GLOBAL WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS

MAY 2019

NAMIBIA

Namibia is facing a "natural disaster" because of poor rains, President Hage Geingob says (2nd.). He has declared a state of emergency - the second in three years - over the situation, mobilizing all government agencies to respond to the drought. The
lack of rain has already left 500,000 people - one in five Namibians - without access to enough food, the government says. The sparsely-populated country has seen a succession of droughts since 2013. The government had set aside $40m to buy food and
water tanks, and to transport livestock to and from grazing areas.

UNITED STATES

Mississippi has experienced a historic start to the tornado season in 2019 (7th.). A state with an average of 21 tornadoes through April has seen roughly four times as many, with 83 through the first four months of the year, according to data from the
National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration. The tornado data is preliminary and subject to revision. The state averages 45.1 tornadoes a year and has already been hit with more twisters this year than each of the last four full years.
Mississippi suffered a worse start in 2011 when 131 tornadoes touched down through April, largely a result of the four-day 2011 Super Outbreak that struck the southeastern U.S., resulting in $11 billion in damages and leaving an estimated 321 people dead.
Other states have experienced an above-normal start, too; Alabama (71 tornadoes compared to an average of 22 through April), Georgia (53 compared to 14) and Missouri (44 compared to 16) also have been uncharacteristically hard hit early.

A storm system led to snowfalls along a zone from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to Duluth, Minnesota. While not accumulating, snowflakes even managed to fall in parts of Minneapolis(8-9th.). Through Thursday morning, Duluth was blanketed with 10.6 inches of
snow for this event and 10.9 inches total for the month, leading to a number of broken snowfall records, according to data from the National Weather Service. One spot just southwest of Duluth reported 12 inches of snow as of Thursday afternoon. The 8.3
inches on Wednesday, May 8, set the all-time record for most snow on a single day in the month of May. The previous record was 5.5 inches, set on May 10, 1902. The burst of May snow also shattered the record for the snowiest month of May ever in Duluth,
eclipsing the previous record of 8.1 total inches of snow set in May of 1954. It was also the snowiest May 8 in Duluth history as the more than 8 inches of snow surpassed the previous record for the day of 5 inches set way back in 1924. Record-keeping
began in 1884.

A severe weather event took place across southeastern Texas on Thursday night with large hail, gusty winds and flood-creating downpours (9-10th.). Houston was hit hard with drenching showers on Tuesday as between 3 to as much as 10 inches of rain fell in
and around the city. Baseball-sized hail and even larger sizes were reported across the region on Thursday evening, damaging homes and vehicles in the area. Houston Intercontinental Airport officials issued a ground stop through 1 a.m. CDT Friday as a
result of the severe storms, causing all inbound flights to Houston to be held at their origins. All of the Houston Independent School District and offices were closed due to flooding on Friday.

A potent thunderstorm hammered areas north and east of Raleigh, North Carolina, before midday (13th.). Hail as large as quarters and golf balls pelted these areas as downpours swept through. Multiple trees were downed by strong wind gusts, including some
on homes near Knightdale, according to the Storm Prediction Center. Downed trees blocked traffic near Pilot as traffic lights were knocked down by gusts. Some structures were also reportedly damaged in the area. A tornado may have touched down near
Zebulon, North Carolina, but the National Weather Service has not confirmed the tornado.

California and surrounding states are getting soaked by a major storm more typical of the winter months. Rain began overspreading northern portions of the state at midweek (15th-16th.). San Francisco picked up its average rainfall for all of May on
Wednesday alone as 0.47 inches fell. Venado, California, recorded 5 inches of rain as of early Thursday morning, which set a new rainfall record for any day in May. The previous record at Venado was 3.28 inches set on 18 May 2005.

