14 Sep 1900 – The North Western Advocate and the Emu Ba… – p3
Disrupting the Borg is expensive and time consuming!
Google Search
-
Recent Posts
- Ellen Flees To The UK
- HUD Climate Advisor
- Causes Of Increased Storminess
- Scientist Kamala Harris
- The End Of Polar Bears
- Cats And Hamsters Cause Hurricanes
- Democrats’ Campaign Of Joy
- New BBC Climate Expert
- 21st Century Toddlers Discuss Climate Change
- “the United States has suffered a “precipitous increase” in hurricane strikes”
- Thing Of The Past Returns
- “Impossible Heatwaves”
- Billion Dollar Electric Chargers
- “Not A Mandate”
- Up Is Down
- The Clean Energy Boom
- Climate Change In Spain
- The Clock Is Ticking
- “hottest weather in 120,000 years”
- “Peace, Relief, And Recovery”
- “Earth’s hottest weather in 120,000 years”
- Michael Mann Hurricane Update
- Michael Mann Hurricane Update
- Making Themselves Irrelevant
- Michael Mann Predicts The Demise Of X
Recent Comments
- spren on HUD Climate Advisor
- conrad ziefle on Scientist Kamala Harris
- Tel on Ellen Flees To The UK
- Petit_Barde on Ellen Flees To The UK
- dm on Scientist Kamala Harris
- Gamecock on Scientist Kamala Harris
- Richard E Fritz on The End Of Polar Bears
- Richard E Fritz on Scientist Kamala Harris
- Richard E Fritz on Scientist Kamala Harris
- Richard E Fritz on Causes Of Increased Storminess
1900-1910
11 August 1900,
US: It was reported that 26 die in record high temperatures of up to 107 degrees F.
30 December 1900,
UK: Over 50 people are dead as gales and flooding lash the country.
2 July 1900,
US: In New York Nearly 400 people die in one day during a heat wave, with Temperatures up to 110 degrees F (37 degrees C) in the shade.
8 September 1900,
US: Galveston Hurricane – The deadliest natural disaster in United States History, this Category Four Hurricane moved through Cuba into the Gulf of Mexico before slamming ashore in Galveston, Texas on September 8, 1900 killing 6,000 people.
3 April 1901,
Australia: The station buildings at Austral Downs were destroyed by flood.
12 November 1901,
In the UK, Great gales lash the country, nearly 200 die and many ships are lost.
12 December 1901,
UK: North East gale/snowstorm cut communications in all parts of England. Snow heavily blocked roads and caused havoc for livestock. Many telegraph wires were brought down and the railways were brought to a standstill.
1 May 1902, In India 416 die in Dacca Tornado.
3 September 1902,
In Austria a Landslide in Transcaucasia Kills 700.
25 September 1902,
Italy: Hundreds die when a tornado strikes the Catania region of Sicily.
31 January 1902,
UK: Highest recorded atmospheric pressure British Isles.
The mean sea level pressure reached 1053.6 mbar at Aberdeen Observatory in north-eastern Scotland.
21 February 1903,
UK: A spectacular dry dust fall affected much of England and Wales.
27 February 1903,
UK: High winds brought widespread damage – some deaths with communications widely disrupted. A passenger train was overturned as it crossed a viaduct in north Lancashire. Douglas, Isle of Man, the storm of the night of the 26th/27th was thought to be ‘probably of almost unprecedented violence’. Many shipwrecks both close inshore and on the high seas.
26 February 1903,
Ireland: Strong winds – possibly the worst storm across the island since January, 1839. In Phoenix Park, Dublin nearly 3000 trees were blown down and much damage was caused to property in the city. Many towns/cities in Ireland were affected; In Cork a girl was killed.
22 March 1903,
In New York the US side of the Niagara Falls runs dry
June 1903,
US: The Heppner Flood. The normally placid Willow Creek burst its banks during an intense rain and hail storm. The city of Heppner, at the foothills of the Blue Mountains in eastern Oregon, was almost completely destroyed. 220 of Heppner’s 1,400 residents died in the flood.
1 June 1903,
In the Us a Tornado kills 100 people and destroys Georgia town of Gainsvill.
10 September 1903,
In the UK a Great storm in the south of England causes Deaths and widespread damage.
22 January 1904,
In Norway several were killed and 12,000 were made destitute when a Hurricane swept the flames of a fire through the streets of Alesund destroying the town, severe weather prevailed, entailing intense suffering upon the homeless.
3 February 1904,
Freak Tidal wave wreaks havoc in England, elsewhere gale force winds and heavy rain have caused considerable damage to property and wide spread flooding has brought work to a stand still on farms all over the country.
24 March 1904,
US: Michigan Flood, Many dams were either undermined or swept away. Kalamazoo saw two square miles of flooding during this event. The Grand River bursts its banks on the night of March 24, rising slowly for the next four days. Over one-half of the population on the west side of the river was inundated. On the east bank of the river, numerous factories went underwater. There was one casualty.
20 November 1904,
UK: Widespread snow between the 20th and 23rd when a large area of southern Scotland and northern England averaged 46cm of level snow, with heavy drifting in places.
21 November 1904.
In the East Indies 30,000 people were reported Destitute after a typhoon near the Philippine island of Mindanao.
5 February 1904,
US: In Chicago a Polar Bear freezes to death in the zoo after three nights of -15 degrees F.
15 March 1905,
UK: In Scotland 23 drown off Land’s End and 100 mph gales lash Edinburgh as storms grip the country.
27 August 1905.
In Ireland severe storms and flooding hit the country.
7 February 1906.
The pacific: Many were killed as a cyclone with 120 mph winds and 65 ft waves strike the Cook Islands.
8 February 1906.
The pacific: at least 10,000 were killed in Tahiti and neighbouring islands as a cyclone with 120 mph winds and 65 ft waves.
21 February 1906.
Colombia: A massive tidal wave kills 200.
28 March 1906.
New York: The State Meteorological Office says that the science of forecasting the weather is “within our grasp”
31 August 1906.
London: An intense heat wave brings Temperatures as high a 93 degrees Fahrenheit in the shade. Temperatures reached or exceeded 32 degrees C on four consecutive days from the 31st August.
2 September 1906,
UK: The September record maximum of 35.6 degrees C was set at Bawtry, South Yorkshire.
4 September 1906,
London: Huge downpour of heavy rain ends the heat wave.
23 November 1906,
UK: A remarkable warm spell occurred from the 22nd to the 25th. A maximum temperature of 20.0 degrees C was recorded on the 23rd at Lairg in Sutherland SE end of Loch Shin.
28 December 1906,
UK: Heavy snowstorms. In Scotland 13 die when a train is derailed by snow on the track north of Dundee. Aberdeen and other centres isolated for at least 3 days, reported snow disruption elsewhere over Britain.
1 January 1907.
China: Four million people are feared to be starving owing to heavy rains and crop failure.
22 January 1907.
Dutch East Indies: About 1500 are reported people killed in a massive tidal wave.
24 January 1907.
Europe: Artic weather grips the Continent; it is -30 degrees Fahrenheit in Austria.
16 March 1907,
US: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Flood. Snowmelt combined with heavy rains allowed the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio rivers to swell busting their banks by the 16th leading to a flood of record in Pittsburgh. It brought widespread damage to the city and killing up to 12 people.
22 July 1907,
UK: Heavy thunderstorms occurred across a wide area of England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland. These caused extensive flooding in urban areas and severely damaged standing crops in the countryside. In Watford Hertfordshire, significant flooding occurred.
In South Wales at least 80 mm of rain was recorded from one location in Monmouthshire, together with a severe hailstorm and associated lightning damage the hail completely blocked a river and stripped trees of bark and foliage.
