Storms
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Tornado1

Storm Grayson blitzes U.S. east coast, Storm Eleanor batters Europe and Storm Ava builds up near Africa

nasa storm grayson
© NASAInfrared image of Winter Storm Grayson collected on the morning of Thursday, Jan. 4, 2018.
By the time Friday is here, people along the length of North America's East Coast will be recuperating from a punishing round of heavy snow, high winds, and bitter cold. This nor'easter-dubbed Grayson by The Weather Channel-will rank among the most impressive of recent decades in its fast development, deep low pressure, and fierce winds. Various models agreed that Grayson's surface low would deepen by an astounding 30-40 millibars or more from late Wednesday to late Thursday, more than qualifying the midlatitude cyclone as a meteorological "bomb" (defined as 24 millibars of deepening in 24 hours). The deepening rate could be among the strongest observed off the East Coast in the last several decades of records, according to David Roth (NWS).

Update:
Preliminary analyses from NOAA/NWS Weather Prediction Center as of midday Thursday show that Grayson deepened by an incredible 59 millibars in just 24 hours, which would be a record for midlatitude storms in this part of the Northwest Atlantic. The central pressure at 10 AM EST was analyzed by WPC at 951 mb.

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Snowflake Cold

"Bomb cyclone" Storm Grayson brings travel mayhem, high winds and icy flooding to US northeast - UPDATE

US bomb cyclone Jan 2018
© AP / Michael Dwyer
On Thursday, airliners canceled more than 3,600 flights after a major winter storm, the fearsomely termed bomb cyclone, dished out mayhem across the northeastern US, according to FlightAware.com, an online flight tracking service.

More cancellations are expected Friday as the storm lingers in New England.

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Snowflake Cold

15k New Yorkers lose heat, airports close amid 'very serious storm'

New York City
© Benjamin Kanter / Mayoral Photography Office

Thousands of New Yorkers were left in the cold as parts of the city were blanketed under more than a foot of snow. All inbound and outbound flights at JFK and LaGuardia airports were temporarily suspended.

Winter Storm Grayson hit New York City hard Thursday, causing more than 6,500 New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) apartments to lose power. Six NYCHA developments, which house more than 15,000 people, all lost heat, hot water, or both at some point, according to New York City Patch.

Tornado1

Storm Eleanor causes havoc across Europe, gusts of 100mph/161kmh reported

storm eleanor UK
The first windstorm of the new year has caused damage and major travel disruption across western Europe.

Locations from the British Isles into France, Netherlands and Germany all endured powerful winds, rain and coastal flooding.

Snowflake Cold

Record flooding unleashed in Massachusetts as Winter Storm Grayson hammers Northeast U.S.

Winter Storm Grayson hits the US East Coast with heavy snow
© GETTYUS snow: Winter Storm Grayson hits the US East Coast with heavy snow
Winter Storm Grayson has left at least one dead in the Northeast and triggered what officials believe is Massachusett's highest high tide on record as of Thursday.

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said flooding from the "historic high tide" prompted the deployment of National Guard high-water rescue vehicles to aid residents and stranded vehicles, the Associated Press reports.

Philadelphia authorities announced a death Thursday as the storm made its sheer power felt by millions.

Local police told AP that a passenger was killed after a vehicle was unable to stop at the bottom of an icy, steep hill and crashed into a commuter train. The driver managed to escape, but the passenger remained inside as the car went through a gate at the railroad crossing. Police later discovered the body along the tracks.

As tides rose in the afternoon hours, coastal areas saw flooding in addition to the wintry precipitation from the storm.

Storm surge poured into the streets in towns like Scituate, Massachusetts, flooding the roads with partially frozen salt water. In the town of Rockport, The Weather Channel storm tracker Jim Cantore watched as water levels rose quickly Thursday afternoon and threatened to wash away several parked cars that were left behind.


Comment: According to the Weather Channel, Winter Storm Grayson has undergone what meteorologists call bombogenesis, defined by a rapid drop in atmospheric pressure of 24 millibars or more in a period of 24 hours.


In over four decades-worth of data compiled by Dr. Andrea Lopez Lang from SUNY-Albany and David Roth from NOAA's Weather Prediction Center, this bombogenesis rate of 59 millibars in 24 hours through 10 a.m. EST Thursday was a record magnitude for this part of the western Atlantic Ocean, dating to 1976.

