temperatures lately." "And my gosh, if you wanted it to be warm a few days ago, you had to go north. It was warmer in the north than in the south. Talk about weather upside down." The forecast suggests that most of southern Ontario and central Manitoba and Saskatchewan will have a wetter spring than usual, while Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and most of the North will be drier than usual.
3/1 -
BRITAIN - was bracing itself last night for further Arctic weather after forecasters predicted more snow. Despite today heralding the meteorological start of Spring, Britain will remain in the grip of some of the coldest weather of the winter. Icy blasts, which brought an overnight deluge of snow to northern parts of Scotland and eastern England, are expected to last for the rest of the week. Blizzards have already caused disruption with roads and schools forced to close. Worst-hit was northern Scotland, with high winds and blizzards. The Thames Barrier was shut as bitterly cold northerly winds swept down the east coast and combined with high spring tides to create a half metre surge on the incoming tide. “There is no doubt that we are experiencing a change in climate around the world and with only six weeks to go, it is not beyond the realms of possibility that we will be rolling our [Easter] eggs in the snow this year.”
FRANCE - An American has been killed in the Plane sector in the Vallon de la Doire by an avalanche Monday. The man was with two other Americans off-piste skiing close to the resort of Montgenèvre when they triggered a slab avalanche at around 2500 meters altitude. One of the other men was seriously injured. At nearby Risoul two teenage snowboarders triggered an avalanche at 2200 meters altitude while riding off piste, seriously injuring one. The avalanche risk was at High (4/5) over much of the Hautes-Alpes.
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2/28 -
RUSSIA - A powerful snow cyclone hit Sakhalin and Kurile Islands Monday night, closing airports and seaports in the Far Eastern Russian region. The storm in the Tatar Strait in the northern part of the Sea of Japan reached the force of seven.
CANADA - British Columbia - the avalanche danger continues to escalate in many parts of the province. Warmer temperatures and winds are making the snowpack unstable. The danger rating is now "high" in the alpine and "considerable" at the tree line in the Columbia Mountains and Central B.C. Conditions are even worse along the coast due to heavy snow and warm temperatures.
IDAHO - Some are saying this is the worst year for avalanches. There have already been two avalanche-related deaths and with a potentially record-breaking snow year in the Teton Mountain Range, more could be on the way. What the public doesn’t know is that most deadly avalanches are not natural avalanches, quite often they’re triggered by the victim they take.
2/27 -
FRANCE - The Pyrenees had escaped relatively unscathed from the carnage unleashed by avalanches this season. That was until Saturday. At around midday as two climbers approached the Arre-Sourins ridge close to the Anglas chairlift a slab avalanche was triggered beneath their feet causing two slides, one on the resort side of the ridge, the other towards the lac d’Angas. One climber was carried 200 vertical meters from the ridge. He was dug out in a state of cardiac arrest and later died. Like too many of the avalanche victims this season the man and his companion were described as experienced and prudent mountaineers who knew the area well. The avalanche risk was 3 (considerable) at the time of the accident. At les Arcs, a group of four ski instructors from nearby Bourg St Maurice were caught by an avalanche Saturday afternoon under the Aiguille Rouge while skiing off-piste. One member of the group, a 27 year old man, was buried. He was found rapidly using his avalanche beacon but died during his transfer to hospital by helicopter. Earlier in the day three skiers, also resident in Bourg St Maurice, triggered an avalanche in the Aiguille Grive sector, injuring two of the group.
2/26 -
CHINA - Recent snow storms in Southwest China's Sichuan Province caused 30.5 million U.S. dollars of direct economic losses, latest official statistics show. The freak weather conditions, which lasted from Feb. 14 to 18, hit 20 counties, cities and prefectures in Sichuan, affecting 474,000 people. It snowed for 50 straight hours in the counties of Xuanhan, Dazhu and Daxian from the evening of Feb. 16 until the morning of Feb. 18. The snow was 60 cm deep in the mountainous areas. This amount has RARELY BEEN SEEN IN THE PAST TWO DECADES, experts said. The snow struck 5,533 hectares of cropland and destroyed another 800 hectares. In Shimian County, three consecutive days of snow left 500 livestock dead due to frigidity and lack of food. Parts of Shimian were also hit by strong gales, which damaged some transportation and communication facilities.
A thick blanket of snow covered northeast China's Liaoning Province Saturday and a weather report said most parts of the province would still expect heavy snowfall or blizzard. Due to a chilling front from Baikal, the RARE snowstorm started to hit Liaoning Province Friday, the first heavy snowfall since Feb. 4, the day that marks the start of spring in the Chinese lunar calendar. On Saturday morning, the fallen snow in downtown Shenyang measured at least 15 centimeters.
CANADA - A storm has shut down much of St. John's, forcing people to close businesses, cancel flights and abandon vehicles on roads blocked by snow. It was a fierce storm with winds gusting up to 130 kilometres an hour. A sustained wind of 120 km/h is hurricane force. It dropped as much as 15 centimetres over a single hour early Saturday morning. By mid-afternoon on Saturday, the city had received about 48 centimetres of snow, with no letup in sight. "They've had a good 10 hours of heavy snow." The forecast was calling for up to 60 centimetres. The storm was expected to let up Saturday night, moving west to hit Labrador and Iqaluit.
2/24 -
RUSSIA - At least 56 people were killed and 32 injured when the snow-laden roof over an indoor market in Moscow collapsed. The collapse comes two years after the roof of a Moscow water park – built by the same architect – collapsed, killing 28 people. (photo)
WASHINGTON - An avalanche near Stevens Pass closed US Route 2 in both directions Thursday afternoon and trapped four cars.
2/23 -
COLORADO - A weather phenomenon that was responsible for turning snow pink and brown in Summit County may also create avalanches. Dust blowing in from Arizona got mixed up in a storm system over Colorado's mountains and it created a pinkish-brown layer in the snow. The crusty layer of the snow has avalanche experts concerned. "This layer right underneath can change into a granular substance, very grainy, very small structures that can break apart easily. So we can have a layer underneath the dust layer now that's subject to collapse and that can slip out of place." The Avalanche Center is urging everyone to be extremely cautious in the back country for the next few months.
2/22 -
ITALY - Two Hungarian cavers were killed by an avalanche in the Alps in north-eastern Italy, while another seven remained trapped in a mountain cave. The three had been the first in the group to leave the cave. They were hit first by a minor avalanche Monday morning on Mount Bila Pec, near Udine. They managed to free themselves from the snow, but were struck by another avalanche two hours later as they descended from the mountain. Heavy snowfall was complicating efforts to rescue the remaining seven,they do not appear to be in immediate danger as long as they remain inside the cave.
ITALY - An avalanche fell from Mount Faloria into the Franchetti gully just before midday, involving an off-piste skier. The man managed to free himself alone, he is in a state of shock but unhurt. Fog stopped the rescue helicopter from taking off: mountain rescue teams from Cortina d'Ampezzo and San Vito di Cadore are arriving from the base, also to check that there are no other skiers involved.
SWITZERLAND - Three German skiers were killed by an avalanche in eastern Switzerland on Monday and two others in the same group were rescued alive.
FRANCE - Multiple avalanches - A group of four skiers on a tour of the Tête de l'Oreac have been caught by an avalanche close to the ski resort of Puy Saint-Vincent in the Hautes-Alpes. The group included two children. One member of the group was killed by the slide. A group of 6 off-piste skiers were involved in an avalanche at les Deux-Alpes. One of the group was severely injured in the slide and was also suffering from hypothermia. At Arêches in the Savoie 5 off-piste skiers triggered an avalanche injuring two of the group. There was an avalanche in Arêches at the weekend in the col de la Grande Combe sector involving 3 skiers none of whom were injured. A snowboarder suffered a broken arm in an avalanche at Tignes. There was 20cm of fresh snow early on Sunday morning coupled with winds up to 150km/h. This has formed new accumulations and slabs and the risk of avalanche was high. Six people have been killed over the past couple of days by avalanches in the French Alps. This brings the number of deaths since the start of the season to 33.
MONTANA - Four people have been killed in Montana avalanches so far this winter. Nationwide, 12 people have died.
2/21 -
FRANCE - A snowboarder has been killed by an avalanche in the ski resort of le Corbier. Three others in her group escaped without injury. With a further 15-20cm of snow overnight accompanied by strong winds Meteo France had warned the avalanche risk was at high (4/5) in the area. This was the second avalanche at the resort this season.
CALIFORNIA - Shifting temperatures created FREAK WEATHER at sea, where cold winds brushing warmer water led to waterspouts. After more than a week of glorious warm weather that peaked at 90 degrees inland, a weekend winter storm brought temperatures crashing back down to the usual February chill. Yearly rainfall totals for downtown Los Angeles from July 1 were measured at just over 5 inches, nearly half the normal 9.5 inches and a fraction of the 26 inches that fell last year.
2/20 -
U.S. - A deep freeze stretched from the Rockies to New England as workers tried to restore power to tens of thousands of homes and businesses left dark by fierce wind. At least four deaths were reported in the Northeast, while at least three people were killed in accidents on icy roads in Arkansas over the weekend. The fierce wind, including a 143 mph gust recorded on Vermont's Stratton Mountain on Friday, knocked out power and toppled trees, which were blamed for the four deaths in the Northeast. As far south as Texas, ice and freezing rain canceled dozens of flights. In the Upper Midwest, the 8 a.m. reading of 2 below zero at Duluth, Minn., combined with 17 mph wind for a wind chill of 23 below. A reading of 18 below was recorded in Allagash, Maine. Rochester, N.Y., registered a low of 10 degrees, and winds of up to 17 mph created a chill factor of almost 10 below zero.
CALIFORNIA - The weekend's sudden return to winter conditions continues a wacky month of weather which saw unseasonal temperatures in the 80s for several days in early- and mid-February. Santa Ynez Valley is expected to have freezing low temperatures until Wednesday night. Snow fell at elevations down to about 2,500 feet, with an estimated one to three inches falling throughout the day Saturday. Vehicles were covered in ice. “They had a thick coating of ice all over them. I can't remember that ever happening,” said a woman who has lived in the area 22 years.
BULGARIA - The Mountain Rescue Service at Bulgarian Red Cross are looking for a man buried under an avalanche on Vitosha mountain. The signal was received at the Mountain Rescue Service at 3.40 p.m. by a man who said the avalanche had dragged down two more men. “One of the men has already been found but he is seriously injured”.
2/19 -
CANADA - Powerful winds, freezing rain and snowstorms blasted a large part of the country Friday, causing at least four deaths near Ottawa and another in Quebec as slick roads turned treacherous for motorists. Southern Ontario and Quebec were battered Thursday night by high winds, freezing rain and thunderstorms. In Toronto, powerful winds of up to 90 km/h brought down trees and power lines, resulting in some blackouts. The wind also tore down traffic lights at about 20 different intersections throughout the city of Kingston. "The whole lexicon of weather misery was spread all over Southern Ontario in less than 12 hours." That included a random mix of freezing rain, snow and thunder and lighting - which is a RARE occurrence during winter. In Quebec, extremely strong winds and widely fluctuating temperatures were making for extremely difficult and dangerous driving conditions. At mid-afternoon Friday, dozens of people were trapped in their cars on Highway 40 near Joliette after a major car pileup involving between 50 and 60 cars. The storm is also expected to hit Atlantic Canada, starting with wind warnings for many parts of New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia Friday evening. Freezing rain was also expected in some places. Environment Canada was warning of large waves and pounding surf along Newfoundland's west coast Saturday. Meanwhile western Canada has been hit by a cold snap. In British Columbia, overnight temperatures dropped down to –7 C, which is more like –14 C with the windchill. Albertans continue to face frigid weather, with temperatures of –23 C in Calgary and –20 C in Edmonton. Regina's has dipped to –27 C, with the wind chill making it feel like – 43 C. Winnipeg is recording temperatures of –32 C, or –45 C with the wind chill.
RUSSIA - An avalanche hit a road and a railway on southern Sakhalin on Friday and covered the engine of a cargo train with five meters of snow. The engineers were rescued. The avalanche was caused by heavy overnight snowfall in Nevelsk and Kholmsk districts of the island.
RUSSIA - A group of nine experienced climbers went into Nakhar’s canyon on January 27. The goal was to climb the peak of the Nakhar mount. On February 4, a heavy snowstorm began. The mountaineers decided to wait till the bad weather was over, but the snowfall did not stop. In a week, on February 11, an avalanche descended. It carried away several tents with part of the equipment. The group leader died. The climbers dug out the body of their dead friend. The snowfall continued. On February 13, a second avalanche descended. It buried three other group members, among them world champion Konstantin Dorro, under a 10m layer of snow. The survivers could not dig out their bodies, because the second avalanche carried away their equipment. By the evening of February 15, the group did not have any foodstuffs and fuel. In the same night, the snowfall stopped. On the morning of February 16, the surviving climbers were rescued by helicopter.
VERMONT - road crews throughout the Northeast Kingdom are trying to maintain roads during this year's unusual weather conditions. "It's just been a weird, weird winter." This year's freezing and thawing, freezing and thawing, has played havoc with the roads, creating numerous ruts and making roads harder to plow. The strange weather has created many frost heaves in places where there typically aren't any. It's not unusual to get a warm spell in the middle of winter, maybe once a year, but this week's warm spot was at least the fourth.
NEW YORK - Just as the last of the snow continues to melt from the past weekend's blizzard, Long Island and the New York metro area continues to experience some strange weather. "We're seeing conflicting air masses with mild weather behind us and a cold front moving in which will cause some high winds." They were expecting record high temperatures Friday before it began to drop into the 30s overnight. The shifts between cold and mild weather will probably continue as the pattern well into March.
MISSOURI - What started as a downright balmy February day with 70 degree temperatures changed quickly Thursday afternoon. As the rain began to fall, so did temperatures. That dramatic weather shift included stinging doses of hail. Many drivers were forced by the hail to stop in their tracks. The storm left piles of the hardened precipitation. Windows of apartment buildings were shattered and cars dented.
2/17 -
OREGON - A cold air mass is sweeping in from Canada, despite weeks of relatively balmy temperatures and copious rainfall. The RARE frigid air mass is moving in from the east out of Canada all the way from the Great Lakes region. Typically, the Northwest receives weather from the west, or from the north out of western Canada. The UNUSUAL WEATHER SYSTEM could send temperatures into the teens in the Portland area overnight Thursday and into today. Temperatures in outlying and rural areas should be even lower. Since the system is coming towards the Northwest over land, it is not expected to be packing much moisture, meaning any snowfall in the Portland area should be light. However, forecasters say the real danger from the storm will come in the form of very low temperatures and wind, not just snow. The cold weather is a drastic change from almost two months of above-average temperatures that had the region's residents and some plants looking forward to an early spring.
2/16 -
PAPUA - Extreme temperatures, combined with cold-related viral diseases and illnesses have plagued remote villages in the easternmost Indonesian province of Papua and killed at least 95 people in recent weeks. The cold weather, which dipped as low as 5 degrees Celsius in a region where temperatures typically are well above 20 degrees, has plagued villages in the Illaga and Gome sub-districts of Papua's Puncak Jaya regency.
UNITED KINGDOM - A climber has said he thought he was going to die after being swept away by an avalanche near the summit of Ben Nevis, Britain's highest peak. But he and his friend walked away virtually unscathed despite plunging 900ft down the mountain face they had been scaling. They were just a few metres beneath the top of number two gully when the build-up of overhanging snow gave way. A second party of three climbers was also caught up in the avalanche which stopped just yards from sending the group into frozen water. All five managed to stay on the top of the cascading snow and were only partially buried.
RUSSIA - An avalanche hit a village in a Russian republic in the North Caucasus Wednesday. The avalanche in the republic of Karachai-Circassia occurred at about 12:40 p.m. Moscow time [9.40 GMT], damaging around 15 private houses; two of these had their roofs ripped off. No casualties have been reported so far. On Monday, an avalanche in the same area hit a mountaineers' camp, killing one. A heavier avalanche the following night killed three more members of the nine-strong group, and injured another. Meteorologists have warned that more avalanches may be forthcoming in the North Caucasus.
ALASKA - State Troopers are flying toward an avalanche site in Dalzell Gorge near Rohn to search for a man believed to be trapped Tuesday under the snow. The man was part of a snowmachine team that had just finished manning the Iron Dog Race checkpoint in Rohn. His team was reportedly driving behind the snowmachine racers to break trail for the upcoming Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race when the avalanche occurred.
JAPAN - An avalanche struck a group of students in northern Japan on Wednesday, killing one and leaving several missing. The avalanche occurred near the city of Ebetsu on the northern island of Hokkaido around 11 a.m. It was the latest in a string of avalanches in Japan over the last week as the country struggles through one of its snowiest winters on record.
INDIA - An avalanche threat looms on the entire tribal belt and other higher reaches of Himachal Pradesh which experienced moderate snowfall Tuesday. The avalanche threat was mainly because of UNUSUALLY HIGH temperatures in high altitude tribal areas which could hasten melting of the glaciers. People living in Keylong, Udaipur, Pangi and Pin valley have been asked to avoid outdoor movement to avert any mishap. Chamba town and its adjoining areas were hit by a hailstorm followed by widespread heavy rains, triggering landslides and disrupting vehicular traffic.
CANADA - There has been considerable and potentially dangerous avalanche activity in Banff, Yoho and Kootenay National Parks in the past week. For much of last Tuesday, the Trans-Canada Highway was closed between Field, B.C. and Lake Louise due to an avalanche that swept across the highway from Mount Bosworth on Monday evening. The avalanche last Monday was isolated, as opposed to being one in a series. “It was an ODDBALL EVENT in the sense that it wasn’t a widespread cycle. Normally when we start getting a peak in an avalanche cycle we start seeing sort of a pattern of a number of avalanches happening in a number of different areas. What’s a little bit different about it is that something happens there and it’s a fairly big event.” On Sunday, a big backcountry avalanche occurred near Lake O’Hara in Yoho National Park. No one was hurt. “(It) was a very big avalanche, which was a bit of surprise. The condition we have is deep instabilities in the snow pack so that when something does fail, it fails big. There are also small avalanches that are happening as well but some of the big events are all the winter snow pack failing.” On Saturday, Parks Canada closed the same part of the highway as it had last Tuesday. High winds and snowfall in the past several days contributed to the deteriorating conditions.
2/15 -
RUSSIA - Three people are feared to have been killed in an avalanche in southern Russia. The incident happened on Tuesday morning in the North Caucasus republic of Karachayevo-Circassia. A camp of climbers and a ministry rescuer were engulfed in the avalanche. The bodies of the victims have not been found so far. Emergency officials do not rule out other persons killed by the avalanche would be found under the snow.
2/14 -
CANADA - A 50-year-old man from Calgary has died after skiing into the path of an avalanche in Kananaskis Country, while his companion escaped without injury.
2/13 -
U.S. EAST COAST - Three key airports were shut down and hundreds of flights were cancelled at other airports after a blizzard swept the region, leaving a blanket of deep snow from Boston to Washington.
The storm buried sections of the Northeast under more than 60 centimetres of snow Sunday, marooning thousands of travellers. The National Weather Service said 68 centimetres (26.9 inches) of snow had fallen in Central Park, New York, the MOST SINCE RECORD-KEEPING STARTED IN 1869. Wind gusting nearly 100 kilometres an hour blew the snow sideways and raised a risk of coastal flooding in New England. And in a RARE display, lightning lit up the falling snow before dawn in the New York and Philadelphia areas, producing muffled winter thunder. The storm is also causing trouble in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, where 20 centimetres of snow is expected to fall.
ILLINOIS - More snow was expected after a FREAK BAND of widespread but heavy snow showers dumped as much as 7 inches in some areas of Central Illinois Saturday morning. "It's a VERY ODD STORM," a National Weather Service meteorologist said. "Some areas of Springfield got 6 inches while neighborhoods nearby got almost nothing." The system developed more strongly than models had predicted, and showers formed and repeatedly traveled over the same areas. The showers started around 4 a.m. and moved southeast. "It was VERY STRANGE FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR, but interesting to watch."
INDIANA - winter weather resulted in multiple wrecks on Interstate 65 Saturday, closing both lanes and backing up traffic for miles. UNPREDICTABLE SNOWFALLS affected areas of south central Indiana, depositing 3 inches in the Brown County area and 5 in Johnson, and no snow in other areas.
Why the peculiar weather? Cold temperatures about 10,000 to 15,000 feet in the air mixing with the warm ground temperatures created an unstable atmosphere, causing random snow squalls. "YOU DON'T SEE THIS TOO OFTEN. It's convective snow. Think of it as scattered showers in the springtime. Just so happens it came in the form of scattered snow showers."
FLORIDA - An arctic blast of cold air in Central Florida will likely drop temperatures to RECORD-BREAKING LOWS early today, and even present the chance for some snow flurries outside Orlando.
ALASKA - The Seward Highway was closed Saturday when a massive avalanche buried the roadway, nine metres deep in places. There were no immediate reports of injuries or fatalities. It occurred less than a day after the highway was reopened following bad weather and avalanches that forced its closure Thursday.
2/12 -
JAPAN - The fourth avalanche in two days buried and injured four mountain climbers on a remote, icy peak Saturday amid one of the snowiest winters on record. The snow gave way on the slopes of 2,760-meter Mount Ioudake in Nagano Prefecture shortly before 10:30 a.m. Four climbers were buried but were later pulled from the snow. Two suffered broken bones and the other two suffered minor injuries. There was only one meter of snow on the ground on Saturday, but the conditions were perfect for an avalanche as about 70 centimeters of fresh snow had fallen up to Thursday, and the temperature on Saturday was relatively high. On Friday an avalanche buried an outdoor hot spring at a popular inn in Akita Prefecture, killing one person and injuring 16. A 20-year-old worker rescued almost six hours after the avalanche struck was confirmed dead on arrival at a hospital. An avalanche occurred earlier Friday near a different hot spring resort in Akita. A 65-year-old employee who colleagues feared had been buried in the snow was later found safe. Later in the day, a third avalanche in the region covered a railway track, forcing a high-speed bullet train to make an emergency stop after its first few cars smashed into the mound of snow. Record-breaking snowfalls have hit many parts of Japan in recent months, killing at least 123 people since December in snow-related accidents.
TURKEY - according to preliminary information, two mountaineers died and two more remained trapped in an avalanche in Aladaglar Mountain in central Anatolian city of Nigde on Saturday. The avalanche fell on 14 students, members of a mountaineering club.
GERMANY - Parts of Germany issued weather catastrophe warnings on Thursday as heavy snowfall was forecast before the weekend in the south and rivers began flooding in the east due to rising temperatures. German meteorologists in the south said they have seen the HEAVIEST SNOWFALL IN A DECADE. Up to 70 cm (27 inches) are expected by Saturday in parts of the southern state of Bavaria. "In four regions of lower Bavaria - Passau, Deggendorf, Freyung-Grafenau and Regen - the snowfall has created a catastrophic situation." Two roofs have already collapsed under heavy snow in Bavaria. In January, the roof of an ice rink in Bad Reichenhall collapsed, killing 15, and this week the roof of a supermarket collapsed in Toeging am Inn, east of Munich, lightly injuring employees and a shopper.
AUSTRALIA - Adelaide is experiencing an unseasonal cold patch. For the past week, Adelaide temperatures have dived with maximums about 4C below the average of 29.3C - just weeks after the worst heat wave in 60 years. "Spring is wetter, Autumn drier. Our seasons are changing. The last 10 years have been the hottest on record."
2/10 -
COLORADO - The mountain snows that feed Denver Water's water supply are near record levels but there's so much RECORD SNOW that there's fear of flooding during the spring runoff. Snowpack in the Upper South Platte basin, which has been at average or below since 1998, is 117 percent of normal. In the Colorado River Basin, snowpack is 154 percent of normal, the highest it's been since 1996. This year's UNUSAL WEATHER PATTERNS - huge snowpack in the mountains and unseasonably dry conditions at lower elevations - suggest a continuation of recent years' widely varying weather conditions, prompting some to wonder whether there's a new definition of "normal" weather in Colorado. "An unusually wet year could easily be followed by one with dryness of epic proportions."
FLORIDA - A blast of Arctic air invades Northwest Florida this week, bringing rare freezing temperatures during one of the warmest winters on record. Freezing weather is forecast for Saturday with a low of 31 degrees. That will make it frosty for magnolias, azaleas and many other brilliant spring bloomers that have sprung flowers. Cold winter weather can be a needed respite for plants and can help control weeds and insect pests. "We need winter here. We really do."
RUSSIA - The Botanical Gardens on the premises of Moscow State University has suffered losses as a spell of very cold weather continues in Moscow for several weeks. Air temperatures dropping to around 30 degrees below zero have split a trunk of an old ash-tree, ruined a walnut tree that turned into an ice-bound log, and damaged several apricot trees despite desperate efforts made by the Gardens' attendants to save them.
MACEDONIA - A lion and a llama died of cold in a zoo in southern Macedonia this week as polar temperatures gripped the country. The 25-year-old lion and the baby llama were found dead in their cages after temperatures in the southern city of Bitola, near the border with Greece, fell to -28C. The country in recent days has been hit by what local media call a "polar winter", with temperatures plunging far below zero, especially in Bitola - the coldest city in the country with temperatures in the minus 20s.
AFGHANISTAN - Snow, avalanches and extreme cold conditions in northern Afghanistan have killed 19 people, many of them children, during the last week. Four people were killed by an avalanche, and 15 children died of cold after the avalanche buried their homes and left them exposed in Deh Murda, a village in Suri Pul province.
ALASKA - A Michigan man who was living in Alaska and was out snowshoeing with a companion was killed when an avalanche swept down from the slopes of a gully near a popular recreation area. The slide appeared to be about 200 yards wide.
2/9 -
TAJIKISTAN - An avalanche swept down a mountainside in Tajikistan, killing three people. More than 20 people have been killed in avalanches in Tajikistan this year.
2/8 -
MALTA - Arctic weather has begun arriving in Malta, with temperatures plunging as low as 8.7C. This makes it THE COLDEST FEBRUARY DAY IN 44 YEARS since 1962 when on the 15th of February the maximum temperature that day reached only 7.2C. The coldest February day since the Meteorological Office started keeping records in 1922 was that of 1929 with a high of 6.7C. "This type of cold snap is RATHER UNUSUAL in the sense that such or lower temperatures occurred on only 12% of the occasions." A depression, or area of low atmospheric pressure, centred over Crete together with an Anticyclone, or high pressure area, over the Balkans generated a swift moving current of cold air passing first over the south of Italy onto Sicily and the Maltese Islands. Malta is also noticing that January and February have been getting colder in the last few years with more hail days being registered.
CHINA - The survival of rare wild animals is seriously threatened by the continuous snowfall and bitter cold in a nature reserve in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Bad weather and thick snow have caused great difficulties for wild animals like gazelles, argals (a species of wild sheep), and Asiatic wild asses, in looking for food. Since last December, heavy snow up to 50cm has hit the reserve; temperatures have plunged to minus 35 degrees Celsius.
KASHMIR - In Tangdhar, where villages were already damaged in the October 8 earthquake, the melting snow is triggering landslides and stones falling from mountains, posing a major threat to the lives and property of the 600 odd families living near the mountains. "Whatever was left is now destroyed. We are homeless and have now been shifted to a school." Several residential houses and Army barracks have already been damaged. Authorities have started shifting the families to safer places.
2/7 -
JAPAN - Heavy snowfalls over the weekend heaped misery upon mayhem for many snowbound areas along the Sea of Japan coast. As of 5 p.m. Sunday, accumulations had built to 416 centimeters in Tsunan, Niigata Prefecture - the FIRST TIME IN 25 YEARS THE PREFECTURE RECORDED MORE THAN 400 CM OF SNOWFALL IN ONE WINTER. This winter's heavy snows have led to freak accidents, fatalities and countless injuries. Even hearty residents used to tough weather say this winter has been excruciating. The snow has become wet - and heavier - because of the rain that fell on the weekend of January 14. Yet, winter is far from over. Local governments are warning people to brace for more snow. The Meteorological Agency also predicts another cold wave. The projected snowfall for February is about average for the northern and eastern parts of Japan, and average or slightly below for western Japan. But the agency warns that sudden rises and drops in the temperature could occur. New snow falling on old snow that has melted and then frozen again can trigger avalanches.
ALASKA - Some of Alaska's rural communities are dealing with the after-affects of frigid temperatures. The temperatures late last week shut down water and sewer lines in at least two villages, and cut power in a third. On Saint George Island in the Bering Sea, frozen water mains cut water service to about 30 homes, several businesses and the clinic. In Nondalton, between Lake Clark and Iliamna Lake, cold was blamed for problems in the power distribution system. And in Northwest Alaska about 300 residents from Selawik went back to the old ways after their sewer and water pipes froze. They are using honey buckets instead of toilets and chopping ice from the nearby river.
CANADA - VANCOUVER - A violent windstorm pummelled southern British Columbia on the weekend, knocking out power for 100,000 and prompting officials to ask residents of as many as 200 homes to evacuate because of heavy flooding. The mayor of Delta called it the WORST STORM TO HIT THE AREA IN 30 YEARS. The seawall failed to contain the stormy seas, causing extensive flooding and water damage. About 50,000 homes in Ontario suffered through their second day without power Monday, after a fierce winter storm knocked out services to an estimated 100,000 people.
2/5 -
TURKEY - About 30 people were trapped in their houses in the southeastern city of Hakkari due to an avalanche which fell on four houses and a stable early on Saturday. Around 30 people who were trapped in their houses were rescued by other people living in the neighborhood. On the other hand, Canakkale Strait has been closed to traffic since last night due to heavy fog.
AUSTRALIA - Victoria faces a wetter, colder winter due to the return of the La Nina weather system in the western Pacific Ocean. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climate Prediction Centre confirmed the existence of a La Nina after a large mass of cool water that started forming along the equator was detected in the second half of last year. Typically, La Nina, the opposite of drought-inducing El Nino, also heralds unseasonal rain in much of Queensland and New South Wales.
LA NINA -
The NOAA Climate Prediction Center announced yesterday the official return of La Niña. Agency forecasters predicted La Niña was forming nearly three weeks ago. Oceanic sea surface temperatures have met the operational definition of La Niña for the November through January period. La Niña is the periodic cooling of ocean waters in the east-central equatorial Pacific, which can impact the typical alignment of weather patterns around the globe. NOAA predicts this La Niña event will likely remain into late spring, and possibly into summer. In the U.S. "this pattern will favor continued drought in parts of the South and Southwest from Arizona to Arkansas and Louisiana, and above normal precipitation in the Northwest and the Tennessee Valley area." Periodic precipitation in the drought areas and dryness in the stormy areas also are typical within the larger scale climate pattern described above. Internationally, La Niña impacts during the Northern Hemisphere winter typically include enhanced rainfall across Indonesia and northern Australia, as well as in the Amazon Basin and in southeastern Africa and below-average rainfall across the eastern half of the equatorial Pacific and eastern equatorial Africa. Typically, La Niña events favor increased Atlantic hurricane activity. La Niña events recur approximately every three to five years. The last La Niña occurred in 2000-2001 and was a relatively weak event compared to the 1998-2000 event.
2/2 -
TAJIKISTAN - an avalanche killed 18 people in their sleep when it engulfed an apartment block in the mountainous Central Asian state overnight. The Emergency Situations Ministry said it had rescued 20 out of 38 people who were caught in the avalanche, which came after a week of heavy snowfall in the Jirgital region, 250km northeast of the capital Dushanbe. Avalanches frequently kill small groups of people during the winter and spring in Tajikistan but it was the WORST DEATH TOLL FROM A SINGLE INCIDENT IN SEVERAL YEARS.
CANADA - A storm in Atlantic Canada that's expected to dump at least 50 centimetres of snow is wreaking havoc with travel, triggering power outages, and shutting schools and businesses. Nova Scotia appeared to bear the brunt of the fierce nor'easter on Wednesday, with blizzard, wind and storm-surge warnings issued for communities along the Atlantic coast and southeastern Cape Breton. Prince Edward Islanders were to receive up to 15 cm, with high wind gusts of more than 90 kilometres an hour. Together with the highest tides of the year, strong winds in the Gulf of St. Lawrence could result in some coastal erosion in the tiny province.
2/1 -
AFGHANISTAN - Severe winter weather in Afghanistan has killed at least 18 people in the northeastern province of Badakhshan. "Heavy snowstorms have hit five villages in the Kuhistan-e-Ragh district of Badakhshan, killing 15 people." At least three more people are reported dead in the Ragh district of Badakhshan due to the bad weather. The death toll is expected to climb as relief teams reach the isolated province. Officials and local people are still evacuating dead bodies from under the snow. Meanwhile, a landslide triggered by heavy snow has killed at least one person in the eastern province of Noristan along with 20 domestic animals."
An avalanche struck a mountain village in Afghanistan on Tuesday killing 18 people. The avalanche also blocked roads to the devastated village in Badakhshan province near the border with China, Pakistan and Tajikistan "Apart from the 18 human lives lost, more than 1,000 animals were also killed." The avalanche followed days of heavy snow and rain, and the weather over the area is still bad.
KYRGYZSTAN - An avalanche killed four people in southern Kyrgyzstan on Saturday, while heavy snow is disrupting life in the area and causing extensive damage. "There was no warning of the disaster and actually we did not expect an avalanche in that area." The avalanche ripped through the village of Sary-Bee in the mountainous Kara-Kulja district of the southern Kyrgyz province of Osh. On Monday two more avalanches struck the Kara-Suu and Alai districts of the province, but no casualties have been reported. Avalanches could strike parts of the Bishkek-Osh road - the only route linking the north and south - the Kyrgyz Akipress news agency warned on the same day. Heavy snow, up to 1.7 metres deep in higher areas, has been disrupting life in southern Kyrgyzstan since Friday. Two months' normal precipitation hit the area in just two days. The heavy snow damaged 170 houses, 10 schools, and several government buildings and blocked several rural roads. Local residents had not seen such heavy snow since the 1980s. "Our roof has collapsed and smashed the car parked close to the house." The unusually heavy snow is also disrupting energy supply networks, with power lines buckling under the snow or unable to meet increasing energy demands. Some neighborhoods and entire villages have been without electricity under freezing temperatures for three days.
FRANCE - Three soliders out of a group of seven have been killed in an avalanche in the Hautes-Alpes. There had been up to 50cm of fresh snow in the area acompanied by strong winds.
CANADA - A stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway along the B.C.-Alberta border reopened Tuesday afternoon, nearly a day after an avalanche roared across the pavement and trapped a transport truck. A wall of snow churned down Mount Bosworth in Yoho National Park on Monday night. Many travellers were stranded for hours. Travellers in other mountainous areas of Alberta and B.C. have also been plagued by road closures due to heavy snow and the threat of avalanches. Additional road closures were expected in the B.C. Interior as forecasters predicted more snow across much of the province for the rest of the week.
MINNESOTA - people in western Minnesota have been given a rare treat few people ever see in the Upper Midwest - a snowstorm that swept in from the Dakotas a week ago caused a weather phenomenon called "snow rollers." Meteorologists say conditions have to be just right for snow rollers to form. On Jan. 23 and 24 strong winds and wet snow rolled up snow like hay bales. An inch or more of fresh, wet snow is necessary, whipped up by strong winds. That means temperatures need to be at or near freezing as well so the snow will easily stick together like snowballs. That's exactly the weather conditions that came with the storm from the Dakotas. Temperatures were just a degree below the freezing mark, and winds gusted between 25 and 40 miles per hour. Ice crystals start the ball rolling. Snow attaches to the sleet-like ice crystal and starts to roll up the fresh snow like a carpet, leaving snowballs and snow "bales" in clusters around fields and on lawns. In the city some were about eight inches wide and a good six inches high. That's not nearly as large as some of the rollers out in the country. Central Illinois recorded a good collection of rollers on Feb 11 and 12, 2004, when wild gusts of from 40 to 60 miles per hour sailed across the idle farm fields. Most were about 10 to 12 inches in diameter, but some rolled up to the size of a 30-gallon drum. The "self-rolling" snowballs occurred in Kansas in 2000. Others have recorded snow rollers in recent years in Ohio, Connecticut, New York State, Indiana, Alaska and various patches of bare land in Canada.
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EUROPE - Freezing weather continued to take its toll across Europe, with the number of dead in Poland rising to 214 since the start of winter, more than the 190 who died of cold during the entire winter last year. Temperatures fell as low as minus 35 Celsius in parts of Poland last week. While they have become milder this week, temperatures are still below freezing at night in most of the country. In Germany the toll in the cold spell gripping the country rose to 10. Even Lisbon, Spain, was hit, experiencing its FIRST HEAVY SNOWFALL IN 52 YEARS, and icy conditions forced the closure of many motorways and main roads in the north and centre of the country. In southern France conditions eased but traffic was still restricted on roads into Andorra because of avalanche fears, and some 20,000 households remained without electricity because snow had brought down power lines. In the Aude department a number of villages were threatened with a repeat of flooding which claimed 34 lives in 1999. Residents were warned to move to an upper floor of their houses or leave their homes altogether as three days of rain had swollen the Aude river to a dangerous level.
FRANCE - Multiple avalanches swept away skiers and at least one hiker in the French Alps, killing five people over the weekend. Two hikers are missing near the Mont Blanc tunnel linking France and Italy.
PORTUGAL & SPAIN - Heavy snow is blocking motorways and several major roads in Portugal and Spain. The Portuguese seaside town of Figueira da Foz saw its FIRST SNOWFALL IN 50 YEARS. Lisbon, which was under heavy rainfall since dawn, saw a hint of rare snow flurries for about 30 minutes during the afternoon. It HADN'T SNOWED INTHE CAPITAL SINCE 1954. Temperatures dipped to an unusually low minus 6C (21F) in northern districts. In Spain, the stormy weather covered much of the country, including the southern region of Andalusia, which rarely sees snow. In the southern city of Ecija, which is called the frying pan of Andalucia because summer temperatures rise above 40C (104F), locals had NOT SEEN SNOW FOR 30 YEARS.
RUSSIA - More than 300 Russian fishermen were rescued from an ice floe that broke away from the island of Sakhalin in the Russian Far East. Rescuers used boats, a hovercraft and a helicopter to take people off the ice floe that was pushed out to sea by high winds in southeast Sakhalin's Mordvinova bay.
KASHMIR - A two-year-old was killed and his cousins sustained injuries when their house in Chuniwari village of Machil sector in north Kashmir Kupwara was hit by a snow avalanche on Saturday. The avalanche, caused by the fresh snowfall in the higher reaches, destroyed the house completely.
BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA - In an astounding irony, a woman was swept by an avalanche on a ski trail at Blackcomb Mountain even as the resort observed Avalanche Awareness Days. The woman suffered a broken leg after being carried nearly 1,000 feet (300 meters) in what was described as a Class 1 avalanche. Class 1 avalanches are described as being minor, like sloughing of snow, and relatively harmless to humans. A Class 2 avalanche could bury or injure or person, while a Class 3 avalanche could bury a car and destroy a small building. Whistler-Blackcomb does avalanche control on more terrain than any other resort in North America.
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SWEDEN - Two people have died and a third is in critical condition after a group of skiers fell through broken ice over a frozen lake near the town of Mariefred west of Swedish capital Stockholm. Police said a group of 16 skiers fell through the ice on the edge of the lake, which was being used at the time by hundreds of ice skaters and skiers.
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POLAND - The snow-covered roof of a convention hall in southern Poland collapsed Saturday with as many as 500 people inside for a racing pigeon exhibition, killing at least 60 people and injuring more than 141. "People tried to break windows in order to get out. People were hitting the panes with chairs, but the windows were unbreakable. One of the panes finally broke, and they started to get out by the window." Rescue crews and search dogs worked frantically through the night in subfreezing temperatures to save those trapped inside. Witnesses said people beneath the wreckage were calling family or emergency services on their cell phones for help. "There are still a lot of people trapped in there, some half-frozen." Officials speculate that accumulated snow on the roof caused the accident. An attorney for the building management said the structure, built in 2000, could not have collapsed from the snow because excess snow was regularly cleared from the roof. "The snow was last removed two weeks ago, and since then there hasn't been much snow." On Friday, snow caused a town hall's roof to collapse in the southern Austrian town of Mariazell, though no injuries were reported. On Jan. 2, the snow-covered roof of a skating rink collapsed, killing 15 people.
SPAIN - Five women were killed in a bus crash on a snow-covered road in eastern Spain as a severe winter storm caused traffic chaos across the country.
ALASKA - If the next four days are as unrelentingly cold as the past week, January 2006 may become the THIRD COLDEST MONTH ON RECORD SINCE 1971. As of the 25th of this month, the average temperature has been 19.2 degrees below zero. With no relief in sight, January 2006 will rate at least the fifth coldest month in the past 35 years.
Huge ridges of sea ice brimmed over the Arctic Ocean and crashed onto a Barrow roadway earlier this week, threatening to cut off traffic and knock out power poles in the state's northernmost town. The two massive ice surges, known to Alaska Natives as ivus, were the city's LARGEST IN MORE THAN A QUARTER OF A CENTURY and stunned residents who had never seen large blocks of ice rammed ashore. Ivus are like frozen tsunamis and crash ashore violently. They've killed hunters in the past and are among the Arctic's most feared natural phenomena. Strong winds from Russia and eastward currents began pushing pack ice toward Barrow last Saturday. (PHOTO)
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NORTH CAROLINA - Wind gusts set new records in North Carolina early Wednesday and caused some damage to the visitor's center at Grandfather Mountain. Winds gusted to at least 200 mph early Wednesday morning at the U.S. Weather Service reporting station atop Grandfather Mountain, BREAKING THE RECORD FOR THE HIGHEST WIND EVER AT THE MOUNTAIN of 195.5 mph set on April 18, 1997. The highest wind speed ever recorded in the Eastern U.S. was 231 mph at Mount Washington, N.H. on April 12, 1934. Grandfather Mountain's summit visitors center suffered extensive damage when the wind blew out three double-strength, steel-wire-reinforced windows, ripped up floor tiles, blew open a locked door; tore a wooden mantel off a wall and upended a 300-pound boulder that was cemented into the parking area. Metal frames from two of the windows were also ripped from the wall and found more than 200 yards away.
BERMUDA - “The Bermuda Weather Service has advised that there will be intermittent heavy rain, high winds and low temperatures from now until the end of the week. In some cases, winds may reach gusts of 50 miles per hour, particularly during thunder showers.” Gusts of storm force are expected to persist until Saturday. “A secondary trough will bring a deeper low pressure and conditions will be very unstable.” Harbour Radio warned mariners last night to watch out for extremely high seas. Yesterday, seas inside the reef were expected to increase to seven to ten feet and 15 to 20 feet outside the reef – increasing to 25 feet today.
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EUROPE - Bitterly cold weather affecting much of Central and Eastern Europe has claimed the lives at least 60 more people. Hundreds have died in Ukraine, Poland and several other countries during a week of record sub-zero temperatures. Georgia's president said his country had effectively run out of fuel. "We have RECORD FREEZING TEMPERATURES. We have NEVER HAD SUCH COLD AT LEAST FOR THE LAST 30 YEARS and exactly at this moment the country is without heating and without electricity, without lights." There were reports of cold-weather deaths as far south as Italy.
PENNSYLVANIA - was hit by a very common storm - for July. An intense line of storms swept across southcentral Pennsylvania Tuesday night, dumping up to an inch or 2 of snow in about 15 minutes, then quickly moving on. They've seen lightning in January a few times before, but never with such intense snow. Lightning and thunder are caused by a massive uplift of air into the atmosphere, which happens much more frequently when the air is warm. However, the difference between the cold blast of air from Canada and the above-average temperatures in the area Tuesday night was enough of a contrast. The result was a storm with July-like speed and moisture, minus about 60 degrees. Weather patterns are the reason for the FREAK STORM, bringing constant storms from the Pacific Ocean that keep pushing cold air north. Parts of Europe and Asia are having some of the coldest January days on record. "There's cold air floating around the northern hemisphere. It just hasn't crossed to our side of the pole."
ARIZONA - Freezing rain - a result of cold surface temperatures combined with moisture - is a RARE PHENOMENON in northern Arizona, but it showed its devastating effects Wednesday in the area from east of Winslow to south of Holbrook. The freezing rain hit Winslow without warning Wednesday morning, causing the death of three people. There were two other fatalities on Highway 61 where a car slipped off the road. The 41/2 hours of freezing rain were enough to spark chaos on I-40, which was closed briefly several times during the day because of the accidents. "The rain came down all the sudden and people were sliding off the road everywhere."
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EUROPE - Freezing weather has killed scores more people in eastern Europe and snowstorms have forced the closure of the Acropolis in Athens and blanketed parts of Sicily as the bitterly cold air pushed south. The bitter cold has now spread to the far south of Europe, regions which normally enjoy milder winters. In Greece, more than 400 villages and towns were cut off after 36 hours of continuous snowfall and hundreds of snow-clearing vehicles struggled to keep main routes open. Ports across the country stayed shut as icy gale-force winds swept across the Aegean sea, dropping a carpet of snow over the islands. Italy is also suffering from the cold snap, with the thermometer falling to -35 C in mountains in the north-east. At the other end of the country, heavy snow swept parts of the Mediterranean island of Sicily on Wednesday morning.
ALASKA - Ocean currents pushed "mammoth" chunks of sea ice ashore in Barrow early Tuesday, creating a wall of ice 20 to 40 feet high in some places for miles along the coast. While no structures or utilities were damaged, the phenomenon - called "ivu" in the Inupiaq language - caught residents and Barrow officials by surprise after ice began rolling ashore around 5:30 a.m. The ice simply tore through 6- to 8-foot-tall gravel berms meant to protect Stevenson Street, which was blocked in two places. "It went right over those easy. It just knocked them all down. The berms became just like a ramp for the ice and it went over the road. And the road is about 150 feet, 250 feet from the sea. It's quite a ways." The ivu is the first since 1978 when ice pushed more than 450 feet inland. Ivus happen every 30 to 40 years. There was another in 1976 and elders remember more in the 1950s. Much of the ice pushed ashore was first- or second-year ice - 3 feet thick at most. "As soon as (young ice) hits land, it breaks into small pieces. If it was 8- to 12-foot thick like we used to have before global warming, it would have been a problem." The winds at Barrow have died down, but they continue to blow from the west. That's an ODD PATTERN that's lasted for about 10 days now. Usually, the wind comes from the east with very temporary shifts from the west. That isn't the only STRANGE SHIFT in the weather pattern. Satellite images show that multiyear ice has been spotted south of Point Hope for the FIRST TIME SINCE 1981. A persistent north wind has helped push that ice south from the Chukchi Sea, through the Bering Strait and into the Bering Sea for the last 45 days or two months. "Something interesting is going on with the winds or currents or both."

