Storms
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Tornado2

Unstable weather brings rain and rare waterspout off Fujairah shoreline in the United Arab Emirates


Gulf News
Tue, 27 Jan 2026 10:49 UTC
NCM warns of humidity, mist and changing sea conditions after rare sighting.
NCM warns of humidity, mist and changing sea conditions after rare sighting.
A waterspout was observed off the coast of Fujairah on Tuesday, as parts of the UAE's eastern region experienced rainfall brought on by unstable weather conditions.

Rainfall was reported in Kalba along the eastern coast, as well as in Wadi May in Fujairah, where residents shared images and videos showing steady showers and runoff in valleys.

The National Center of Meteorology forecast fair to partly cloudy conditions across the UAE, with low clouds developing over some eastern regions and a possibility of light rainfall. Humidity levels are expected to rise during the night and into Wednesday morning over coastal and internal areas, particularly in western parts of the country, increasing the chance of fog or mist formation.

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Lightning

Lightning strike kills woman in Fiji


Fiji Times
Mon, 26 Jan 2026 09:46 UTC
The late Dominika Lebotia who was struck by lighting on Friday last week.
The late Dominika Lebotia who was struck by lighting on Friday last week.
A 29-year-old woman died instantly after being struck by lightning on Saturday afternoon at the Saint Vincent grounds near Natovi Jetty, Tailevu.

Dominika Lebotia, of Qelekuro Village in the district of Namena, was reportedly walking toward the jetty when the fatal bolt struck.

Vincent Yalimai, 19, who was working with friends at the Saint Vincent School compound, recounted the tragic incident.

"We were cutting grass at the school compound on Saturday when it started to rain heavily around noon," he said. "Moments later, a thunderstorm and lightning followed."

Mr Yalimai said he and five others took shelter on the school verandah but saw Dominika walking toward the jetty.
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Snowflake Cold

Best of the Web: 'Historic' U.S. storm leaves several dead, 11,000 flights canceled, a million without power during extreme cold

Rebecca Schneid
Time
Mon, 26 Jan 2026 19:49 UTC
worker clears snow from the entrance to a parking lot, as a major winter storm spreads across a large swath of the United States, in New York City, on Jan. 26, 2026.
© Brendan McDermid/ Reutersworker clears snow from the entrance to a parking lot, as a major winter storm spreads across a large swath of the United States, in New York City, on Jan. 26, 2026.
More than 1 million people have been left without power and at least 13 people have died during a massive winter storm that has sown chaos across the South and the Midwest and is now barreling toward the East Coast.

Over 200 million people across the country were under some kind of weather alert as of Sunday morning. Power outages mostly affected homes in the South, including in Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Kentucky, where large snowfall is rare. Parts of the U.S. experienced dangerously low wind chills in the minus-20s to minus-30s as Arctic air pushed south. Copenhagen, New York, saw record-breaking temperatures of -49°F, Gov. Kathy Hochul said on Sunday.

The storm's dangerous mixture of heavy snow, sleet, ice, and bitter cold threatens to trap millions indoors for days. Travel has been severely disrupted, with more than 16,000 scheduled flights canceled from Saturday through Monday, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware. On Sunday, around 11,000 flights were canceled—the most in a single day since the COVID-19 pandemic. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in the D.C. area canceled all flights on Sunday, and New York's LaGuardia Airport has reopened after closing on Sunday afternoon, although no flights are expected to take off or land until Monday morning.

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Snowflake Cold

Best of the Web: Toronto breaks snowfall records: 56 cms (22 inches) of snow in 24 hours - January also snowiest on record


TorontoToday.ca
Mon, 26 Jan 2026 19:22 UTC
A person clearing snow on a side street near Lansdowne Avenue and Dupont Street.
© Gabe Oatley/TorontoTodayA person clearing snow on a side street near Lansdowne Avenue and Dupont Street.
Toronto's major winter storm over the weekend was one for the record books.

On Sunday, there was an estimated 56 centimetres of snowfall in downtown Toronto, beating the previous single-day record of 48.3 centimetres, which according to Environment Canada meteorologist Geoff Coulson, was set on Dec. 11, 1944.

The meteorologist said Toronto Pearson Airport recorded 46.2 centimetres of snowfall on Sunday. The amount beat out the region's previous single-day snowfall record of 39.9 centimetres, set on Feb. 25, 1965.

January has also been the snowiest month in Toronto's recorded history, which Environment Canada began tracking in 1937.

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Cloud Lightning

Lightning strike at Brasilia rally injures 89 Bolsonaro supporters


Euronews
Mon, 26 Jan 2026 18:48 UTC
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Eighty-nine people were injured by lightning at a rally supporting former President Jair Bolsonaro in Brasilia, as the demonstrators gathered to demand Bolsonaro's release from prison.

Eighty-nine people were injured when lightning struck near a rally supporting jailed former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil's capital on Sunday, fire officials said.

The bolt hit as thousands gathered in the rain to demand the far-right leader's release from prison, where he is serving a 27-year sentence for his role in attempting to overturn his 2022 election defeat.

Video footage captured the moment a sudden flash and thunder sent crowds scrambling for cover beneath umbrellas and plastic ponchos in Brasilia.

