GLOBAL WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS

APRIL 2008

UNITED STATES
Southeast

Rainfall during April led to improving drought conditions in much of
the Southeast region, but as of April 29, moderate to extreme drought
remained over 43% of the region. Moderate to severe drought conditions
persisted in most of the central U.S., while drought conditions in
southwestern Texas worsened as lack of precipitation led to further
depletion of moisture. As of April 29, 37% of the western U.S., 30% of
the South, 34% of the High Plains, and 27% of the contiguous U.S. were
in moderate to exceptional drought, according to the Federal U.S.
Drought Monitor.

South-Central

Wildfires developed across much of the south-central states during mid-
April. In Ordway, Colorado, a wildfire fuelled by 80 km/hr (50 mph or
43 knots) winds, charred nearly 3,602 hectares (8,900 acres) of land
and forced all 1,200 residents to evacuate the area (Associated
Press). The fire destroyed 8 homes, 24 additional buildings, and was
responsible for at least 3 fatalities: 2 volunteer firefighters and a
pilot on a firefighting plane battling a blaze (Associated Press).

Northeast United States and southeast Canada

The rapid snow melt and heavy rain led to the overflows of rivers and
consequently forced hundreds of people to evacuate the area. In Maine,
St. John River exceeded its flood stage and flooded the Fort Kent
downtown area on April 30 (BBC News). The river rose to 9 meters (30
feet), 1.5 meters (5 feet) above its flood stage (BBC News). It is
described as, according to reports, the worst flood since records
began 80 years ago (Reuters). The river's previous record crest was
8.3 meters (27.3 feet), which was set in 1979 (BBC News). That same
day, the town of St-Andre-Avellin in Quebec, Canada was inundated by
water from a nearby river. According to reports, the town was affected
by the highest water level in a century (BBC News).

Eastern

A strong storm system which progressed through the eastern U.S.
produced severe thunderstorms and tornadoes across portions of the
south-central and southeastern states on April 3-4. On the night of
the 3rd, a tornado
ripped through central Arkansas. The tornado struck a mobile home park
and the North Little Rock Airport, destroying a hangar and several
small planes. On the 4th, the system affected the southeastern states,
resulting in 21 reported tornadoes across Louisiana, Mississippi,
Alabama, North and South Carolina. In Mississippi, the tornadoes
brought down nearly 400 electric poles, leaving 94,000 homes without
power (Associated Press). No fatalities were reported.

Central and Eastern

A strong storm system affected the central, midwestern, and eastern
states on April 9-11, producing damaging winds, heavy rain, hail, and
a total of 62 reported tornadoes. The severe weather affected Texas
and Oklahoma, causing nearly 180,000 homes and business to be without
power in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and more than 11,000 homes in
Oklahoma. These dangerous conditions also resulted in two fatalities
and numerous damaged homes and buildings (Associated Press). The storm
brought heavy rain to Missouri and caused widespread flooding when
76-102 mm (3-4 inches) of rain fell in just a few hours (BBC News).
Across Kentucky and Tennessee, 56 homes were damaged by a possible
tornado, while in Hoover, Alabama a roof collapsed at an apartment
complex prompting the evacuation of nearly 20 units (Associated
Press).

During the week of April 20 severe storms affected parts of the U.S.,
causing widespread damages across parts of the nation. A severe
tornadic storm affected the Washington, D.C. area, specifically parts
of Prince George's and Charles counties, on the 20th. The storm
spawned two tornadoes, which uprooted trees and damaged roofs. No
fatalities were reported. The tornadoes were rated an EF-0 and EF-1 on
the Enhanced Fujita Scale. Severe storms brought heavy rain across
Iowa on the 21st, along with hail and lightning. According to reports,
parts of Des Moines and Boone saw nickel size hail (Associated Press).
On April 23, severe weather lashed northern Texas with 113 km/hr (70
mph or 61 knots) winds, baseball size hail, and possible tornadoes.
Power lines and trees were uprooted and several buildings had damage
(Associated Press/BBC News). On April 24, severe storms swept through
Kansas. The storms spawned a tornado, produced 129 km/hr (80 mph or 70
knots) winds, and 4.5 inch hail. Downed power lines and roof damages
were reported with these storms (Associated Press).