AUSTRIA - A ski instructor was buried in an avalanche while trying to demonstrate the risks of skiing off-piste in Austria. Avalanche warnings and poor visibility led him to take his ski group in Vorarlberg to the edge of the slope to explain the dangers of crossing into the off-piste area. "Suddenly there was a loud rumbling and he disappeared in a cloud of snow." He was picked up by the avalanche and dumped into a 200-foot deep ravine before being buried under 60 feet of snow. His students called the mountain rescue team who were able to dig the ski teacher out in time. He is now being treated for shock and hypothermia.
CZECH REPUBLIC - An avalanche slipped down the slope of Smrk, the second highest summit of the Beskydy mountains, before 11:00 a.m. yesterday killing a skier. The victim, along with his friend, was going down a slope where skiing is banned.
YO-YO WEATHER - VIRGINIA - February looks to be a month when wintry cold finally re-enters the battle against the mild Pacific-driven weather they've had all of January. Deep arctic chill continues to bank from Siberia into Alaska and the Northwest Territories of Canada, seemingly waiting for an opportunity to pour down. Meanwhile, there are increasing indications that high pressure in the north Atlantic near Greenland may start blocking the jet stream, forcing it farther south over the United States. However, there are no signs that the strong Pacific jet that has been roaring from the west will slow down. So this could lead to an epic battle between mild and cold in February, with considerable turbulence and variability. The opportunity will be there both for big storms - rain, snow or ice - and sharp shifts between warm and cold. Either the mild or the cold will probably win out by the end of the month, meaning either an early spring or a cold March.
MASSACHUSETTS - the winter of 2006 has already been a season of extremes. After getting off to a frigid start in December - which featured earlier than expected snowfalls, the January thaw has stretched out for nearly the entire month with several days soaring into the upper 50s. But while the majority of the month has been mild, it’s featured some wild weather as well, including last week’s rain storm which packed damaging, gusty winds followed by this week’s snow and rain event.
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EUROPE'S relentless deep freeze, with sub-zero temperatures as far south as Sicily, claimed several dozen more victims yesterday, while closing schools and disrupting air, road and sea traffic. Temperatures as low as -36C crippled power grids, burst frozen water pipes and caused thousands of road accidents in a swath of eastern Europe from the Baltic states in the north to Turkey, Greece and Italy. In Greece rescuers struggled to save the 16-man crew of a cargo ship stranded in heavy seas in the Aegean Sea. The Arctic weather conditions are expected to affect much of central Europe at least for the rest of this week.
RUSSIA - Rescuers on Kamchatka have finally reached a convoy of trucks, which was stranded by a blizzard near Gorely Volcano, 70 kilometers from the region’s capital, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, on Jan. 19. All 18 people are safe and well, although they have spent four days without food. Rescuers had been trying to reach the convoy for two days, spending one of the nights in a snow cave, where their satellite phone did not work, sparking fears that even the rescue team might need help. Helicopters could not be used in the rescue operation because of a severe snowstorm and high winds.