Fire department officials said 47 people required hospital treatment, with 11 needing intensive medical care. Emergency responders treated dozens more at the scene.

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Snowflake

Heavy snow and rainfall kill 61, injure 110 over 3 days in Afghanistan, authorities say


wsvn.com
Sun, 25 Jan 2026 19:47 UTC
mmmmm
Heavy snow and rainfall over the past three days have killed more than 60 people and injured over 100 across Afghanistan, the country's disaster management authority said Saturday, as authorities in the impoverished country struggled to open roads and gain access to cut-off villages.

National Disaster Management Authority spokesman Yousaf Hammad said 61 people had died and 110 were injured, while 458 homes had been completely or partially destroyed and hundreds of animals had died in 15 of Afghanistan's 34 provinces. The numbers, he said, could change as authorities gathered more information from the provinces.

Afghanistan is highly vulnerable to extreme weather events, with snow and heavy rain that triggers flash floods often killing dozens, or even hundreds, of people at a time. In 2024, more than 300 people died in springtime flash floods.

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Snowflake Cold

Heavy snow covers many Sea of Japan coastal regions - 14.5 inches of snowfall in 6 hours


NHK
Sun, 25 Jan 2026 14:40 UTC
The city of Toyama on Sunday. Regions facing the Sea of Japan coast have continued to see heavy snowfall since Tuesday.
© Maya WatanabeThe city of Toyama on Sunday. Regions facing the Sea of Japan coast have continued to see heavy snowfall since Tuesday.
Heavy snowfall from Japan's Hokuriku to Sanin regions is passing its peak. But the Meteorological Agency is warning of possible traffic disruptions as intermittent snowfall is expected in northern Japan, Niigata Prefecture, and elsewhere.

The agency says a strong winter pressure pattern brought snow, mainly to areas along the Sea of Japan coast from Hokkaido to the Chugoku region, from Saturday night to early Sunday.

It issued a heavy snow alert for Ishikawa and Tottori prefectures, warning of rapid accumulation of snow in parts of the regions.

From midnight to 6 a.m. on Sunday, the city of Kanazawa in Ishikawa got 37 centimeters of snow. That is the highest amount since statistics began.

As of 11 a.m., accumulated snow in Kanazawa reached 64 centimeters, more than nine times the amount of an average year.

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Snowflake Cold

Millions brace for winter storm in the US: incoming heavy snow, sleet, and freezing rain


KOMO News
Sun, 25 Jan 2026 14:25 UTC
Heavy snow and ice to impact millions as winter storm sweeps across US
Heavy snow and ice to impact millions as winter storm sweeps across US
A "high-impact and far-reaching" winter storm is underway in parts of the U.S., with "significant" weather forecasted throughout most of the nation.

NWS said conditions "rapidly deteriorated" across Texas overnight, but the most widespread round of wintry weather is set to occur from Saturday evening into Sunday morning.

"Dangerously cold temperatures and wind chills are spreading into the area and will remain in place into Monday," NWS in Fort Worth said on X. "Low temperatures will be mostly in the single digits for the next few nights, with wind chills as low as minus 12 degrees Fahrenheit."

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Arrow Down

Best of the Web: Up to 9 people dead in landslides, floods after heavy rainfall in New Zealand (UPDATE)


ITV
Thu, 22 Jan 2026 18:53 UTC
Rescue work will continue through the night, officials say
Rescue work will continue through the night, officials say
At least two people have died and several are reported to be missing, including a young child, after landslides in New Zealand, officials said on Thursday.

It comes after high winds and heavy rainfall over the past few days on the North Island, leading to multiple power outages and widespread flooding, local media reported.

The first landslide hit a house in the community of Welcome Bay on New Zealand's North Island at 4.50am, police said.

Two people escaped the house, and the bodies of two who were trapped inside were recovered hours later, Emergency Management Minister Mark Mitchell said.

Later the same morning, emergency services were called to a second slide at the base of nearby Mount Maunganui.

The rubble hit Beachside Holiday Park, where a number of people in the "single figures" are missing.


Comment: Update January 23

The World Socialist Web Site reports:
Six people are unaccounted for and three others are confirmed dead after severe storms caused flooding and landslides across northern parts of New Zealand this week.

States of emergency remain in place for Whangārei, Thames-Coromandel and Hauraki districts and for Bay of Plenty and Tairāwhiti-Gisborne regions due to severe rainfall, which was most intense on Wednesday and Thursday.


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Tsunami

Jakarta, Indonesia flooded for third time this year after heavy rain submerges roads


The Financial Express
Fri, 23 Jan 2026 12:28 UTC
mmmmm
Heavy rain lashed Indonesia's capital Jakarta on Thursday, triggering widespread flooding that inundated dozens of neighbourhoods and major roads, forcing vehicles to crawl through deep water as residents waded through flooded streets.

The Jakarta Disaster Mitigation Agency said at least 15 neighbourhoods and 20 roads were affected, with water levels ranging from 10 to 90 centimetres, marking the third flooding incident in the city since the start of 2026.

Officials cited intense rainfall and chronic drainage problems as contributing factors, as residents reported repeated disruptions and slow relief as waters receded.

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