7 March 1908,
US: After heavy rains in early March, the Kalamazoo River flooded Albion when the Homer Dam broke around 3 p.m. on March 7. By midnight, the bridges surrounding town were underwater.
24 April 1908,
UK: Widespread snow over most of the United Kingdom culminated on the 24th and 25th in one of the heaviest spring snowfalls on record in southern England.
23 May 1908,
Uganda: 4000 deaths from severe famine in Usoga region.
28 May 1908,
Canada: The Civic Dam on the Current River Bursts, causing great devastation.
24 June 1908,
Spain: 85 drowned when the steam boat Larache sinks in thick fog off Muros.
2 July 1908,
UK: Very high temperature recorded in southern Scotland. The maximum was 32.8 degrees C at Dumfries.
2 August 1908,
Canada: During a dry August 100 die as forest fires sweep parts of British Columbia.
26 December 1908,
UK: Heavy snowfall over many parts of Great Britain, causing significant road chaos. On the 29th, 18 to 20 cm of snow fell at Southampton, Hampshire and up to 25cm in Dumfries and Galloway.
19 December 1909,
UK: Heavy snowfall in Scotland, Wales and England (except the south). In Cardiganshire, the Peak District and along the Welsh coasts, roads were heavily blocked with snow.
26 January 1910,
UK: Heavy snowfall over Scotland and northern England.
1 February 1910,
Paris: The Red Cross starts providing assistance to flood victims.
20 February 1910,
UK: Hurricane-force winds cause several deaths and severe damage.
11 March 1910,
Wales: 500 children are swept away when a damn burst in the Rhondda Valley, 494 were rescued.
12 May 1910,
France: Halley’s Comet causes widespread concern and fears it is responsible for bad weather.
5 June 1910,
UK: Between the 5th and 10th June, thunder storms swept across England & Wales. The storms were particularly intense on the 7th and 9th across the Thames Valley and the south Midlands. Intense rainfall, hail and widespread lightning affected large areas from Surrey to Worcestershire, with evening-time seeing high-yield storms in Oxfordshire. Some places had around 100 mm of rain in two or three hours.
9 June 1910,
UK: On the 9th, Mid-Berkshire and parts of Oxfordshire were visited by ‘exceptional’ thunderstorms. hail too was a feature, with diameters of at least 2.5 cm, isolated 3.5 cm being recorded as well as ‘hail drifts’ of 2 to 3 feet, rainfall totals where known to exceeded 100 mm, and 132 mm (non-standard) in under 3 hours in Wheatley Oxfordshire.
17 June 1910,
Central Europe: Severe floods in many countries; 1000 die in Hungary alone.
28 June 1910,
Germany: Zeppelin Deutschland is wrecked in a gale in the Teutoburg Forest.
12 August 1910,
London: Electric street lamps are replaced by 3000 high-pressure gas lamps giving more light in fog.
17 August 1910,
Japan: 800 die in severe flooding.
25 October 1910,
Italy: Severe storms and a tidal wave lash the bay of Naples, killing 1000.
1911-1919
31 May 1911,
UK: Severe thunderstorms over England.
Violent thunderstorms were reported from many parts of lowland south-eastern England with local flooding/landslides, lightning and wind damage. A total of 17 people were killed in the London area and 4 horses died on Epsom Downs.
9 July 1911,
US: 652 deaths in a week are reported during a heat wave.
9 August 1911,
London: Hottest day in the capital for 70 years, 97 degree Fahrenheit in the shade.
9 August 1911,
UK: Maximum temperature at Raunds Northamptonshire and Canterbury in Kent 36.7 degrees C.
16 August 1911,
Manchester: Reported that the city is living on food reserves and that famine threatens.
26 August 1911,
UK: London Reported that 2500 children have died in the recent heat wave.
28 August 1911,
UK: In London Thousands Die in record heat wave and has set Britain’s death rate soaring. Mortality rate for all ages is 19 per 1,000.
4 September 1911,
China: Reported that 100,000 have died in flooding along the Yangtse-Kiang River.
10 September 1911,
China: Floods are killing 300 people a day in Shanghai.
30 September 1911,
US: Austin, Pennsylvania Dam Failure. Heavy rains filling the Bayless reservoir cracked the concrete dam, sending an estimated 450,000,000 gallons downstream destroying most of the boroughs of Austin and Costello and killing a total of 78 people from Austin and 2 from Costello.
17 January 1912,
UK: Heavy snowfall, affecting all parts except southern England. Disrupting traffic and breaking down trees.
4 February 1912,
UK: Big Freeze takes hold as temperatures drop to as low as -35 degrees F.
8 February 1912,
Spain: Torrential rain brings widespread deaths and damage in severe floods.
14 February 1912,
London: Reported that 2 per cent of the capitals population are dying weekly from cold.
15 April 1912,
North Atlantic: More than 1,500 of the 2,340 passengers and crew of the Titanic died in the Icy waters of the North Atlantic, after the Great Ship sank within hours of hitting an Iceberg.
26 August 1912,
UK: Worst August rainfall on record, six inches in 12 hours causes floods that cut off Norwich and other towns.
22 September 1912,
Japan: Hundreds die as a typhoon sweeps the country.
29 November 1912,
UK: Southern regions of England experience snow in many places. In the northern parts of Great Britain snow fell up to 20 or 25cm as far as Strathclyde.
11 January 1913,
UK: Heavy snowfall in southern Scotland and northern England. Snow fall had a considerable depth, especially in Perthshire with snowdrifts of up to 3m in places. Railway and postal services were delayed.
March 1913,
US: Great Dayton Flood. Dayton was totally devastated, being inundated for three days in late March. The floods also put the Ohio and Erie Canal out of business for good, destroying most of the locks and many miles of embankments. The death toll from this flood was 361.
25 March 1913.
US: The state capital, Columbus, suffered flooding from the Olentangy and Scioto rivers; The Franklinton area on the west side was inundated after a levee broke on March 25. 4,000 houses were damaged or destroyed and up to 100 lives were lost. In the town of Delaware, Ohio, 50–75 perished when a break in the levee allowed a wall of water to sweep through downtown. Five of the town’s bridges washed away. In Chillicothe, Scioto River flooding carved out a 2–3 meter deep channel on Hickory Street. 18 lost their lives in the town.
14 June 1914,
UK: London, Worst thunder storm in memory causes several deaths as four inches of rain falls in three hours. [Note: It was reported there were 31 deaths from lightning in this year.]
28 December 1914,
UK: Heavy snow event over England. Snow, very thick and of an ‘unusual’ size caused damage to many trees. At chipping Campden, Gloucestershire heavy snow fell for 4 hours amounting to a depth of 18cm.
7 January 1915,
London: The worst floods in the Upper Thames Valley since 1894 have driven over a thousand people into their upstairs rooms.
27 March 1916,
UK: widespread severe northerly gales and associated blizzard affected much England during the 27th and 28th. A large numbers of trees brought down due to combination of wet sticky snow freezing and high winds. The snow set in after nightfall of the 27th, and in some places lasted over 24hr. Snow drifting and blizzard-conditions, disruption to transport and damage to shop fronts across the southeast and large number of telegraph lines cut due to weight of snow and ice.
6 July 1916,
US: a tropical cyclone swept across the Mississippi coast, which caused torrential rains and floods.
14 July 1916,
US: Disastrous was flooding and approximately 80 people were killed as a tropical storm passed over Charleston, South Carolina, It hit the Carolinas hard, especially western North Carolina (July 15) and north-western South Carolina. Rivers and streams throughout the area rose past all previously recorded levels.
11 October 1916,
UK: 208.3 mm of rain fell at Kinlochewe (Kinlochquoich / western Scotland).
16 January 1917,
UK: Heavy snowfall in England. 31cm of snow fell in West Yorkshire and 15cm at Durham.