HAWAII - Officials closed the summit of Hawaii's Mauna Kea volcano to the public after a snowstorm shut down access for the first time this winter season. The RARE event caused concern and surprise. Clouds blanketed Hawaii's tallest peak this weekend. A blanket of snow forced everyone to evacuate, including park rangers. The heavy snowfall was a RARE sight, even for those who are up there almost every day. "The snow began to accumulate very quickly and we had to evacuate to prevent being trapped on the summit." Bad weather was expected for the rest of the week.
ARGENTINA - an Australian man was 'blown off' a volcano. An Australian man who disappeared while climbing a snow-covered volcano in Argentina ten days ago probably died the first day on the mountain. "It looks like he was blown off the mountain on the first day and died." After reaching the 2,500 metre mark on the 11th, two hikers are believed to have encountered snow, fog and strong winds. One fell down a crevasse after losing his footing and was rescued the next day. The other's body was eventually found close to the track he was hiking on.
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EUROPE - The cold weather is still persisting and a hail storm hit various areas of Malta last evening. It has been reported by the Meteorological Office that the cold weather will continue over the next week whilst more hail storms are to be expected. Other European countries are also suffering the excessive cold. Ukraine reported 45 dead due to the cold temperatures that reached -38 degrees Celsius. In Romania six were reported dead as the temperature reached -25 degrees. In Germany six lost their lives with temperatures ranging from -33 degrees to -20 degrees Celsius. Other countries including Finland, Latvia, Sweden, Estonia and Poland reported deaths due to the cold weather. According to the Meteorological Office, a depression over the East and central Mediterranean will be almost stationary over the next couple of days as an anticyclone persists over the Balkans. The rest of the week is expected to have temperatures ranging between highs of 11 degrees Celsius and lows of six degrees Celsius.
Bone chilling weather has claimed dozens of lives across Europe as glacial temperatures swept the Baltics to the Balkans, brought RARE SNOWFALLS to Istanbul and sparked a scramble for heating fuel. The unusually low temperatures, which are predicted to last several days, have left well over 100 fatalities in Germany, Poland, Russia, Turkey and the Czech Republic. "You'd have to go back at least 10 years, sometimes 20 years, to find such sharp colds."
GREECE - The cold front of weather from Siberia is expected to send temperatures in Athens as well as other parts of Greece plummeting. The cold is expected to hit Greece in a milder form. Nevertheless, the temperature began dropping from Sunday and reached -6 degrees Celsius in the northern city of Florina. Weathermen have forecast that it would snow in most parts of Greece over the next two days, including Attica, accompanied by gale force winds. Police cars will patrol national roads 24 hours a day and 13 stations have been set up along the Athens-Thessaloniki highway, from which assistance can be dispatched.
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EUROPE - At least 16 more people died from the cold as an Arctic freeze continued to chill central and eastern Europe overnight, claiming victims from Turkey to Lithuania. In Estonia, where temperatures fell to -26C in the south-eastern part of the Baltic nation, several fires were caused by overheating, killing two people. Two more people died from cold in Lithuania over the weekend, bringing the total to eight. Three elderly people also died in Ukraine, raising the total to 21 deaths since temperatures dropped at the start of last week. Meanwhile, five deaths from hypothermia were reported in neighbouring Poland where rail and road traffic was seriously disrupted. In Turkey, a man died of exposure after walking in snow-covered mountains in the north of the country. Moscow's death toll due to Siberian temperatures jumped to at least 79 after three more people froze to death overnight. In addition to the dead, 20 people were taken to hospital with hypothermia. Temperatures in the Russian capital eased slightly to about -18C after reaching as low as -23C overnight. As the mercury dropped to record lows, cash machines have frozen solid and trolleybus cables have snapped.
RECORD COLD, with growing pressure on energy supplies, and power shortages as Russia cuts deliveries to fight the freeze at home. In Latvia, temperatures of -27C were recorded, the LOWEST IN 100 YEARS. In Russia, the weather is the COLDEST TO AFFECT THE COUNTRY IN MORE THAN 25 YEARS.
Frigid temps have created a Dutch ozone hole. Frigid temperatures in Europe and very cold air in the stratosphere have created a mini hole in the ozone layer above the Netherlands. The Dutch National Weather service says the hole will last a few days, and that it is a different phenomenon than the large hole over Antarctica, which lasts several months. A weather balloon reported a NEW RECORD LOW ABOVE THE NETHERLANDS of -86.8 Celsius. The extreme cold affects the chemical balance of the air currents. If low-lying clouds allow, Polar Stratospheric Clouds will be visible - a RARE sight in the Netherlands.
After days of heavy snow and freezing winds, weather across Northern Europe began returning to normal on Sunday, although more winter storms were forecast to blow through in the week to come. The heavy snow, followed by warmer weather and possibly rain was also expected to increase the danger of avalanches in the mountains. In Norway some 700 buildings were damaged by the recent storms as strong winds ripped off roofs and smashed entire buildings. In Sweden, where at least 500 car accidents were reported due to difficult driving conditions in recent days, a number of roads remained closed in the north because of snow and avalanches. Driving was especially difficult in central-eastern Sweden, which was covered in more than one meter (3.3 feet) of snow in less than 24 hours, and where snow drifts in some places towered as high as three meters on Saturday.
BOSNIA - An avalanche has killed a Lithuanian businessman snow-boarding in an area closed for skiers at Mount Jahorina near the Bosnian capital Sarajevo.
JAPAN - A rare snowfall in Tokyo left nearly 10,000 passengers stranded overnight at Narita airport after about 50 international flights were cancelled. The season's first snowfall in the greater Tokyo region measured 9cm in the center of the capital yesterday, the HEAVIEST ACCUMULATION IN EIGHT YEARS.
ALASKA - Extreme cold delayed the start of the Kuskokwim 300 Sled Dog Race until Sunday. Twenty-seven mushers and their dog teams were set to start Friday, but officials decided to hold off until Sunday at the earliest, citing dismal weather conditions. The delay is only the second time in the past 18 years that the race has been stalled by cold. Wind chills plunged temperatures to about 50 below zero on Friday and 45 below zero on Saturday. The dogs running today tend to be leaner and with thinner coats than they had 15 years ago, an adaptation that improves their performance in the warmer winters that have become the norm in Alaska. Thinner coats, however, mean mushers must be prepared to protect the animals with dog coats and blankets. In extremely cold winds there are concerns about dogs freezing their bellies and flanks.
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TURKEY - Eight people, including a two-year-old girl, were killed and at least 15 people were injured when a bus was buried in an avalanche in eastern Turkey Saturday. The bus, carrying 29 passengers, got stuck in snow before being swept 20 metres into an abyss by an avalanche while passengers were attempting to free it. 'We could not get get to some of the injured,' said one of the survivors. 'They froze on the bus.'
FRANCE - A missing ski mountaineer has been found beneath an avalanche in the Bauges. This brings to seven the number of people killed in avalanches since last Thursday in the French Alps.
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RUSSIA - At least 31 people have died during a four-day cold snap in Russia, where temperatures have plunged to below -30 C.
Moscow remained in the grips of extremely low temperatures Thursday, with the temperature in the Russian capital grazing the -32°C (-25.6°F) record for January 19, registered in 1927. The all-time record low for Moscow was set January 17, 1940 when the temperature fell to -42°C (-43.6°F).
CANADA - Blowing snow and winds gusting to 108 km/h have brought business in most of Iqaluit, capital of Nunavut, to a standstill. A low-pressure system is moving north, causing very strong winds across southern Baffin Island. The blizzard was expected to move toward southern Greenland next.
INDIANA - Right now, the region is transitioning from a warm- to cold-weather pattern, marking about a two-week period in which they could experience significant swings in temperatures. Thursday's high was expected to reach 49 degrees. Wednesday's high did not reach above the freezing point. Before month's end, "we're going to tank in terms of it getting cold." Temperatures in February will be as cold as in late 2005, a span of time from late November through much of December in which area high temperatures did not reach above 32 degrees. An unseasonably warm start to January, with temperatures frequently reaching the 50s over the past two weeks, has lulled many residents into the false belief that winter's harshness will remain at bay. The early start to winter, when averaged with recent warm temps, so far has created a statistically average winter. The current transition from warm- to cold-weather patterns creates conditions for storms. "It's possible we could see about four potential winter storms before this cold period sets in at the beginning of February."
ILLINOIS - UNUSUAL weather bringing sulfur smell into village. The strong sulfur odor irritating the lungs, noses and eyes of some in the village for more than a month now is nothing more than normal emissions from the ExxonMobil Joliet Refinery, officials at the plant say. The problem is the emissions are wafting horizontally to the northwest, instead of directly up into the atmosphere, where they would go unnoticed. The refinery’s first report of odor in Channahon was on Dec. 13. If the drifting odors are due to a combination of low temperatures, low hanging clouds, and low wind levels, as ExxonMobil suspects, the meteorologist could help the plant predict when such weather patterns might occur. The plant could then proactively cut back production and slip in filters on those days to prevent odors from drifting into residential neighborhoods.
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NORWAY - The storm that lashed the northern county of Finnmark was just the beginning of grim winter weather battering Norway, and warnings of extreme conditions from the coast of North Trøndelag to West Finnmark are in effect. The worst hit areas can expect hurricane conditions, and residents were working to hinder roofs from being blown off and boats blasted up onto land. Traffic by sea, air and land is expected to grind to a halt in several areas. Meteorologists warn that temperatures will drop to -10C (14F) to -25C (-13F), and in concert with the winds will mean bitter cold for northern Norway. A warning of extreme weather for such a large stretch of the coast was VERY RARE. Recent weather in the northern counties has been mild, and with little snow on the ground the looming storm can take hold of gravel, with resulting injuries and damage to cars and property. On Tuesday over 50 vehicles had their windows smashed in the city of Hammerfest. The storm expected to hit the northern region has now been dubbed "Narve".
Two elementary schools in the northern city of Hammerfest were evacuated on Tuesday, after a severe storm smashed windows and sent rocks flying through the air. An UNUSUAL lack of snow and ice has made the storm more dangerous, because sand, gravel and rocks aren't pinned down. Hammerfest's population was being urged to stay indoors. Meanwhile, down south in Oslo, meteorologists were predicting as much as 15 centimeters of snow would fall during the night and on Wednesday. Forecasters were unsure whether temperatures would rise or fall later in the week, depending on the movement of a severe coldfront over Russia.
ESTONIA - Estonian weather forecasters have warned that temperatures will drop quickly over the next few days - as low as negative 35 degrees Centigrade. The freezing weather could last more than five days.
RUSSIA - The European part of Russia, the Urals and parts of West Siberia are in the grips of severe frosts. In Moscow, the air temperature sank to –30 degrees Celsius in the small hours Wednesday. Forecasts indicated that even the southern territories of the country had colder than usual weather. In area of famous North Caucasus spas, the frosts were as strong as –15 degrees, and the major Black Sea resort of Sochi had the temperature of about –5, also QUITE BIZARRE for the place. Russian energy systems withstood peak loads Tuesday night, as consumption of power reached 146,000 MW – something unseen over the past 15 years.
Extreme wintry weather is taking its toll on energy supplies with Russia unable to meet the needs of several European countries. Hungary and Romania are among those reporting a drop in gas deliveries. Italy says it has had to dip into its reserves. Temperatures have dipped below minus 50 in Siberia. In central Russia, meanwhile, the Arctic conditions have proved tragic. A minibus fell through ice in the city of Nizhny Novgorod. Six passengers are feared dead. The current cold snap is something experts say normally HAPPENS ONLY ONCE IN A GENERATION. In Moscow, it is the COLDEST JANUARY FOR AT LEAST TEN YEARS. Since the start of the winter, the extreme weather has claimed over 100 lives in the capital.
CANADA - Ice jams in New Brunswick are threatening to destroy the world's longest covered bridge and have caused floods that stranded people in their homes for at least four days.
LA NINA? -
The Climate Prediction Center declared last week: "Developing La Niña conditions are expected to continue during the next 3-6 months." The late onset of La Niña creates "considerable uncertainty" about impacts on the Western U.S., but La Niñas generally bring them dry conditions – like they've had most of this winter. In the near term a major atmospheric pattern shift could break them out of their season-long dry pattern for at least a couple of weeks. Last weekend's weak storm could be the beginning of that shift. As the jet stream moves across the Northern Hemisphere from west to east, there are generally four or five "long-wave troughs," or dips in the jet to the south. Where those troughs fall affects which areas get rain, because the jet stream is a kind of conveyor belt of storms. When the jet stream travels around the globe, it tends to stay in certain wave patterns until something happens in the atmosphere, perhaps a typhoon or a separate, large-scale oscillation, to jostle the jet stream out of that pattern. The pattern for most of last fall and this winter has kept the jet stream away from them. But last week, forecasters noted that the jet stream appeared to shift from a four-wave pattern into a five-wave pattern. "It looks like we may see a large-scale pattern shift as a large, deep, cold trough develops over the western U.S." That shift would potentially bring colder temperatures and significant rainfall through the rest of January, if not longer. "It's hard to say with 100 percent certainty that we're totally out of it (the dry pattern), and it's going to shift." Shifts in the jet stream to, or from, a five-or four-wave pattern tend to last a few weeks. The shifts normally occur two, three or four times a winter. Sometimes, however, a pattern gets stuck in place.
The US is predicting the above-average rainfall from the La Nina phenomenon, and while Australian forecasters say the call is premature, they concede the heavy rain of the past few weeks indicates we're not headed for the drought-producing El Nino, either. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is predicting for this autumn a weak La Nina, which occurs when an area of the Pacific Ocean cools, affecting the atmosphere. El Nino occurs when the ocean warms. The conditions for LaNina - which last occurred in 2000 - are debatable and the American threshold for La Nina is lower than Australia's.
1/18 -
MONTANA - An avalanche that swept down Red Meadow Peak on Saturday afternoon was so powerful it blew water and fish out of Red Meadow Lake below. It killed two of three snowmobilers who were buried in it. The avalanche happened on the south side of Red Meadow Lake in an event that was so swift and violent it left the bowl below looking “more like a bomb crater.” The weather leading up to the avalanche was a week of heavy, dense snowfall, unseasonably warm weather and strong west winds. The avalanche and its accompanying air blast was carried full-force onto the lake. “The shock wave crushed the snow and ice surface across the entire lake and caused a tidal wave” on the north shore. The focus of that “tsunami of water, snow and ice” was the northeastern corner where the victims stood. The avalanche knocked down trees and the lake-saturated snow created balls of ice the size of cars and trucks. Searchers using probing poles in snow as deep as 20 feet hit ice and trees under the surface. The avalanche had compressed snow “like concrete” around the items buried below and stretched out for a half mile. “An avalanche the size of Saturday’s release had never been observed” in the area before.
1/17 -
CANADA - Schools, businesses and roads are closed in Happy Valley-Goose Bay as people struggle to cope with more than one metre of snow. The snowfall in Labrador started on Saturday with 30 centimetres blanketing the area. About 60 cm fell on Sunday, and another 20 to 30 cm were expected through Monday. The Trans-Labrador Highway is blocked and only essential personnel are working at the town's military base. In western Labrador, about 40 cm of snow fell over the weekend. The snow is hampering a search for eight snowmobilers missing since Friday. Meanwhile, in southern New Brunswick, heavy rain and mild temperatures have caused flooding and ice jams. The province's Emergency Measures Organization is warning that the water is still rising along the Nashwaak and Miramichi Rivers.
NEVADA - It can be said that Saturday's storm that brought 16 inches of snow to South Lake Tahoe exceeded all expectations. Some could go as far as to call Saturday's event a freak of nature or an anomaly. Whatever it was, it wasn't on the National Weather Service radar as being significant enough to issue a winter storm warning. Slivers of the weather system - considered weak by weather service standards - turned into thunderstorms on the West Slope that strengthened as they made their way into the Sierra. There were three such bands of the main storm that hit a swath of South Shore before they traversed into Carson Valley and Carson City, dumping about four inches of snow on the valley floor. South Shore ski areas got anywhere from 24 to 30 inches. Another storm is expected to make its way into the Sierra tonight, with the possibility of "significant snowfall" on Wednesday.
PENNSYLVANIA - Forge woke up windy and cold Sunday morning. Tabernacle was windy and cold - and buried under nearly 8 inches of snow. And just think: Saturday afternoon had been a pleasant 60 degrees. Slick roads caused traffic accidents throughout the region, and wind gusts up to 65 m.p.h. knocked down trees and power lines in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The storm also produced a LOW TIDE WATER LEVEL RECORD. Strong winds caused blowout tides on the Delaware River. At Philadelphia, the lowest water level was 3.1 feet below what is known as mean lower low water - a reference point used for determining low tide - at 9:18 a.m. The previous record was 2.9 feet below, on Jan. 17, 2000, and Nov. 14, 2003.
NEW MEXICO - A wind advisory went into affect for most of Monday in the region causing dangerous conditions for fire fighters. It took five units and almost two hours to control a brush fire at Ascarate Park. Fire officials say wind conditions made it very difficult and dangerous for firefighters. The winds were so strong in Canutillo, you could barely see the emergency lights from an ambulance. In some parts of town the strong winds caused low visibility for drivers. In far West El Paso winds kicked up to about 41 mph. "This winter is very strange, earlier today the weather was nice and it drastically changed. I think this winter is going to be very different from what we're used to."
1/16 -
KASHMIR - Snow and rain that began two days ago in northern Pakistan is disrupting aid supplies to survivors of the Oct. 8 earthquake living in the Kashmir region. "All quake hit areas are in the grip of a strong westerly wave" causing heavy snow and rain. Rain and snow is forecast for next three days, which may cut off villages at high altitude because of landslides and avalanches. Snow has already triggered several landslides in Pakistan's earthquake zone Sunday, cutting off some remote villages and towns.
MONTANA - Rescuers recovered the bodies Sunday of two snowmobilers who disappeared a day earlier in an avalanche west of Glacier National Park. A third snowmobiler was rescued by other snowmobilers in the area after being buried under a few feet of snow. There was "extreme avalanche danger" overnight.
JAPAN - Japan's Meteorological Agency renewed avalanche warnings Sunday as temperatures increased and a man slipped to his death, bringing the toll from recent heavy snowfall to 90 - the highest in 20 years. The agency predicted that the temperature will rise to as high as 15 degrees Celsius in snowy areas in central Japan, and 8 C in the northeast - much warmer than normal for the season. Rain and higher temperature triggered several avalanches Saturday and early Sunday.
CANADA - Unseasonably warm weather is being blamed for an avalanche that killed a ski guide in remote southeastern British Columbia. The guide was swept away while checking a weather station near a ski lodge. The avalanche had come down, travelled around a corner and gone UPHILL into the weather station site.
1/15 -
JAPAN - Japan faces the threat of avalanches this weekend as winter weather eases to bring a thaw to one of the HEAVIEST SNOWFALLS ON RECORD. Warnings of landslides, avalanches and floods are in place across the country. Rain is forecast in many areas, likely to increase the risk as snow drifts almost 4m (13ft) deep in places start to melt. The snow-related death toll has risen to at least 89, thought to be the HIGHEST SINCE 1980. About 1,800 points across the Niigata prefecture have been identified as posing a risk of avalanche, including hundreds of sites with more than 3m (9ft) of snow.
CANADA - RECORD SNOWFALL forced the cancellation of 200 flights at Montreal airport, school closures and caused havoc on roads. More than 41 centimetres of snow fell on Friday. The storm will go down in history as ONE OF THE BIGGEST SNOWFALLS IN A SINGLE DAY in Montreal in December, beating a record of 37.8 centimetres (15 inches) on December 27, 1969. About 2.14 metres of snow usually falls on the city each winter.
PAKISTAN - The United Nations has suspended relief flights to victims of last October's earthquake in Pakistan because of heavy rain and snow. The UN halted the flights to the Kashmir region and surrounding territories today and was monitoring the situation on an hour-by-hour basis. Flights are expected to resume later today if there is a break in the weather. Pakistan's Meteorological Department warned of heavy snow throughout the weekend and the threat of avalanches.
1/12 -
ASIA - is reeling under the HARSHEST WINTER FOR YEARS - Ten feet of snow has fallen in Japan. In China, temperatures have plunged as low as minus 43C and 100,000 people had to be evacuated when houses collapsed under the snow. A quarter of a million people have been snowed in. And in India, a frost that made headlines may also prove fatal. It reached the lowest temperature in Delhi for 70 years - and the SECOND LOWEST EVER RECORDED - but it has only dipped below zero by the narrowest of margins: minus 0.2C. Most South Asians are simply unable to cope with even these comparatively mild temperatures. They do not possess blankets or warm clothes. In this part of the world, even those with a roof over their heads rarely have heating. But for the homeless, the situation is even worse.
WESTERN U.S. - RECORD-BREAKING SNOWFALLS hit much of the West, but missed New Mexico and Arizona. From Mammoth in the southern Sierra and Whistler-Blackcomb in Britsh Columbia's Coast Range, to say nothing of Jackson Hole and Vail and Kirkwood and Park City, it was an incredible two weeks of storms for most of the West. At Jackson Hole, the snow depths at mid-mountain are the DEEPEST IN THE 40-YEAR HISTORY of the resort. The recent storm dropped 10 inches a day for nine straight days. Park City Mountain Resort got nearly 100 inches since Christmas and nearly 60 since New Year's Day. Colorado resorts are boasting that they have the best snow in 20 years.
1/11-
JAPAN - Soldiers battled through snow on Tuesday to reach nearly 200 households cut off for two days in the mountains of central Japan in a RECORD COLD SNAP that has left 71 people dead. Authorities worried they were running short of fuel and students missed classes as towns were buried by roof-high snowfall UNUSUAL even for Japan's frigid winters. Soldiers failed to cut through the blizzard on Monday because of avalanche warnings. In Tsunanmachi, around 160km north of Tokyo, 199 people were cut off by 323cm of snow. The Japan Meteorological Agency expects 40 to 60cm more snowfall in the area facing the Sea of Japan during the next 24 hours. Fifteen locations across Japan have been hit by RECORD SNOWFALL since last month.
1/10 -
INDIA - People in Delhi woke up to another cold morning with the minimum temperature at 1.6 degrees Celsius. The city recorded near-freezing temperatures on Sunday FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 70 YEARS. There are more than 1.5 lakh homeless people in Delhi who are the worst hit. The cold wave is sweeping across most of northern India. The Dal Lake in Srinagar has frozen FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 20 YEARS and frost was found on crops in Punjab and on top of cars in Delhi. Srinagar is recording temperatures below freezing point, and the city is covered with a blanket of snow with icicles forming on trees. Weather all around the world has deviated from normal conditions. Heavy snowfall broke all records in Japan and China with the temperature dipping to minus 43 degrees Celsius. Experts indicate the changes may not be just anomalies, as the world is increasingly moving towards extreme weather conditions. "The extreme weather conditions will set in further all over the world. Worst days lie ahead."
The northern hills of India have been experiencing heavy snowfall since the last week of December, making it one of the LONGEST AND COLDEST SPELLS IN SEVERAL DECADES.

