Top 10 Weather Events: 2016
Posted: Mon Dec 26, 2016 8:23 pm
Here is my list for the top 10 weather events in the US in 2016. It is a list I do every year, but unlike the last two years it is not the extreme cold that was the story.
1 - Louisiana floods: It wasn't a named storm, but a tropical disturbance stalled over the Gulf coast for a week and led to catastrophic flooding in southern Louisiana with more damage than any disaster since 2012 (August 12-20)
2 - Hurricane Matthew: Once again, freshwater flooding was catastrophic - this time in eastern North Carolina; Matthew also left severe storm surge and wind damage in other states (October 6-15)
3 - Southern spring floods: The first of many major floods occurred in Louisiana and other states in March, with severe damage and disruption for the first of several times in 2016 (March 8-13)
4 - Fall drought and fires: In between all the storms, the inland South experienced a massive drought in the fall, culminating with devastating wildfires including the catastrophic Smoky Mountains inferno (September to December)
5 - Mid-Atlantic blizzard: "Snowzilla" shut down the east coast and produced record or near-record snow and major storm surge flooding from North Carolina to Massachusetts one weekend (January 22-24)
6 - West Virginia floods: Yet another flood event on the list; this one was a flash flood in the West Virginia mountains that decimated the valleys below in the summer months (June 22-24)
7 - Texas floods and hail: For the second time in less than a year, a major, destructive flood occurs in Houston and the vicinity - this time on Tax Day, while around that time major hailstorms occur elsewhere in Texas (April 12-25)
8 - February tornado outbreak: The largest tornado outbreak of the year actually happened early, with major tornado damage in parts of the Gulf Coast and Mid-Atlantic and numerous fatalities (February 22-24)
9 - Hurricane Hermine: Florida's first hurricane in 11 years didn't produce widespread extreme damage, but left a mess in the Big Bend especially, and some disruption farther north (August 31-September 6)
10 - Northwest storms: It started in October, and multiple storms impacted the Pacific Northwest with snow, wind and rain, and even several tornadoes in the most prolific event (October 12-15, and again in December)
That makes up my list - a big focus on flooding this year, with numerous devastating floods. Severe weather wasn't a particularly big story and (with one big exception) neither wasn't winter weather.
1 - Louisiana floods: It wasn't a named storm, but a tropical disturbance stalled over the Gulf coast for a week and led to catastrophic flooding in southern Louisiana with more damage than any disaster since 2012 (August 12-20)
2 - Hurricane Matthew: Once again, freshwater flooding was catastrophic - this time in eastern North Carolina; Matthew also left severe storm surge and wind damage in other states (October 6-15)
3 - Southern spring floods: The first of many major floods occurred in Louisiana and other states in March, with severe damage and disruption for the first of several times in 2016 (March 8-13)
4 - Fall drought and fires: In between all the storms, the inland South experienced a massive drought in the fall, culminating with devastating wildfires including the catastrophic Smoky Mountains inferno (September to December)
5 - Mid-Atlantic blizzard: "Snowzilla" shut down the east coast and produced record or near-record snow and major storm surge flooding from North Carolina to Massachusetts one weekend (January 22-24)
6 - West Virginia floods: Yet another flood event on the list; this one was a flash flood in the West Virginia mountains that decimated the valleys below in the summer months (June 22-24)
7 - Texas floods and hail: For the second time in less than a year, a major, destructive flood occurs in Houston and the vicinity - this time on Tax Day, while around that time major hailstorms occur elsewhere in Texas (April 12-25)
8 - February tornado outbreak: The largest tornado outbreak of the year actually happened early, with major tornado damage in parts of the Gulf Coast and Mid-Atlantic and numerous fatalities (February 22-24)
9 - Hurricane Hermine: Florida's first hurricane in 11 years didn't produce widespread extreme damage, but left a mess in the Big Bend especially, and some disruption farther north (August 31-September 6)
10 - Northwest storms: It started in October, and multiple storms impacted the Pacific Northwest with snow, wind and rain, and even several tornadoes in the most prolific event (October 12-15, and again in December)
That makes up my list - a big focus on flooding this year, with numerous devastating floods. Severe weather wasn't a particularly big story and (with one big exception) neither wasn't winter weather.