16 January 1917,
UK: High tides and severe gales combined to bring a disaster to the English Channel coast of the SW peninsula. The small fishing village of Hallsands was all but destroyed when high winds and high seas broke over the few cottages in the village. No-one was killed, but the village was virtually abandoned.
1 April 1917,
Ireland: Snowstorms affected many northern areas of the British Isles, blizzard conditions occurred in many hilly regions with much distress and death to livestock. 3 metre snowdrifts reported in Ireland in many parts snow fell for much of the 1st/2nd.
22 June 1919,
US: 200 are feared dead after a tornado strikes Fergus Falls, Minnesota.
27 November 1919,
A huge Meteor lands in Lake Michigan, shaking buildings in nearby cities.
1920-1929
30 May 1920,
UK: At least 20 drown in serious floods in Lincolnshire.
4 June 1921,
US: 500 are feared dead as floods sweep eastern Colorado.
25 June 1921,
UK: Rainfall ends 100-day drought.
4 August 1921
Russia: Drought which wiped out the harvest causes famine.
10 September 1921,
US: Thrall Flood. A deadly Storm caused the most deadly floods in Texas, with a total of 215 fatalities. On September 9 and 10, the remnants of a hurricane moved over Williamson County. Eighty-seven people drowned in and near Taylor, and 93 in Williamson County.
28 January 1922,
Washington: 107 people die when the Knickerbocker Theatre collapses under the weight of snow.
8 January 1922,
UK: 108 mph winds are recorded in the scillies as a hurricane sweeps the English Coast.
22 May 1922,
London: The highest May temperatures for 50 years, 88 degrees F in the shade recorded.
31 October 1923,
Most consecutive days above 100 °F (37.8 °C): 160 days; Marble Bar, Western Australia from 31 October 1923 to 7 April 1924.
2 January 1924,
Paris: The city’s main railway stations are closed as the level of the Seine rises due to flooding.
28 June 1924,
US: 300 are reported dead after a tornado swept through Colorado.
27 July 1924,
USSR: the country’s beet crop fails.
28 July 1924,
India: Many deaths are reported in flooding in the south of the country which has destroyed many villages.
13 August 1924,
China: As many as 50,000 are feared dead and two million homeless after severe floods.
14 August 1924,
Paris: Scientists claim that clouds around Mars prove it has the same atmosphere as Earth.
1 September 1924,
West Indies: A hurricane ravages the Virgin Islands, leaving 80 people feared dead.
2 October 1924,
USSR: Seven million people are reported suffering from famine after the failure of this year’s harvest.
24 January 1925,
US: 25 million people see a total eclipse of the sun; in the UK it is obscured by cloudy sky’s.
15 February 1925,
London: The Zoo in Regent’s Park announces it will install lights to cheer the animals during London fogs.
4 August 1925,
Eastern Europe: Flooding is reported in Czechoslovakia and Upper Silesia after heavy rainfall during the summer.
3 September 1925,
US: 14 die when the US Navy airship Shenandoah is wreaked in a storm over Caldwell, Ohio.
5 September 1925,
US: Water is sold by the gallon as drought grips the southern and south-western states.
2 November 1925,
UK: 20 are feared dead when a dam bursts and floods the Dolgarrog power station in North Wales.
9 February 1926,
London: Flooding occurs in the suburbs after 18 days of continuous rain.
28 May 1926,
Burma: 1,200 people are reported killed by a cyclone and tidal wave.
10 July 1926,
US: Lighting strikes a US Navy munitions dump, causing an explosion visible for 30 miles.
19 September 1926,
US: 1,500 are reported dead and nearly 40,000 homeless after a hurricane sweeps Florida.
23 September 1926,
US: Florida drafts it’s unemployed to help clear up after the hurricane.
8 November 1926,
Philippines: A typhoon devastates the Island of Luzon, claiming a reported 175 lives.
28 January 1927,
Glasgow: Eight die and 10 are injured when the city is hit by a hurricane.
28 February 1927,
UK: Floods and gales hit the country, causing havoc.
2 May 1927,
Washington: President Coolidge calls for doubled relief efforts for flood-stricken areas of the southern US.
5 May 1927,
US: Floods in Mississippi now cover 23 square miles. The Flood was described by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover as “the greatest peace-time calamity in the history of the country.” It inundated 16,570,627 acres (about 26,000 square miles) in 170 counties in seven states, driving an estimated 931,159 people from their homes. The Mississippi River remained at flood stage for a record 153 days. The flood caused more than $400,000,000 in losses; 92,431 businesses were damaged and 162,017 homes flooded. According to various estimates, there were between 250 and 500 flood-related deaths. In Louisiana alone, 10,000 square miles in 20 parishes went underwater.
29 June 1927,
UK: For the first time in 200 years a total eclipse was seen in Britain. Because of patchy cloud many watchers were disappointed, but others in Northern England, including the Astronomer-Royal at Giggleswick in Yorkshire, were able to see the total eclipse. Totality lasted for less than half a minute; But lucky observers got a good view of the glowing corona around the Sun when it was obscured by the Moon. They also saw a “prominence of incandescent gas, like a reddish arch on the edge of the moon. Its height has been calculated at 50,000 miles.
1 August 1927,
UK: The Bank Holiday is the wettest for many years.
10 August 1927,
US: Astronomers claim the Universe is 192 quadrillion miles wide.
17 August 1927,
USSR: 10,000 reported homeless as hurricane destroys 22 Siberian villages.
18 August 1927,
France: Forest fires sweep the South of France.
1 September 1927,
Poland: Floods in Galicia kill up to 200 people, leaving a reported 15,000 homeless.
14 September 1927,
Japan: 3,000 are reported killed when a tidal wave hits Kiu-Siu Island.
22 September 1927,
Rome: Pope Pius XI gives $100,000 for flood victims in the southern US.
24 September 1927,
UK: This Summer was the worst since 1879 with up to 80 percent more rain than normal.
29 September 1927,
US: A five minute tornado in St. Louis kills 69 and injures 600.
4 November 1927,
US: New England, A tropical cyclone moved through the region dropping substantial rains across central New England. In New Hampshire, the Pemigewasset, Baker, Ammonoosuc, Merrimack and Connecticut rivers burst their banks. Vermont was where most of the death and damage was seen during flooding; Along the Androscoggin River in Maine, floods destroyed the covered bridge in Bethel. Eighty-five people lost their lives in the flood, including Vermont’s Lt. Gov. Hollister Jackson.
25 December 1927,
UK A white Christmas as Britain is swept by freezing blizzards.
31 December 1927,
UK: Food supplies are air-dropped into villages cut off by snow.
6 January 1928,
UK: The Themes bursts its banks today, flooding low-lying districts of London, drowning 14 people including four young sisters in their basement homes. Hundreds more have been made homeless along the length of the grey, swollen river. The vaults of the Palace of Westminster were flooded. The usually dry moat of the Tower of London was water filled once more. Damage to property was extensive. Twelve Landseer paintings were badly damaged at the Tate Gallery, although the Turner Collection was saved. The cause of the disaster was the much-feared combination of a sudden of a sudden thaw and a high tide.
7 January 1928,
London: Telephone lines are cut off by floodwaters of the Thames.
12 February 1928,
UK: 11 are killed as a gale sweeps across Britain.
11 March 1928,
UK: Blizzards sweep Britain; it is -9 degrees Celsius (16F) in London.
13 March 1928,
US: 300 die and 700 are missing when a dam bursts near Los Angles.
17 April 1928,
China: 470 are reported dead when a coal mine floods in Fushung.
27 May 1928,
Arctic: Italian Umberto Nobile’s airship crashes into the Ice after flying over the North Pole.
12 July 1928,
Arctic: Umberto Nobile and his crew of the airship Italia are finally rescued, by a Soviet Icebreaker.
