Weather News Archives

Scientists are only just starting to understand the major weather patterns like El Nino and how hurricanes are formed. via Mochila

“The crews are having a hard time holding onto even their gear. Their hard hats are blowing around. Sage brush is blowing into them. It's pretty intense up there”

Firefighters had to contend with gale-force winds while battling a huge brush fire that raced along the edge of a valley south of Reno, forcing a major highway to close, threatening homes, and causing the evacuation of a school.

About a dozen firefighters needed treatment after the winds gusting up to 68 mph blew dirt, ash and cinders in their eyes, Reno Fire Department spokesman Steve Frady said Tuesday night. Five were taken to a hospital in Reno.

'It was gusting, really pushing hard. We were getting dust in our eyes continuously,' Frady said. 'Right now, the winds have diminished a little bit, so that may help us out.' Read more

Authorities say evacuations are under way in Fort Kent, Maine because the St. John River is flooding.

The Aroostook County Emergency Management Agency says residents of about 30 to 40 homes were ordered to evacuate as the river continues to rise because of heavy rain and melting snow.

Officials also say the International Bridge over the river between Fort Kent and Clair, New Brunswick, has been closed.

On Tuesday night, Gov. John Baldacci issued a state of emergency for Aroostook County because of flood conditions in the Fort Kent and Wallagrass areas. Read more

By JIMMY SETTLE * The Leaf-Chronicle * April 29, 2008 Cover or bring your sensitive plants inside tonight. via The Leaf Chronicle

Last year alone, global levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, the primary driver of global climate change, increased by 0.6 percent, or 19 billion tons. Additionally methane rose by 27 million tons after nearly a decade with little or no increase. NOAA scientists released these and other preliminary findings today as part of an annual update to the agency's greenhouse gas index, which tracks data from 60 sites around the world. The burning of coal, oil, and gas, known as fossil fuels, is the primary source of increasing carbon dioxide emissions. Earth's oceans, vegetation, and soils soak up half of these emissions. - NOAA Global CO2 and Methane Levels - Sharp Rise in 2007

News Suffolk Weather Emergency workers and city officials worked overnight in Suffolk to formulate disaster plans and gear up to assess damages left by the tornado that flattened homes and businesses and left ... via PilotOnline.com

“We'll just have to cut back even further”

Construction continues on the Elm Road Generating Station, a coal-fired power plant, Wednesday, April 23, 2008, in Oak Creek, Wis. via Kansas.com

“We're not anticipating a deep freeze”

Cool temperatures under clear skies led the National Weather Service to issue a frost advisory for much of the St. via STLtoday

Climbers are preparing to take a specially-adapted Olympic torch to the summit of Everest. via Reuters RSS Reuters.com

Highs in the 70s and sunny skies were expected to return across Texas on Monday now that a weekend band of thunderstorms has left the state.The National Weather Service called for clear skies from morning until ... via Star-telegram.com

If the weather made sense around here, this wouldn't be Wisconsin. For most of the state, the long and brutal winter is over. via WAOW

“But there's more champagne than at a sewing bee.”

The crowds that are usually jammed in almost hip-to-hip for each day's closing acts at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival were much smaller Sunday. via Southeast Missourian

Severe weather has dumped between 5 and 6 six inches of rain on parts of North Carolina. via WAVY-TV Portsmouth

“The ice hasn't broken up though on our side of the river.”

- A mass airlift of flood-threatened First Nations communities on the shore of James Bay resumed Sunday, one day after rain, fog and snow scuttled evacuation plans, Ontario's Community Safety Ministry said.

The weather improved sufficiently early in the day to allow 97 people to be flown from Fort Albany to Moosonee, en route to Kapuskasing, ministry spokesman Patrice Cloutier said.