ASIA
China

Moderate to severe drought conditions affected parts of south-central
Tibet. Moderate drought was present across the northern Heilongjiang
and the northeastern Inner Mongolia provinces (Beijing Climate
Center).

MIDDLE EAST
Iraq

A strong sand storm affected Baghdad, Iraq's capital, on April 17.
According to reports, this was the worst spring storm to affect the
city
in years. Many people were taken to hospitals after sustaining
breathing
problems (BBC News).

CANADA

Regina, the capital of the Canadian prairie province of Saskatchewan,
saw a new daily maximum temperature record on April 14 when
temperatures hit 28°C (82°F). The previous record was set in 1963 when
temperatures soared to 26.7°C (80°F) (BBC News).

Across southern Canada, a winter storm swept through on April 11,
leaving heavy snow accumulations. Calgary, the largest city in the
province of Alberta, saw a new daily snow fall record when the storm
left more than 23 cm (9 inches) of snow, surpassing the 88-year old
previous record of 15 cm (6 inches) (Calgary Herald Newspaper). High
winds accompanied the snow, prompting the drifting of snow and poor
visibility. This is not the first time Calgary has seen large daily
amounts of snow during April. According to the Calgary Herald
Newspaper, Calgary received 45.7 cm (18 inches) of snow on 21 April
1932.

SOUTH AMERICA
Brazil

Widespread floods caused by heavy rains during March 30 - April 11
killed 15 people and displaced more than 30,000 in the northeast part
of the country. The floods destroyed corn and bean crops in the Piaui
state (Associated Press/BBC News).

LATIN AMERICA

In Port-au-Prince, Haiti, heavy rain caused a deadly mudslide on the
24th that crushed a house, killing 3 children and injuring two people
(Reuters/BBC News).

In the Dominican Republic, severe storms spawned tornadoes that caused
damages to houses and crops such as tobacco, rice, and plantain. About
700 people were forced to seek shelter. According to reports, there
was one fatality reported (Associated Press).

AUSTRALIA

According to the Bureau of Meteorology, Perth had the wettest April
since records began in 1876. As of April 29, the Western Australia's
capital had a total of 152.4 mm (6 inches) of rain, surpassing the
previous record set in 1926 by 3.6 mm (0.1 inches). Perth also had the
second wettest January-April period on record with a total of 214.2 mm
(8.4 inches) of rainfall. Perth's wettest January-April was set in
1955 when a total of 296.9 mm (11.7 inches) of rain fell. A complete
summary is available courtesy of the Australian.

INDIA

In Sri Lanka, flash floods from torrential rains killed at least 7
people and affected more than 60,000 families during April 27-28. The
heavy rain also triggered landslides that destroyed houses and blocked
roads (BBC News).

TROPICAL

Typhoon Neoguri, the season's earliest and perhaps the strongest
typhoon to strike China since 1949 (AFP/Reuters), developed in the
South China Sea on the 15th, rapidly intensifying to attain typhoon
strength by the 16th. The typhoon reached its peak intensity on April
18 with maximum sustained winds near 176 km/hr (109 mph or 95 knots).
As Neoguri approached China, more than 120,000 people were evacuated
from Hainan (BBC News), while nearly 3,000 people were stranded on the
island as the storm forced the cancellations of multiple flights
(Associated Press). Hainan saw heavy rains that prompted flash floods
across low-lying areas (BBC News). Neoguri weakened to a tropical
storm prior to making landfall in the province of Guangdong in
southern China. Three fatalities were attributed to the storm.
Torrential rains produced by the storm caused a mudslide that killed 2
people and strong winds blew an aluminum sheet that killed another
person (AFP). According to reports, 40 fishermen were missing (AFP).