GLOBAL WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS

OCTOBER 2025

UNITED STATES

Two people died in flooded New York City basements Thursday during a rainstorm that shut down roadways and caused airport delays, authorities said. A scuba team recovered the body of a 39-year-old man after firefighters received a call of a person trapped in the flooded basement of a townhouse in Brooklyn at about 4.30 pm, police said. A video posted online showed firefighters carrying the victim away through calf-deep water on the street. In Manhattan, a 43-year-old man was found dead inside the flooded basement boiler room of an apartment building, police said. The cause of death was under investigation. Some spots around the city saw record rainfall. Preliminary reports showed 1.8in (4.57cm) of rain fell in Central Park on Thursday, which would surpass the record of 1.64in (4.17cm) set for the park in 1917, the National Weather Service said. LaGuardia Airport recorded 1.97in (5cm) of rain, which would break the 1955 record of 1.18in (3cm) for that airport. New York saw hours of rainfall of varying intensity on Thursday, leading into the evening commute. Photos and videos on social media showed water rising to the bumpers of cars and pouring into subway stations. “When you look at the amount of water that was coming down, our sewer systems are just not built to handle that. It was a steady rain throughout,” said Eric Adams, the city’s mayor, to radio station 1010 WINS.

Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska warned over the weekend that it could take years for some of her state’s communities to recover after they were devastated by a powerful storm recently.  Speaking at the Alaska Federation of Natives’ annual convention on Saturday, Murkowski, a Republican, shared her experience visiting Kipnuk, a village where officials estimate 90% of structures were destroyed amid flooding and other extreme conditions, describing the widespread devastation and “long road” ahead for rebuilding. “It’s going to take years to recover from the disaster of what we have seen with this storm,” she said. Murkowski added, “We have to come together in times of tragedy and disasters – we know that. “After the flood waters recede, and after the damage to the homes and the fish camp is calculated, there’s so much work that remains, and so much healing that is needed.” Murkowski’s remarks came after the remnants of Typhoon Halong on the weekend of 11 October battered remote communities in south-west Alaska with strong winds, rain, record-breaking storm surges, and flooding. More than 1,500 people were displaced, and homes were inundated and swept away. At least one person was killed, and two others remained missing heading into Monday. The US Coast Guard has rescued dozens of people from their homes. On 16 October, Mike Dunleavy, Alaska’s governor, said it could take “upwards of 18 months” before many residents would be able to return to their homes and communities. In a letter to Donald Trump, Dunleavy requested the president declare a major disaster in the state, which would unlock federal resources. “Due to the time, space, distance, geography, and weather in the affected areas, many survivors will likely be unable to return to their communities this winter,” he wrote. “Agencies are prioritizing rapid repairs,” he added. “But it is likely that some damaged communities will not be viable to support winter occupancy, in America’s harshest climate in the US Arctic.”  Murkowski and two more members of Alaska’s congressional delegation – US senator Dan Sullivan and House representative Nick Begich – sent a letter urging Trump to approve Dunleavy’s request.  “The scale of this disaster surpasses the state’s ability and capacity to respond without federal support,” they wrote. “With winter fast approaching, and transportation and broadband connectivity limited, there is an urgent need for federal aid to repair housing, restore utilities, and secure heating fuel before severe winter conditions set in.”  The Alaska National Guard was activated, and as of Sunday, it had airlifted “633 survivors from Bethel to Anchorage”.  Alaska’s state emergency operations center said on Sunday that “large-scale evacuations are complete; additional small-scale evacuations will occur as needed”. The center said on Sunday that it remained at the state’s highest level of activation.  “Sheltering operations are continuing in Bethel, Anchorage, and other communities,” the center said, adding that it “continues to deploy personnel and supplies to impacted communities for emergency home and infrastructure repair”.  In May, the Trump administration canceled a $20m US Environmental Protection Agency grant to Kipnuk intended to prevent coastal erosion and protect against flooding. A statement by the Trump administration to the Anchorage Daily News defended the grant cancellation, claiming without elaborating that the money would have been wasted. Murkowski has also sought to defend the Trump administration over the grant cancellation, arguing that the money would not have arrived in time to prevent the damage from the recent storm, as the Daily News noted.

EUROPE

Just under a year since the devastating 29 October floods across eastern Spain, which led to more than 230 deaths and was one of the worst natural disasters in the country’s history, major flooding has again been affecting the region. The coastal area stretching from the tourist hotspots of Alicante and Benidorm in the south-east to Barcelona in the north-east, as well as the Balearic islands, has seen rainfall totals of 100-200mm (3.9-7.8in). Thunderstorms have brought hourly rainfall rates of more than 60mm, resulting in flash flooding and leading to travel chaos, including flight cancellations and stranded holidaymakers, as well as damage to property. Spain’s state meteorological agency, Aemet, declared the extreme wet weather as being the first high-impact Dana of the autumn season. The term Dana stands for depresión aislada en niveles altos (isolated depression at high levels). A Dana is an upper-atmospheric depression, disconnected from the main airflow, potentially leading to torrential downpours, gusty winds, hail, and thunderstorms. The severity of these complex systems is dependent on local conditions such as land–sea temperature differences and humidity, making a forecast of their intensity difficult. It is the first Dana to be given an official name – Storm Alice – assigned from a list agreed in advance by the Southwest European Storm Naming Group, which comprises Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium, Andorra, and Luxembourg.

