Category: Posts EN

Deadly Flooding in Northern Vietnam Thanks to Slow-Moving Tropical Storm

Written by Team Morecast

 

A season’s worth of rainfall has fallen over the past week in portions of northern Vietnam. A slow-moving, back-tracking tropical storm has caused severe flash flooding. Many homes and roads have been destroyed in several provinces, and the death toll has risen to at least 20.

 

 

 

 

 

Tropical Storm Son-Tinh developed last week over the Western Pacific. The storm never gained much intensity as it moved west, skirting the northern Phillippines before crossing over China’s Hainan Island. It gained some strength, though, as it crossed the Gulf of Tonkin on 18-July. At the same time it slowed down and performed a three-day loop over northern Vietnam and adjacent Laos. The storm has been persistent and is now moving back over Hainan Island as of Tuesday morning.

 

 

The creeping progress of the storm has meant days of heavy, tropical rains. Above is a map with the storm track and select rainfall amounts (in mm) between 16-July and 22-July. The 466.9-mm total at Vinh is roughly equivalent to their normal rainfall from June, July, and August combined! The worst flooding has occurred in Yen Bai, a province of interior northern Vietnam characterized by steep mountains, increasing the danger of land and mudslides. Fortunately, the heavy rains subsided later on Monday.

Stifling Heat Blisters Southern Plains & Desert Southwest!

Written by Team Morecast

 

Temperatures are approaching 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43 deg C) this afternoon in the Dallas metro area. It’s the fourth day in a row of record-breaking heat. Fortunately, there could be some light at the end of this stifling tunnel.

It’s been a hot summer overall in the Southern Plains. Since Dallas-Ft. Worth saw a high of 73 deg F (23 deg C) on May 4th, residents there have had barely any break from the heat. There have been only four days in the intervening time when highs haven’t surpassed 86 deg F (30 deg C). Average temperatures have been 5.1 degrees, 4.4 degrees, and 3.7 degrees above normal in the months of May, June, and July respectively. Dallas is currently on a nine-day streak of highs above 100 deg F (38 deg C), and as you can see from the Morecast.com forecast below, there’s at least one more week of heat left to go.

 

 

Fortunately, the longer range forecast is promising. The sprawling upper-level ridge that has been anchored over the West and Plains for the past few weeks is expected to shift back towards the West coast, allowing some cooler Canadian air to slide down the Plains. The 6-10 day forecast below shows a welcome surge of cooler-than-normal air in the Plains. Keep in mind this is only a trend back towards normal in the Southern Plains; the Dallas metro area would still expect to see highs in the low 90s this time of year.

 

 

Residents of the Desert Southwest are used to seeing thermometers top the 100-deg mark most afternoons in the summer. However, some of the hottest air of the summer thus far has moved in. Highs in Phoenix over the next 3-4 days could exceed 115 deg F (46 deg C) with really hot spots like Blythe, California threatening 120 deg F (49 deg C)! Excessive heat warnings will also expand up the West coast later this week into next week if the outlook above bears out. 

Squall Line Roars from the Ohio River to the Gulf; Heavy Rains Coming for the East

Written by Team Morecast

 

A large, unusually powerful and nearly stationary system has been producing several rounds of severe storms over the past few days. This was the system responsible for the high winds that sank the tourist boat in Missouri on Thursday evening. Another long-lived squall line led to more than 200 reports of large hail or damaging winds from Indiana to Florida late Friday through early Saturday. The same system has generated a rare summertime Nor’Easter. It’s the beginning of several days worth of heavy rain east of the Appalachians.

 

 

Two squall lines developed on Friday afternoon in the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys. The squalls converged overnight and rolled south, reaching northern Florida late Saturday morning (see radar animation above). Many of the damaging wind and hail reports (see map below) came in during the overnight hours, a particularly dangerous situation due to low visibility and lack of severe awareness. The squall line finally faded on Saturday afternoon.

 

 

The overall upper level system responsible for the severe storms remains over the Midwest today. It is forecast to move very slowly over the next several days. A persistent tap of Atlantic and Gulf moisture will mean heavy rains from the Appalachians east (see map below). Widespread amounts of 2-4 inches will accumulate. Many locations will see heavier totals of 4-8 inches by the end of next week. Localized flooding will be a daily threat, and river flooding could become an issue as well. Lead photo courtesy flickr user milkmantep.

 

Death Toll to 17 From Branson, Missouri Tourist Boat Tragedy

Written by Team Morecast

 

A severe squall line ripped across portions of Kansas and Missouri on Thursday, accompanied by destructive wind gusts as high as 90 mph. The storms whipped up high winds and waves on Table Rock Lake near Branson in southern Missouri around 7 pm, leading to the capsizing of a tourist boat. Officials have confirmed a death toll now at 17, including nine of an eleven-member family that was onboard.

The tourist-carrying vessel was of the duck boat type which can travel on both land and water. The vessel in question, operated by the “Ride the Ducks Branson” company, had entered reportedly calm water about half an hour before the storms hit. Thirty-one people were onboard. Video below shows the vessel struggling to stay afloat soon after the storms roared in.

 

 

 

The owners of the tourist company have initially claimed the storms came in with no warning. However, National Weather Service warnings had been issued around 6:35 pm CT for the Branson area. Indeed, the squall line in question had been slamming portions of eastern Kansas and Missouri since late Thursday morning. Numerous reports of severe wind damage and recorded wind gusts of 70-90 mph had been received. Soon after the storms passed Table Rock Lake, neighboring Branson Airport reported a wind gust to 63 mph.

Elsewhere, a tornado outbreak in central Iowa led to 34 reports of twisters, including at least one of F3 intensity. Dozens of injury reports have come in, especially in and around Marshalltown, Iowa.