Storms
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Cloud Lightning

Record Rainfall for One Day Seen in Portland, Maine

rain on window
© 50mm via Flickr
A record rainfall for Portland on Monday helped temper April's stretch of dry, fire-prone weather, greening up places like Deering Oaks, but there's a many-legged downside.

Invasive insects may crop up where they haven't been seen before.

On Monday, Portland set a daily record for rainfall with 3.13 inches of rain, breaking the old record of 1.53 inches set in 1921, according to Margaret Curtis, meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Rainfall records go back to 1941.

Cloud Lightning

More freak weather: Tornado rips through farm in Essex, UK

Essex tornado
© ITV AngliaOne of the destroyed barns on Brook Street Farm
A tornado ripped through Essex villages yesterday afternoon (Wednesday).

A farmer told how he was forced to hide in a shed while his wife took cover in a nearby workshop as the extreme weather hit Halstead and nearby White Ash Green.

The tornado ripped through Alan and Liz Barrow's farm near Halstead.

Cloud Precipitation

Severe Gales and Massive Downpours to Batter Britain Over Weekend

Essex tornado
The impact of the tornado that ripped through a hamlet in Essex
Torrential rain driven by 60mph winds is set to wreak havoc across Britain this weekend.

Weather experts warned last night a combination of severe gales and massive downpours would bring flash flooding and travel chaos.

The worst spell is expected on Sunday lunchtime with up to two inches of rain - the monthly average - falling by the afternoon. The Environment Agency said it was poised to issue "severe flood" warnings in the South, indicating "danger to life".

Cloud Lightning

Freak 'Mini Tornado' Damages Homes In Rugby, UK

Rugby tornado
© Diane Slater
High winds have ripped through a Warwickshire town, blowing the roof off one home and damaging others in what residents have called a "mini tornado".

Police said a number of properties suffered structural damage as winds battered Rugby from around 6pm on Wednesday.

Umbrella

Drought-hit areas of England told to prepare for floods

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© Matt Dunham/APA man tries to shelter under a copy of the Financial Times as he runs through a heavy rain shower in London.
Heavy rain leads the Environment Agency to issue eight flood warnings and 22 flood alerts across southern England

No sooner had 20 million people in southern and eastern England been banned from using hosepipes than the heavens opened, and now parts of the country have been told to prepare for flooding.

April has seen day after day of wet and chilly weather, and heavy rain on Wednesday morning led the Environment Agency to issue eight flood warnings and 22 flood alerts across southern England.

Paul Mott, forecaster at MeteoGroup, the weather division of the Press Association, said the weather was set to remain wet: "It's going to stay unsettled over the next seven days with frequent showers and persistent rain.

"Sunday looks to be a washout with up to an inch of rain falling across England and Wales."

Nick Prebble at MeteoGroup said: "Throughout April we have seen 175% more rain than would be normal, totalling 94.3mm (3.7in)."

However, the environment secretary, Caroline Spelman, said the rain would not avert the drought and water companies were right to impose a hosepipe ban.

Snowflake

Rain and Snow Hit Parts of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick


Rain and wet snow are sweeping through parts of Atlantic Canada, Ontario and Quebec, where Hydro-Québec reports more than 28,000 customers are without power.

The winter may have been mild in Ontario, but it's going out strong, with snow in some areas and wind and rain in many others.

Ottawa-area residents woke up to strong winds, ice pellets and some flurries Monday morning, as the temperature hovered around 0 C. By midday, the ice and snow had turned to rain in many areas, but Environment Canada cautioned that rain mixed with wet snow could return overnight.

Southern Ontario was also dealing with a wet and windy morning, CBC weather specialist Jay Scotland said.

"I was in flip-flops a week ago and now I had to pull out the boots. Not happy," Toronto resident Ally Mixemong said.

Snow accumulation isn't expected in the Toronto area, but the snow could stick around in areas north of the Haliburton Highlands or along the escarpment, he said.

But the cold weather isn't covering the whole province - in Thunder Bay, it was mainly sunny and 14 C.

The wet, blustery weather conditions led to power outages in many parts of Quebec, but 165 crews were out trying to deal with the outages, Hydro-Québec said Monday afternoon.

Igloo

Freak Weather: East Coast Snow cuts power to 50,000, more to come

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© msnbc.msn.com
A powerful spring storm dumped snow across parts of the Northeast overnight -- including 10 inches in one town -- and cut power to more than 50,000 customers in Pennsylvania and upstate New York, with more snow expected during the day.

"Winter storm warnings are in effect from the higher elevations of West Virginia northward to western New York," the National Weather Service stated.

Most of the snow was falling across upstate New York, West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania, where the weather service was predicting the heaviest snowfall "of over an inch per hour" would occur through midday Monday.

In addition, flood watches were in effect in parts of eastern New York and northern Maine, the weather service stated.

Strong winds accompanied the storm overnight, with LaGuardia Airport in New York City recording a 54 mph gust. Winds hit 40 mph in Boston and 44 in Groton, Conn.

Cloud Lightning

Freak Weather: Powerful, Cold Storm Targets the Northeastern US

A storm delivering needed rain to the Atlantic Seaboard will have many faces ranging from urban flooding, to strong winds, unusual cold, heavy snow and power outages into today. A strengthening storm is rolling up the Atlantic Coast with drenching rain.

For many areas, aside from spoiling outdoor plans, the rain is greatly needed with some locations from Washington, D.C. to Boston experiencing a rainfall deficit of 6 inches since March 1. The storm already has or will deliver a thorough soaking. However, the storm will bring problems as well. Enough rain can fall in urban areas to overwhelm storm drains and catch basins from the Delmarva to Maine.
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© AccuWeather

Cloud Lightning

Women Forced to "Break the Law and Walk Barefoot" During Tehran Floods

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© Azin Haghighi/Facebook
Still reeling from a torrential downpour that flooded much of Tehran earlier this week many in the Iranian capital have lashed out at local authorities, blaming them for not being sufficiently prepared for severe weather. The storm left much of the northern and eastern parts of the city completely water logged, including entire subway stations, forcing people of both sexes to hike up their pant legs and take of their shoes despite an Islamic law forbidding women to show their bare feet in public. Tehran, which is usually spared from the kind of flooding regularly seen in other parts of northern Iran, was taken by surprise on Sunday by the extensive damage caused by the heavy rainfall. The city's public transport system was completely flooded, and a number of vehicles were even swept away by the water. Violent gusts of winds also caused electrical shortages in several neighbourhoods, leaving residents in the dark for up to seven hours.

Umbrella

Severe Floods Cause Damage in Northern Iran

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© Reza Hoseini/FacebookFloods in Tehran
Rasht, Gilan Province - Severe floods across northern Iran caused enormous damage to infrastructure in a number of towns and villages on Thursday and Friday after pouring spring rains drenched northern and northwestern provinces of the country for about one week. Heavy rains in the northern province of Gilan swelled rivers, causing devastating floods across the province. Floods caused great damage to farms, buildings, rice fields and warehouses, bridges, and power lines located near the rivers. Flash flooding in Fuman County killed a young girl. Heavy showers of rain and hail in the northwestern province of Ardabil also caused floods, inflicting considerable damage to gardens, farms, buildings, and roads.