Powerful thunderstorms erupted across the central U.S. on Friday afternoon from western Texas through Nebraska, unleashing dozens of tornadoes (16-17th.). There were nearly 40 preliminary tornado reports in Nebraska and Kansas on Friday and Friday night,
according to the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center. Many of these twisters were spawned by two separate violent storms, known as supercells, that tracked for hundreds of miles. The multi-day severe weather outbreak first got underway
Thursday across the parts of Iowa, Illinois and Indiana. Wind gusts of 86 mph were recorded in Washington, Iowa, while hail the size of baseballs fell in Westville, Illinois. A tornado was reported in Sheridan, Illinois, about 50 miles southwest of
downtown Chicago. No injuries were reported.

A tornado has killed three people in the US state of Missouri, including an elderly couple who were hurled hundreds of feet from their home (22-23rd.). All three fatalities were in Golden City. Another tornado carved a three-mile swathe of destruction
through the state capital, Jefferson City. It brought the death toll from US Midwest twisters this week to seven. Missouri saw two other weather-related deaths earlier this week, along with one in Oklahoma and another in Iowa.

A tornado levelled a motel and tore through a mobile home park near Oklahoma City, killing two people and injuring at least 29 others (25th.). The twister touched down in El Reno, about 25 miles west of Oklahoma City, late on Saturday night. It crossed
an interstate and hit the American Budget Value Inn before ripping through the Skyview Estates trailer park, flipping and leveling homes, El Renos mayor, Matt White, said at a news conference. The two people who were killed were in the mobile home park,
White said, adding that everyone at the motel was accounted for but searchers were still going through the mobile home park.

Saturday's high temperature of 100 F at Savannah, Georgia, tied the record for the earliest occurrence of triple-digit heat in the city (25-29th.). On Sunday, the city set an all-time record high for May as the temperature soared to 102F. Charleston,
South Carolina, and Wilmington, North Carolina, reached 100F for the first time ever in May on Sunday. Wednesday marked the fourth-consecutive day of temperatures near the century mark in Charleston. A high in the mid-80s (F) is more common at this time
of year.

Evacuations are underway as flooding is impacting areas across Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois and parts of Nebraska and Iowa (27th.). Nine fatalities have been reported as a result of the flooding. One driver attempted to cross a flooded
roadway in Perkins, Oklahoma, while two other bodies were found in a submerged vehicle near the Mississippi River in Missouri. Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson declared a state of emergency on Friday. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is warning Arkansans
about the possibility of historic flooding along the Arkansas River. By Sunday evening, the Arkansas River levels at Van Buren, near Fort Smith, Arkansas, broke the previous water level record of 38.1 feet, which was set in 1945. By 5 p.m. CDT, the water
levels reached 38.3 feet.

At least one person was killed and 130 were injured as a rapid-fire line of tornadoes tore across Indiana and Ohio, packed so closely together that one crossed the path carved by another (27-28th.). The storms were among 55 tornadoes that meteorologists
said may have touched down Monday across eight states stretching eastward from Idaho and Colorado. Tuesday offered no respite, as a large and dangerous tornado touched down on the western edge of Kansas City, Kansas, late in the day. The past couple of
weeks have seen unusually high tornado activity in the US, with no immediate end to the pattern in sight. Monday marked the record-tying 11th straight day with at least eight tornadoes in the US, said Patrick Marsh, a Storm Prediction Center
meteorologist. The last such stretch was in 1980.

There was a massive tornado in the evening near Lawrence, Kansas (28th.). The monstrous twister eventually tracked across the northeastern part of the state, pummeling several communities and prompting tornado emergencies in Kansas City and surrounding
areas. At least a dozen homes were damaged or destroyed in Linwood, Kansas, according to the Kansas City Star. At least 18 injuries were reported in Douglas County, emergency management officials said. On Wednesday afternoon, the National Weather Service
(NWS) office in Kansas City released its final damage survey and determined that the tornado that ripped through Linwood was an EF4 storm with maximum winds of 170 mph. It was on the ground for more than 31 miles and had a maximum width of one mile. This
is only the second EF4 tornado of 2019 - the first occurred in early March and was blamed for killing 23 in Lee County, Alabama. In 2018, there were no tornadoes stronger than an EF3 anywhere in the U.S.