"Airlift operations have restarted," Cloutier said. "Planning is still underway to make sure that we take everybody in those communities out." Read more

Officials in Southern California say it may be days before a wildfire that's burned 270 acres is under control. via WLOS

“I think the biggest concern is this area ... has not burned in 10-plus years, so there's a lot of fuel up there for this fire”

A wildfire in Southern California that has scorched 270 acres and forced the evacuation of about 100 homes in neighborhoods might not be under control for days, officials said Sunday.

Firefighters originally had hoped to have the blaze contained Sunday, but gusting winds late Saturday night kept the fire burning out of control and creeping toward nearby homes, said Elisa Weaver of the Arcadia Fire Department.

The mandatory evacuation order came shortly before 11 p.m. The fire broke out on a hot, dry Saturday afternoon about 10 miles northeast of Pasadena, Weaver said. Read more

“We had about 32 inches of ice this year, so it's taking a while to go ... But it's black and candling now so it's just a matter of days.”

Anglers may be dealing with ice when Minnesota's walleye season opens in two weeks.

The Minnesota Office of Climatology says as of Friday, all major lakes in the northern half of the state were officially ice covered. By this time last year almost all of Minnesota's lakes were ice-free.

Ice-out hasn't been a worry for the walleye opener since 1996. That year, many Minnesota lakes set their record for latest ice-out.

But a cool winter and spring means a later-than-normal ice-out for northern Minnesota and also for Wisconsin, where the fishing season opens Saturday, a week before Minnesota's. Read more

“This could be fixed up in a little bit and back to new, I think”

A series of storms that included a reported tornado in central Wisconsin caused significant damage Friday. via WAPT

Anchorage continues to dig out from a snowfall that set a record for the day and the month. via KOMOradio

It could be Old Man Winter's last gasp in Minnesota. Vehicles travel on U.S. Highway 71 near Bemidji, Minn. via ABC News

“Immediately, there would not be a whole lot of impact on the U.S.”

The Midwest has enjoyed nearly 20 years without a major drought but forecasters worry the corn belt's luck could dry up this year, further squeezing tight global supplies amid soaring food prices. via WSSL-FM Greenville

“We are keeping our fingers crossed that we get the showers that are forecast late Saturday into Sunday”

Firefighters from a number of Lakes Region communities dig out and hose down hot spots left in the wake of three alarm brush fire off Fox Hill Road, in Belmont yesterday. via Concord Monitor

While much of Nebraska deals with rain and cleanup from thunderstorm and tornado damage, northeast Nebraska is breaking out the snow plows. via KOLN-TV Lincoln

It's late April, but forecasters say some Minnesotans should get ready for a big snowstorm. via Minnesota Public Radio

“It is my concern that if these issues are not addressed immediately, that a major incident will happen with possible loss of life”

More than a decade before a fiery, 34-vehicle pileup last fall killed three people inside a curving, dimly lighted tunnel, state police and a California transportation official warned that the stretch of ... via The Macon Telegraph

Cedar Falls officials are keeping a close eye on Dry Run Creek, which runs through the middle of the city. via KWWL-TV Waterloo

Officials near Fort Worth, Texas, say more than a dozen homes have been damaged or destroyed by a severe thunderstorm system. via ClipSyndicate

“They chose this road because it is full of bends and tunnels. It will give the film a lot of impact”

A stuntman has been seriously injured in a car crash while filming an action sequence for the new James Bond film. via Hereford Times

The Morrill County sheriff says a tornado has destroyed a rural house south of Bridgeport. via KLKN-TV Lincoln

“This area is under constant threat”

Along the U.S.-Mexico border, the fragile salt marshes at the mouth of the Tijuana River are clinging to life as one of the last vestiges of undeveloped California coast, where tall grasses sway gently in the ... via Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

As warmer weather means more young people playing sports and riding bikes, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reminded people to be safe while having fun. via KHOG-TV Fort Smith

“I wish I could say it in gentler terms but, plain and simple, cold water shocks, incapacitates and kills”

It may feel like summer, but the Coast Guard and New Hampshire's Marine Patrol are warning boaters that the water in the Northeast is dangerously cold. via Home News Tribune - State

Severe weather pounded parts of Texas with baseball-sized hail, 70-mph winds and possible tornadoes on Wednesday, knocking down power lines and trees, and damaging some buildings. No injuries were reported.