JAPAN - The number of dead from Japan's HEAVIEST SNOWFALL ON RECORD has risen to nearly 70 people.
MONTANA - Avalanche danger in southwestern Montana remains high, with two snowmobilers already killed in separate slides since the first of the year.

CANADA - A snowboarder was found dead in an avalanche near Golden, British Columbia, on Sunday, just hours before four skiers were dug out of an avalanche 300 kilometres south in Fernie. B.C.'s recent warm and wet weather caused havoc with skiers at Fernie Alpine Resort when the avalanche hit about 3:30 p.m.
1/6 -
CHINA - Almost 250,000 people in north-western China have been trapped by heavy snowfall, as the country faces its worst winter in 20 years. Temperatures have plummeted to -43C, and snow is blanketing parts of Xinjiang province. Almost 100,000 people have been evacuated after their homes collapsed under heavy snow. More than 5,000 people are being treated for frostbite, four of whom had to have limbs amputated. Forecasters are warning this is just the beginning of a cold freeze. This wraps up a year of extreme weather conditions following the HOTTEST SUMMER IN MORE THAN 50 YEARS. Now China's government is appealing to private companies and millionaires to give more money to those in need, saying 18 million people affected by natural disasters are still waiting for aid.
JAPAN - was bracing for more snow today after SOME OF THE HEAVIEST SNOWFALL ON RECORD that has left at least 28 people dead and paralysed transport. Almost 4m of snow has piled up in the worst-hit areas of Niigata near the Japan Sea coast, though the snowiest season of the year is yet to come. Japan's Meteorological Agency said cold weather and heavier-than-usual snowfall would likely continue through January, caused by cold air flowing over the country from the North Pole. This was a phenomenon that occurs on a regular basis, but has lasted LONGER THAN USUAL.
1/5 -
CHINA - Violent blizzards have forced the evacuation of 97,000 people in a largely Muslim region of western desert China, as the nation braced for its WORST WINTER IN 20 YEARS. The nearly 100,000 evacuees had been moved mostly because their homes had collapsed under the heavy blanket of snow. The crisis was far from over: "It's still snowing." Winds blowing in from Siberia had caused the temperature to drop precipitously to -36C in some spots. While no people were reported dead or injured in Xinjiang, mass starvation among the region's livestock is a possibility. 300,000 head of cattle and sheep were unable to graze because of the thick snow cover. The snowstorms in Xinjiang were just the most dramatic result of a cold front descending over China this week. Most provinces in the north of China were affected, and heavy fog caused a series of cancellations and delays at major airports, including in Beijing. Three more "winter freezes" were expected to affect China during January. The Central Meteorological Office recently predicted that China would experience its coldest winter since 1986. This was based partly on the fact that temperatures in December were 1.5C below the historical average. China saw relatively severe natural disasters in 2005. "We had floods, typhoons, droughts, hail storms, earthquakes, blizzards and mudslides."
CANADA - Winnipeg - Bad driving conditions created by a "FREAK" snowstorm are likely to blame for a crash that led to the death of an elderly man Monday night. The collision took place during a STRANGE SWING in the weather. "It was an EXTREME FREAK snowstorm just in that area. Only two kilometres of highway were involved in the snowstorm...each direction you'd be having a nice drive, and then all of a sudden you'd hit a wall of snow." Such freak snowstorms cause highways to be icy. "If it seems something is out of the norm weather-wise, you should try and decrease your speed until you know what you're on."
RUSSIA - An avalanche warning has been issued in Russia’s Sakhalin, after a powerful snow cyclone triggered five avalanches in the southern part of the island. Three of them have sealed off the highway between the city of Nevelsk and the settlement of Shebunino. The powerful cyclone paralysed transport on many roads. A double monthly norm of snow has fallen in different parts of Sakhalin over the past two days. Now the cyclone is leaving Sakhalin and the Kurile Islands to the Pacific Ocean, also hitting Kamchatka. This winter Sakhalin has seen several cyclones. About 30 avalanches were registered in mid-December, when a cyclone was hovering over the island for two days.
1/4 -
INDIA - Unpredictable weather held sway over north India claiming two lives in Punjab to raise the death count to 103 and snowfall wreaked havoc in Himachal Pradesh by cutting off all major passes even as road and air services were restored in Jammu and Kashmir. Foggy conditions too increased owing to high humidity, which disrupted road and rail traffic. Icy cold winds swept Chandigarh, as the maximum here dipped by a RECORD NINE DEGREES BELOW NORMAL at 11.4 C.
GERMANY - The Ice Rink disaster came amid FREAK SNOW. Long and dense snowfalls have brought havoc to southern Germany and Austria, triggering avalanches, felling trees, blocking roads and rail and cutting electricity to thousands of homes. Experts said an UNUSUAL mix of warmer weather - with temperatures just above freezing - and downfalls lasting for up to 30 hours had led to the chaos in an area used to snowy winters. Some 30 cm (12 inches) has fallen since Monday morning. "What was untypical is that it was first cold last week and snowed a lot and then became mild but continued snowing. This has raised the snow's density enormously and hence its weight." The snowfall was slowly moving northeast, towards the Czech Republic.
JAPAN - An avalanche buried 12 skiers and resort workers, badly injuring at least one. Niigata, about 155 miles northwest of Tokyo, has recently been hit with heavy snowfall. The weather agency warned that snow clouds could dump another 31 inches of snow in the region through late today.
1/3 -
PAKISTAN - At least 70 people were injured when heavy snowfall destroyed a tent village set up for quake survivors in Pakistan's northern Hattia Bala area.
Avalanche risk in Pakistan's earthquake-torn areas - Significant snow has fallen in earthquake affected areas over the last two days. Officials say that this week's avalanche killed at least 24 people, who were in the area to dig for gemstones. The Kohistan area had been "hit by several aftershocks in the past week and there was one on the day of the avalanche".
GERMANY - Ten persons were killed in the collapse of the roof of an ice skating rink in the southern part of Germany yesterday following heavy snowfall.
Three mountaineers were reported missing after they were hit by an avalanche in the German Alps. Seven others had been able to struggle free of the avalanche.
1/2 -
CHINA - already enduring its COLDEST WINTER IN 20 YEARS, is preparing for a cold snap that will see temperatures drop by as much as 16C. Northern China, where temperatures are already as low as minus 15-20C, will feel the strongest effects of the cold front, which is sweeping in from Mongolia and western Siberia. Three more successive "winter freezes" were expected to affect China during January, usually the coldest month of the year.
COLORADO - Two snowmobilers were killed in an avalanche near Cameroon Pass in the Rocky Mountains on Sunday.
UTAH - One missing, one rescued after Utah avalanche. A man who was caught in an avalanche while snowshoeing with a friend high in the mountains of Provo Canyon was presumed trapped. One man was able to ride out the avalanche, but his friend could not be found.

Extreme weather hits US states, Europe - In France and across much of Europe, brutally cold weather, which has seen lows of -26 C, is being blamed in dozens of deaths. Twenty-five centimetres of snow has fallen on Florence, Italy - the MOST IN 10 YEARS. In Poland, police said 23 people have frozen to death in recent days. An airport in the Netherlands was also snowed in, Germany was slammed with heavy snow and Britain experienced frigid temperatures down to -12 C, causing at least one death.
1/1 -
SLOVAKIA - Seven Czech climbers were killed on Saturday when an avalanche overwhelmed their camp in the Tatra Mountains of northern Slovakia.
FRANCE - An off-piste skier has been killed by an avalanche in the ski resort of La Toussuire in the Sybelles ski domain.
EUROPE - The forecast is for warmer temperatures over the weekend, but until then, many parts of Britain will remain in the grip of ONE OF THE WORST SNOW AND ICE STORMS it has seen in many years. Right across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, a cold snap caused transportation chaos. In one instance 200 vehicles were stranded on a highway. The weather has also led to cancelled trains and airline flights. By Saturday, the temperature was expected to rise above freezing, which had local authorities warning of the possibility of flooding.
CONNECTICUTT - In Danbury, three to five inches of snow will fall on the region. The storm is one of a series that have come east out of the center of the country "They form in the Midwest, come here, die out, then re-form off the East Coast. It's a little UNUSUAL. We don't usually seem to be getting storms moving along a conveyor belt." Because of the relatively warm weather they've had for the past week or so, these storms have shown up as rain. But colder air moved into the region late Friday, making the New Year's Eve storm all snow. Another, albeit smaller, storm will hit the state Monday night into Tuesday, then a third on Thursday night into Friday. This last storm will be the worst.
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2005 -
12/30 -
PAKISTAN - the Meteorological Department Thursday predicted heavy snow for the earthquake affected areas during the next 3 days.
At least 24 people have been killed in north-west Pakistan in an avalanche while digging for gemstones. The deaths are said to have occurred on Thursday in a remote area of Kohistan, where snow has fallen in recent weeks. Kohistan is located some 350km (210 miles) north-east of Peshawar and is close to the region that was hit by the devastating earthquake in October.
FRANCE reported a second death overnight from freezing temperatures as blizzards swept through northern and central Europe, forcing flight cancellations at Prague airport. Across Scandinavia, snowstorms cut power lines and disrupted rail and road traffic, with the situation expected to worsen in some places. Much of the continent was battened down against the harsh weather, the COLDEST DECEMBER IN A DECADE in Britain, where temperatures plunged to -11C in Scotland and northeastern England.
12/29 -
EUROPE shivered in the grip of an icy cold snap, with France hardest hit by blizzards that have cut rail and road links and left thousands of motorists stranded in sub-zero temperatures. Snowstorms caused hundreds of train cancellations in Britain and flight disruptions in Germany, Sweden and Portugal, as well as bringing road chaos to Italy, Austria and the Czech Republic. Below-freezing conditions have gripped northern Europe for several days, with night-time temperatures falling as low as -15C in places. More blizzards and strong winds were expected in Sweden, Denmark , Germany and England. In Turkey, where the cold has claimed four lives this week, temperatures plummeted overnight to minus 31 degrees Celsius (minus 24 Fahrenheit), in the eastern mountain area of Agri.
CANADA - Blizzards are expected to pound much of Newfoundland and Labrador, as a major storm that pummeled Quebec and the Maritimes slowly churns to the northeast.
CANADA - Snow safety experts say the unseasonably warm weather has elevated the risk of avalanche in many mountainous areas, both above and below the treeline. Conditions are ripe for a fresh avalanche cycle - a long period of cold weather without snow, followed by a warmer, rainy stretch of weather has created a precarious weak layer of snow, topped by a stronger one.
12/28 -
UTAH - Diverse weather took many parts of Utah by surprise Monday. Fierce winds knocked down trees and worse in Southern Utah. And in Utah County, sudden snow caught drivers and the Utah Highway Patrol off guard. In St. George, it's surprising to have THUNDERSTORMS IN DECEMBER. But one came through just before 3:00 Monday afternoon, with a gust recorded at 97 miles per hour. The temperature dropped 19 degrees in 40 minutes. It seemed that everywhere, the weather was UNUSUAL.
NEVADA - A fast-moving storm swept over the Sierra and across Northern Nevada the day after Christmas, leaving up to 2 feet of snow. Parts of Northern Nevada received an inch or two of snow during the day with Ely reporting one-half mile visibility in an UNUSUAL THUNDER SNOWSTORM.
VIRGINIA - December brings a cold end to a year dominated by warmth. Through Christmas, the month of December is averaging 4.4 degrees below normal in temperature. Anything more than a couple of degrees either way is a significant departure. They had only one day of above-average temperature through the first 22 days of the month. January, which ended up 4.7 degrees above normal, began with 13 of its first 14 days being 11 degrees or more above normal, seven of which were 20 or more degrees above normal with one as much as 30 degrees above normal. That's extreme warmth, and were it not offset by a colder-than-normal second half of January that included seven days 10 or more degrees below normal, it would have easily been their warmest January on record. In 2005, nine of 12 months averaged above normal in temperature, including six months averaging at least 2 degrees above normal. Why the strange temperature pattern in 2005? The early part of the year was dominated by a roaring jet stream out of the Pacific that brought in some extremely unseasonable subtropical air. Summer and fall were controlled alternately by a large dome of high pressure and by a juicy tropical season, the former bringing hot, dry weather and the latter bringing warm, humid weather. That left only spring and now December for the colder stuff to work its way down to them as the jet stream buckled southward. "And that means little or nothing for how things will go in 2006."
12/27 -
HONG KONG - has had frost in its COLDEST WINTER FOR 20 YEARS. Temperatures fell to just 1.4 degrees Celsius at one hilltop early Friday morning because of wind chill. Hong Kong is sub-tropical, and it is rare for the mercury to fall below 10 degrees.
UNITED KINGDOM - Motorists are being warned to expect treacherous conditions with heavy snow predicted for much of England. Forecasters say Kent could get the worst of the snow, with up to 10cm expected in some places. Up to two centimetres have already fallen in the south-east, East Anglia, West Yorkshire and the north-east. Snow is expected to continue falling over the next two days. "It's going to stay really cold for the next couple of days with temperatures of between two and four degrees Celsius. The snow will stick around until Friday afternoon when the weather will get a lot milder and a thaw will probably begin."
CANADA - A major storm is whipping Eastern Canada. In southwestern Quebec it hampered efforts to restore power to more than 70,000 homes and business. By late Monday night, the storm had already dumped more than 40 centimetres of snow on parts of Quebec and New Brunswick. Elsewhere in the Atlantic provinces, people were bracing themselves after forecasts predicted they could see as much as 60 cm of snow, 60 millimetres of rain, or wind gusts of more than 100 kilometres per hour.
Snowmobilers, skiers and other outdoor enthusiasts in Saskatchewan are being urged to take extra care, as officials warn that many lakes and rivers have thinner ice than they've seen in years. Many water bodies that are usually safe to cross may now be dangerous because of heavier than normal precipitation earlier in the year. Many lakes – especially around Prince Albert and La Ronge – are higher than normal. It is the first time IN MORE THAN 20 YEARS that sections of some rivers still have flowing water. The volume of water flowing downstream from Lac la Ronge and other waterways is four to five times greater than normal.
AVALANCHES -
12/27 -
RUSSIA - Rescuers on Monday were searching for a border guard who disappeared in an avalanche in the southern Russian republic of Dagestan. The avalanche occurred Sunday in the republic`s Tsuntinsky District. A local resident and one border guard were killed, three guards survived and one guard is still missing. Fierce snowstorms were complicating the rescue operation.
TBILISI, GEORGIA - An avalanche on the treacherous Jvari Pass on the Georgian Military highway claimed the lives of three men over the weekend. The three had been traveling in two Kamaz trucks which were also buried in the snowfall. Due to continuing snowfall and the remaining danger of avalanches, transport has still been blocked over the pass though access to Gudauri remains open.
ARMENIA - Rescuers searched Monday for two hunters who were buried by an avalanche in the mountains of Armenia.
JAPAN - In Fukui, northwestern Japan, a 52-year-old construction worker suffered a broken hip and leg Saturday after being swallowed in an avalanche during a roadside snow removal operation. On Saturday warnings were issued for blizzards and avalanches in northern and central Japan as severe cold winds continue to bring record snowfalls to the region. The Meteorological Agency predicted up to 24 inches of fresh snow in the northern Hokuriku region, parts of which have already had up to nine feet - the HEAVIEST SNOWFALL IN DECADES. Blizzards have swept through the nation since earlier this week, triggering blackouts and injuring hundreds of people in snow-related accidents.
COLORADO - A Colorado Springs teenager was killed in an avalanche Thursday, while snowshoeing with a friend near Georgetown. Fierce winds had quickly whipped up dangerous snowdrifts that were primed to break free and trigger avalanches. The pair had made the prudent decision to leave the area when the weather turned foul, which made the death more tragic. "They had started back. They could tell that things weren't looking good."
CANADA - Recent warm weather, along with strong winds and rain has raised the potential for avalanches across most of the province of British Columbia. On average, avalanches kill 12 people every year in British Columbia.
12/23 -
JAPAN - Heavy snow and strong winds caused havoc in many parts of Japan and South Korea yesterday, leaving hundreds of thousands of homes without electricity, disrupting traffic and even forcing nuclear power plants to shut down. "The weather is not improving, so we cannot get to the sites and make repairs." Some of the HEAVIEST SNOWFALLS ON RECORD FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR have hit Japan since last week, even in some southern prefectures that rarely see snow, but Tokyo has been spared. In northern Niigata, snow had piled up as high as 184cm and more snow is expected in the coming days. In South Korea, snow in the southern and south-western areas claimed at least one life, stranded thousands of motorists and damaged hundreds of greenhouses
INDIA - India's financial capital has been experiencing an UNUSUAL CHILL this winter, with temperatures falling well below normal for the season. A day after the mercury dipped to 11.6 degrees Celsius - the COLDEST DECEMBER DAY IN MUBAI IN THE PAST 56 YEARS - weather conditions remained largely unchanged on Thursday. On Thursday morning, a light mist hung over the coastal city and the minimum temperature recorded was 14 degrees Celsius. Some people could be seen in the early morning wearing sweaters and jackets - a RARE sight in this usually humid city. This is the second consecutive year that Mumbai has seen such a sharp drop in temperatures, and weather department officials said this was a spill-over from the cold wave sweeping across north India. "These conditions will continue for some time, though the mercury may not dip to Wednesday's levels."
OHIO - What's been UNUSUAL so far this winter season is the severe cold. "Up to Dec. 17, it's been the SECOND COLDEST DECEMBER IN THE LAST 100 YEARS. This month, the average temperature is only 32 degrees...Normal temperature for December averages 44 degrees. We haven't hit 40 degrees the whole month." There has also been more snow in Marietta in December, so far, than last year. "We had a bone-dry snow year last year. Already we've had 2.1 inches of snow. We only had 9 inches the whole winter last year." The Old Farmer's Almanac has been correct in its predictions of a colder than normal December. It calls for cold through late January with moderating temperatures in February, followed by a near-normal March.
COLORADO - it’s really cold in Colorado with tons of snow. The city of Fraser, once called the “Icebox of the Nation,’ has seen 44 below. It’s just like the “good, old days” of 30 to 40 years ago. The Winter Park ski area reported 142 inches of snow midway through December, the MOST SNOWFALL SINCE 1983 when a phenomenal streak of 41 straight days of snow was recorded.
ALABAMA - It should be an unpredictable 89 days. The National Weather Service's long-term forecast for the Birmingham area can't get any broader: Cold, seasonable or warm. "There are no climate signals that point in one area for our region." The same unpredictable forecast holds for precipitation. The Old Farmer's Almanac states on its Web site that the Deep South should be "colder than normal from mid-December through January, but the remainder of the winter season will be relatively mild."
U.S. WINTER FORECAST - The folks at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center don’t foresee any significant departure from normal precipitation or temperature in Virginia or North Carolina this winter. NOAA’s forecast for December through February – the three-month period meteorologists consider winter – calls for a warmer than normal season for much of the rest of the nation. As for precipitation, only Hawaii is expected to be wetter than normal, with Florida and southern parts of adjoining states drier. The Farmers’ Almanac predicts a “major storm along the Atlantic coast” for Jan. 20 to 23 and Feb. 8 to 11, bringing “a wintry mix … through the mid-Atlantic states.”
12/22 -
WASHINGTON - The month began with up to a couple inches of snow Dec. 1-2. After that, they had numerous frosty nights and cold foggy days and nights. The below-freezing nights culminated with lows down into the teens on Sunday morning and howling, icy east winds. Compare that with last year when they reported no measurable snow and the mercury didn’t drop below 20 degrees all winter. Another pronounced and UNUSUAL feature of the weather the first half of December was the UNUSUAL lack of precipitation. Through Saturday, precipitation totaled just .64 of an inch, compared to the normal amount through Dec. 17 of 3.95 inches. The average total for December is more than 7 inches. The dry December so far follows slightly above normal rainfall in October and November. They were on track to having perhaps the driest December on record and, had the cold continued, one of the coldest. But a warmup has begun and the Weather Service’s most recent outlook is that it will continue through the end of this year. And with it, the forecast is for rain, rain and more rain.
IDAHO - early-season storms deposited almost 8 feet of snow on Baldy by the first week of December, laying the foundation for a stable backcountry ski season. But three weeks ago, a stubborn high-pressure system crashed the party with frigid, dry air, setting the stage for a dangerous backcountry avalanche scenario that could lurk for weeks, or months, before rearing its ugly head. Avalanche risk is heightened by dry, cold weather. The early-December storm dumped 12 to 16 inches of snow on the Wood River Valley and surrounding peaks. It was followed by strong wind events, which formed dangerous wind slabs in the mid-to-upper elevation areas of the backcountry. Although it is somewhat stable, the snow is "rotten," and the backcountry skiing less than desirable. "It's really weak, rotten snow with lots of rocks and (other hazards). These cold temperatures cause the snowpack to weaken and deteriorate. The snow becomes less cohesive, very granular and sugary - you can't make a snowball." That means that when (hopefully not if) the dry high pressure does break down, allowing storms to spin back into the area, the avalanche dangers could be extreme. "(The snowpack) has got a very weak base, so once we get new snow on top of it, it will be top heavy." The same conditions developed last winter. After a series of massive storms pummeled Sun Valley through the holiday season, a huge high-pressure zone developed over Idaho and the Northwest, where it stubbornly sat for eight weeks. When snows returned in March, the stage had been set for disaster, as the new snow did not bond well to the weak, underlying layer.
ILLINOIS - The solstice signals a warming trend. Wednesday was the lowest positioning of the sun all season. It was also the shortest day of the year, with only nine hours of daylight. Dec. 7 had the area's lowest recorded temperature to date, at 5 degrees below zero. "We were already into winter before the winter solstice came up. We generally use December, January and February as winter instead of Dec. 21 to March 21." This winter is "very cold and on par with December 1989 for most parts of the state." This year's chilly temperatures are attributed to the CHANGE IN THE CIRCULATION PATTERN OF THE WEATHER. "In previous years, the weather moved west to east, but this year, it's coming from the north to south." Central Illinoisans are getting a whiff of Canadian Arctic weather. This weather pattern is "UNUSUAL and unrelenting." The coldest winter weather typically follows in the month after the winter solstice. However, this winter overall was supposed to be warmer than normal, but hasn't been shaping up that way so far. Monday's temperatures were 19 degrees below normal, with a high of 14 degrees and a low of 1 degree. Friday's high is expected to be 42 degrees.
TEXAS - Considering the meteorological marvels of the past 12 months, winter arrived in Houston Wednesday with an uncharacteristic whimper. Winter arrived in normal fashion after months of strange patterns. They expected calm weather on the first official day of winter, as temperatures hit normal for this time of year: just above 60 degrees for the high, and about 40 degrees for the low. Normal holiday weather would be one of the first normal things to happen in the past year. In the past 12 months, Houston has experienced fire and ice, to say nothing of a record-setting hurricane season. "It has been one TRULY STRANGE WEATHER PATTERN." The oddities began Christmas Eve a year ago, when snow fell and gave much of Houston its first white Christmas. The rest of winter was warmer, with January and February ending about 4 degrees higher than usual. Springtime was slightly cooler than normal. Then Galveston recorded its WARMEST SUMMER EVER, with an average temperature of 85.5 degrees from June through August. June was the third-warmest ever for the island and August THE WARMEST EVER. Houston didn't quite reach record temperatures in the summer — the city recorded its 13th-warmest summer since year-round records began being kept in 1889. With just .08 inches of rain, the city experienced ITS DRIEST JUNE. September was worse. Not only did Hurricane Rita menace the Texas area, Mother Nature cranked up the heat. In Houston there were RECORD TEMPERATURES on the three days following Rita's landfall, Sept. 25 to 27. The mercury on those days reached 99, 99 and 100 degrees. The Sept. 27 high of 100 was the latest Houston has ever reached triple digits. Galveston, Houston and College Station all recorded their WARMEST SEPTEMBERS. College Station also had its DRIEST SEPTEMBER EVER. Forecast models predicted the cooler-than-normal December but call for slightly-warmer-than-normal temperatures in January and February. Houston has been colder than normal this winter because more Canadian fronts have reached the city. If the fronts continue, Houston could face a very cold winter.
OKLAHOMA - Fall weather hits record books as arid, warm. This autumn is the seventh driest and ninth warmest, since record-keeping began more than a century ago. Winter began yesterday, ending one of the warmest, driest Oklahoma autumns on record. "Any time...the same year is in the top 10 of both categories - precipitation and temperature - that's pretty RARE and significant." Forecasters predict winter could be just as arid.
12/21 -
TEXAS - Temperatures hovered in the upper 30s Monday, significantly lower than the average high in Texas this time of year. The chilly weather was unexpected and a bit unwelcome Monday, and it was looking to be just as cold Tuesday. The forecast is calling for temperatures to climb significantly midweek and could be in the 60s by Friday.
12/20 -
CALIFORNIA - A weekend of heavy snow, high winds and warming weather are creating some dangerous conditions in the Sierra. The U.S. Forest Service has issued an avalanche advisory. Widespread avalanche activity was seen on Sunday. They expect the pattern to continue with the new warmer storm hitting the Sierra, the new snow from the weekend storm and strong winds.
FRANCE - A 22 year-old English skier has been seriously injured while off-piste skiing by an avalanche at Tignes. The skier was found in a state of cardiac arrest by an avalanche dog after 30 minutes under the slide. Avalanche risk was 3 (considerable) on a scale of 5.

