Weather of 2026

Cold snaps and winter storms

From January 22-27, a deadly winter storm affected Northern Mexico, United States and Atlantic Canada, causing many warnings, freezing temperatures and more than 170 deaths over the area. On January 28, the storm moved out to the open Atlantic Ocean, followed by another storm which affected almost all the same regions.

Tornadoes

Tropical and subtropical cyclones

Extratropical cyclones and European windstorms

Storm Anna caused widespread chaos at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, particularly on January 2, 2026, where a combination of heavy snow and shifting crosswinds led to the cancellation of over 325 flights and delayed more than 635 others.^[30] The disruption at Schiphol hit KLM and easyJet hardest, with KLM alone cancelling roughly 30% of its schedule due to the airport's reduced runway capacity.^[31] The storm brought wind gusts of up to 90 km/h along the northern coast of the Netherlands.^[32] In Sweden, meteorologists recorded extreme accumulations, with up to 50 centimetres (nearly 20 inches) of snow falling in parts of central Sweden on New Year's Day and January 2, leaving thousands of households without power.^[33] In the Netherlands and Germany, the storm's tail end brought freezing rain and black ice, leading to hazardous road conditions and the deployment of specialized snow removal equipment like the Lavastorm truck on major highways.^[34] Meanwhile, in Poland, the storm's heavy snow paralyzed the S7 motorway, leaving hundreds of travelers stranded in sub-zero temperatures with traffic jams stretching up to 20 kilometres.^[35]

Between 5 and 8 May 2026, an intense cut-off low-pressure system stalled over South Africa, triggering the South African Weather Service to issue its highest-impact Orange Level 8 warnings for the Eastern and Western Cape. The system delivered extreme rainfall, with Joubertina recording a staggering 301.2 mm (nearly 12 inches) in just three days, while the Kouga Dam saw an unprecedented rise from 32% to over 113% capacity in only 24 hours. These torrential downpours resulted in widespread flash flooding that inundated homes, destroyed critical road infrastructure, and forced the emergency evacuation of over 2,000 residents in the Gamtoos Valley. Beyond the flooding, the storm brought gale-force winds and dangerous coastal surges, claiming at least one life in Knysna and leaving several communities in the Garden Route and Karoo completely isolated until the system finally moved offshore on 8 May.^[36]

Wildfires

Fires from January to April 2026 burned more than 150 million hectares (370.66 million acres) of land—20% more than the previous record.^[37]

Heatwaves

In late January, much of Australia experienced a prolonged, extreme heatwave, with 12 locations recording temperatures above 49°C, and two, Andamooka and Port Augusta reaching 50°C on 29 and 30 January.^[41]

World Weather Attribution said that, even considering the progress of global warming, March 2026 heatwaves in Western North America were "rare events" that would have been "virtually impossible" without human-induced climate change.^[42]

In March, NASA reported that, for the second consecutive year winter arctic sea ice declined, matching the lowest level since records began in 1979.^[43]

NOAA's NCEI reported that the contiguous U.S. (CONUS) average temperature in March 2026 was 5.2 °C (9.4 °F) above the 20th century average—the warmest March in the 132-year record.^[44] Also, the year from April 2025 to March 2026 was deemed to be the warmest ever recorded for the CONUS in records since 1895, and January–March 2026 was the driest on record for the CONUS.^[44]

In May, a historic intense "heat dome" of high pressure trapping warm air from Northern Africa shattered all-time May national temperature records across Western Europe. A study by extreme event attribution organization Climameter ascribed the high temperatures of the May 2026 Western European Heatwave to human-driven climate change, with natural climate variability likely playing a minor role.^[45]

In June, an Antarctic heatwave reached temperatures of nearly 60 °F (16 °C)—which is 36 °F (20 °C) above normal—leading to widespread ice thawing and rain falling on glaciers.^[46]

January

• January 4 - A tornado struck the Frattocchie area in Marino, Italy, after reportedly coming from the sea. 30 trees were downed, and several structures and vehicles sustained damage. The tornado was rated as an IF1.5 on the International Fujita Scale.^[47]
• January 5-10 - Southeastern Australia experiences its most severe heatwave since 2019; temperatures exceed 40 °C (104 °F) in Melbourne and Sydney, while regional Victoria and New South Wales face "extreme" fire danger ratings.^[48]
• January 6–10 – Storm Goretti impacts Cornwall and northern France causing widespread tree loss, structural and economic damage with ~500,000 power cuts. 132 mph (59 m/s; 115 kn; 212 km/h) was recorded at Barfleur, Manche, France.
• January 8–9 – La Farge, Wisconsin, recorded 2.29 in (58 mm) of rain, a record 24-hour amount for January.^[49]
• January 15 – Two people died due to severe winter storms in the Russian Far East.^[50]
• January 15–22 – 10 people died due to landslides and flooding caused by heavy rainfall during a storm which devastated parts of the North Island of New Zealand.^[51]
• January 16-23 – Storm Harry impacts the Mediterranean region; extreme weather and high waves lead to at least 390 fatalities, many of whom were migrants attempting to cross the sea.
• January 22–27 – A major winter storm crossed the United States and Atlantic Canada causing more than 173 fatalities.^[52]
• January 24 – A massive landslide in West Bandung, Indonesia, triggered by heavy rainfall, results in over 80 fatalities.
• January 29–30 – Andamooka and Port Augusta in South Australia reach 50 °C (122 °F) during a second intense heatwave, setting new local records.
• January 30 – Tropical Cyclone Fytia makes landfall in Madagascar after rapidly intensifying in the Mozambique Channel, causing 12 fatalities.

