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.
The Al-Sayyal tropical depression dropped 215 mm (8.46 inches) of rain in the state of Sur in Oman during 24 hours between October 15 and 16, 2024; equivalent to what Jeddah receives in 5 years. Several regions were flooded on due to the continuous downpour since Monday, October 14.
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.0 hit Turkey at 07:46 UTC (10:46 LT) on October 16, 2024. The agency is reporting a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). EMSC is reporting the same magnitude and depth.
Flooding in Nigeria’s Kogi State has displaced nearly 2 million people as of October 14, 2024, with over 200 communities and approximately 60 000 ha (150 000 acres) of land submerged as the Niger and Benue rivers overflowed.
Zambia is facing one of its worst electricity crises due to a severe drought affecting the region since January 2024. The drought has significantly reduced water levels at the Kariba Dam, leaving most of the hydroelectric turbines inoperable.
A rare EF-3 tornado tore through the Avenir community in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida on October 9, 2024, as Hurricane “Milton” unleashed a tornado outbreak across Florida.
Coronal mass ejection (CME) produced by X1.8 solar flare on October 9, 2024, impacted Earth at 15:15 UTC on October 10, at nearly 2.4 million km/h (1.5 million miles per hour), triggering G4 – Severe geomagnetic storm.
Hurricane “Milton” made landfall near Siesta Key in Sarasota County along the west coast of Florida at 00:30 UTC on October 10, 2024, with maximum sustained winds of 205 km/h (120 mph) and a minimum central pressure of 954 hPa, making it a Category 3 hurricane.
A strong solar radiation storm is currently in progress as a result of a major X1.8 solar flare at 01:56 UTC on October 9, 2024.