In northern Jones County, Judge Dale Spurgin said a storm damaged roofs in Anson and one highway was closed by downed utility poles. Spurgin said there was minor flooding on some roads.

As the storm moved east, at least one tornado was reported in Erath County, about 60 miles southwest of Fort Worth. The same one appears to have touched down nearby in Palo Pinto County, said Nick Hampshire, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Trees were knocked down and outbuildings were destroyed along the county line. Read more

Georgia's Climatologist says winter and early spring rains have helped, but north Georgia remains in severe to extreme drought. via WSB-AM Atlanta

The National Weather Service said winds will increase as moist, unstable air continues streaming northward into the state. via TulsaWorld.com - Local

Cold nights across the North Coast are hitting vineyards throughout the region hard. via KNBC Los Angeles Channel 4

“Overall, the entire West looks pretty good, Colorado and the Pacific Northwest in particular”

Hydrologist Joe Messina measures the water content of the snow in Geneva Park on Guanella Pass in Grant, Colo., Monday, March 31, 2008. via The Boston Globe

“We believe the best way to deal with them, and the safest option for staff and patients, is to have the whole building fumigated so both the spiders and their eggs are killed”

A tiny Australian hospital is closing temporarily because of an infestation of poisonous spiders.

The Baralaba Multi Purpose Health Service will close for 24 hours starting Thursday morning so officials can fumigate the building to get rid of redback spiders that have been found in large numbers in the main part of the hospital.

Three or four patients will need to be moved to another hospital while the building is closed, according to a statement from Queensland state health officials. Read more

A brief spring storm is expected to bring rain to much of Northern California and snow and heavy winds to the Sierra Nevada before clearing out Wednesday. via Sacramento Bee

“The older guys in the past looked out for the little ones. Now they're all locked up”

Nine people were killed in 36 shootings over the weekend in Chicago, reflecting what some community leaders say is a deadly breakdown in discipline among gang members after a crackdown over the past few years ... via CNN

“These events can happen anywhere. Tornadoes can strike in cities and floods can take place where they've never happened before. Every Minnesota county has experienced a tornado sometime in the last 56 years”

When beautiful weather arrives in Minnesota, it inevitably brings its partner: Severe weather. via KSAX

REGISTER STAFF WRITER Posted at 05:57 on 04/22/2008 A broad area of thunderstorms is sweeping across Iowa this morning, moving into eastern Iowa between 5 and 7 a.m. The National Weather Service said the ... via Indianola Record-Herald

“We will have red flag (windy) conditions again today ... and the danger factor is still there. It's a critical day as far as fire suppression goes.”

Firefighters braced for windy weather Monday as they battled a wildfire that had dashed between two towns in central New Mexico.

More crews poured into the area during the night and additional air tankers were ordered, officials said.

The blaze was 30 percent contained Monday after charring nearly six square miles, or 3,745 acres, between Manzano and Torreon, fighters reported.

Voluntary evacuations remained in effect Monday for the two towns southeast of Albuquerque, although few people paid any heed, said Deanna Younger, lead fire information officer with the New Mexico Type II Incident Management Team. Read more

Portions of central and eastern Virginia were under a flood advisory Monday as residents and officials assessed damage from storms that moved through several counties in the Richmond area. via WVEC-TV Norfolk

The National Weather Service has confirmed that the damaging storms that tore through portions of Prince George's and Charles counties on Sunday were small tornadoes. via MyFOX Atlanta

Freezing temperatures that caused crop damage and car crashes across Oregon this weekend could continue for another day or two, especially along the Columbia River Gorge and the southern Oregon coast. via Kpic.com

Extreme weather continues to devastate large parts of China leaving dozens missing and thousands stranded. via Reuters

“Early fall and early spring are the time of heaviest snowfall.”