According to NOAA's ensemble tracks forecast, Grayson's central pressure will drop further today. For comparison, past Northeast storms such as Nemo (February 2013), Juno (January 2015) and Stella (March 2017) had minimum central pressures in the 970s millibars.

See also: North America enters a freeze so deep even the penguins are panicking


Cloud Lightning

Two killed and one hurt by lightning bolt in Kenya

Two people killed by lightning strike in Turi
Two people killed by lightning strike in Turi
One child and an adult died while another person is in hospital after they were struck by lightning in Turi, Molo sub-county, yesterday.

Turi Location Chief Thomas Mose said the two, aged four and 20 years, were struck in their house. Mr Mose said the lightning struck at around 4 pm, leaving their father injured.

The chief said neighbours heard loud thunder and rushed to the homestead but found the two already dead.

The father was taken to Molo Sub-County Hospital.

Bizarro Earth

Brutal winds, high seas from storm Eleanor leave 55K homes without power and parts of Ireland completely flooded

Flooding Galway Storm Eleanor
Flooding in Galway caused by Storm Eleanor
Around 50,000 homes are now without power due to devastating Storm Eleanor.

Met Eireann was forced to issue and Status Orange alert - and it remain in place until 10pm tonight.

There is also a Status Yellow wind warning in place until 9pm tomorrow.

Storm Eleanor brought brutal gusts and high seas to a number of coastal communities today.

Met Eireann warned there could be flooding along coastal areas, as the weather front causes huge swells.

A forecaster said: "Storm Eleanor will quickly move across the country tomorrow evening and tomorrow night.

"West to southwest winds of mean speeds 65 to 80 km/h, gusting to 110 to 130 km/h, with damaging gusts are expected."

Keep up with all that's going on below.

Comment: Irish Central reports Storm Eleanor battered the shores with winds over 80 mph, with Galway catching the worst. The storm coincided with high tide in Galway City leaving fallen trees and severe flooding in its wake:






Windsock

Terrified skiers swung violently about on chairlift as Austrian resort is hit by severe snowstorm (VIDEOS)

Bad weather: Several people were left trapped in a the chairlift in Vorarlberg ski resort in Austria, during a severe snow storm
Bad weather: Several people were left trapped in a the chairlift in Vorarlberg ski resort in Austria, during a severe snow storm
A video showing terrified skiers stuck in a chairlift swinging violently from side to side has emerged as Storm Eleanor sweeps through Europe after battering Britain.

The footage was shot at the Vorarlberg ski resort in Austria, where several people were left trapped in the lift system as the strong winds suddenly took hold.

Another video filmed nearby shows members of the resort staff climbing up onto the system to try to rescue the skiers, having to hold on as best they can while the snow storm is raging around them.


Elsewhere, both the French and Italian Alps have been on maximum avalanche alert today and several ski resorts closed their runs and lift systems due to the weather.

In France, major resort Val d'Isere closed its runs for the day because of heavy snowfall, while Chamonix said it was shutting many of its lifts as a precautionary measure.

Ice Cube

Intense storm produces large hail accumulations in Biblián, Ecuador

Hail in Biblian, Ecuador
© Medios Públicos
An unusually intense hailstorm accompanied by heavy rains surprised the inhabitants of Biblián, in the province of Cañar, Ecuador on January 2, 2018 as reported by El Universo.

The most intense rainfall recorded in the city for 15 years fell in just over an hour, according to the local fire chief, Romeo Fernández. The hail accumulation, more than 10 centimeters thick in places, trapped cars and blocked roads prompting the Fire Department, Red Cross and other organizations to declare a state of high alert noted El Telegrafo.


Snowflake

Ski resorts in the Alps close as Storm Eleanor hits, 8 feet of snow may fall in 24 hours

Storm warning
Storm Eleanor may be having some impact in the UK but that appears to be nothing on what she's doing in the Alps with several resorts completely closing their ski areas today due to the dangers posed.

Val Thorens has warned that it may get precipitation that equates to up to 2.4m (8 feet) of snow in the next 24 hours but that that will be accompanied by winds that could hit 200kph (125 mph). But there will also be extreme temperature fluctuations so some of that precipitation could fall as torrential rain at times, particularly at lower elevations.

Val d'Isere has already reported winds of up to 125kph on upper slopes.

Comment: See also: Hurricane force winds hit Switzerland