6 September 1928,
US: Lake Okeechobee Hurricane – Carved a path of destruction throughout the Atlantic, and over the north shore of Lake Okeechobee during the period from September 6th to September 20th, 1928. This particular hurricane, which had a central pressure of 27.43 inches, was fifth all time to strike the United States in terms of intensity. It was responsible for an estimated 2,500 deaths, and some $25 million dollars in damage (equivalent to $300 million 1990 U.S. dollars). Now ranks behind Galveston as the second deadliest natural disaster in United States History.
15 September 1928,
Caribbean: A hurricane sweeping through the West Indies kills a reported 300 on the Island of Guadeloupe.
18 September 1928,
US: between 200 and 400 are reported killed when the hurricane strikes Florida.
5 December 1929,
UK: 19 people drown at sea and seven are killed on land as a 94 mph hurricane sweeps across Britain.
1930- 1939
12 January 1930,
Atlantic: 23 die when the Royal Navy tug St. Genny sinks in a gale off Ushant.
13 January 1930,
China: Two million are reported to have died of starvation; famine threatens millions more.
20 January 1930,
Philippines: 14 towns are devastated in a typhoon.
3 March 1930,
France: 200 people are feared dead as floods strike the south-west of the country.
11 April 1930,
New York Scientists predict that man will land on the Moon by the year 2050.
11 July 1930,
Chicago: 72 people die in a heat wave.
28 August 1930,
UK: 34 people have died in a heat wave: temperatures in London soar to 94 degrees F (34 degrees C).
13 November 1930,
France: 40 people are killed in a landslide in Lyons.
6 February 1931,
Washington: The Senate agrees to $20 million aid for drought victims in the South and Mid-West.
3 August 1931,
China: Hundreds die when a dam on the River Yangtse Kiang near Hankow bursts during a Typhoon.
17 August 1931,
UK: 14 die as gales and floods hit the country.
November 1931,
China: Central China floods. The human deaths are estimated 257,000–436,000
23 August 1933,
US: Chesapeake Bay Hurricane of 1933-A powerful Cape Verde Storm that reached Category Four strength at one point before weakening to Category Two strength. The storm ended up causing 79 million dollars in damage according to 1969 estimates, and left some 18 people dead. It also knocked out service to about 79,000 telephones as well as uprooted some 600 trees in Virginia Beach. The storm also set a record for storm surge with one that was 9.8 feet above normal in spots.
11 September 1931,
British Honduras: Over 700 deaths are reported when the colony is lashed by 100 mph winds.
28 August 1933,
UK: Drought threatens as the temperature touches 90 degrees F (32 degrees C).
4 September 1933,
UK: Forest fires rage through Dorset and Hampshire following recent dry weather.
10 September 1933,
More fires raged across southern England and Wales; Four Square miles of acres of Epping blazed out of control as fire men, soldiers and Sunday picnickers tried to beat back the flames with branches torn from trees. Near Monmouth Last night 100-feet flames lit up vast areas of burning Crown woodland. Two cars were burnt out in the New Forrest, but, astonishingly, there are no reports of deaths. The fires follow a month-long heat wave, with temperatures of up to 90 degrees F (32 degrees C).
12 September 1933,
UK: Rainfall ends the recent drought and puts out the forest fires.
16 September 1933,
US: Major Hurricane of September, 1933 -1933 was a very active year for tropical storms and hurricanes with 21 named storms, and 10 of them becoming hurricanes. In addition to the Great Chesapeake Hurricane of 1933, the Mid-Atlantic was hit by another hurricane almost exactly a month to the day later when a Category Three storm emerged from a disturbance in the Bahamas, and came up the coast to make landfall at Cape Lookout, North Carolina. The storm ended up causing about a fraction of the damage caused by the Chesapeake Bay storm. Only about 2,000 telephones were knocked out by the storm, and only two people died in Virginia.
25 February 1934,
US: 23 are reported dead after tornadoes sweep through southern states.
7 April 1934,
Norway: 57 are feared dead when a cliff crumbles, plunging two towns into the sea.
2 June 1934,
Washington: $6,000 million aid is voted for farmers in drought-stricken areas.
21 June 1934,
US A heat wave in the Mid-West kills 206 people in three days.
21 September 1934,
Japan: Up to 1,500 people are reported dead after a typhoon strikes the centre of the country.
7 April 1935,
US: Tornadoes kill 26 and injure 150 in the state of Mississippi.
11 April 1935,
The dust storm that swept across the USA’s “Bread Basket” created a staggering trail of destruction. Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, Okalahoma, Texas and New Mexico were all affected. Increasingly severe dust storms are hanging like a black scourge over half the country, wiping out millions of dollars’ worth of crops, forcing thousands to flee their homes and paralysing all activity in some districts. While humans can protect themselves with masks during a storm, livestock suffer miserably. The incidence of dust pneumonia among children is growing. Little relief is in sight, as dust piles up inside houses; schools and business are closed; traffic is stopped and bereaved families cannot bury their dead. In Texas, even the birds are afraid to fly.
1 July 1935,
Japan: 227 die in floods.
5 August 1935,
Brilliant sunshine lured more Britons to the coast and countryside than on any previous Bank Holiday. So many people poured into Brighton – police estimated there were 500,000 day visitors – that in places the shingle was invisible beneath the bodies.
13 August 1935,
Italy: 1,000 are reported killed when a dam bursts at Oveda.
29 August 1935,
US: Labor Day Hurricane of 1935–The most powerful hurricane to make landfall in the United States. A very small storm, this Category Five Hurricane tore through the Florida Keys with 180 mph winds, and a low pressure of 26.35 inches of Hg.
3 September 1935,
US: Over 200 are reported dead when a hurricane hits Florida.
20 October 1935,
UK: 11 people die in a 92 mph gale.
22 January 1937,
US: 150,000 are reported homeless when the Ohio River floods killing 16.
26 January 1937,
US: Cincinnati is paralysed as the Ohio flood death toll mounts to 135; 750,000 are reported homeless.
27February 1937,
US: Los Angeles, 115 are killed and thousands were made homeless as two significant cyclones moved through the region; one between February 27 and March 1st and the second between March 1st and March 3rd. Riverside and Orange counties experienced widespread flooding. A total of 5,601 homes were destroyed, and an additional 1,500 homes were left uninhabitable. The three transcontinental railroads connecting Los Angeles to the outside world experienced washed out bridges and flooded lines, isolating the city.
Spring 1937,
US: 24 people were killed in the Northeast Flood, the flood washed out railroad tracks along the Androscoggin River east of Bethel and the industrial section of Rumford. Jay saw its mills and factories along the river damaged. The East Turner Bridge was destroyed. The iron bridge between Lisbon Falls and Durham washed away. Along the Kennebec River, the Ticonic Bridge was washed downstream at Waterville, Maine.
3 September 1937,
Hong Kong: 300 are reported dead after a typhoon strikes the colony.
10 December 1937,
Glasgow: 34 die and 92 are injured when an express train crashes in a blizzard.
11 July 1938,
Eskimos in the Arctic complain of a heat wave: it is 67 degrees F (19C).
21 September 1938,
US: Long Island Express of 1938–A classic east coast hurricane, this Category Three storm moved rapidly from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina into New England in a matter of just six hours killing 600 people.
21 October 1938,
Tokyo: 226 people are reported killed in a typhoon.
1940-1949
17 January 1940,
UK: The Thames freezes for the first time as a cold wave strikes Europe.
19 January 1940,
Finland: The Russo-Finnish winter war; the intense Cold – in Karelia it is 57 degrees below zero – has stopped all action on all fronts, and an appalling number of troops on both sides have been frozen to death.
27 January 1940,
UK: The worst storm of the Century sweeps the country.
30 April 1940,
Norway: Snow has been falling heavily in the region, and this has delayed the landing of British troops, who are not equipped for arctic operations.
