A powerful EF-3 tornado struck Virginia Beach, Virginia, on April 30, 2023, damaging 115 homes and destroying 12. This is the most powerful tornado ever to hit the city, officials said on May 1.
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the JMA as M6.2 hit near the coast of Okinawa, Japan at 03:22 UTC (12:22 LT) on May 1, 2023. The agency is reporting a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). USGS is reporting M5.9 at a depth of 10.9 km (6.7 miles); EMSC M5.9 at a depth of 12 km (7.4 miles).
Heavy rainfall since January wreaked havoc across Ecuador, leaving at least 79 people dead, 39 missing, and 66 000 affected.
Two deep earthquakes registered by the USGS M6.6 and M6.0 hit south of the Fiji Islands at 03:13 UTC on April 28, 2023. The agency is reporting depths of 592.9 km (368.4 miles) and 598.5 km (371.8 miles), respectively. EMSC is reporting just one M6.0 quake at a depth of 593 km (368.4 miles).
Unusually warm April temperatures engulfed the Iberian Peninsula over the past couple of days, breaking numerous high-temperature records and setting a new (preliminary) European hottest April day on record.
New activity/unrest was reported for 4 volcanoes from April 19 – 25, 2023. During the same period, ongoing activity was reported for 17 volcanoes.
Severe thunderstorms produced intense hailstorms over parts of the southern US on Wednesday, April 26, 2023, with golf ball to grapefruit-sized hail reported over parts of Texas and a historic hailstorm over Florida.
A sudden, very large tornado hit the earthquake-relief camp in the area of Pazarcik City, Kahramanmaras Province, Turkey on April 20, 2023, resulting in casualties and widespread damage. The tornado was strong enough to overturn cars and large vehicles.
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the GeoNet as M5.9 hit New Zealand’s North Island at 22:16 UTC on April 25, 2023 (10:16 LT, April 26). The agency is reporting a depth of 21 km (13 miles). The USGS reported it as M5.4 at a depth of 25 km (15 miles).
Panama’s authorities have limited shipping traffic in the Panama Canal due to a severe drought that depletes the water reserves of two artificial lakes — Alhajuela and Gatun — supplying the vital waterway.