- It just didn't seem fair to the Montreal man waiting for an Edmonton bus as wicked winds whipped snowflakes around his uncovered head.

"We left Montreal and it was about 27 degrees," he said, huddled inside a bus shelter during this year's version of the surprise spring snowstorm.

"Here, it's 10 below."

And that about summed up another weekend of wacky weather across Canada: the east smiled under the sun and the west blanched under a blizzard.

"It's a little crazy right now," said Carolyn Seguin as she grimaced into the Edmonton wind. "It should be nice, but it's full of snow and it's windy and it's incredible." Read more

“They were standing there right in the middle of town watching it go past the town. It was a few miles away”

High winds grounded air tankers and fanned the flames of a wildfire Sunday, sending it racing between two towns where hundreds of residents had ignored suggestions to evacuate. No one was reported injured.

Residents of about 130 homes in the towns of Manzano and Torreon, near the Manzano Mountains southeast of Albuquerque, had been asked to leave, said Torrance County Emergency Manager John Cordova. He called the threat 'severe.'

Even so, not many people in Manzano left their homes, said Deanna Younger, a fire information officer. Read more

High winds and low humidity are keeping firefighters busy Sunday as they battle two wildfires burning in rugged terrain in central and southern New Mexico. via Alamogordo Daily News

Melting snow and run off from the north is pushing the Mississippi River to flood levels in parts of the Quad Cities area. via KCCI

“The fire a couple of times has jumped roads in the park.”

Crews were fighting a brush fire Saturday in Ulster County that scorched about 2,300 acres in Minnewaska State Park and thwarted two days of efforts to stop it, officials said. via Recordonline.com - The Times Herald-R...

Hey, read the rules! A weather service official says witnesses reported seeing a tornado on the ground north of the town of Shelby and there are reports of downed trees and a damaged barn. via WITN

Oklahomans will get to enjoy warm, mild weather for the next several days. The National Weather Service said a dry and stable airmass spread over the region on Friday behind a storm system that brought ... via KRISTV.COM Corpus Christi

The car being used in the latest James Bond film plunged into a lake in northern Italy while being driven to the set.

Producers say the driver of the Aston Martin was taken to a hospital with minor injuries. They say James Bond's iconic car was being delivered to the filming unit in heavy rain on Saturday morning when it went off the road and plunged into Lake Garda.

Italian state TV has shown footage of the smashed, black car being hoisted out of the water.

'Quantum of Solace' is the newest film in the 007 series. It stars Daniel Craig and is due for release later this year. Read more

The Indy Japan 300 was rescheduled for Sunday due to a wet track.

Heavy rain forced the cancellation of Friday's qualifying and the track was still wet on Saturday. Organizers tried to get the track ready but Saturday's race was called off after a two-hour delay.

A persistent wet spot on turn No. 4 was the main cause of the postponement, although crews were working on the track at various places.

'We never got a situation where the racetrack was presentable and safe to race on,' chief race steward Brian Barnhart said. 'The drivers would not have been comfortable and been in a position to where we could have done anything today.' Read more

Today...Mostly cloudy with scattered showers. Highs in the lower to mid 60s. Southwest winds 10 to 15 mph. via The Leaf Chronicle

Little Rock, AR State officials say 11 Arkansas counties arefacing an April 30 deadline to apply for disaster unemployment assistance. via KATV Little Rock

BRUSSELS, Belgium : All 15 nations that use the euro brought their yearly budget deficits under an EU limit last year, the bloc's statistical agency Eurostat said Friday, as European governments reaped tax ... via International Herald Tribune

In this photo released by China's Xinhua news agency, a motorcyclist drives against a strong wind on a street in Wenchang City, south China's Hainan Province, Friday, April 18, 2008. via The Macon Telegraph