6 July 1941,
15 hours 48 minutes of sunshine make this the capital’s sunniest day of the century.
21 November 1941,
USSR: With the prevailing temperature 27 degrees below freezing point, the unprepared Germans are seizing the warm winter clothing of the Russian people in the occupied territory.
14 September 1944,
US: Great Hurricane of September, 1944– Cape Henry in Virginia was hit with sustained winds of 134 mph, and gusts up to 150 mph. Meanwhile, in Norfolk, winds reached close to hurricane force while gusts went up to 90 mph. The powerful storm caused tremendous damage along the coast from North Carolina to New England with some 41,000 buildings damaged, and a death toll of 390 people. The storm cost some $100 million dollars in damage including $25 million in New Jersey alone, where some 300 homes were destroyed on Long Beach Island.
1 April 1946,
US: Tidal wave in the Pacific kills 300 in Hawaii, and hit Alaska and the west coast.
21 November 1946,
Widespread flooding occurs after the eighth successive day of rain.
29 January 1947,
UK: Chaos and power cuts spread as freezing weather grips Britain; the temperature today fell to -16 degrees F.
12 February 1947,
UK: Heavy snowstorms and subzero temperatures are combining with serious fuel shortage to bring Britain to its economic knees. Over four million workers have been made idle by power cuts. Non-stop blizzards have stopped all shipping in the channel. The Great North road is blocked for 22 miles by ten-foot drifts.
22 February 1947,
The weather has led to the cancellation of 59 football matches so far this month.
26 February 1947,
UK: Domestic fuel ration seems likely as the freezing weather continues.
3 March 1947,
UK: 800,000 return to work as some power is restored.
6 March 1947,
UK: 300 roads are blocked and 15 towns cut off by the snow as the appalling weather continues.
March 1947,
UK: Like a great deal of the country, the town of Shrewsbury has suffered in the floods after the big freeze.
2 April 1947,
UK: Recent flooding has killed two million sheep and damaged 500,000 acres of wheat.
8th April 1947,
The largest sunspot group ever recorded reached its maximum on 8th April 1947. It covered an area of 18,130 million square kilometres. Mid-1947 marked a strong maximum of activity in the 11-year solar cycle.
8 August 1948,
UK: At least 12 die when a 70 mph gale hits Brittan.
14 September 1948,
Washington: Scientists warn that the world is outgrowing its food supply.
3 January 1949,
US: Tornadoes sweep Arkansas, leaving 41 dead.
1950-1959
6 April 1950.
Australia: The 1950 rainfall records for the Australian states of New South Wales and Queensland reported probably the most remarkable record high rainfall totals ever recorded anywhere in the continent. The extremely widespread flooding that resulted from record rains and unusually low evaporation caused at least 26 deaths on the North Coast during the winter.
25 April 1950,
UK: A heavy snowfall on the 25th and 26th brings disruption and widespread damage in the south east of England, bringing down over a thousand telegraph poles and a number of trees.
7 September 1950,
US: Hurricane Easy – Easy was one of the worst storms to hit Cedar Key since the late 1800s. This storm, which did a loop around the West Coast of Florida twice, had maximum sustained winds of 125 mph, a minimum pressure of 28.30 inches of Hg, and brought an amazing 38.7 inches of rain over two days to Yankeetown, Florida
13 September 1950,
US: Hurricane King-Another powerful storm in 1950, this particular hurricane affected the Miami area in October of that year. It was a compact, but very powerful hurricane It carved a path of destruction some 7 to 10 miles wide, but had wind gusts as high as 150 mph, Across the United States, the hurricane left 11 fatalities and $32 million in damage.
17 October 1950,
Cuba: Hurricane King crossed Cuba on October 17, causing seven deaths and $2 million in damage.
January 1951,
Scotland: Storms destroy trees worth more than £3 million.
20 February 1951,
UK: This month proved the wettest February since 1870.
15 July 1951,
UK: Kansas, at the intersection of the Big Blue River and Kansas River, flooding inundated 70 city blocks with water up to the second floor of stores along Main Street. The high waters moved downstream to Topeka, forcing 20,000 persons to evacuate. Shortly before midnight July 13, the Kansas River broke the levee protecting the Argentine district, and residents were forced to flee and many people were rescued by boats, out of trees, ledges and rooftops. By the 15th livestock industry was paralyzed as packing plants were flooded and thousands of hogs and cattle were swept away. The flood caused extensive property damage and claimed 41 lives in the Midwest. In Kansas City three persons were reported drowned.
30 December 1951,
UK: Violent high winds lash the British isles which caused several deaths, extensive widespread damage and flooding in some coastal areas. It’s the most extensive and severe gale to hit Scotland since 1927.
22 March 1952,
US: Over 200 are reported killed and 2,500 hurt as a tornado sweeps six mid-west states.
29 March 1952,
UK: Late-march snowfall, roads in the south-east blocked by snow drifts. Widespread heavy blizzards cause disruption across southern Britain.
16 August 1952,
UK: With warning a large part of north Devon was hit by a disastrous flood earlier today. Thirty-six people are feared dead and thousands have been made homeless in the resort of Lynmouth, which was devastated when rivers burst their banks and swept down surrounding hills. The torrent swamped the area so quickly that the victims had no time to flee as their houses were buried beneath the unremitting flow of mud, rocks and debris. About 250 square miles were flooded by freak storms. Nine inches of rain fell yesterday. Three boy scouts were among the first to drown when their camp was hit by a mud river. A postman on his rounds also died. The list of missing includes two girl hikers.
19 August 1952
UK: Housing minister Harold Macmillan says flood stricken Lynmouth like “the road to Ypres”
22 August 1952,
UK: 22 people have died in the Lynmouth disaster; 11 are still missing.
27 November 1952,
UK: heavy snow from the 27th to the 30th, from Wales to East Anglia depths up to 25cm fell and huge drifts built up on the hills. At Whipsnade Chilterns, level snow lay 10 inches deep with drifts eight feet high in the village.
3 February 1953,
Holland: Over 1,000 deaths are reported after dykes burst, causing widespread flooding.
3 February 1953,
UK: Hurricane winds combined with high tides to bring disaster to Britain’s east coast. As sea defences collapsed from Lincolnshire in the north to Kent in the south, at least 280 people are known to have been drowned and thousands more made homeless. A major rescue operation is under way to save hundreds of people trapped on roof tops by an eight foot wall of water, some in villages more than five miles inland. Damage is estimated in the hundreds of millions of pounds. In Essex, Canvey Island is said to be devastated, with 125 people drowned and 500 missing. Thirteen thousand inhabitants have been evacuated and 150 taken to hospital. Near Clacton, holiday Chalets were under12 feet of water and people were falling of rooftops into the floods from exhaustion. Heavy causalities are reported from Norfolk where the death toll is know to number 60, including 12 American service men drowned near Hunstanton. Mapplethorpe and Sutton-on-Sea have been evacuated, with hundreds still awaiting rescue; in Suffolk, boats were rowed into a church to rescue 40 trapped children. The flooding has come hard on the heels of another recent natural disaster – the January storms in Scotland which destroyed trees worth more than £3 million.
9 February 1953,
UK: 283 are known to have died in the East Coast floods; 50 are still missing.
19 February 1953,
London: Home secretary Maxwell-Fyfe puts flood damage at £40 million.
13th August 1953,
US: Hurricane Barbara- Struck the North Carolina coast between Morehead City and Ocracoke Island on August 13th, 1953 as a Category One Hurricane with gusts up to 110 mph (175 km/h), and left 9 dead and damages over $1 million in 1953 U.S. dollars.
23 October 1953,
Italy: Heavy flooding wreaks at least 12 villages in the south of the country.
31 January 1954,
UK: 23 people are reported to have died in accidents on frozen Ice as wintry weather grips Britain.
