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.
Tropical Cyclone Mitchell crossed the Western Australian coast near Shark Bay overnight on February 9, 2026, after weakening below tropical cyclone strength, bringing damaging winds, power outages, and flooding to coastal and inland regions.
At least six locations in Japan recorded record-breaking cold on the morning of February 9, 2026, as temperatures fell below -3°C (26.6°F) for the first time since 1984. The death toll from the record-breaking snowfall since January 20 has climbed to 46 as of February 10.
A powerful storm system impacted Hawaii between February 8 and 10, 2026, producing heavy rainfall, flash flooding, landslides, and damaging winds. Wind gusts frequently exceeded 95 km/h (60 mph), with localized gusts approaching 115 km/h (70 mph), leading to road closures, including along Maui’s Hāna Highway, downed trees, and intermittent power outages affecting tens of thousands of customers on Oʻahu, Maui, and Hawaiʻi Island.
At least 12 people have died, and 36 were injured after Tropical Storm Penha (locally known as Basayang) made multiple landfalls over the Philippines on February 6, 2026, affecting over 700 000 people in the country.
Satellite images captured a massive ice crack of over 128 km (80 miles) in length forming over Lake Erie on February 8, 2026, after it nearly froze over for the first time in two decades.
A strong stratospheric warming event is underway over the Arctic in early February 2026, rapidly weakening the Northern Hemisphere polar vortex. Forecasts indicate stratospheric westerly wind reversal and vortex split around mid-February, with cores separating further later.
Flooding caused by Storm Leonardo left one person dead in Portugal and a child missing in southern Spain between Tuesday and early Thursday, February 3–5, 2026, as exceptional rainfall inundated towns across the Iberian Peninsula. Emergency services carried out evacuations and search operations as river levels rose rapidly.
Tropical Storm Basyang is forecast to make multiple landfalls across the southern and central Philippines, beginning with Surigao del Sur late February 5 or early February 6, 2026. The system is forecast to cross Mindanao and may pass close to or make landfall over Siquijor and southern Negros Oriental before moving toward Palawan.
At least 12 people were killed and more than 77 000 affected after Tropical Cyclone Fytia struck northwestern Madagascar at 01:40 UTC on January 31, 2026. Winds of 185 km/h (115 mph) and intense rainfall caused severe damage across 35 districts, with Soalala and Mitsinjo among the hardest hit. Fytia is the 7th named storm of the 2025/26 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season.
Severe drought conditions are affecting over 2 million people across Kenya as of February 2026, following the failure of the short rain season between October and December 2025, which was the driest since 1981. Rainfall across most arid and semi-arid counties reached only 30%–60% of the long-term average, significantly worsening food and water insecurity.