February

• February 1 – The temperature in Freeport, Bahamas reaches a high of only 11 °C (51 °F), the coldest high temperature ever recorded for the city.
• February 2 – Felipe Carrillo Puerto, Mexico, records its coldest temperature in over 40 years at 4.2 °C (39.6 °F) as an Arctic air mass pushes deep into Central America.
• February 3 – Perico, Cuba records a national record-low temperature for the country at 1 °C (33 °F).
• February 3–7 – Tropical Storm Penha impacts Northern Mindanao and Visayas in the Philippines causing 12 fatalities and $25.5 million in damages.
• February 4–18 – Cyclone Gezani impacts the Toamasina Province in Madagascar causing 63 fatalities and $142 million in damages.
• February 10 – Massive wildfires fueled by record heat and wind strike the Biobío and Ñuble regions of Chile, resulting in 21 fatalities and the destruction of hundreds of homes.^[53]
• February 20–24 – A blizzard affected the Northeast United States.
• Late February – Heavy rains across Southern Africa lead to catastrophic flooding in Mozambique, displacing hundreds of thousands of people and damaging over 30,000 homes.

March

• March 6–Present – Destructive flooding in Kenya causes 110 fatalities, with most of the victims dying mainly from drowning or electrocution.^[54]
• March 10-24 - A series of Kona storms produced damaging floods in Hawaii, after thunderstorms produced heavy rainfall peaking at 54.92 inches (1,395 mm) on Maui. The floods caused more than US$1 billion in damage.^[55][56]
• March 12 - March 12 – Intense localised rainfall triggers severe flooding and landslides across the Minas Gerais state in Brazil, resulting in more than 70 fatalities; the city of Juiz de Fora records its wettest month on record.^[57]
• March 13-17 - The March 2026 North American blizzard affects much of the Upper Midwest and High Plains with up to 3–4 feet (36–48 in; 91–122 cm) of snow, and causes an ice storm over northern Michigan. This was the first winter storm to be rated as a Category 5 on the Regional Snowfall Index in ten years.^[58]
• March 20 – The previous U.S. national heat record of 108 °F (42 °C) for the month of March was broken with a temperature of 112 °F (44 °C) at Buttercup and Squaw Lake in California.^[59]
• March 20–27 – Cyclone Narelle landfalls four times around Australia in Queensland, Northern Territory, and Western Australia.

April

• April 2–11 – Cyclone Maila, the first tropical cyclone to be named by the Tropical Cyclone Warning Center in Port Moresby in 19 years, impacts Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands.

• April 3–30 – A series of European tornadoes occur throughout the month, with confirmed touchdowns in Italy, Greece, and Turkey; a waterspout making landfall in Bat Yam, Israel, results in one fatality.

• April 7 – Severe flooding in Dagestan, Russia, kills six people and inundates over 6,000 homes.^[60]

• April 7–8 – Cyclone Vaianu impacts Fiji, bringing destructive winds and flooding to the Western Division and Viti Levu.

• April 8–22 – Typhoon Sinlaku formed off Pohnpei and it rapidly intensified into a Category 5 Super Typhoon four days later while moving west northwest slowly. It made landfall on Saipan and Tinian just before midnight on April 14, becoming the second strongest to make landfall on the island behind Typhoon Yutu of 2018.

• April 13 – Intense flash flooding hits Riyadh and eastern Saudi Arabia, leading to widespread school closures and urban transport disruptions.

• April 13 – A severe weather outbreak across the US Midwest produces multiple tornadoes across Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin.

• April 14 – A tornado outbreak hit parts of the Plains and Midwest with a significant tornado hitting Ottawa, Kansas.

• April 15 – Torrential rains cause devastating floods and landslides in Angola, specifically in Luanda and Benguela, resulting in at least 45 fatalities.

• April 15–16 – Deadly flood events occur in Ecuador and Haiti; 15 people are killed in Ecuador with 28,000 homes damaged, while 12 fatalities are confirmed in northwestern Haiti.