7 September 1954,
US: Hurricane Edna followed on the heels of Carol, and had a very similar track to Carol’s as it passed the Carolinas offshore. Edna ended up doing much more damage in New England after making landfall in Long Island. Damage estimates exceeded $40 million, and 21 people were killed.
5 October 1954,
US: Hurricane Hazel the deadliest and costliest hurricane of the 1954 Atlantic hurricane season. The storm killed as many as 1,000 people in Haiti before striking the United States near the border between North and South Carolina, as a Category 4 hurricane. After causing 95 fatalities in the US, Hazel struck Canada as an extra-tropical storm, raising the death toll by 81 people, mostly in Toronto. As a result of the high death toll and the damage Hazel caused, its name was retired from use for North Atlantic hurricanes.
1 February 1955,
US: Tornadoes kill 29 in the state of Mississippi.
25 February 1955,
UK: 70 main roads remain impassable because of snow and ice.
2 February 1955,
New Zealand: 200 die in flooding which leaves 44,000 homeless; 300,000 sheep die in New South Wales.
3 August 1955,
US: Hurricane Connie was the first in a series of hurricanes to strike North Carolina during the 1955 Atlantic hurricane season. Connie struck as a Category 1, causing major flooding and inflicting extensive damage to the Outer Banks and inland to Raleigh In total, damage was at least $15 million and there was 41 fatalities reported.
7 August 1955,
US: Hurricane Diane was one of three hurricanes to hit North Carolina during the 1955 Atlantic hurricane season, striking an area that had been hit by Hurricane Connie five days earlier. Diane’s winds rapidly decreased so much that it was no longer classified even as a tropical storm, but Diane added six to sixteen inches of rain on areas already sodden from Connie, leading to extensive flooding in northern Virginia, Maryland, eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, southern New York, and southern New England. The storm caused about 200 deaths
25 August 1955,
US: Hurricane Carol Winds at Hatteras were between 90 and 100 mph,Carol intensified to reach winds of 105 mph (169 km/h), but weakened as its motion turned to a Northwest drift. An estimated at $250,000 was left in the storm’s wake.
10 September 1955,
US: Hurricane Ione caused $600 million in damage, much of it to crops across North Carolina. As a result of Ione’s impacts seven people lost their lives.
20 December 1955,
US: California, A state-wide disaster was declared, after a storm resulted in 74 deaths and widespread damage.
6 August 1956,
China: Reports say 2,000 people are believed dead after a typhoon struck Chekiang province last week.
25 June 1957,
US: Hurricane Audrey A rare early season major hurricane, this storm struck in Texas and Louisiana in June, 1957. It was the most powerful hurricane ever in the month of June, and it rapidly intensified over the Gulf of Mexico before making landfall leaving many caught off guard. Audrey left $147 million in damage and 431 fatalities. The devastation from Hurricane Audrey was the worst since the Great New England Hurricane of 1938.
3 June 1958,
UK: Serious flooding occurs at Boscastle in which Mr Charlie Berryman, the local Bandmaster, loses his life by drowning, and Miss Rachel Beadon, trapped in a telephone box, has to be rescued by fishermen.
29 January 1959,
UK: The worst winter fog since 1952 cripples transport throughout Britain.
27 March,
Madagascar: 3,300 are reported dead after the Island was hit by a devastating hurricane.
10 August 1959,
UK: Violent Storms lash the south of England.
21 August 1959,
London floods cause chaos in the city as three quarters of an inch of rain falls in one hour.
9 December 1959,
UK: North Sea gales claim 27 lives as two ships sink.
3 December 1959,
French Riviera: 300 people are feared dead after a dam collapsed and washed away part of a town on the French Riviera. A 15-foot high wall of water, mud and boulders swept down the valley into Frejus, where people warned two days ago that floodwater from recent storms had caused cracks in the bottom of the Malpasset dam.
1960-1969
2 April 1960,
US: The first weather satellite has been launched by the United States. Called Tiros 1 it has already sent back pictures from a height of 450 miles showing the cloud cover over the north-eastern United States and part of Canada. The 270-pound Tiros 1 is a proto type for weather satellites that will eventually give round-the-clock coverage of the entire globe.
29 August 1960,
US: Hurricane Donna – Donna had wind gusts ranging between 175 and 200 mph, a minimum central pressure of 27.46 inches, and a 13 foot storm surge. Its total damage cost was over $900 million 1960 and left 364 people dead.
9 October 1960,
UK: Southern England is hit by the worst flooding since 1953.
4 November 1960,
UK: Severe flooding causes chaos in south east England.
3 September 1961,
US: Hurricane Carla struck the Texas coast as a Category 4 hurricane, becoming one of the most powerful storms to ever strike the United States. Hurricane Carla was the second most intense storm to ever strike the Texas coast. The storm caused over $2 billion in damages, but due to the evacuation of over 500,000 residents the death toll was only 43.
27 October 1961,
US: Struck the then coastal capital of Belize, Belize City on Halloween in 1961. Hattie was the second or two Category Five Hurricanes from that season. Leaving some 319 people dead and some $60 million dollars in damage, Hattie devastated the Belize capital forcing government officials to move government offices and buildings inland to the city of Belmopan.
11 January 1962,
Peru: Over 3,000 people are feared dead after a landslide.
16 February 1962,
UK: At least 11 are feared dead after fierce gales.
6 October 1963,
Haiti: 4,000 are feared dead after a hurricane strikes.
19 November 1963,
Haiti: 500 are feared dead in floods and landslides.
20 August 1964,
US: Hurricane Cleo, This compact yet powerful hurricane travelled through the Caribbean Sea and later hit Florida before moving offshore Georgia into the Carolinas, killing 217 people and causing over $1 billion in normalized damages. Major damage was seen as far north as east-central Florida, with the heaviest rains falling along the immediate coast of the South-East United States into south-east Virginia.
28 August 1964,
US: Hurricane Dora was the first tropical cyclone on record to make landfall over the extreme north-East coast of Florida. Dora was also the first storm to produce hurricane force winds to Jacksonville, Florida, in the almost 80 years of record keeping. Dora killed five people and left over $200 million in damage, mainly in Florida.
29 September 1964,
India: One thousand people are feared dead after a reservoir bursts.
18 December 1964,
US: A destructive flood in the Pacific Northwest lasts until January 7 1965, causing widespread damage and killing seventeen people In Oregon. The flooding covered 152,789 acres.
24 December 1964,
Indian Ocean: A hurricane kills 7,000 in Ceylon and the Indian Province of Madras.
12 May 1965,
East Pakistan: Over 10,000 are reported dead after a violent cyclone.
2 August 1965,
France: Forest Fires sweep the Riviera.
27 August 1965,
US: Hurricane Betsy; A Category Three Hurricane struck South Florida, Louisiana and High winds in the Bahamas caused significant damage throughout the island chain. 76 people are reported dead and $1.42 billion in damage.
1 November 1965,
UK: Seven die as hurricane force winds batter Britain.
September 21, 1966,
US: Hurricane Inez-Known as “The Crazy One,” Inez was a deadly, destructive, powerful and very long-lived Cape Verde-type hurricane. Inez carved an erratic path of death and destruction from the Caribbean to Florida, and to Mexico in October, 1966. It left some 1,500 people dead, and produced millions of dollars in damage with top winds of approximately 190 mph.
25 September 1966,
Japan: 1974 are reported dead after a typhoon.
4 November 1966,
Italy: At least 21 deaths reported in floods; Florence is cut off.
8 December 1966,
Greece: 280 are feared lost when a ferry sinks in a storm.
5 September 1967,
US: Hurricane Beulah was a Category Four Hurricane that hit Texas and produced some 150 tornadoes after making landfall. The most ever produced on record by a tropical system. Due to its slow movement over Texas, Beulah led to significant flooding. Throughout its path, at least 688 people were killed.