AUSTRAILIA

Two men have died after being pulled from the water at a Victorian beach amid wild weather in the state. On Wednesday evening, Victoria police confirmed two men were found unresponsive in the water at Frankston Beach, on the Mornington Peninsula, just after 5 pm. The men, who are yet to be identified, could not be revived. Meanwhile, October records fell in New South Wales as temperatures reached into the high 30s on Wednesday afternoon. Sydney’s Observatory Hill peaked at a maximum of 37 °C at 1.54 pm, after the temperature had climbed more than 10 °C in a period of 90 minutes. Temperatures in the CBD didn’t quite reach the 39 °C forecast, which would have exceeded the city’s October heat record of 38.2C °C, set in 2004 at Observatory Hill.

Two people have died, a hospital has been damaged, and thousands of properties are without power in Tasmania as severe winds buffet Australia’s south-east.  Weather warnings were also in place on Friday afternoon in parts of Victoria, New South Wales, and South Australia as the weather system moved towards the country’s east coast.  Damaging wind gusts were expected around Mount Gambier and western Victoria until Friday afternoon, and in Victoria’s east and NSW’s south-east until the evening, the Bureau of Meteorology said. Tasmania is facing flood watches and state-wide weather warnings, with the BoM forecasting continued severe winds into Saturday morning and further rainfall forecast throughout the weekend. Two people died after a tree fell on a private property in Tasmania’s north-west on Friday afternoon, with police and emergency services called to the scene about 12.10 pm. Heavy gusts were expected to continue into the afternoon, and rainfall over the next two days was likely to cause river level rises, according to Chris Irvine, an acting assistant director at the state’s emergency service.

TROPICAL

Hurricane Melissa has wreaked havoc across parts of the Caribbean in recent days, after first making landfall in Jamaica on Tuesday night as a category 5 storm – the highest strength. This was the most powerful storm to strike the island nation, packing winds of up to 185mph at its peak.  Western parts of Jamaica were worst hit, with 90% of homes in the town of Black River losing their roof or being destroyed entirely. Roughly three-quarters of the country lost electricity, with at least 19 people known to have lost their lives at the time of publication. The cleanup operation was hampered by thunderstorms even after Melissa cleared to the north. The hurricane continued northwards, but was a slightly weakened category 3 storm by the time it made landfall in Cuba. Nonetheless, the storm continued to bring winds of up to 120mph and torrential rains. Eight people have died and 27,000 have been evacuated after Tropical Storm Fengshen hit the Philippines during the weekend. Fengshen made landfall from the western Pacific Ocean near the municipality of Gubat on the southern tip of the island of Luzon, and while it remains on the weaker side in terms of sustained winds, the intense rainfall and a storm surge have caused significant damage across the region. Anticipated waves of 2 meters (6ft) led the Philippines weather bureau, Pagasa, to issue a risk warning of moderate coastal flooding for the region. Twenty-seven thousand people were evacuated from Albay province because of these warnings and moved to a safer area further inland. Despite the precautionary measures, five people died when a tree fell on to a house near Pitogo on Sunday morning. While the Philippines is no stranger to tropical storms, and systems stronger than Fengshen regularly affect the country, Fengshen follows a series of strong earthquakes that struck near the coast of the Cebu and Mindanao islands in the last few weeks, killing 87 people.

The Izu Islands in Japan have endured another powerful blow as Typhoon Nakri swept through on Monday, following in the footsteps of Typhoon Halong, which struck a week earlier.

Officials on Hachijojima Island, south of Tokyo, reported disruption and damage to about 220 homes after the storm brought 37mm (1.5in) of rain in one hour and gusts of up to 95mph (152km/h). Airport operations were disrupted, infrastructure was damaged, and heavy rainfall caused landslides across the island chain. The typhoon also generated 9-metre waves, creating dangerous coastal conditions. Off the Pacific coast in Oiso, in Kanagawa prefecture, three men were swept away while fishing, one of whom has been confirmed dead. Nakri has since transitioned into an extratropical cyclone, weakening as it moved eastwards over cooler north Pacific waters, with wind speeds dropping to about 65mph as of Thursday. Riding the jet stream, its remnants are on track to reach British Columbia, Canada, bringing heavy rain, strong winds, and storm surges. A week earlier, Halong had unleashed more than 200mm of rain in three hours, as maximum sustained winds reached 122mph. By late morning last Thursday, rainfall totals reached 349mm, shattering the 24-hour record. The typhoon’s remnants then crossed the north Pacific and reached Alaska on Sunday, bringing a record-breaking 2-metre storm surge. The coastal villages of Kipnuk and Kwigillingok were the hardest hit. One person died, homes were destroyed, and about 1,500 people were forced into shelters. Alaska experienced one of the largest airlifts in its history to evacuate displaced residents. Halong stands as one of the most powerful storms the region has experienced. Its rapid intensification was fueled by unusually warm North Pacific waters, which provided extra heat and moisture.

Typhoon Matmo made landfall on the southern coast of China on Sunday afternoon, shortly after sweeping across the island province of Hainan. The powerful storm forced the evacuation of about 350,000 people, bringing torrential rain and damaging winds, especially between Wuchuan in Guangdong and Wenchang in Hainan. Ferry services were suspended and flights were cancelled at Haikou Meilan Airport. Matmo, the 21st typhoon of the year, had sustained wind speeds of 94mph (151km/h) and dumped more than 50mm of rainfall in six hours in Chongzou and Qinzhou. The city of Nanning also had high rainfall totals. The storm prompted China’s highest-level red alert, with disruptions in Zhanjiang, where businesses, transport links, and roads were shut. In Hong Kong, 100 flights were affected and 30 were cancelled. As Matmo moves inland towards Cao Bang province in Vietnam, it is expected to weaken into a tropical depression with 55mph winds, but it will continue to bring heavy rainfall. Northern Vietnam could face 130-150mm on Monday, raising the risk of flooding and landslides. The system is expected to move towards Yunnan province in China, where further heavy rainfall is likely.