AUSTRIA - Heavy snowfall in Austria's Alpine regions raised the risk Sunday of avalanches and led the authorities to urge hikers and skiers to avoid the areas deemed most prone to snow slides. Strong winds and snowfall of up to 120 centimeters, or 47 inches, in sections of Styria, a mountainous province in southern Austria, put the avalanche risk there at four on a five-point scale, on which five is the most dangerous stage.
OREGON - Thursday morning mid-valley residents woke to a vista straight out of a New England Christmas card, courtesy of a RARE WEATHER PHENOMENON, fog snow, produced by heavy fog and cold air mingling at ground level. It was a combination of stale, stagnant air and the coldest night they’ve had in nearly two years —19 degrees — that produced the effect. December’s average low temperature of 28.5 degrees is five degrees below average. Rainfall totals this year are 6 inches below normal.
12/19 -
INDIANA - Winter officially begins Wednesday but recent weather patterns have left many believing the season began weeks ago. "It does seem a bit UNUSUAL, the amount of snow we've had and how cold it's been. Especially when you take into consideration that winter hasn't even started yet. The area is experiencing its sixth-coldest and -EARLIEST START TO WINTER IN THE PAST 73 YEARS.
NEVADA - A strong winter strong front roared into Northern California overnight, bringing with it heavy rains, high winds, hazardous roadways and flooding in Novato and elsewhere in hard-hit Sonoma County. Rainfall totals from the storm were highest seen yet this winter. Sacramento had surpassed its ALL-TIME RECORD FOR RAIN on Dec. 18 with 1.41 inches - old mark 1.40 in 1955 - by noon. Meanwhile In the Sierra, motorists faced headaches as a potent storm dumped as much as 18 inches of snow in the Sierra and 8 inches in northern Nevada valleys.
SOUTH KOREA - Heavy snowstorms accompanied by strong winds and low temperatures paralyzed commuter train operations in the capital region, froze the Han River and caused damage in western coastal regions. There were power outages, water gauges broke and water supplies were cut off. As Seoul's temperature dropped yesterday morning to minus 14 degrees Celsius (6.8 F), the lowest this year, the Han River froze for the first time this winter, and the EARLIEST SINCE 1965. The cold spell will continue, although slightly milder temperatures are expected for three days starting today. Three pockets of extremely cold air formed above the North Pole in early December. "The pockets' shapes are similar to hats with shades, and one of those shades is covering East Asia. Cold air keeps coming from there, pulling down the temperature on the Korean Peninsula." The cold air, passing across waters west of the peninsula, formed snow clouds, causing heavy snowstorms in the western coastal areas. It has been a while since such cold air was felt in Korea, but the recent weeks' weather was not so unusual. "This is nothing abnormal. It has been like this in the past." The forecast is for January temperatures will be even lower than those of this month.
JAPAN - RECORD SNOWFALL blanketed parts of Japan over the weekend, killing at least nine people and disrupting transport, with the weather agency warning today that more snow was on the way.
AUSTRIA - A continued onslaught of heavy snow fall in Austria's Alpine regions caused at least one avalanche Sunday.
12/18 -
UKRAINE - a cyclone with strong snowstorms and wind hit the whole of the western Ukraine. Some 250 populated localities of western Ukraine were left without electricity supply, because the area was hit by a cyclone with strong snowstorms and wind on Friday night. Strong wind and snowstorm continue to hamper the work of the repair teams. The wind speed in the Carpathian Mountains is about 35 metres per second. Rescue workers forecast snow avalanches in the Carpathians. They urged the people who are spending vacations in tourist centers to refrain from skiing these days.
U.S. - Widespread damage from a deadly ice storm left more than half a million customers still in the dark Friday night in North Carolina, and utility officials said the electricity might not be fully restored in parts of the Carolinas until Tuesday. The storm blew through Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia on Thursday and was blamed for hundreds of traffic accidents and at least four deaths. Ice built up on tree limbs, causing them to snap and pull down power lines.
CANADA - Montreal paralyzed by RECORD SNOWFALL Friday which forced the cancellation of 200 flights at Montreal airport, school closures and caused havoc on roads. More than 41 centimetres (16 inches) of snow fell on Friday. The storm will go down in history as ONE OF THE BIGGEST SNOWFALLS IN A SINGLE DAY in Montreal in December, beating a record of 37.8 centimeters on December 27, 1969. About 2.14 metres (seven feet) of snow usually falls on the city each winter.
INDIA - 30 die in cold wave sweeping north India. Unseasonably cold weather gripped northern India, as meteorologists warned of heavy fog in coming days which every year disrupts road, air and rail traffic. The temperature overnight in Lucknow slid to three degrees Celsius, the mercury was likely to dip further across Uttar Pradesh. Temperatures also fell below minus 3.6 degrees Celsius in Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian Kashmir, where tens of thousands of people were made homeless by the October 8 earthquake that ravaged the Himalayan region.