15 January 1968,
UK: 20 die as hurricane force winds lash Scotland.
5 February 1968,
UK: Heavy snowstorm across the midlands. Heavy snow fell at Keele, Staffordshire for 12 hours, giving 37cms. Crewe station was blocked. Many roads blocked widespread disruption to traffic in Birmingham. Power cables and trees were brought down and the North West midlands came to a stand-still.
10 March 1968,
New Zealand: 200 are feared dead when a car ferry capsizes in Wellington Harbour in a severe storm.
4 November 1968,
Italy: Over 100 people are known to have died in flooding in the north of the country.
14 August 1969,
US: Hurricane Camille kills 276 people, 190 MPH Winds, crashing tides in Mississippi and Louisiana and related floods which swept across Virginia.
1970-1979
31 July 1970,
US: Hurricane Celia kills 27, 466 people were injured, 9,000 homes were destroyed, 14,000 homes were significantly damaged, and another 41,000 suffered minor damage.
21 October 1970,
Philippines: Nearly 800 people are believed to have died in a typhoon.
20 November 1970,
East Pakistan: It is feared that more than 150,000 people died in the typhoon and tidal wave which last week brought death and disaster to East Pakistan. Only now as the waters recede, is it possible to see fully the devastating effect the storm has had. The tidal wave, as high as a two story building, has changed the map of the delta, sweeping away islands and making others. Whole communities have been destroyed and all their people and livestock killed.
1 November 1971,
India: Over 5,000 are reported killed and a million homes destroyed when a cyclone hits the state of Orissa.
30 November 1971,
UK: Thick fog was responsible for the deaths of 7 people and over 40 injured in a 50 vehicle pile-up on the M1 near Luton in Bedfordshire.
14 June 1972,
US: Hurricane Agnes; Overall, Agnes caused 128 fatalities and nearly $2.1 billion in damage
1 August 1972,
Manila: 356 feared dead in severe flooding.
19 October 1973,
Spain: 500 feared dead after severe floods.
11 August 1974,
Bangladesh: 2,500 feared dead and ten million homeless after monsoon floods half the country.
27 January 1974,
Australia: 1974 Brisbane flood. Heavy rain had fallen for three weeks leading up to severe flooding and widespread Damage. During a 36 hour period 642 mm of rain fell on the city. (22 ft) according to the Port Office gauge at high tide. The peak flooding in the location of the city gauge was approximately 5.5 metres (18 ft). 14 people lost their lives, including 10 people who were drowned in the suburbs of Yeronga, Newmarket, St Lucia, and the city of Ipswich. With at least 6,700 homes flooded.
20 September 1974,
Honduras: Cyclone Fifi kills 10,000.
13 October 1974,
India: Worst feminine in 20 years feared.
28 April 1975,
US: The Cooling World. Newsweek reports on how global Cooling causes Extreme Droughts, Floods, Dry Spells and Heat waves depicting areas of Earth affected by climatic change.
2 June 1975:
UK: Late snowfall occurred in June as far south as London and sleet as far south as Portsmouth. More than 10 cm of snow fell over the highlands of Scotland.
7 August 1975,
London: The capital has its hottest day for 35 years with temperatures of 32 degrees C.
14 August 1975,
UK: The Hampstead storm.
Localized storm led to rainfall of some 170mm in approximately 2.5 hours. It occurred during a major heat-wave, and is thought to be the highest intensity of rainfall in 100 years. One person drowned in localized flooding and cars floated along roads.
13 September 1975,
US: Hurricane Eloise causes 80 deaths as well as $560 million in damage.
2 January 1976,
UK: Hurricane-force winds up to 105 mph cause widespread havoc, leaving 22 dead.
2 June 1976,
London: The city has a record temperature of 95 degrees F (35C).
7 July 1976,
UK: Intense Heat wave around Britain, from the 23rd of June to 7th of July, a period of 15 consecutive days, and the temperature exceeded 32 degrees C in various parts of the country.
14 July 1976,
UK: London, Publication of the Drought Bill to tackle Britain’s worst drought in 250 years.
6 August 1976,
US: Hurricane Belle causes 5 deaths as well as $100 million in damage.
31 August 1976,
UK: There had not been a summer like it this century; temperatures soared and all parts of the UK basked in record hours of sunshine. Suddenly it was time for barbecues, bikinis in Hyde Park, endless queues for ice creams and cold drinks … and drought. Industry suffered water rationing, and several companies in the Midlands were forced to curtail their working week. Forest fires raged in the south – and fire men watched impotently as hundreds of acres of the New Forest and other woodland were destroyed. With no sign of a break in the weather, the government was becoming increasingly worried by a potentially disastrous national water shortage. Reservoirs were drying up and their clay bottoms were cracking in the heat. Householders were advised to use their bath water to water their gardens, to avoid over-flushing their lavatories and to place bricks in their cisterns. Dirty cars were patriotic and draconian penalties were introduced for the use of garden hoses. The avuncular sports Minister Denis Howell, was created “Minister for Drought” and warned that unless consumption was cut by a half all over Britain, the country would almost certainly face water rationing until Christmas. Then, today the rains came and Britons could complain, once more, about their awful climate.
8 April 1977,
US: Time magazine runs a special double issue with the front page titled “How to Survive the Coming Ice Age” subtitle “51 things you can do to make a difference”.
10 October 1977,
Italy: 16 deaths are reported after three days of violent storms.
12 January 1978,
UK: 17 seamen are feared dead in severe gales.
20 February 1978,
UK: South-west England suffers its worst blizzard for many years.
8 August 1978,
Europe: The continent is lashed by gales and torrential rain.
22 July 1979,
Indonesia: 750 are feared dead after a tidal wave hits the Island of Lomblen.
14 August 1979,
UK: Fourteen yachtsmen died as savage Atlantic storms brought havoc to the Fastnet international sailing race today. At least 25 of the 330 yachts between the southern Irish coast and Cornwall were sunk or disabled. Lifeboats, trawlers and tugs joined with helicopters in a huge rescue in force 11 hurricane winds, saving 125 yachtsmen. Yet some crews, from 18 nations, in the larger craft, were continuing the race. Bottles of champagne for toasting the winners of the Admiral’s Cup were instead handed out among relatives to ease their grief.
25 August 1979,
US: Hurricane David 175 mph Category 5 hurricane causes 2,068+deaths as well as $1.54 billion in damage.
1980-1989
12 June 1980,
Africa: Two years of drought, combined with at least half a dozen wars, have led to wide spread crop failures and a massive refugee problem. The famine area extends from northern Kenya, through Uganda, to Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan and Djibouti.
20 December 1981,
UK: Penlee Lifeboat Disaster – 8 lifeboat men, all unpaid volunteers, perished today off Lands End with 4 shipwrecked sailors they had rescued. The lifeboat was launched from the fishing village of Mousehole into hurricane-lashed seas and was crushed against the 1,400ton coaster, Union Star, by 60ft. waves.
1 February 1983,
London: The Thames Flood Barrier is raised for the first time in a flood alert.
13 January 1984,
UK: At least six people die in hurricane winds.
5 March 1984,
UK: Scientists warn of the Green House Effect; Concern is growing that carbon dioxide, produced by burning fossil fuels, will affect the climate. Carbon dioxide acts like the glass of a green house, trapping the suns heat, and the amount in the atmosphere is growing. The latest pointer to its effects comes from scientists at the University of East Anglia who have found that 1981 and last year were among the warmest on record. A warmer climate could damage agriculture and cause flooding by melting the polar ice caps.
3 September 1984, Up to 1,000 are feared dead in a typhoon.
January 1985,
Nice: The Arctic weather puts the beach at Nice under a blanket of snow.