Light, layered clothing may be in order this weekend, as temperatures are expected to hover around the 62-degrees range during the day, according to the National Weather Service. via San Jose Mercury News

“I felt the shaking for like 20 seconds. I thought I was dreaming. It was like somebody was shaking the bed”

A strong earthquake in southeast Illinois was felt up to 450 miles away early this morning, including in southeastern Wisconsin. via Marshfield News-Herald

“The weekend should be pretty clear”

The weather is giving many rush-hour drivers a break as thunderstorms that dropped up to an inch of rain in parts of Harris County this morning move quickly eastward, forecasters said. via Houston Chronicle

“Bascially look south of where you are and that's probably a good guess of what your weather may be like in a few decades.”

The jet stream - America's stormy weather maker - is creeping northward and weakening, new research shows. via The Oregonian

The National Weather Service says northwest Oregon and southwest Washington will likely see snow this weekend after having 80-degree weather last weekend. via The Ashland Daily Tidings

A wildfire burned at least four homes Thursday in west Texas and forced the evacuation of about 100 residences, the Texas Forest Service said. via Lubbock Avalanche

“On Friday, the air will have a winter-like bite to it, with lows starting out in the 30s and highs maxing out only in the 40s”

The weather this weekend in Western Washington will feel more like mid-February than mid-April with cold temperatures and snow in the forecast. via KING-TV Seattle

The National Weather Service office in Green Bay reports the following weather conditions for the Marshfield area today: Today: A 50 percent chance of rain after 4 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 58. via Marshfield News-Herald

Two directors of a Chinese coal mine have each been sentenced to seven years' imprisonment for negligence in an accident in which 172 miners died. via Australian News

Apr 16 = Seven people have been killed in New Zealand after being swept away by flash floods during a violent storm. via Reuters

“Factory output was held down by a large decline in the output of motor vehicles and parts. A shortage of motor vehicle parts that resulted from a strike at a parts manufacturer idled a number of motor vehicle assembly plants”

The number of U.S. housing projects started last month fell to the lowest in 17 years, while consumer prices moved up a bit less than expected, leaving the Federal Reserve some room to lower interest rates to ... via WNED.org

A cold front will push south across eastern Colorado today bringing with it a chance of rain and snow to Denver. via Denver Post

The National Weather Service in Morristown has been recognized for providing emergency weather warnings when the Nashville office lost phone service during a major tornado outbreak two years ago. via The Robertson County Times

Rio Tinto, the world's third largest miner, has posted record first quarter iron ore output as the company continues to expand its Pilbara operations, while coal production has suffered from severe flooding in ... via The Sydney Morning Herald

“I can see the snow clouds coming over the mountains as we speak.”

Wildfires in warm, windy weather burned into a southeast Colorado town and on an Army post Tuesday, and a firefighting pilot and two other people died.

All 1,100 residents of the town of Ordway were told to leave because of a fire that burned across 7,100 acres, or 11 square miles, authorities said. By 9 p.m. Tuesday, firefighters had contained about 50 percent of the fire, which damaged at least 20 buildings, four within town town limits, fire spokesman Chris Sorensen said.

Crowley County sheriff's deputy Bill Hamilton said late Tuesday he didn't immediately have details on the two deaths. Read more

Heavy Rains in Arkansas Skyrocketing Rice Prices Due to Heavy Rain and Export Restrictions via ClipSyndicate

“We're still making up those dry deficits, but we are beginning to gain on it”

The drought is easing because of rain this year, a Tennessee Valley Authority official says. via WAAY-TV Huntsville

New Jersey may prohibit youth from buying super-caffeinated energy drinks and supplements. via KOCO-TV Oklahoma City

A search was launched Tuesday after seven young hikers in rugged country in New Zealand were reported to have been swept down a flooded river as a storm swept down the North Island, according to news reports. via Earth Times