PARAGUAY

According to government officials in Paraguay, approximately 40,000 people have been displaced since March as a consequence of the recent floods in the South American nation (10th.). Since March, intense rains have led to significant floods caused by
increasing water levels in the Paraguay River.

MEXICO

The imminent impact on the health of Mexicans continues to increase as a result of the wildfires roaring out of control in and around the country's capital over the past four days (15th.). The Environmental Commission of the Megalopolis reported that the
level of Extraordinary Atmospheric Environmental Contingency is being maintained due to dangerously high levels of ash particles and ozone in the Metropolitan Zone of the Valley of Mexico. Although the emergency declaration was not accompanied by
customary driving restrictions, it was later ordered that most cars leave the road from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m., under the "Do not Travel Today" traffic control system. A high pressure system is preventing the dispersion of pollutants, and high temperatures
are prolonging the drought that has affected the country in recent months.

NORTH KOREA

North Korea has said it is suffering its worst drought in 37 years and called on its citizens to "battle" against the crop damage caused by it (16th). It comes after the UN said that up to 10 million North Koreans were "in urgent need of food assistance".
North Koreans had been surviving on just 300g (10.5 oz) of food a day so far this year, the UN report said. In the 1990s, a devastating famine is believed to have killed hundreds of thousands of North Koreans. North Korea's state media outlet KCNA said
54.4mm of rain fell throughout the country in the first five months of the year. It said this was the lowest level recorded since 1982.

ISRAEL

The hottest weather in recent years helped fuel several dangerous wildfires across Israel late last week (23-24th.). Temperatures peaked at 44C in Tel Aviv on Thursday and this was followed by a high of 42C on Friday. The normal high is only 29C for late
May. Around 3,500 people were forced to evacuate their homes as fires destroyed dozens of residences across the country, according to the Jerusalem Post.

JAPAN

All-time high temperature records were broken on Sunday in Japan as temperatures soared over 38C (26th.). Summerlike temperatures took over Japan on Sunday with temperatures rising to 39.5C on the island of Hokkaido, according to the Japanese
Meteorological Agency. This was the first time the temperature has ever risen past 38C in Hokkaido during any month of the year. This temperature also set a new record for the highest temperature during the month of May in all of Japan. The previous
record-high temperature in Hokkaido was 37.8C set in Otofuke on 3 June 2014. The heat turned deadly when two people died on Sunday in northern Japan. A third person is in serious condition after collapsing during a marathon. At least 575 people were
hospitalized across the country due to heat-related symptoms according to the Japan Times.

VICTORIA AND SOUTHERN NEW SOUTH WALES

The first widespread significant snowfall of the season blanketed the higher elevations of Victoria and southern New South Wales from Sunday into Monday (26-27th.). More than 30 cm of snow fell in parts of the Victorian Alps, bringing delight to skiers
and snowboarders as the season got off to an early start. Snowfall as of Tuesday had totalled 40 cm at Perisher and Hotham ski resorts.

TROPICAL

The strongest cyclone to hit India in five years killed at least 36 people in the eastern state of Odisha, before swinging north-eastwards into Bangladesh on Saturday, where more than a million people have been moved to safety (3rd.-4th.). After hitting
land on Friday, Cyclone Fani lost some of its power and was downgraded to a deep depression by the India Meteorological Department. A storm surge still breached embankments to submerge dozens of villages on Bangladesh's low-lying coast, a disaster
ministry official in Dhaka said. About 1.2 million people living in the most vulnerable districts in Bangladesh had been moved to 4,000 shelters. In India, authorities were assessing the casualties and damage caused by Fani, which had spent days building
power over the northern reaches of the Bay of Bengal before tearing into Odisha. Indian media reported that at least 12 people died across the state, most as a result of falling trees. A mass evacuation of more than a million people in the 24 hours
before the tropical cyclone made landfall is likely to have averted a greater loss of life.

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