I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.
Flash floods struck Roswell, New Mexico on Saturday, October 19, 2024, claiming two lives, after approximately 147 mm (5.78 inches) of rain fell over the region setting a new record for the region. Flights were canceled at the Roswell Air Center and the New Mexico National Guard reported conducting nearly 300 rescues.
Category 1 Hurricane “Oscar” made landfall on the northern coast of eastern Cuba at around 21:50 UTC on Sunday, October 20, 2024. Tropical storm conditions are forecast to persist in eastern Cuba on Monday and are expected to affect the southeastern Bahamas tonight (LT) and Tuesday.
Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo, experienced severe flooding after the first heavy rains of the season from Friday night to Saturday, October 18 to 19, 2024 submerging neighborhoods and causing widespread disruption.
NASA and NOAA announced on October 15, 2024, that the Sun has officially entered its solar maximum phase, a period marked by heightened sunspot activity, expected to continue into 2025.
Flash floods hit the Roswell area in Chaves County, New Mexico after 102 to 178 mm (4 to 7 inches) of rain fell over the region on the night of Saturday, October 19, 2024, prompting emergency warnings for life-threatening flash floods across New Mexico, with Roswell area being the worst hit.
Tropical Storm “Nadine” made landfall in Belize City at 16:00 UTC (10:00 local time) on Saturday, October 19, 2024, with maximum sustained winds of 95 km/h (60 mph). Nadine is the 14th named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season and the first tropical cyclone to make landfall in Belize since Category 1 Hurricane “Lisa” in 2022.
A cold front brought heavy rains to Monterrey, Mexico on Wednesday and Thursday, October 16 and 17, 2024, leading to severe floods and 3 deaths.
Severe floods claimed one life in Italy after storms and heavy rains hit Liguria and Tuscany on Wednesday, October 16, 2024. Railway services were disrupted, while schools and roads were closed after some regions saw around 200 mm (7.9 inches) of rain in just 18 hours.
Storm Ashley, Europe’s first storm of the season, was officially named on Friday, October 18, 2024, and is on track to explode in power, with coastal Ireland bracing for hurricane-force winds and rain by Saturday and Sunday. Forecast models take Ashley’s center over Scotland on Sunday afternoon (LT) before the storm races toward Norway and Sweden.
A slow-moving storm brought extremely heavy rains to parts of France on Thursday, October 17, 2024, with the Ardèche Cévennes region experiencing rainfall totals as high as 700 mm (27.6 inches). This led to widespread flooding and approximately 350 rescue operations. Agnès Pannier-Runacher, Minister of Ecological Transition, said the region is facing a situation that is unprecedented in its scale.