28 May 1985.
India: Thousands of bodies are floating in the Bay of Bengal following the Cyclone and tidal wave which battered the coast of Bangladesh three days ago.
19 July 1985,
Italy: Over 260 people are feared dead after floods from a burst dam engulfed a village in the Italian Dolomites.
11 August 1985,
UK: 110 yachts are forced to retire from the Fastnet race owing to fierce gales.
2 February 1986,
Europe: Over 34 deaths are reported as blizzards and freezing weather sweeps much of Western Europe.
24 March 1986,
UK: Over eight are killed as hurricane force winds sweep across Britain.
22 April 1986,
UK: in London flooding damages treasures in the Victoria and Albert Museum.
26 July 1987,
Greece: Over 700 die from heat wave in Greece. Hospitals and military clinics were struggling to handle an influx of casualties as temperatures continue to soar.
16 September 1987,
Montreal: More than 70 nations have agreed on measures to reduce the threat to the earth’s ozone layer. This layer, high in the atmosphere, screens out harmful ultra-violet radiation from the sun. Evidence is growing that it is affected by long-lived chemicals called chlorofluoro-carbons, used as propellants for aerosols, and in refrigerators and air conditioners. Under the new agreement, drawn up at a conference in Montreal, use of chlorofluorocarbons will be frozen at existing levels right away and reduced by half by 1999.
16 October 1987,
UK: Yesterday evening, a viewer called the BBC and asked the weatherman if there was going to be a hurricane. He laughed off the suggestion. Within hours, south-east England was being battered by winds gusting up to 110 mph causing greater havoc than any other storm this century. Northern France was also lashed by the Hurricane-force winds. In England the storm has killed at least 17 people and left a £300 million trail of destruction from Cornwall to East Anglia. Hotels and houses collapsed. Railway lines and roads are blocked by thousands of fallen trees, with no services running south of Rugby or Peterborough. A 6,000-ton ship was washed on to the beach in Sussex; and most of south east was without electricity for at least sometime. Many areas are likely to be with out power for several days to come. In London, the fire brigade dealt with a record 6,000 emergency calls in 24 hours. Kew Gardens lost a third of its trees. Sevenoaks in Kent lost six of the oaks which gave it its name; and casualty wards in every London hospital were filled with casualties from flying slates and other debris. The Meteorological Office is under fire from both the public and politicians for its failure to predict the hurricane. A computer misreading is being blamed for the poor forecast. “We could have got it better,” the Meteorological Office spokesman said.
18 October 1987,
UK: 250,000 homes in southern England still have no electricity after the storm.
19 October 1987,
UK: Four die when a train falls off a bridge swept away by swollen river in Wales.
2 August 1988,
China: Floods kill at least 250 people in the east.
11 August 1988,
Sudan: 13 hours of rain lead to flooding which is said to make 1.5 million homeless.
4 September 1988,
India:
4 November 1988,
China: Warning is giving that 20 million peasants are at risk following droughts and floods.
2 December 1988,
India: A cyclone has killed over 1,200.
26 December 1988,
UK: Three North Sea oilfields shut down when a storage vessel breaks free in gale-force winds.
1990-1999
25 January 1990:
UK: Severe storm winds of 177 mph are recorded in Falmouth. The Polurian hotel at mullion loses its roof. 400,000 south west residents are left without power for 2 hours. 50,000 Cornish residents lose power for over 24 hrs.
3 February 1991,
UK: England and Wales where day maximum temperatures remained below freezing point every day from the 3rd to the 14th inclusive. The 7th is believed to be the coldest February day of the century in some places.
7 February 1991,
UK: Heavy snow fell extensively between the 7th and 9th, leaving a covering exceeding 10 cm over large areas of England, Wales and Scotland, with 51 cm of level snow observed at Bingley, near Bradford. Wide spread transport disruption, There were many injuries from falls on ice and sledging accidents, a woman in Dartford received severe head injuries from falling icicles. In central London, some places had upward of 15cm of snow – thought to have been the greatest depth since the infamous snowfalls of December, 1962. This was the infamous “wrong type of snow” for British Rail.
1991
US: Storm hits New England as a Category 1 hurricane.
16-28 August 1992,
US: Hurricane Andrew.
5 January 1993,
UK: During the stormy January of this year, the oil tanker Braer sank off Shetland in a SEVERE GALE on this day.
14 January 1993,
UK: Harsh wintry conditions came to Northern Ireland and Scotland. Heavy deep snowfall caused widespread disruption to transport and power supply over the following few days. Aviemore recorded 51 cm of level snow at midday.
1993
US: The Great Mississippi Flood.
20 November 1993,
UK: Heavy Snow and widespread freezing fog causes travel disruption. Some 10cm of snow accumulated in east coast counties, with 19-20cm in the Aberdeen and Royal Deeside area. FROST was severe at night while daytime maxima remained near or below freezing in places as far apart as Devon and Wester Ross.
14 February 1994,
UK: Sub zero temperatures and widespread snow and Ice cause havoc. Overnight, and during the 15th heavier snow spread northwards depositing some 10cm of snow at St. Albans; further snow fell over northern England between the 16th and the 19th, severe frosts and freezing fog affected Scotland and northern England, Fylingdales on the north York moors recording 22cm of snow. Widespread heavy snowfalls followed over the next few days from the midlands northwards.
3 December 1996,
UK: Deep falls of snow in the Scottish English border country, upwards of 25 cm deep, with severe drifting, roads closed and power supplies badly disrupted.
5 February 1996,
UK: Heavy snow spreads across Scotland, England and Wales with severe drifting and blizzards occurring by the 6th in the strong southerly wind. Worst hit areas were Dumfries, Galloway and Cumbria with over 50cm of snow fall at Eskdalemuir, while a fall of 35cm at Boltshope park in the Pennines had a snowfall depth of 70cm. Motorists were stranded for over 24 hours on the m74 and thousands trapped in their homes. The 7th seen heavy snowfall on the West Country moors. By the 18th it became bitterly cold with icy blizzards over the next four days and a severe gale swept across Cornwall and Devon as a period of heavier drifting snow took hold across eastern, central and southern England on the 19th and 20th.
17 December 1997,
UK: Many south coast resorts woke to over a 10 cm of winter snowfall. This was preceded by a spell of strong bitterly cold winds that had set in on the 15th. Many parts of Wales had some significant snowfall accompanied by strong or gale-force winds/drifting early on the 17th and many schools in the west of England and Wales closed for the day (250 in Wales, 100 in Cornwall and 180 in Devon). Air, railway and ferry services were badly disrupted with snowdrifts blocking many roads in the south.
24 December 1997,
UK: Widespread rain and severe gales across Scotland and England. Six people died, thousands of trees were uprooted, many buildings were seriously damaged and electricity supply was disrupted for up to four days.
5 February 1999,
UK: heavy drifting snow affected Scotland on sever
There are some gaps, if you want my help filling them in! No mention of the historic cold and blizzards in the US during 1977-1980 winters. Or the so-called storm of the century during March 1993. Or the historic New England heatwave of August 1975. But you sure did cover a lot of ground and I learned a lot about UK weather history.
Needs a little work 🙂
Carol was 1954, not 1955. It did severe damage in a relatively narrow band thru RI and eastern MA. Gusts to 135 at Block Island and 100 in Boston and Providence. Only one of two CAT 3’s to hit New England in the modern era. Sorry to be picky, as you did a lot of good work.
Most of the dates are from when it was reported, the sources are from old news papers and some recent on-line reports.
Oh do I remember the Super Storm of 1993. In my neck of the woods we had thundersnow. That’s right, thundersnow in Alabama! By the way, low temps following the storm were in the single digits to the negative single digits, depending upon where you were in the state. I think a few record lows were set that week. Another interesting thing about our weather. It is more likely to snow in March than in December.