extreme weather

People check an area damaged by flash floods in Derna, eastern Libya, on Monday.

World News

Libya fears a spiraling death toll from powerful storm floods

6:18pm September 12, 2023

At least hundreds of people have died and thousands are feared missing in eastern Libya after Storm Daniel swept in, destroying dams and unleashing a torrent of muddy water that carried homes away.

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Police officers check a house as residents wade through a flooded street after floods caused by a cyclone in Passo Fundo, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, Monday.

World News

A cyclone has killed over 20 people in Brazil, with more flooding expected

12:51pm September 06, 2023

by Carrie Kahn

The southern Brazilian states of Rio Grande do Sul and neighboring Santa Catarina are reeling after a devastating cyclone killed 27 people and displaced thousands.

Roads and infrastructure are increasing being overwhelmed by heavier rainfall, like the California Central Valley town of Planada in January. Most states still aren't designing water systems for heavier storms.

Environment

Federal climate forecasts could help prepare for extreme rain. But it's years away

1:32pm January 13, 2023

by Lauren Sommer

Thanks to a new federal law, cities will get better forecasts about how climate change intensifies rainstorms. Still, it won't be in time for billions of dollars of federal infrastructure spending.

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Hurricane Ian caused $112.9 billion dollars and more than 150 deaths when it slammed into south Florida in 2022, making it the costliest climate-fueled disaster in the U.S. last year.

Extreme weather, fueled by climate change, cost the U.S. $165 billion in 2022

4:56pm January 10, 2023

by Nathan Rott

The U.S. endured 18 separate billion-dollar disasters in 2022, highlighting the growing damages of human-caused climate change.

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Heavy rain from the remnants of Hurricane Ida flooded roads and expressways in New York in 2021. In a hotter climate, rainstorms are becoming more intense.

Environment

An unexpected item is blocking cities' climate change prep: obsolete rainfall records

11:03am February 09, 2022

by Lauren Sommer

Cities are experiencing heavier storms and flooding as the climate gets hotter. But due to outdated rainfall records, many are still building infrastructure for the climate of the past.

Abilio Viegas attempts to fix his flooded van on South Street in Newark, New Jersey after flooding cause by the remnants of Hurricane Ida.

Environment

How 2021's floods and heat waves are signs of what's to come

5:00am December 23, 2021

by Lauren Sommer

Many of this year's deadly extreme weather is linked to climate change and scientists warn they're a sign of what's to come.

Chief Geoffrey Deibler and dispatchers Meghan Collier (center) and Bobbie Brown of the Morganfield Police Department traveled to nearby Dawson Springs, Ky., to help look for survivors.

National

Kentucky crews search painstakingly for 109 people missing after deadly tornadoes

6:08am December 14, 2021

by Brian Mann

Gov. Andy Beshear said at least 74 people died statewide. The search for survivors has been slow going. Teams must move carefully and methodically as they pick through the rubble of demolished homes.

Smoke from the Bond Fire billows above Peltzer Pines Christmas tree farm in Orange County, Calif., on Dec. 3, 2020. Extreme weather and supply chain issues could make Christmas trees harder to come by this holiday season.

National

Why Christmas trees may be harder to find this year (and what you can do about it)

12:14pm November 04, 2021

by Rachel Treisman

Christmas trees may be in short supply this season due to supply chain issues and extreme weather events. But it's still worth holding out hope for a Christmas miracle.

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Jason Forthofer, mechanical engineer at the Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory, looks into a fire whirl he generated to demonstrate how fire whirls and fire tornadoes form in wildland fires.

Scientists Are Learning More About Fire Tornadoes, The Spinning Funnels Of Flame

5:00am August 23, 2021

by Nick Mott

Big wildfires create their own weather, and can even spawn tornadoes swirling with smoke and flame. Researchers are trying to determine how often they occur.

The remains of a burned home are seen in the Indian Falls neighborhood of unincorporated Plumas County, California on July 26, 2021. Extreme weather events have claimed hundreds of lives worldwide in recent weeks, and upcoming forecasts for wildfire and h

Climate Change Is Driving Deadly Weather Disasters From Arizona To Mumbai

12:38pm July 29, 2021

by Rachel Treisman

There's been about two degrees Fahrenheit of warming so far worldwide. That may sound like a small number, but scientists say it's enough to make extreme weather events much more common.