• April 17 – A large tornado outbreak took way ranging from Missouri to Wisconsin, with a high-end EF2 tornado occurring near Lena, IL, and two EF3 tornadoes in Cream, WI and Ringle, WI.

• April 23–28 – A tornado outbreak sequence affects the Plains and the Midwest. Multiple tornado watches and warnings were issued during the afternoon and evening, and a tornado emergency was issued for southern Enid, when an EF4 tornado caused extreme damage to multiple houses and other structures on April 23, injuring 1 person.^[61][62]

• Late April – A United Nations report highlights a severe drought reaching critical levels in southern Madagascar, decimating local crop yields.

May

• The Copernicus Climate Change Service concluded that May 2026 was the second warmest May globally since records began in 1850.^[63]
• May 1–Present – An extreme heatwave grips South Asia; temperatures exceed 46 °C (115 °F) in parts of India and Pakistan. The event is characterized by record-high nighttime temperatures, significantly increasing the risk of heatstroke and placing unprecedented strain on regional power grids.
• May 5–6 – A severe wildfire in the Lublin region of south-eastern Poland burns over 250 hectares of forest in Kozaki, resulting in the death of a firefighting pilot during an aircraft crash.^[64]
• May 5-8 - An intense cut-off low-pressure system battered South Africa, triggering Orange Level 8 weather warnings for disruptive rain and flooding. The storm caused widespread infrastructure damage and evacuations in the Eastern Cape and Garden Route, with rainfall totals exceeding 300mm in Joubertina.^[65] The Kouga Dam exceeds its capacity (113%), leading to mass evacuations in the Gamtoos Valley.
• May 5–6 - A late season winter storm affects the Rocky Mountains. Cheyenne, Wyoming received 8.9 inches (23 cm) of snow, their heaviest of the season and the highest since March 2021, while the Boulder, Colorado office of the NWS recorded 10.7 inches (27 cm), the heaviest May snowstorm since 2013.^[66] Higher accumulations of 18–24 inches (46–61 cm) occurred in the mountainous peaks, with Estes Park reporting as much as 27 inches (69 cm).^[67]
• May 6–7 – A tornado outbreak affects the Southeastern United States. Four tornado emergencies were issued in southwestern Mississippi, along with several other PDS tornado warnings.^[68][69][70]
• May 13 – A series of deadly and destructive thunderstorms swept across Uttar Pradesh, India, causing 96 deaths and 72 injuries.^[71][72][73]
• May 13 – Honduras repeatedly broke its all-time May maximum temperature records when Choluteca recorded a scorching 42.2C (107.9F).^[74]
• May 25-26 – England, Wales and Northern Ireland all broke their all-time maximum temperature for May. A temperature of 34.8°C was recorded in Kew Gardens, beating the old record from 1922 and 1944 of 32.8°C; and it also broke the records for the UK's hottest low temperature for any given day in May and the UK's hottest bank holiday ever.^[75] The next day this was broken again where 35.1°C was recorded again at Kew Gardens.^[76]
• Late May – A severe heatwave affects the Northern Great Plains, with maximum temperatures reaching as high as 41°C across the Dakotas and Manitoba.

June

• June 2 – The United Nations World Meteorological Organization (WMO) officially confirmed that El Niño conditions are actively developing in the tropical Pacific. This rapid transition follows a remarkably high 97–98% probability forecast from Columbia University's Climate School. Computer modeling points to an equatorial Pacific temperature anomaly of 3–4 °C (5.4–7.2 °F), threatening to make this the strongest El Niño event on record and heavily altering global weather patterns for the remainder of the year.^[77]
• 11 June — a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration notice stated that "El Niño conditions are present and expected to strengthen into the Northern Hemisphere winter 2026-27".^[78]
• June 11 - A moderately sized but intense tornado outbreak occurred in Illinois and Indiana, with an EF3 near Washburn, and two EF3 tornadoes in Streator and Kouts. No fatalities have been reported.
• June 17-18 — Tropical Storm Arthur makes landfall near the shorelines of Texas and Louisiana, causing flash flooding and four fatalities.^[79]
• June 22-27 – A historic and intense heat dome brought a ferocious, life-threatening heatwave to Western and Central Europe, including the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, and Germany. Red weather alerts were widely issued across the continent as temperatures broke June records; Châteaumeillant, France recorded a peak temperature of 43.3 °C (109.9 °F), while parts of Spain were forecast to hit 44 °C (111.2 °F). The extreme heat caused dozens of direct fatalities, including over 40 drowning deaths in France as people sought relief from the stifling conditions.^[80]
• June 29 - Straight line winds of 131 mph (212 km/h) occurred in Highmore, South Dakota, the second highest wind gust from a thunderstorm wind gust ever recorded. These extreme winds occurred within a supercell. This likely occurred from a phenomenon known as a downburst. No fatalities have been reported from this event.^[81]