PERU - Last year winter in the Andes was brutal. The indigenous alpaca farmers in Peru's highlands had never seen anything like it. "When the blizzards came they were so strong. The snow fell for a full day and a full night without stopping. It stopped snowing, the skies opened and it was completely clear. Then ice fell from the sky in big shards like glass, and the cold front hit us." The people thought the end of the world had come last winter. The Quechua people, descendants of the Incas, living at altitudes of up to 4,500 metres, are used to harsh weather. But what they call the friaje is a new phenomenon, believed to be driven by climate change. Last year it sent temperatures plummeting to -35C, killed 50 children and left up to 13,000 people suffering from severe bronchitis, pneumonia and hypothermia. The snow killed all vegetation. And the animals on which the communities depend, the hardy Andean camel, the alpaca, died in their thousands. "The temperature shifts here are getting more extreme. Cold winters are followed by hot, dry summers and, recently, electric hail storms. "
12/16 -
SOUTHERN ONTARIO AND QUEBEC, CANADA - on Thursday were struck by a massive snowstorm, cancelling and delaying air travel and gnarling road traffic.
PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND - The first major storm of the season in Prince Edward Island has closed schools and made driving difficult as a weather warning continues for the region.
IOWA - The first 15 days of December has brought Waterloo 18 inches of snow. That is more than the last three Decembers combined, and above the 13 inches seen in December of 2000 by this time - 2000 had a record 46 inches that year. "So far we're way ahead of pace, but it could be pretty hard for us to keep up. You never know, though." The heaviest snow amounts fall in surprisingly narrow bands.
NEW YORK - A RECORD-SMASHING COLD SPELL moved into Ithaca and Tompkins County this week, dropping temperatures to below zero. The mercury dipped to minus 11 on the 14th, lowering the record by 10 degrees. It was not the coldest December day ever recorded. That distinction belongs to Dec. 12-13, 1988, when the temperature dropped to minus 19 and minus 17, respectively. However, the cold temperatures being recorded this week are not normal. “This is certainly UNUSUAL for it to be this cold this early."
MINNESOTA - The worst of the biggest snowstorm this winter was mostly over Wednesday night when many parts of Minnesota were under at least 8 inches of wet and heavy snow. There were 16.5 inches in Two Harbors along the North Shore of Lake Superior, and more than 11 inches fell in Duluth. Nearly 8 inches fell in the Twin Cities, while the southwest part of the state got 5 inches. “This isn’t something unusual in any way, nor is it dramatic for what we have seen in the past in terms of early season snowfalls.” However two people died Wednesday morning on Highway 14 near Owatonna when a tractor-trailer lost control on the slippery road and hit a minivan, killing its two occupants.
MICHIGAN, EASTERN UPPER PENINSULA - An approaching winter storm from an UNUSUAL DIRECTION was expected to dump as much as one foot of new snow on portions of the Eastern Upper Peninsula, according to somewhat uncertain forecasts for early Thursday. A frontal boundary located south of a storm system in Minnesota may generate significant snow from Lake Huron, carried on strong southerly and easterly winds. The predicted snow comes on the heels of a RARE south shore lake-effect event Tuesday night that dumped about seven inches in the immediate Cedarville area and lesser amounts on DeTour and Drummond Island.
12/15 -
WISCONSIN - southeastern Wisconsin is getting its SNOWIEST DECEMBER SINCE 2000. Up to 6 inches of snow was expected to fall on Wednesday, with more possible today. Although the average monthly snowfall for December in Milwaukee is 11.7 inches, few flakes have fallen in December in recent years, aside from the whopper snowfall of 49.5 inches in December 2000. By Tuesday afternoon, a total of 8.7 inches of snow was recorded this month. Last year, only 1.3 inches of snow fell in December, with 3.1 inches in 2003 and 4.7 inches the year before that. The storm is courtesy of a low-pressure system that was sweeping across from Minnesota while pulling up moist, unstable air from the south. That's a bit UNUSUAL, because many winter storms are formed by low-pressure systems coming from the south of Wisconsin. It's more like a springtime event that would bring showers and thunderstorms.
PENNSYLVANIA - It was "going to be absurdly cold" on Tuesday night and temperatures Wednesday were expected to break decades-old records in many parts of the state. Temperatures are roughly 10 degrees below normal. "The frequency of the cold and also the significant snowfall experienced already is UNUSUAL."
MASSACHUSETTS - Last Friday unexpectedly severe snow, unfortunate timing and gridlocked traffic combined to bring street clearing efforts to a virtual standstill, trapping some commuters in their cars for hours. National Weather Service information suggested the worst of Friday's storm had played itself out by noon, but the storm re-intensified. "We were basically looking at a rain event and we scaled back sanding operations at 1 p.m. The (NWS) gave us an update that called for little if any additional snow, with some flurries perhaps at end of storm. We didn't have the crystal ball to tell us this FREAK was going to occur." "This was the worst-case scenario: wet roads to frozen roads to packed snow and then the traffic hit as we tried to clean it up. You probably couldn't get worse conditions."
12/14 -
ALASKA continues to lead the U.S. in avalanche deaths. There have been 55 deaths over the last ten years in Alaska. Second place is Colorado with 54.
FRANCE - the third avalanche in just over a week hit in the resort of Piau-Engaly. Early season skiing conditions are said to be the best in 15 years, but winds at altitude coupled with cold has led to unstable snow above 2200 meters.
12/13 -
SPAIN - two Basque mountaineers were buried by an avalanche in the Spanish region of Huesca.
ECUADOR - An UNUSUAL FROST in the Andes and drought along the low-lying Pacific coast have caused losses of around US$50 million in their flower, potato, corn and cattle industries.
CANADA - Toronto Hostel Services has issued an extreme cold weather alert, effective immediately, to help get homeless people in from the cold.
INDIANA - It's nearly two weeks into what forecasters call winter - December, January and February - and the only place you can see the ground is where the snow has been shoveled. Readings above freezing have been rare, and there's a chance that more snow will arrive before the week is out. What happened with that prediction of a mild winter? Through Saturday, December's average temperature was 20.8 degrees, 14.1 degrees colder than normal. The jet stream got us again. If that upper-level wind pattern approaches from the northwest, it'll bring cold air from Canada, reflected in the freezing cold we've had this month. The temperature determines whether we get rain or snow. Through Saturday, Indianapolis had received 0.65 inch of precipitation this month, 0.43 inch less than normal. Cold temperatures made the precipitation fall as snow: 9.1 inches. An average December brings 5.8 inches of snow.
12/12 -
MASSACHUSETTS - massive trees fell during the burst of snow and hurricane-force winds that swept over the Cape for about two hours Friday. The northeaster was UNLIKE ANY STORM IN RECENT MEMORY. Gusts in Nantucket Sound reached the mid-90s and Buzzards Bay saw bursts of 75 to 80 mph ''It seems a little too UNUSUAL the way the storm touched certain parts.'' Once the storm hit Buzzards Bay and came across the coastal waters of Cape Cod Bay, the introduction of warmer air intensified the weather pattern. ''It was a very compact, exceedingly fast storm.''
12/10 -
CANADA - A snow-clearing machine struck and killed a woman at a shopping mall in Toronto on Friday as the city faced its first significant snowfall of the season.
NEW JERSEY - The last time three different storms dumped measurable amounts of snow in a single week so early in the winter season in New Jersey was in 1898. In 1898 the three storms hit in the last week of November. NEVER BEFORE - at least not in the Middlesex County seat - had there been three notable snow storms in a single week in the first two weeks of December. To have three plowable snows in some part of the state (in one week) is UNUSUAL. The most snow during Tuesday's storm fell in the southern part of the state, while the northern end received the most yesterday. Sizable snows have occurred in December in 2002, 2003 and this year. "To have three of four winters with such early starts to the snow season is UNUSUAL." Given this early start and given what we've seen this past century, it is likely we will have above-average snowfall" this winter.
MASSACHUSETTS - A wild northeaster surprised Southern New England on the 9th with near-blizzard conditions and a BIZARRE thunderstorm, closing Logan International Airport, gridlocking thousands of homeward-bound commuters, and dumping more than a foot of snow in some communities. Near hurricane winds whipped through coastal communities and left about 80,000 homes without power in Southeastern Massachusetts. Accidents and abandoned cars, as well as downed trees, highway signs, and utility poles, crippled highways and thoroughfares. Forecasters had been predicting 5 to 10 inches of snowfall across the region, but said they did not foresee the sharp drop in air pressure that created what meteorologists call ''thundersnow." A low-pressure system sweeping northward from the mid-Atlantic coast in the morning got a boost of low pressure from a system moving east over New York State. Snowflakes provided conductivity, and the result was booming thunder, flashes of lightning, and more snow. Forecasters said the severity of the storm was greater than anticipated. In perhaps the most dramatic storm-related incident, lightning hit a Canada Air plane just before it touched down shortly after 2 p.m and the strike blew off the tip of the airplane's left wing, ''There was a large ball of orange something, very loud and very bright and very bumpy."
MASSACHUSETTS - "Everything happened too fast, creating whiteout conditions so bad that even the plows were going off the road because they just couldn't see where they were going." "In this storm's case, the conditions turned what would have been a moderate nor'easter into a REALLY FREAK STORM."
INDIANA - After several years of mild winters with rare snowflakes, perhaps we’re in for some real winters once again. A RECORD SNOWFALL of 8 inches hit on Thursday night/Friday morning. "If there's a pattern to our weather, it's reliable inconsistency."
ILLINOIS - On Thursday, East Central Illinois received another dose of UNUSUAL WEATHER for December with heavy snowfall with high drifting potential. Thursday’s storm is considered “early winter” - late November to Dec. 10 is the early winter period. So far, December has been as cold and produced snow as if it was mid-January. Temperatures this week have been more than 15 degrees below normal for this time of year.
IDAHO - Temperatures plummeted in southern Idaho on Tuesday as cold air from the east moved into the Snake River Plain. Warmer air at about 10,000 feet created an air inversion Thursday that will hold cold air over southern Idaho at least through the weekend. “When you have warm air on top of cold air, that’s what we call a stable configuration because it stays with us a while. " “The UNUSUAL thing is the original cold air came in from the east,” cold temperatures normally come from the west or northwest. On Thursday, temperatures in the Magic Valley were more than 20 degrees below normal. Thursday’s low in Twin Falls was minus 2 degrees rather than the average of 22.
TEXAS - RECORD-BREAKING COLD - The temperature sank to 15 degrees, shattering a record of 17 for Dec. 9 that had stood for 86 years.
ALASKA - Avalanche danger is high - backcountry travelers are urged to use caution due to wet, heavy snow, high winds and WARM temperatures. They expect continued warm temperatures in Cantwell and north to Fairbanks over the weekend and into next week with a possible brief dip in temperatures Monday or Tuesday. "There is no sign in the known future of 30-below weather again."
MAKING WINTER STORM PREPARATIONS.
FRANCE - AVALANCHE - An officer attached to the specialist mountain units of the Gendarmerie has been killed by a large avalanche in the resort of Le Lioran in the Massif-Central, while skiing. The Massif-Central area has had a lot of snow over the last couple of weeks and Le Lioran reports 150cm at the top of the pistes. Avalanches are relatively rare in the region but not unheard of. Last weekend there were a number of avalanche incidents in the Pyrenees including a fatal accident involving a Spanish climber. The last week has seen over a meter of snow in places, this was accompanied by strong south to south-west winds last weekend which have created hard and soft snow slabs on north-sector slopes. The relatively snow free and cold autumn has left a weak layer of snow some 10-20cm deep at altitude.
AUSTRALIA - Perth is in the grip of its COOLEST START TO SUMMER IN MORE THAN 40 YEARS. The cool weather is expected to last for at least a week. The December average for Perth is 29.1 degrees but so far the average has been just 22.6. While other parts of Australia sweltered in summer heat, Perth was enjoying a second spring. The unseasonably cool weather was due to a series of cold fronts affecting the south-west of the state which had caused a ridge of high pressure to move further north. "Normally in summer we have a ridge of high pressure well to the south. Unfortunately we have moved back into a spring time pattern instead of a summer pattern."
12/9 -
US - A cold wave, which descended from Canada a couple of days ago, crept all the way into the Texas panhandle. In Lubbock, Texas, a RECORD 6 above zero was recorded. RECORD LOWS have also been recorded in Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa and Illinois. The temperatures are expected to rise - believe it or not, the forecast calls for 50-plus-degree temperatures this weekend in Denver, Colorado.
COLORADO - Temperatures plunged to at least 37 below zero in parts of the West and police found the body of a homeless man in Denver as a storm spread bitterly cold arctic air from Montana to New Mexico Wednesday. The temperature fell to a RECORD 45-below at West Yellowstone, Montana at the west entrance to Yellowstone National Park. The old record for Dec. 7 was 39-below, set in 1927. Through Tuesday, Vail had received a RECORD 141 inches of snow for the season, breaking the record of 140 inches set at this time of year in 1985-86. Nearly 4 feet of Vail's snow has fallen in the past week.
TEXAS - Frigid temps and freezing rain left many Central Texas roads dangerous and impassable. Drivers were advised by city and state officials to keep off the roads unless necessary. The city of Austin and several area school districts shut down as a precaution Thursday morning. By Thursday morning it seemed like the entire area shut down to shut out the cold. "I think probably people up north would laugh at us, but we're a warm-weather city and we're not accustomed to this."
ILLINOIS - temperatures have fallen earlier than usual this month to roughly 20 degrees below normal. In Chicago, area temperatures Monday dipped down to a low of 4 degrees, beating the previous RECORD of 6 degrees first set in 1895. But it was even colder in the Quad Cities, where RECORD temperatures reached a frigid minus 4 degrees Monday. The previous record low temperature of minus 2 was set in 1886.
ILLINOIS - A passenger plane landing in a snowstorm in Chicago slid off a runway, crashed through a fence and onto a busy road, colliding with two cars. A boy in one of the cars was killed.
MICHIGAN - temperatures have been below normal every day this month. "To be so cold and this snowy this quick ... is a little bit UNUSUAL."
MISSOURI - Kansas City area residents awoke to find as much as 10 inches of snow on the ground from a RECORD-BREAKING STORM that moved through the area.
WASHINGTON, DC - A coastal storm, the type typically seen in January, has hit the Washington metropolitan area, bringing with it snow, sleet and freezing rain. Accumulations of 3 to 6 inches in the D.C. metro area are expected by this morning. The snow totals will depend on how much sleet and freezing rain mixes in. A heavy snow warning is in effect for the western counties of Maryland and Virginia and the eastern panhandle of West Virginia. Those areas could see more than 6 inches of snow. It's not the accumulation that will make this storm significant as people head to work in the morning. "With surface temperatures at or below freezing, and remaining below freezing all night and through the morning, whatever falls will freeze or stick and we're going to have difficult commuting problems."
CANADA - Early season snowfalls have blanketed across British Columbia and Alberta, pushing forward the opening dates for many ski resorts as they celebrate record breaking early conditions. Canada‘s ski areas in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta are claiming the best start to the season in over 10 years. The snow snuck up on many resorts who had staff planned to arrive within weeks, but they‘re now calling in all the troops as they try to get their mountains up and running to keep up with the continuous snowfalls.
12/8 -
OKLAHOMA - Possible record cold. Such cold, blustery weather is UNUSUAL for early December. The state rarely drops into the teens in temperature, even in deep winter.
TEXAS - The first strong arctic cold front of the season could be the trigger to change their rain to ice. Less than a quarter inch of accumulated ice will be possible on roads, bridges and overpasses by this morning. Ice storms in Central Texas are as rare as snowstorms. This type of winter mix is usually seen in this area during January or February. "Here we are talking about ice storms, and there's still a hurricane turning around in the Atlantic Ocean. What a BIZARRE WEATHER YEAR it has been." AccuWeather.com meteorologists were forecasting a winter storm with the potential to cause major travel disruptions across much of the U.S. from Wednesday through Friday.
12/7 -
US - Several inches of snow fell in the U.S. northeast and Plains and temperatures plummeted in the Midwest with the winter solstice still two weeks away. Snowfall totals ranged from 7 inches in Essex County, Virginia, to 5 inches in Waldorf, Maryland, from the season's first major storm on the east coast. The mercury fell to 9 degrees in Chicago, where temperatures haven't gotten up to the freezing mark since Nov. 30. The National Weather Service predicts a warmer-than-normal winter in the Midwest even though temperatures the first five days of December have averaged more than 20 degrees below average. The big chill extended from southern Georgia to northern Florida as another winter-like storm took aim on the northern Rockies and central Plains. Single digit temperatures gripped Montana and the Dakotas, with below zero wind chills.
PAKISTAN - A cold wave, followed by light rain, will hit Pakistani Kashmir and other quake-affected areas as early as Thursday, with heavy rains and snow to follow a week later. The region got its first cold snap a week ago, causing hundreds of people to seek treatment for hypothermia and a variety of other cold-related ailments. A respite in the weather has provided a narrow window of opportunity to get help to remote areas and shore up the tents that will be little match for the heavy snow and strong winds to come.
12/5 -
CANADA - Reports of ice falling from the upper supports of the Alex Fraser Bridge onto cars below have sparked an investigation in British Columbia. They so far have found four motorists whose vehicles were hit by falling ice chunks while they were on the bridge last Tuesday, Nov. 29. Three of the four cars had cracked or broken windshields. "We've also received more than 20 calls from motorists who witnessed ice falling." The main girders and cables were clear of ice when the bridge was inspected Thursday afternoon. "It seems whatever was there on Tuesday came down and is gone." It may have been a FREAK WEATHER OCCURRENCE. "It's UNUSUAL because this bridge opened in 1986 and, to the ministry's knowledge we're not aware of ice falling and striking vehicles before."
12/4 -
WASHINGTON - Storms dumped snow across Washington state, causing at least one death and dozens of traffic accidents, and some schools were closed Friday as a lighter downfall continued.
OHIO - Although November brought some unusual highs and lows, for the month the average temperature fell slightly above normal. The highest temperature reached in November was at 75 degrees on Nov. 5, almost setting a record. The lowest temperature was 14 degrees on the 25th. “The last two weeks, other than a few warm days, has been 10 to 15 degrees below normal . This is the coldest November we’ve had since 2002.”
NEW YORK - An unprecedented array of unpredictable weather has been barraging Binghamton. At 9 degrees Fahrenheit, last Friday was Binghamton’s COLDEST Nov. 25 ON RECORD. Just four days later the temperature rebounded to a RECORD HIGH 63 degrees Fahrenheit, making it the hottest Nov. 29. “Within a span of four days we went from a record low to a record high, which is interesting to say the least."But the entire season has been “topsy-turvey,” with the mercury hitting 70 degrees Fahrenheit in early November - just days after the season’s first bout of snow. “It’s ridiculous. I’ve been drenched in so many downpours. It just comes out of nowhere.”
GEORGIA - After an unpredictable summer, officials expect an unpredictable winter as far as weather is concerned. The state is due for a blizzard because those seem to occur every 10 years, but there is no way to predict whether this winter will be worse than normal. For the past several years, the state has been affected by meridional flow — a period between El Nino and La Nina seasons when air flows from the north or south. During periods of meridional flow, weather patterns are harder to predict and can vary greatly from week to week. “We could see more frost, but we could also see more warm days.”
CALIFORNIA - Heavy rain and strong winds caused by the North Coast's first winter storm brought down trees and branches, washed out one road and caused minor power outages Thursday. Sonoma County was at the center of the weather system, which also brought RARE thunder and lightning to the region between 9 and 10 a.m. Thursday. Thursday's storm marked a late start for winter. Only four rainy seasons during the past two decades have recorded later starts. Thursday's storm, which brought in tropical moisture from Hawaii, dropped between 2½ and 3 inches of rain in Sonoma County's northern mountains. "The rainy season is kind of late getting started this year. A high pressure system over California kept all the storms to the north of us for most of November."
YEMEN - FREAK WEATHER CONDITIONS - Agricultural crops in some areas in Yemen will be damaged due to an expected wave of cold which will sweep some areas, officials at the Yemeni National Meteorological Center warned on Friday.
12/1 - U.S. GULF COAST - wild weather patterns may continue into the colder months. “It is predicted for the Gulf coast to have above normal precipitation and normal temperatures this winter. However, we are due for a dusting of snow or even an ice storm.” Residents are still quick to remember the ice storm that blanketed the South Texas Gulf region in the late 1990s. Icy conditions could wreck even more havoc this year to those residing in homes that need roofing and insulation repair from hurricane damage. These unpredictable weather conditions move in cycles and the Gulf region could possibly see a major winter event occur this year. In addition turbulent hurricane conditions will remain likely in the next few years as well. “Hurricane season starts June 1. Usually by March we can begin to predict hurricane patterns. Right now we are still in a warm phase and we are expecting another three to four years of above normal hurricane activity in the Gulf region.” Lower surface air pressure, an amplified subtropical ridge at upper levels across the central and eastern North Atlantic Ocean, reduced vertical wind shear and an African easterly jet led to the creation of 26 named storms and seven major hurricanes in 2005. If these strong weather patterns continue the table could be set for another wild hurricane season in 2006.
WINTER FORECASTS-
UNITED KINGDOM - The wintery blast which hit the West Country last week is not necessarily an indication of a severe winter to come. It is still autumn and too early to tell what the winter will bring. "We must wait until after winter quarter day - Christmas Day - the true first day of winter. At this moment there are no signs to say that a severe winter is on the way. But we still have three weeks of autumn to go and we must wait until winter quarter day to get a clearer picture." The snowfall of last week did not indicate a pattern. It was simply a FREAK CONDITION, a narrow belt of wintery weather similar to one that was experienced in 1978, which also lasted only a day.
NORTHERN EUROPE - The ocean currents that keep northern Europe warm have weakened, scientists say. The Atlantic Conveyor could slow if warming causes ice caps to melt, making the water less salty, less dense and unable to sink and flow back south. Researchers in Britain found the conveyor has slowed about 30 per cent since 1957. No changes were found in the northward flow of warm water near the surface but its overall circulation system is slowing. Climate models suggest increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would further slow the current, but the data can't be directly linked to climate change. Researchers also can't tell if winds might compensate for the change. At the present rate of slowdown, average temperatures in western Europe could drop by one to two degrees in 10 to 20 years, the researchers said. In the past, such a drop in temperatures led to colder and more severe winters.
SNOW / COLD -
11/30 -
PAKISTAN - The freezing winter claimed the lives of another eight people, including five children, in the earthquake-hit suburbs of Abbottabad on Tuesday. Pneumonia was spreading amongst cold and hungry children who survived the earthquake. “We are receiving hundreds of pneumonia cases in different areas.” Some snow fell in mountain villages overnight and temperatures fell below freezing throughout the disaster zone, threatening to bring about a second wave of deaths that aid agencies have long warned of.
U.S. PLAINS - on Monday the region’s first big snowstorm of the season closed hundreds of kilometres of highways, cutting visibility to zero and piling up drifts two metres high. Snow driven by wind up to 110 kilometres an hour fell from North Dakota to the Texas Panhandle. Four deaths were blamed on slippery roads in South Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas, and a fifth person was killed when a tornado picked up and hurled a car in Arkansas. Eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 were closed for nearly 565 kilometres from Denver across the Plains to Russell, Kansas. Numerous other highways also were closed across the Plains, including a 280-kilometre stretch of I-90 across South Dakota, and a 100-kilometre stretch of I-80 in Nebraska. Hundreds of travellers in all were stranded. Grass fires driven by the storm system’s wind blackened hundreds of hectares in Texas and Oklahoma. Several homes were destroyed in the two states and hundreds of families had to evacuate in Oklahoma.
GERMANY - About 10,000 Germans were still without electricity as dusk fell Tuesday, four days after a FREAK SNOWSTORM brought 50 pylons and hundreds of power lines crashing down in Germany's WORST BLACKOUT FOR 60 YEARS. Some 250,000 people suffered outages. The weight of ice on the power-lines and swinging caused by fierce winds had created forces that made the pylons buckle last week.
SNOW / COLD -
11/29 -
MONTANA - a sudden storm Saturday spewed more than a foot of snow, bedeviled area roadways and shut down power. A foot of snowfall in Great Falls BROKE A CENTURY OLD RECORD by nearly 2 inches. One hundred years ago, over Nov. 26 and 27, 10.2 inches of snow fell. A couple of major meteorological forces combined to create the squall. A blast of chilly Canadian air collided with a large low-pressure system that had shimmied eastward from the northern Pacific. The volatile coalescence resulted in the widespread dumping of precipitation over much of Montana. The snow and colder temperatures followed a period of unseasonably warm weather across the Montana plains. In fact, temperatures hit 59 degrees on Wednesday in Glasgow, just one degree shy of the record set in 1917. The mercury could dip slightly below normal by midweek, with highs in the teens by Wednesday and Thursday. Overnight lows could be below zero in some areas. "It's not incredible or anything, but it's a little bit below normal."
EUROPE - Severe weather conditions are sweeping across Europe. In Italy, civil defense officials are monitoring swelling rivers and nearby homes are being evacuated. Sudden snowstorms caused several cold-related deaths and disruption in Germany, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. In Italy more rain is expected until Thursday. The level reached by the Tiber was historic and HAS NOT BEEN SEEN FOR MORE THAN A QUARTER OF A CENTURY. Heavy flooding hit many parts of the country, mainly central regions, with damage reported to property and crops. Ice and snow also blocked roads. And rough seas were reported around Italy.
GERMANY - Some 250,000 people in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia faced a power cut over the weekend due to a snowstorm, electricity giant RWE said Sunday. Twenty-five towns were deprived of power from late Friday after strong winds knocked down electrical poles. "The mains had a coating of ice as thick as your upper arm."
11/28 -
EUROPE - In central Italy, authorities were forced to close roads and evacuate dozens of families from homes near rivers. Worried officials monitored Italy's swelling rivers as severe winter weather sweeping across Europe brought more heavy rain and snow. Further north, the Tiber flooded in parts of the central Umbria region with estimated damage of tens of million of euros (dollars) to crops, farms and stables. Austria's national weather service raised the avalanche risk level for much of the country's Alps to three on a five-point scale.
BELGIUM - Two homeless men froze to death in central Brussels as the first winter snow took the country by surprise. Belgium sometimes goes through winter without any serious snowfall and the sudden cold followed an unusually warm autumn season. Authorities were struggling to respond to electricity blackouts and black ice on the roads which killed one person and injured two on Saturday.
11/27 -
EUROPE - Snowstorms lashed western Europe Saturday causing severe disruption to air, rail and road traffic in Belgium, Britain, France, Germany and the Netherlands and cutting off power to thousands of households. Britain and France upped weather alerts after three people froze to death, and travellers were stranded in Germany on Saturday as a bitter cold snap gripped western Europe. British forecasters said the freezing temperatures were "PRETTY UNUSUAL" for November.
U NITED KINGDOM - Freezing temperatures and strong winds - caused by winds direct from the Arctic Circle - created some treacherous conditions, particularly in west Suffolk, the likes of which are not normally seen until January or February. Elsewhere in the country, the extreme weather created chaos, with blizzards stranding motorists and forcing schools to close.
SCOTLAND - The front carriage of a train carrying about 90 people derailed in Scotland on Saturday because of a landslide, blamed on heavy snow, and its driver and eight passengers were slightly injured.
11/25 -
MASSACHUSETTS - After a mild, sunny, and drier than normal through three weeks, a weather pattern change means a stormy Thanksgiving week with some heavy rain and maybe snow. November has been 3 degrees on the warm side. An amazingly high number of mild days totaling 15 out of 21 days with maximum temperature readings between 57 and 65 degrees have been recorded with two of those days having highs of 68 and 71 degrees. That's pretty UNUSUAL. The average for high readings at this time of year is in the low to mid 50's. Significant rainfall of a half inch or more has fallen on just two days, with four other days accounting for a total of 1.86 inches or an inch a half less than normal. Sunshine, too, has been abnormally plentiful during what is expected to be a gloomy month. Things have been balancing out a quite a bit after the gloomy, record wet October.
INDIANA - While RARE for this time of year, this is the second consecutive year Hoosiers have had snowfall at Thanksgiving time. The previous Thanksgiving snow before 2004 came in 1992 when a trace fell that day. While no accumulation was expected locally, residents in Illinois awoke to 8 inches of snow, while 4 inches fell in southeastern Iowa and up to 9 inches were expected in southern Michigan. For Indiana the Old Farmer's Almanac is forecasting winter-season temperatures to be about a degree colder than normal, on average, due to a very cold December and January. The coldest temperatures, according to the publication, will occur in mid-December and mid- to late January. February will be quite mild, followed by a near-normal March. How accurate the almanac will be is anybody's guess, but it correctly called this snow and the cold weather expected to follow. The publication predicted it would be cold with snow showers the week of Nov. 22-26. The next round of snow, it reports, will come Dec. 5-7 and it will be a white Christmas with a snowstorm predicted for Dec. 19-27.
11/24 -
U.S. - Snow falling across the Great Lakes region hampered the heaviest travel day of the year and may reach as far south as Virginia today. Cold air sweeping down from Canada picked up moisture over the relatively warm Great Lakes to produce "lake effect'' snow in the region. The storm may bring 2 inches to a foot of snow to parts of Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia, with heavier amounts in areas closest to the lakes. "The amount of snow may be UNUSUAL, in that we don't often get blizzard-type conditions. But it's really a prime time of year because the lake water is very warm.'' Blizzard conditions, with heavy snow and winds of as much as 45 miles per hour, were forecast in parts of northern Michigan near Lake Michigan last night, making travel "near impossible'' in some areas.
NEW YORK - An Alberta Clipper was projected to move into the area Wednesday night into today, bringing the coldest temperatures of the season and a light, general snowfall. Conditions will be ripe for heavy lake effect snows this afternoon into Friday in the traditional snow belt areas of southern Erie and Wyoming counties, and northern Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties. "The winds are lined up perfectly so we're going to have an extreme weather event Thursday night in some places." Forecasters believe those areas could receive 1 to 2 feet before the lake effect machine stops. While the heavy snows will be limited to the usual snow belt areas, all of Western New York will feel the chill of the coldest temperatures of the season. Through the weekend, daytime highs will struggle to hit 30, while lows will stay near 20.
WALES - North Wales is bracing itself for white-out conditions with the threat of blizzards sweeping in from the Arctic circle. Snow and sleet is espected to be driven in by gales of 40-50mph, which could also disrupt Irish Sea ferry services. A strong northerly wind caused by low pressure over Norway will hit northern parts of the UK by today and move south over the following 24 hours.
11/23 -
HUNGRY - A 15-year-old boy and a 64-year-old man have frozen to death in harsh weather in eastern Hungary. The first winter snow fell in Hungary last week and tempartures plunged to minus 10 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit) in some regions.
11/22 -
UNITED KINGDOM - Severe wintry weather is forecast for the UK, with as much as 20cm (7.9in) of snow causing disruption in some parts by the weekend. Snow is most likely in Scotland and eastern England but south-east England, north Wales, the Midlands and Northern Ireland may also be hit from Thursday on. Snow, sleet and hail is expected with gale force icy winds and wind chill temperatures as low as -10C (14F). Snow in November is "UNUSUAL, but not unheard of". The forecast follows days of freezing conditions across the UK and warnings of hazardous driving conditions due to dense fog. The cold weather is being brought by an icy northern blast from the Arctic which will sweep south on Thursday from a low pressure system over Norway, bringing rain, sleet, hail and snow first to Scotland and then to the rest of the country. The Met Office is predicting a colder and drier than average winter for the UK with more frequent cold snaps. The big freeze follows a mild autumn with plenty of sunshine. Long-term forecasts predict that the winter months will be punctuated by a series of severe cold snaps each lasting up to a fortnight with temperatures barely rising above freezing. The sustained icy weather threatens to kill thousands and cause travel chaos. It is claimed that three million pensioners and poorer families already face a difficult choice between heating their homes and putting food on the table. Snow in November is relatively rare in most areas of the country, particularly in the South-East and coastal areas. It is most likely to fall in January and February. "We are looking at maximum temperatures of 3C and 4C and a windchill that will bring temperatures down to between minus 5C and minus 10C. That' s pretty impressive windchill for November." "Last winter, deaths amongst older people as a result of cold-related illnesses increased by 35 per cent in just one year, the highest for five years. This is a shocking increase and, unless urgent action is taken by the Government, the scandal will persist and this winter could see another unacceptable death toll." Whatever happens over the next couple of months, experts say they can look forward to a sizzling summer - they are predicting temperatures above 40c in the Mediterranean next year.
11/21 -
ALASKA - A storm that struck Southcentral Alaska on Saturday showed "UNUSUAL" patterns. About 3:45 p.m., snow was lightly falling at the Eagle River Nature Center, the ranger station near Eklutna Lake and park headquarters at Potter Marsh. Along the Glenn Highway near Eagle River, however, the snow at that moment was dropping heavily and visibility was only 50 feet. The storm through the day laid its heavy, wet blanket unevenly. At the National Weather Service's Anchorage Forecast Office on Sand Lake Road, it dropped an inch and a half. But it deposited 6 inches on the Hillside and about the same in Eagle River. Up north, the storm put down a foot of fresh snow at Petersville near Trapper Creek. Saturday's storm was actually the other half of Friday's rainstorm. Both were caused by the same low-pressure system that was moving eastward nearby. "We were on the leading edge yesterday, so we got warm air from the Gulf (of Alaska) pushed ahead of the system. Now we're on the back side of the low, so we're getting a flow that's still southerly, but it's pulling cold air."
CALIFORNIA - This winter the west coast can expect neutral weather. "Be prepared for some storminess but also be prepared for some nice weather too during the course of your winter." People should not expect an El Nino or a La Nina but if the waters of the tropical Pacific continue to cool like they have been doing over the past several months a La Nina could develop in 2007. "It could happen. The basin temperatures are actually below average. This is still within the neutral range but we've got to keep our eyes open to a possible La Nina development." A La Nina pattern means unpredictable weather, while warmer temperatures in the water cause an El Nino impact which creates much more rain for California.
11/20 -
SPAIN - The past week has been UNUSUAL, to say the least, as far as the weather was concerned. A glance at the weather map showed cloudy skies all over Spain, with heavy rain just about everywhere and snow on high ground. The use of chains was obligatory in mountain passes in 14 regions, which were officially ‘on alert,’ and the traffic accident rate shot up as fatal accidents were reported throughout the peninsula. Most Spaniards cannot remember a week of such bad weather in mid-November. Temperatures are generally below ten degrees in the northern half of the peninsula. While there was heavy snowfall in the interior of the country, the Mediterranean regions suffered torrential rain. High wind gusts brought temperatures down even further all over the province.
WALES - Predictions as long ago as the summer, based on pressure systems, indicated there was a two in three chance of this winter being colder than usual. Temperatures this weekend in many inland parts of Wales are forecast to plummet to between -3C and -7C. During the day all temperatures across the nation, even on the traditionally warmer coast, will struggle to beat 9C. "We have predicted a colder than average winter, and what we are experiencing now could be the start of it. There is certainly no sign of things warming up at the moment." "There is a high pressure system over the country, which is currently blocking off weather fronts, and keeping them in the Atlantic. Our forecasts up to next Thursday indicate that is not going to change. Temperatures are going to remain low, and the top temperatures in Wales are not likely to get into double figures."
NORTH CAROLINA - A freeze watch was in effect for the area through Saturday morning, after a string of warm weather. It is UNUSUAL to have such a long period of warm weather in November but when the freeze is over, Beaufort can expect to see a pattern of cool weather for at least a week.
TEXAS - The cold front that roared through East Texas this week has sent the mercury dipping into the low 30s at nights and mild 50s during the day. "It was NOT NORMAL to see temperatures in the 80s for so long into November." The month of December should see average temperatures of about 49 degrees Fahrenheit — the maximum being in the high 50s, and the minimum being in the high 30s.
11/18 -
CANADA - At least two families have been evacuated from the shores of Lake Winnipeg after several dikes built this fall by the Manitoba government failed to stop frigid water from spraying onto their houses, leaving them coated with thick ice. Several other lakefront properties are at risk of severe damage. UNUSUALLY HIGH WINDS whipped up the spray from the lake, whose levels were two metres higher than usual as a result of a wet summer, aggravated by this week's major snowstorm in southern Manitoba. Freezing temperatures turned the blowing spray into a force of destruction on the west side of the lake Wednesday. The result was eerie-looking ice statues along the shore as well as damage to nearby houses. "In many places, these dikes are not even connected. There are many gaps. The dikes apparently are dissolving like sugar after a rain."
MICHIGAN - Winter arrived with a bang Wednesday, surprising West Michigan with iced and snowy roads. The way-below-freezing temperatures and warm Lake Michigan combined to cause misery for area drivers and dump a RECORD 8.4 inches of snow on Grand Rapids. "It's UNUSUAL to get so much snow in the first snowfall of the year." A blast of cold air and prolonged strong winds off an UNUSUALLY WARM Lake Michigan cranked up the lake-effect snow machine to full power. Four days after Muskegon County basked in 65-degree temperatures, up to 3 inches of snow blanketed the area. Temperatures plunged to 24 degrees overnight. The winter forecast predicts above-average lake-effect snowfalls this winter. The National Weather Service is predicting a chance for snow every day through next Wednesday.

