Rishav Kothari is Editor-in-Chief of The Watchers, where he runs the newsroom and covers earthquakes, volcanoes, severe weather and space weather.
Flash flooding killed a 102-year-old woman and prompted the rescue of around 90 people in Madrigueras, Albacete Province, Spain, on October 2, 2026, after more than 140 mm (5.51 inches) of rain fell in approximately two hours. Regional authorities kept METEOCAM at Emergency Phase, Operational Situation 1, on October 3 as recovery and cleanup operations continued.
A long-duration October heat wave is affecting California under an anomalous ridge over the western United States, with Heat Advisories and Extreme Heat Warnings in effect from Northern and Central California into Southern California. The NOAA/NWS Weather Prediction Center (WPC) forecasts October 3 as the hottest day of the short-range period, with temperatures about 8–11°C (15–20°F) above normal and some valleys reaching approximately 42°C (107°F).
Late-season heat affected southern China from September 25 into early October 2026, with official reports placing temperatures at 39.5°C (103.1°F) in Qiaojia, Yunnan, 39.1°C (102.4°F) in Yongding, Fujian, and 38.0°C (100.4°F) in Guangxin, Jiangxi. An independent analysis of station data identified 62 October maximum-temperature records on October 1 and another 18 on October 2, although Chinese meteorological authorities have not published an equivalent record count.
Floods, landslides, and other rain-related disasters have killed at least 32 people across Nepal since September 24, 2026, while rescue teams have recovered 11 bodies from the September 27 Himlung Himal avalanche. Updated figures from Baglung and Manang raised the combined minimum from all incidents to at least 43 by October 1, with five avalanche victims still missing.
NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) issued a G1 – Minor geomagnetic storm watch for October 2, 2026, following a large filament eruption and associated coronal mass ejection (CME) on September 28. SWPC expects glancing effects from the CME, while NASA models place its arrival near the start of October 2 with an uncertainty of several hours.
Heavy rain is forecast across the Four Corners region through 05:00 PT (12:00 UTC) on September 30, with 50–100 mm (2–4 inches) expected across much of eastern Arizona, western New Mexico, and the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. Moderate Risk excessive-rainfall outlooks, level 3 of 4, cover much of Arizona and New Mexico and parts of southern Utah and southern Colorado, corresponding to a ≥40% probability of flash flooding.
A slow-moving nor’easter weakened off New England on September 28, 2026, after producing an NWS-listed gust of 130 km/h (81 mph) at Montauk Point, nearly 160 mm (6.3 inches) of rain in southeastern Massachusetts and measured coastal inundation above 0.8 m (2.6 feet) in New York City. PSEG Long Island recorded more than 128 000 cumulative outages across Long Island and the Rockaways, with power restored to more than 99% of affected customers by late September 28.
Hurricane Polo made landfall on the west coast of Baja California Sur just south of Las Barrancas at approximately 23:00 MST on September 28 (06:00 UTC on September 29), with maximum sustained winds of 175 km/h (110 mph), according to the US National Hurricane Center (NHC). Life-threatening winds and flash flooding were ongoing, and Polo was forecast to cross the peninsula before making a second landfall in southern Sonora as a hurricane on Tuesday morning.
Category 3 Hurricane Polo was approaching Baja California Sur on September 28, 2026, as Hurricane Warnings covered sections of both coasts of the peninsula and mainland Sonora. At 05:00 MST (12:00 UTC), the National Hurricane Center placed Polo 175 km (110 miles) southwest of Cabo San Lázaro with maximum sustained winds of 185 km/h (115 mph), and forecast landfall in Baja California Sur late that afternoon or early evening before the cyclone reached southern Sonora as a hurricane late that night or early September 29.
Flooding in Thailand has killed eight people since September 16, 2026 and left 1.7 million people affected across 27 provinces outside Bangkok as of September 28. Bangkok remained flooded for a fourth consecutive day. Meanwhile a local volunteer rescue group in southern Myanmar reported recovering eight bodies and searching for 20–30 missing people in Launglon Township.