WINTER FORECASTS -
11/20 -
WEST VIRGINIA - Weather forecasters don't know what to expect this winter. According to folklore, there are dozens of ways to tell whether winter will be warm or cold, but so far this year, the results are inconclusive. The woolly worms say the season should be harsh, but the yellow jackets made plans for a mild winter. The cows may have offered a clue this week while they basked in the sun, exhibiting signs of a difficult winter season ahead. “They've been out there, just laying around, baking up the sun these last few days. That usually means it's going to be bad weather.” But the hornets couldn't make up their minds, building nests both high and low. Weatherlore says that if the breast bone of a Thanksgiving goose or turkey is red or purple, the winter will be cold and stormy. If only a few spots of color are visible, the winter should be mild. Other possible weatherlore indicators are the bushiness of a squirrel's tail, the thickness of corn husks or the toughness of apple skins, and many believe the number of fogs in August predicts the number of deep snows on the way in winter. The National Weather Service was no more definitive - forecasted weather patterns over the next 90 days gave the region a "50-50 chance” of being either warmer and dryer than normal, or colder and wetter than usual. The 2006 Farmers' Almanac warns residents to be prepared for almost anything.
NEW YORK - Meteorologists have said that the weather may be very unpredictable for the next few months, especially with the summer weather that was experienced in the northeast. Early last week, as many area residents were still cleaning up debris from the mid-October snowfall, summer-like weather returned to the area.
TENNESSEE - The long-range winter outlook was just released Thursday, and experts say it won’t be full of as many cold nights as there usually are. The official winter forecast predicts that from December to February temperatures in Tennessee will actually be above normal. “The only problem we see is if we get serious rain events in January. We start getting into a flooding problem and we could see schools close because of high water rather than because of snow.” Until then, forecasters say those who hate the cold should just bundle up and wait. “You'll have brief periods of cold, maybe even snow, but then it's gone and that's it.”
WEEK of 11/11 -
COLD -
CANADA - 11/18 - At least two families have been evacuated from the shores of Lake Winnipeg after several dikes built this fall by the Manitoba government failed to stop frigid water from spraying onto their houses, leaving them coated with thick ice. Several other lakefront properties are at risk of severe damage. UNUSUALLY HIGH WINDS whipped up the spray from the lake, whose levels were two metres higher than usual as a result of a wet summer, aggravated by this week's major snowstorm in southern Manitoba. Freezing temperatures turned the blowing spray into a force of destruction on the west side of the lake Wednesday. The result was eerie-looking ice statues along the shore as well as damage to nearby houses. "In many places, these dikes are not even connected. There are many gaps. The dikes apparently are dissolving like sugar after a rain."
INDIA - 11/12 - Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh is in the grip of extreme cold conditions with temperatures suddenly going down to 10 degrees Celsius, ahead of the advent of winter. The state, which experienced extreme heat and excessive rains in the past two seasons, seems to be heading for a very cold winter. Even day temperatures had been dropping in Telangana, with Nizamabad recording the lowest temperature of 9.9 degrees Celsius. The weather office here said it was not a strange phenomena and the cold conditions were due to transition from the monsoon season to the winter. They predicted extreme cold conditions in the state during the coming winter season.
PAKISTAN - Early winter has forced hundreds of quake-affected families to abandon the tents and temporary shelters as heavy rain and mild snow lashed the entire belt on 11/11. People shivering in the cold had no option but to take shelter in their damaged houses. "This time the winter has come early. We expected rain and snow only in December," not November. "We are not ready at all to face such weather as the quake has snatched everything from us." The rain, wind and snow have made a mockery of the flimsy tent shelters.

WILD TEMPERATURE SWINGS-
AUSTRALIA - Cobar in New South Wales had maximum temperatures which soared to very summer-like 40 degree celsius mid-week and were quickly followed by an UNSEASONAL cold change which dropped the mercury to just 25 degrees celsius on Friday.
CANADA - STRANGE WEATHER in Toronto is being caused by a warm front passing through the region. It boosted temperatures to an UNSEASONABLE high of 15 degrees Celsius early Wednesday. However, temperatures dropped later in the morning as an approaching cold front started to move the warm air out of the way. So far, November has been a month of strange and intense weather in Toronto and around The Golden Horseshoe.
NEW YORK - It was a day of extremes on the 16th. A record high of 70 degrees was set in the morning. Then temperatures were expected to slide dramatically, hitting the upper 40s by the afternoon and 33 degrees overnight. The thermometer hit 70 degrees at 6 a.m. at the Greater Rochester International Airport. It BROKE A RECORD of 69 degrees set in 1933. The normal high for this time of year is 47 degrees.

SNOW -
11/18 -
MICHIGAN - Winter arrived with a bang Wednesday, surprising West Michigan with iced and snowy roads. The way-below-freezing temperatures and warm Lake Michigan combined to cause misery for area drivers and dump a RECORD 8.4 inches of snow on Grand Rapids. "It's UNUSUAL to get so much snow in the first snowfall of the year." A blast of cold air and prolonged strong winds off an UNUSUALLY WARM Lake Michigan cranked up the lake-effect snow machine to full power. Four days after Muskegon County basked in 65-degree temperatures, up to 3 inches of snow blanketed the area. Temperatures plunged to 24 degrees overnight. The winter forecast predicts above-average lake-effect snowfalls this winter. The National Weather Service is predicting a chance for snow every day through next Wednesday.
11/17 -
CANADA - Heavy snowfall and strong winds pummelled northwestern Ontario Wednesday, as part of a winter blast that sparked weather warnings in many areas of the country. The same weather system was behind the blizzard that hit Saskatchewan and Manitoba on Monday and Tuesday, causing at least four deaths and shutting down schools, businesses, roads and airports. More snow and freezing rain was predicted for northern Ontario, Manitoba, Quebec and New Brunswick. Meanwhile, southern Ontario was being buffeted by wind gusts of more than 70 km/h in some areas while temperatures plummeted. Earlier Wednesday, temperatures dipped to nearly –30 in parts of southern Manitoba and Saskatchewan. "It's quite an intense system and it's very wet, so most of the snow that's out there is very heavy."
MONTANA - A STRANGE WEATHER SYSTEM was recorded at Glacier Park International Airport, where it was 34 degrees at 8 p.m. Sunday. It dropped to 30 degrees by 1 a.m., but then warmed during the next two nighttime hours to 34 degrees. Drivers encountered snow, freezing rain and rain for the first time this season, causing traffic accidents across the valley. There was “a mix of everything. ” A “warm push” heralded the arrival of a cold front Sunday night. The temperatures didn’t mix at first, making pockets of freezing rain that turned to snow and rain in some areas and left others dry.
11/16 -
NORTHERN EUROPE - In central Sweden heavy snowfall and icy roads were expected.
CANADA - Manitoba was being walloped by its first major snowstorm of the season, as a blizzard moves east after whiting out the Trans-Canada Highway throughout Saskatchewan.
U.S. - The dramatic clash of seasons will continue this week over the nation. Cold air from Canada is continuing its invasion of the United States, which has been held tightly in the grips of a mild to warm subtropical air mass that has stubbornly held its ground. These Canadian air masses may be early sentries, scouting ahead of a more frigid Siberian-origin air mass lurking in the wings for later this month or into December.

WINTER FORECASTS -
CANADA - Meteorologists say it so far appears to be an El Nino-neutral winter -meaning that neither an El Nino, bringing warm winter weather from the ocean off South America, nor La Nina's colder influence is developing. "It's pretty uncertain what's going to happen."
PENNSYLVANIA - The National Weather Service has issued a general winter outlook for the Northeast that is predicting normal temperatures and precipitation amounts - in other words an "average" winter. Those rumors you've heard about harsh cold and lots of snow are premature. "Right now it seems like the largest part of the Northeast will have a normal winter. That means snow now and then, but no unusual frequency, nothing above average." But it's been an above average year already. In the first three months of 2005, Allentown received 40.7 inches of snow. Annual snowfall for the city from 1946-2002 was only 32.4 inches. The past few Lehigh Valley winters have been colder and had more snowfall than what is considered average in the region. It's typical for the area to get light snow amounts to end the year and get the majority in January, February and into March. The Farmer's Almanac has published a general forecast that indicates the weather this winter is going to be a "polar coaster," with constantly changing temperatures that amount to a frigid winter. "The East is on tap for a crazy ride, with the temperatures and weather initially leading into the winter season seeming mild. But the bulk of the winter will turn out to be unusually cold with plenty of snow especially in the northern sections."
ILLINOIS - December and most of the winter will be generally dry across Illinois. That will limit sub-soil recharge and could make for problems next growing season.
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WEEK of 10/28 -
SNOW -
ICELAND - Southern and western Iceland experienced a weekend of extreme weather conditions. There were winds up to 50 meter per second on Kjalarnes; roof tiles flying off houses in the Westman Islands and twice as many automobile accidents as normally reported, as the roads throughout the country were extremely icy and many were closed. According to reports, it snowed so heavily in the Westman Islands that people clearing the streets could not keep up.
AVALANCHE - On October 20th in the Himalayas furious blizzards set off a series of avalanches. Seven French mountaineers disappeared with 11 Nepalese climbers when a wall of snow thundered into their base camp on the Kanguru peak. Only four of the 22-strong expedition survived. "I have never seen anything like it," said one of the Nepalese porters who dug his way out of the snow."There was a sudden loud noise and within seconds we were blown to the side. We were lucky. The others disappeared." It was the worst ever single loss of life in the mountains. "The conditions had been perfect and there was absolutely no sign that the weather was changing. I was watching my barometer. But on the Wednesday heavy snow began falling, which didn't let up for around 36 hours." A distressed French trekker who had been near the area where the avalanches struck " was really shaken and ashen-faced and told us that he heard avalanches coming off Kanguru peak in REGULAR INTERVALS." The avalanche dragged the climbers more than 100 metres down the mountain in a steep gorge.

WINTER FORECASTS -
UK - One expert has poured cold water on forecasts by others that this winter will be one of the most severe on records with weeks of frost and snow. Mr Currie, who has issued remarkably accurate long-range forecasts in recent years, said that this winter will not be particularly cold. Christmas will be "green" not white, but there could be a short cold spell in early December with some snow around the 8th of the month.
WASHINGTON -A storm pounding Western Washington 10/31 brought heavy rain, brisk winds and the first snow of the season to the mountain passes. "It's a Northwest tradition that the first mountain snow comes on Halloween, and then after that the weather really gets revved up as we head into early November. Historically, some of our strongest wind storms and biggest mountain snows have come in November, and some of the worst flooding, too. This year looks like no exception."
WASHINGTON - Forecasters say flood season is shaping up to be big this year. If history is any indication, it's more than likely to happen in a big way this winter. That's because it's a "neutral year," which means the region isn't facing the warm, wet weather brought on by El Niño, or the dry, cold weather from La Niña. Neutral years usually bring a mixed bag of weather in more intense bouts to the Northwest U.S. Flood season peaks November through February.
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WEEK of 10/21 -
WINTER FORECASTS -
BRITAIN can expect its coldest winter for at least a decade, the Met Office has warned. Sustained icy weather threatens to kill thousands and cause travel chaos. "There is the potential for long periods of up to two weeks where the temperature may not rise much above freezing." London and the South East could face the worst winter since 1962-1963, when Britain was frozen from Boxing Day until April with an average temperature of 0.2C (32.3F). There is a high chance of extreme weather with the likelihood of winds gusting in from Russia instead of the warmer Atlantic ocean. The Met Office has issued an amber alert urging emergency services to brace themselves for the worst. This is one step away from a red alert, which is given only at the height of a winter freeze. A harsh winter would bring widespread disruption to both gas and electricity supplies to industry.
ENGLAND - The outlook is getting worse. Fresh from predicting the coldest winter for a decade, the Met office is forecasting a drought to follow. It has warned that, besides being cold, the winter could be unusually dry, meaning reservoirs depleted by a dry summer and autumn will not be refilled. 10 years of warm wet winters have left Britain unprepared for the much colder ones that used to be the norm. England's water problems have been growing worse for years. Next year, however, they could become acute. This autumn has already seen 40% less rainfall than usual. There is a two in three chance of its predicted cold dry winter coming true, with fears it could be as bad as the winter of 1962-63, the worst in the past 50 years. "If our predictions are right, then the coming winter is likely to be dominated by easterly winds from the Continent, bringing very cold dry air." Until recently it would have been inconceivable to make such firm predictions so far ahead. however, the Met Office has acquired new systems that give forecasters much more information about the influences controlling Britain's long-term weather patterns.
The U.S. MIDWEST - can expect temperatures to be slightly warmer than normal this winter with less than typical snowfall in the forecast. Because of the increased occurrences of hurricanes this year, the rest of the country can expect some unusual alterations in weather patterns. Hurricane activity can block up weather patterns, causing the noticeable shifts in yearly weather trends. If meteorologists can track the pattern they have an idea of what each area of the country can expect. "Once you get in a pattern it gets repetitious. In the meantime, it looks like it will stay that way during the course of the (winter)." In the past, winters that have followed hyper hurricane seasons - like those of 1933, 1969 and 1995 - have been cold. In 1969 the Midwest experienced fiercely cold temperatures, as did the Northeast in 1933. The Northeast is expected to experience temperatures 3.5 degrees higher than normal this winter. But weather patterns now are indicating the Midwest might actually have a milder winter than hurricane history would dictate. The center of the country will see as little as half of its typical snowfall. It's anticipated that precipitation activity will be more furious in the Northeast, as it has been for the past several years.
U.S. - Winter weather is predicted to be warmer across much of the United States. Winter, in a meteorological sense, starts on Dec. 1, not Dec. 21. NOAA’s most recent outlook says this winter might only be able to be forecast on a weekly or bi-weekly basis due to weather influences expected from the Atlantic Ocean. Because of what NOAA calls “North Atlantic Oscilation factors,” those reports of a warmer winter weather possibility “across most of the U.S.,” do not include eastern portions of the country. The NOAA map that divides the warmer than normal part of the country with the normal part of the country draws a line from the Michigan City area to about Cincinnati.
MISSOURI - Predicting what will happen this winter is a little tricky. "I noticed my pets don't seem to be putting on that heavy winter coat they put on in the past. I've got two big Persian cats and a chow dog, and they should be putting on a heavy winter coat. But they look like they have all summer, so if you read that, it should be a mild winter." Tradition also holds that the seeds in a persimmon can predict the weather. If a person cuts the seed in half and sees a dark spot inside in the shape of a knife, the winter will be bitter cold. The shape of a fork indicates a dry winter, and a spoon hints at a wet winter. A persimmon cut open on the 18th found the shape of a spoon inside. The National Weather Service, in its 2005-06 winter outlook, calls for higher than normal temperatures in most of the United States.
CALIFORNIA - A current storm is the beginning of another moisture-laden winter season, forecasters say - possibly a repeat of last season's near record rainfall. The first major storm of fall, which dumped close to an inch of rain in some areas, may foreshadow yet another wet winter for Southern California Last "rain year" - July 2004 through June 2005 - saw about 37.25 inches of rain, making it the second wettest in history. "But it sure looks like there is going to be more rainfall than we normally get in Southern California." Storms such as the current one, which spin counterclockwise and feed off moisture and heat, could also spawn tornadoes. "They're rare in the West Coast. But these are conditions that could trigger tornadoes."
FLORIDA - The area shouldn’t expect above- or below-average temperatures this winter. “It looks highly variable right now. We have equal chances for it to be above average or below average. It might be bouncing back and forth. We might have a front come through where it would be below-average for a few days and then another one come through where it would be above-average.”

SNOW -
NEPAL - Seven French and 11 Nepalese members, 18 out of a 22-strong climbing team, were killed in a snowstorm in the mountains of northwest Nepal. The four surviving Nepalese members of the team were rescued by helicopter as rescuers took advantage of a break in the weather four days after the group was reported stranded in a snowstorm during their attempt on Mount Kangru in the Manang near Annapurna. The 18 team members died on the mountain while four Nepalese, who were staying outside the tents, managed to save their own lives.
PENNSYLVANIA - Heavy, wet snow brought down tree limbs that rendered many roads impassable in the region 10/25 and left thousands of people without power in the aftermath of an UNUSUAL October snowstorm that dropped up to 8 inches. "It was pretty early in the year for a storm like this. Typically, big outages come during your big snowfalls in the winter and your bad thunderstorms in the summer, and this is sort of between those times." School has been closed early in the year for flooding, but never for snow. "This is the earliest I can ever recall us having to have a snow day."
VERMONT - A powerful winter storm Tuesday and Wednesday dropped more than a foot of snow in higher elevations in northern Vermont, causing power failures regionwide. Trees were down everywhere and most roads blocked. "We had to cut our way in and out..We've had trees down before, but nothing like this." The storm set a new record for the most CVPS customers having lost power in October. Autumn and the falling of leaves is five to seven days behind schedule because of warmer weather earlier this month and in September. On Mt. Washington, the storm "set some pretty significant records." This storm BROKE THE 24-HOUR SNOWFALL RECORD ON THE MOUNTAIN FOR OCTOBER, with 25.7 inches falling between Tuesday and Wednesday. The previous record was set earlier this month, on Oct. 17, at 25.5 inches.


COLD -
Hurricane Wilma's rude visit Monday was followed by another EXTRAORDINARY WEATHER EVENT - a cold front. A RARE and powerful October cold front. The Hurricane Wilma cleanup began on PERHAPS THE MOST EXTRAORDINARY POST-HURRICANE WEATHER DAY IN RECORDED SOUTHWEST FLORIDA HISTORY. TEMPERATURES DROPPED TO RECORD LEVELS. Even meteorologists were buzzing about the hurricane/cold front double-whammy. The lowest high temperature ever recorded in Fort Myers on Oct. 25 was 72, in 1937 — that is, until Tuesday. Tuesday's high was a record 71, 14 degrees below the average high of 85 for the day. The low was 56, two degrees short of tying the record low of 54, set in 1982. The predicted low for Wednesday morning was 52, which would tie a record. Today's low temperature record was set in 1990.
FLORIDA - Temperatures in most of Central Florida will once again drop into the 40s as UNUSUALLY COOL TEMPERATURES CONTINUE in the area. "The one thing that is very unusual about the temperatures this morning is that they are all the way in the 40s. Average lows generally run in the 60s this time of year. Current temperatures are well below that." Temperatures dropped down to 39 degrees in parts of Ocala Wednesday morning and a 47 degree reading was recorded in Orlando. The record in Orlando for Oct. 26 is 47 degrees. "It is going to be chilly here for at least the next several days. Today, it feels like a January day." A general northern flow in Central Florida's air pattern will keep cooler weather in the area at least until the weekend.
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WEEK of 10/14 -
SNOW -
NEW HAMPSHIRE - A freak storm dropped 30.4 inches of snow on the summit of Mount Washington this weekend, almost three times what the mountain averages for the entire month of October. Snow drifts were six feet tall. The winds exceeded 100 miles per hour. "It's just absolutely insane. Really absurd. It could have been February out there." About two-thirds of the snowfall arrived Sunday night, and it could be a record for this time of the year. The storm was probably caused in part by the same extreme weather systems that brought last week's steady rain. This autumn has been filled with unpredictable weather, and the early snowfall doesn't predict anything one way or the other for the upcoming winter.
COLD -
INDIA - There was a slight nip in the air suggesting the early onset of winter in the city of Lucknow. With minimum temperature plummeting to 19 degrees Celsius, the nights have become cooler and the chill continues even in the early hours. Cooler conditions are rather unusual for the state at this time of the year. In normal course, the festival of Kartik Purnima or Ganga ‘snaan’ heralds the onset of winter, which this year falls at November-end. The medium velocity winds have added to the nippy condition, which has been supplemented by the cloud cover.

WINTER FORECASTS -
MICHIGAN - Speculation regarding a hard winter for the 2005-06 season may be a bit premature, according to projections provided by the National Weather Service Office. ”There's a strong trend pointing toward a below average snowfall." Ocean currents and temperatures - in the form of El Niño and La Niña - play a critical role in Michigan winters. El Niño reduces snowfall in an average year by 20-30 inches, according to the historical records over the last 50 years, while La Niña tends to deliver more of the white stuff to our area. Neither one of these coastal influences should be in play this winter. Forecasts call for neutral conditions for the next three to six months. There is a widespread notion that the warm temperatures throughout the summer months may fuel more lake-effect snowfall for the 2005-06 winter. Historically, that has not been the case with the winters following their five warmest summers over the last 50 years providing only average snowfall. The lone exception, however, is a remarkable one. The last warm summer - 1995 by the National Weather Service calculations - saw a record 222 inches of snow dumped on Sault Ste. Marie surpassing the yearly average by 100 inches. For those in Mackinac County, lake effect snowfall is fueled by the rare southwest wind. When this occurs, moisture is collected from lake Michigan and dumped along the region that normally is protected from the heaviest snowfalls. If the wind shifts from northwest, to due north or due west, most of Chippewa County will escape with only trace amounts of snow.
ARIZONA - Phoenix and the rest of Arizona are likely to be slightly warmer and drier this winter, according to long-range forecasts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Nationally, winter will be warmer but about average on precipitation. Phoenix has a 55 percent chance of being warmer, as well as a 50 to 55 percent chance of being drier. Even if the winter matches the 30-year average, it would be warmer and drier than last winter. Last winter was one of the wettest in recent memory for Arizona, with almost 6½ inches of rain during December, January and February. Average for the winter months is 2.69 inches. It also was slightly cooler than usual. El Nino, a warming of the surface water in the eastern Pacific Ocean associated with unusual weather patterns, should play no role this winter. Instead, forecasters look to other factors, such as the Madden-Julian Oscillation, or "Pineapple Express," which draws weather in from the tropical Pacific Ocean and was credited for last year's wet winter.
SOUTH AFRICA - is expecting normal conditions for the rest of October, November and December (their spring / summer). "In October we are expecting a daily average maximum temperature of 24°C and a minimum of 17C. The expected average rainfall in October is 98mm. In November we are expecting a daily average maximum temperature of 25°C and a minimum of 18°C. Rainfall for November is expected to be 108mm." Holidaymakers should expect 102mm of rainfall in December. And the Christmas season will also see normal weather conditions, with the average daily maximum being 27°C and the minimum 20°C. 76 years ago, on the morning of June 26, 1929, a heavy hail storm covered the city of Durban in ice when a freak storm, accompanied by a hurricane, dropped tennis ball-sized hailstones. Torrential rain and hail pelted down on the streets of Durban, causing chaos and mayhem. The storm originated when two cyclonic storms met over the town, one from the west and one from the south west. They then moved east and the storm broke over the Berea below the Ridge and swept on over the heart of the city, where it reached its height and then moved down to the beach and out to sea.
Scientists say global warming from greenhouse gases produces warmer sea surfaces, boosting evaporation, while warmer air holds more moisture. As that soggy air moves from the oceans to the land, it dumps extra rain per storm. "The models show most areas around the world will experience more intense precipitation for a given storm during this century." In the Mediterranean and the U.S. Southwest, although intensity increases, average precipitation decreases. The authors attribute the decrease to longer periods of dry days between wet ones. The heavier rain and snow will most likely fall in late autumn, winter and early spring, while warmer months may still bring a greater risk of drought. Researchers say the greatest increases in precipitation will occur in the tropics, with heavier rain or snow also falling in northwestern and northeastern North America, northern Europe, northern Asia, the eastern coast of Asia, southwestern Australia, and parts of south-central South America during the 21st century.
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WEEK of 10/8 -
SNOW -
10/9 - A powerful storm dropped up to 20 inches of snow in parts of Colorado, knocked out power Monday to thousands of people, closed a lengthy stretch of a major highway and triggered rock slides in the foothills. One person died. In southwestern Colorado, rain associated with the storm system was believed to have triggered two rock slides in San Miguel County, including one that shut down a lane of Colorado 145. Steady rain also caused two rock slides in Boulder Canyon northwest of Denver, forcing the closure of one lane of Colorado 119 and damaging a car.

WINTER FORECASTS -
Most of U.S. can expect a warmer-than-normal winter - this is true in the western two-thirds of the continental United States from December through February. The forecast for the Eastern Seaboard is less toasty, however, with the odds equal for warmer, colder or normal winter thermometer readings. With no El Nino or La Nina pattern present in the Pacific, the outlook for rain or snow across the nation is less certain, with no particular trend for it to be dryer or wetter over most of the country. The exceptions are across the southern tier of states, where the outlook calls for dryer-than-normal conditions in much of New Mexico and Arizona and wetter-than-normal conditions across most of Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and northeastern Texas. There will still be bouts of winter weather, even extreme winter weather, across much of the country. The dominant winter-weather maker is expected to be a climate feature called the North Atlantic Oscillation, which largely guides the position of the jet stream as it moves across the continent. When the NAO is in a positive phase, the jet stream tends to shift north and keeps Arctic cold bottled up in Canada; during the negative phase, the jet stream dips south of its usual position and sets up the Ohio Valley, the Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast for deep-freeze conditions, big snowstorms and Nor'easters along the coast. Researchers expect the pattern to flip back and forth a number of times each winter, but so far have been unable to predict when it will change more than a week or two in advance.
AccuWeather's forecast calls for above-normal snowfall in New England and the mountains of the Pacific Northwest, with the center of the country seeing about half the normal amount of snow. It anticipates that temperatures will be as much as 3.5 degrees colder than normal in the Northeast, and up to 4 degrees warmer than normal over much of the West.
Meteorologists, weather forecasters and prognosticators all see Maryland's coming winter a little differently. "We really don't know" what the winter might look like." Yesterday NOAA released its predictions for December through February, but the forecast is pretty cloudy. The statistics and weather models used to make seasonal outlooks don't clearly indicate what Marylandand other mid-Atlantic states could experience. "We truly are not settled on what's the most likely thing to happen in either precipitation or temperature." "There's no indication one way or the other that it would be colder or warmer or average." A more identifiable pattern might emerge by late October or early November. "We're overdue for some nor'easters" and Maryland will likely see some this year." (Nor'easters are strong storms that produce winds from the northeast.) Last winter, Maryland's average temperature was 32.6 degrees, the 35th-coldest since 1895, the first year recorded by the National Weather Service. Precipitation was 9.87 inches, 64th since it was first measured. The "2006 Old Farmer's Almanac" predicts that temperatures along the Atlantic Corridor "will be 1 degree below normal, on average, with above-normal precipitation in most of the region." According to that almanac, the biggest snowfalls will occur in early December and mid-January, and temperatures will be lower than normal during those months.
The Met Office in England has predicted that this winter will be the coldest for ten years.
The Met Office in the United Kingdom is warning that the country faces a colder than average winter this year. A harsh winter could mean there is not enough gas to maintain supplies to both homes and businesses. This could mean factory closures and thousands of workers being sent home. Actions may involve asking - or forcing - major industries such as chemical producers to stop using gas. They also include dimming the lights by turning down the voltage in the mains supplies. Gas is used to fuel around 40% of the country's power stations, which is why electricity supplies are under threat. The problem has arisen because Britain is no longer self-sufficient in gas. At the same time there is a shortage of stored gas which could see the country through a period of high demand - only 11 days of supply, compared with 55 days in some European nations. Most of their gas supply comes from the North Sea. However, these gas wells are running dry. An average winter will probably mean a few industrial customers and power stations having gas supplies cut off on a voluntary basis. A harsh winter - a one in 50-year occurence last seen in 1963 - would bring widespread disruption to power supplies to industry.
A fuel hungry United States may have a tough time importing heating oil this winter from across the Atlantic due to high European distillate demand, low European inventories, and French labor strife that could cut exports. The prospect is bad news for the world's largest energy consumer, where hurricanes have knocked out 14 percent of the nation's fuel production ahead of what private forecasters are saying could be a chilly winter.
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WEEK of 9/23 -
RECORD SNOW -
A 64-year-old snowfall record was shattered 10/5 as Jack Frost made his first visit of the season to Westman, Canada wreaking havoc on roads and power lines and stranding some school children. Up to four centimetres of snow fell in the Wheat City by 2:30 p.m., blowing away the previous Oct. 5 record of 3.3 cm set in 1941. But it wasn’t the earliest snowfall of the season, or October’s biggest. The southwest corner of the province of Manitoba was especially hard hit by the blizzard, which dumped 25 to 45 cm of snow in some areas and came with northwest winds of up to 70 km-h. The storm was due to a Colorado Low. While not unusual, that type of system usually doesn’t hit the region until November. “It’s a bit early.”
About 155 miles of Interstate 94 from Mandan to the Montana border was closed to traffic Wednesday morning after a major winter storm brought heavy, wet snow and strong winds that snapped trees and power lines, canceled classes and left vehicles in the ditch. Heavy snow in the fall has been rare in southwestern North Dakota in recent years. Fall snowstorms have happened in Montana in recent years, but not as widespread or as far south as Wednesday's storm. Tree leaves were the main problem in power outages during Wednesday's storm. "Almost every outage is related to tree branches." "It's really treacherous - heavy, deep snow. Visibility is just really poor. It's so heavy that vehicles just can't push through it. I've got semis all over the place, stuck." "It's wet, heavy snow and it's going to pack, and it's going to turn to solid ice and we're not going to be able to keep up with it." The National Weather Service said it had a report of 12 1/2 inches of snow around Halliday and 10 inches at Fairfield. The state had 90 degree temperatures just a few days earlier. Bismarck reported 92 degrees on Oct. 1.

WINTER FORECASTS -
Recent mild Octobers have seduced elk hunters into cozy disregard for the Rocky Mountain weather demons. It might be helpful to recall the first rifle season of 1994 in southwestern Colorado. A freak storm smothered the Weminuche Wilderness under as much as 4 feet of snow. Some hunters were stranded in camps well into the following week. One man died of exposure. Rescuers brought out his brother, suffering from severe frostbite, six days after the brutal storm started. The only thing predictable about Colorado's autumn weather is its unpredictability. Mountain temperatures can drop 30 degrees in an hour. Unseen clouds just over the ridge could bear loads of wet snow. If it's warm and glorious, that's because the weather demons are napping.
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Week of 9/23 -
COOL TEMPS -
Cold weather has killed 30 people in isolated, wind-swept Mongolia where temperatures plummeted from a warm 23 degrees Celsius on Friday to below zero. Most of the victims in the capital, Ulan Bator, were found over the weekend on the streets and at bus stops, and alcohol abuse may be a factor. After a sunny and relatively warm first weeks of autumn, temperatures dropped from 23 C (73 Fahrenheit) to minus 10 C (14 F) in some parts of the country, followed by snow storms. In Ulan Bator, temperatures dropped to minus 6 C (21 F). High winds in the southern Gobi desert blew away dozens of gers, or round, white, felt tents, and damaged buildings. "There have been no reports of so many accidental deaths for at least five years."

In New Zealand , snow lay on Mt Pirongia, the Kaimai Range and Mt Te Aroha yesterday as the increasingly bizarre spring weather continued. Raglan residents endured another worrying night with king tides, strong winds and run-off from the hills pushing up harbour levels to more than 3m above normal. Homes were flooded yesterday. King tides happen once or twice a year, coinciding with a full moon. The region was also hit by a cold snap which saw Hamilton wake to a 4 degC temperature. It will get colder with 1 degC expected.
Frost in the coming days might be a problem for farmers and orchardists. "The stage is blossom set in the trees - a bit early this year. The cherry trees and some apple trees are getting into bud so they're vulnerable."

WINTER FORECASTS -
The summer of 2005 was THE 5TH RAINIEST EVER IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA, topped off with hurricane-triggered tornadoes Aug. 30. But the first three weeks of September have been dry as a bone. "Back in April, there was no way for anyone to predict the summer would be so wet.We are in a neutral climate pattern now, neither a La Nina nor an El Nino. That increases the probability of extreme cold outbreaks in winter. This September, the area seems prematurely to have entered a fall-like weather pattern similar to October, which traditionally is one of the driest months of the year.
The impact of global warming on European weather patterns has been underestimated, according to a new report published this week. Present climate change models have underestimated the changes in air pressure, leading to an underestimate of the impact of global warming on weather patterns. Observations reveal that air pressure has dropped 4 millibars over Iceland in the past 50 years and risen by up to 3 millibars in the sub tropics, while climate model trends were less than 1 millibar. Over the past thirty years air pressure trends have contributed about 1°C to warming over the UK in winter and up to 3°C in Siberia, as well as 60% of the rainfall increase seen in Scotland. Over Southern England, the air pressure trends have likely made the winters milder and windier.
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Week of 9/16 -
COOL TEMPS -
In New Zealand, the biggest snowfall of the year fell, as a cold snap moved in. Spring snow was not unusual and was timed with Wednesday's equinox – when the day and the night are equal lengths. The moisture was welcomed after a dry start to spring, but the cold conditions could be perilous for newborn lambs. The wind chill was the biggest concern. "It's an incredibly cold wind. It will be the wind that's the killer, if you have snow and no wind it's the better of the two evils, the wind chill factor is horrific." The weather closed part of New Plymouth's Coastal Walkway following fears high seas could send waves crashing over the pathway during high tide.
The unexpectedly cool summer in California has confounded experts and significantly reduced the risk of brush fires. Fire officials had been warning of a potential highly destructive brush fire season because of vegetation growth fueled by last winter's near-record rainstorms. But the summer has turned out to be far from a scorcher: June was 2.9 degrees below normal, July 1.2 degrees below, August 2.1 below and September 5.5 degrees below so far. "We haven't had a decent Santa Ana [wind] all summer...I'm still thinking we're going to have a dry winter."

WINTER PREDICTIONS -
Projections for this winter for Arizona are still uncertain, but the national Climatic Prediction Center issued a forecast for a winter that is slightly warmer and drier than average, at least through December. (formerly at http://www.azdailysun.com/non_sec/nav_includes/story.cfm?storyID=115506)
Climate experts predict warmer temperatures and less rain for Southern California this winter and next spring - a huge relief for cities that sustained significant damage from record rainfall this past season. "We've never seen two wet winters in a row." But while top climatologists are usually very accurate, few experts predicted that rains last season would break records in areas of Southern California and that Los Angeles would fall just short of breaking a century-old record. "People used to think weather only happened where they were. Weather trends are linked globally. Asia's weather, for instance, affects our weather." As warmer Arctic temperatures continue, cold air collects over the central regions of the country, resulting in a colder winter for the Northeast. That, in turn, will cause a warmer jet stream from the Pacific Ocean to increase average temperatures across the Southwest.
In South Africa, in the southern hemisphere,the heat is on as unusually warm weather is set to make this summer one of the hottest in recent times. The weather service had forecast normal to slightly above normal temperatures over the entire country during the next four to five months. Rrainfall throughout the country would be normal to below normal, especially in the south-western Cape. The kind of warm temperatures that have been experienced over large parts of the country this winter are unusual, but no interpretation of their impact on existing weather patterns can be made."
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9/8 -
WINTER FORECASTS -
If patterns holds true, this winter in Oregon could be a doozy. Climate forecasters predict the future by examining recent sea surface temperatures, regional climate patterns, and even Atlantic Ocean hurricanes - and this year these indicators show a close similarity to conditions prior to the winter of 1995-96. The 1995-96 fall and winter will long be remembered for a powerful wind storm in December, two ice storms, and the massive "100-year flood" in February. "It was a wild year... it would appear the chances for an extreme event this winter are quite high." Hurricanes have a surprisingly strong correlation to Northwest climate. The trend this fall and winter appears to be warmer and wetter than normal, throughout the state. The Country Farmers Almanac predicts snow flurries as early as December and "true winter weather" in February with severe snowstorms.
Experts predicted that the balmy summer could produce a dazzling New England-style "fall" in Wales, England. "We have had a strange summer ." There are reports of early tints on trees in some drought-hit parts of the UK, including Scotland, which experienced the third driest July since records began. The extraordinary blaze of color could foretell a hard winter.

COLD -
9/11 -
Freak summer snow hit Alberta, Canada - A freak early 18-inch snowfall in southwestern Alberta left as many as 4,000 homes without electricity as crews scrambled to repair downed lines. Hit hardest was the city of Crowsnest Pass, 160 miles southwest of Calgary.
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8/30 -
WINTER FORECAST -
The Farmers' Almanac warns that the coming winter will bring unusually sharp fluctuations in temperature, and says readers "may be reminded of riding a roller, or in this case, 'polar' coaster." "Mother Nature seems to be in the mood for some amusement this winter season," the almanac said in its 2006 edition, just off the presses. The coldest weather will be in the Northeast, which also will get plenty of snow. It predicts cold weather for the South and Mid-Atlantic regions and snowy but mild weather in the Great Lakes and Midwest. Parts of the Rockies and the Great Plains may have drier-than-normal weather, adding to the area's continuing drought, but wetter-than-normal weather is predicted for the Pacific Northwest and lower Texas. The forecasts are prepared two years in advance using a secret formula based on sunspots, the position of the planets and the tidal action of the moon. The almanac, not to be confused with the New Hampshire-based Old Farmer's Almanac 24 years its senior, claims a circulation of nearly 5 million.
8/26 -
Do early lake effect clouds in New York mean they're due for a pummeling of snow this winter? Not necessarily. The low puffy clouds they've seen this week are rather unusual for August. "Typically you see that towards mid-September or the end of September. Usually when there are drastic changes like this, people take notice." A hefty storm could force Lake Ontario's waters to turn over, bringing colder water to the surface and reducing the chances for lake effect. Rochester, New York has seen 13 days of 90-degree temperatures so far this summer, compared with none in 2004 and three in 2003.
8/21 -
Some long-range forecasts predict an early start for cold and nasty weather this year. Accuweather just announced we are headed for an especially cold winter in the northeastern United States and the chilly temperatures will begin earlier than usual. Specifically, Accuweather proclaims that temperatures will be 2 to 3 degrees below normal. And those colder temperatures will bring more snow than normal, too. “It looks like things in the atmosphere are changing. These troughs — think of them as ditches in the atmosphere — that are forming in Canada, will allow much cooler air to be drawn southward.” The recent unusual weather patterns in the Midwest, including the tornadoes in Wisconsin, are indications that these troughs are forming.
8/20 -
In South Carolina the unseasonably cool and overcast weather - temperatures in recent weeks have hovered in the low 60s for much of the day - is likely to continue through the next week. Local high temperatures have been 5 to 7 degrees lower than the average 75-76 degrees for August. "It's usually a sunnier month than this. Just one of the strange enigmas about this year's weather."

The rest of the country may be sweltering in the grip of summer, but the Northern California coast is deep in the fog days of August, lost in a blanket of gray gloom. San Francisco is ground zero for the summer fog, which some people think is worse this year than ever. On Wednesday, San Francisco was colder than Anchorage, Alaska. San Francisco had a low of 52 at sunrise, three degrees colder than the Alaskan city. There are nine different summer fog formations. The San Francisco Bay Area has three seasons: winter, summer and fog. And summer is just around the corner. On the coast, summer comes in the fall. Dawn has been visible only two of the first 18 days of August in San Francisco. The sun hasn't come out at all for days in San Francisco's western neighborhoods; no one has seen a sunset in the Sunset District for nearly a week. Even normally sunny Contra Costa was gray. "What's the fog doing here?'' It is usually bright sunshine from April to November. "This has been one of the foggiest Julys and Augusts I've ever seen.'' The National Weather Service is calling for fog and low clouds through next Thursday.

Two climate change sceptics, who believe the dangers of global warming are overstated, have put their money where their mouth is and bet $10,000 that the planet will cool over the next decade. The pair believe that global temperatures are driven more by changes in the sun's activity than by the emission of greenhouse gases. They say the Earth warms and cools in response to changes in the number and size of sunspots.
8/12 -
Bendigo in central Victoria, Australia has experienced its COLDEST AUGUST DAY IN 10 YEARS. "We've had a really strong cold front come through and directly from the south and that has had no time to warm up, it's come in quite quickly and that's why [we've had] these really low temperatures and cold air mass and widespread snow falls."
8/11 -
Freezing weather blanketed Victoria, Australia in THE MOST WIDESPREAD SNOW FOR 50 YEARS. Freak snowfalls forced the closure of at least three schools, as well as major highways and other roads in Southern Victoria that remained closed for much of the day. The bitter Antarctic-born cold air that caused yesterday's extreme conditions has moved into Bass Strait and the Tasman Sea. The Southern Hemisphere continent is in the grip of winter at this time of year, but snow is nonetheless rare in communities near sea level, such as parts of the city of Melbourne.
8/10 -
Bitter Antarctic weather has hit the Tasmanian capital with its first snow in almost 20 years.
An experiment in a dry Antarctic stream channel has shown that a carpet of freeze-dried microbes that lay dormant for two decades sprang to life one day after water was diverted into it, "These mats not only persisted for years when there was no water in the streambed, but blossomed into an entire ecosystem in about a week. All we did was add water."
8/6 -
Spring in Stockholm, Sweden was cold, the weather patterns were unfamiliar according to an 'average' citizen.
8/2 -
Low temperatures in the winter months are very common in some Brazilian regions, but each year the cold has arrived later. Temperatures were predicted to stay in the 30s last week, when suddenly, in only one day, the mercury plunged. This week, the southern region is getting the first days of extreme cold, under a frozen air mass entering through Argentina.

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JULY 2005 -
7/30 -
In Queensland, Australia THE WEATHER HAS BEEN UNSEASONAL, with very high rainfalls, extremely high winds for this time of year, and unusually low temperatures. "The rain is actually coming over from the west, which is fairly unusual for this time of year." "It seems like June and July are our wet weason this year, rather than the traditional February, March and April months." The July average amount of rain (912mm) has already been doubled.