Event Chronicle

7 April 2025 | Data: Bureau of Meteorology

Townsville surpasses rainfall record by wide margin.

Townsville, Queensland, has surpassed it’s water year rainfall record by a substantial amount with 3114.2mm to April 6th and 3 months of observations to account for. The previous record from year ending June1890 was 2520mm. 594.2mm represents a 23.5% increase on anything observed in the composite record commencing1872. The record includes two stations 32047 (Townsville Pilot Station to1940) and 32040 (Townsville Airport from 1941). At April 6th, the calendar year record is 30mm behind the 1894 calendar year 2482.6mm record with 9 months of observations to include.

| Bureau of Meteorology

Albany, Western Australia, Rainfall Record

A 24 hour rainfall total of 126.4mm was observed at Albany, Western Australia on 14th March, the highest in a record going back to 1877. This is only the third occasion in the record that daily totals have exceeded 100mm, with 113.6mm in 2008, and 103.6mm in 1921. The record has substantial gaps however. The rainfall was caused by a microburst.

| UK Met Office

England has sunniest March since records commenced

With 185.8 hours of sunshine throughout March, England enjoyed 59% more sunshine than its long-term meteorological average, making March 2025 its sunniest March since this series began in 1910, beating the previous record of 171.7 hours recorded in March 1929 by more than 14 hours.  (UK Met Office)

1 March 2025 | Royal Meteorological Society, 2025 Vol 99, No. 9.

Finland measures Hurricane Force winds for the first time

On 1 November 2024, the 10min average wind speed at Rauma Kylmapihlaja, Finland, reached 33.5 m/s and was the highest wind speed ever recorded in the country, excluding mountain stations. According to the Finish Meteorological Institute, it was the first occasion when the 10min average wind speed reached Level 12 on the Beaufort scale, indicating hurricane-force winds (≥32.7m/s).

 The highest wind gust, 39.6m/s surpassed the previous 2019 record of 32.5 m/s

11 February 2025

Latest Monsoon start in Darwin since 1957

The Bureau of Meteorology confirmed the arrival of the Monsoon in Darwin on 9th February 2025, breaking the previous record of 25th January 1973, by 15 days. Records commenced in 1957.

9 February 2025

Hong Kong extreme heat days series updated

Data from the Hong Kong Observatory for 2024 shows the number of extreme heat days (>35C) was 2 in 2025. Source: Hong Kong Observatory.

6 February 2025 | Bureau of Meteorology

Jan 2025 – Australia Sea Surface Temperatures record

January 2025 sea surface temperatures around Australia were at record levels in January, going back to 1900, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

2025 – Hottest January on Record

January 2025 globally was 0.09 degrees Celsius (0.16 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than January 2024, the previous hottest January, and was 1.75 C (3.15 F) warmer than it was before industrial times, Copernicus calculated. (Source BBC)

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwyjk92w9k1o

9 January 2025

December 2024 – Australia Sea Surface Temperatures record

In the Australian region, December 2024 SSTs were the warmest on record for the month

12 December 2024

November 2024 – Australia Sea Surface Temperatures record

In the Australian region, November 2024 SSTs were the warmest on record for the month.

10 November 2024

Mt Fuji – latest snow arrival on record

30th October 2024. Mt Fuji surpassed the previous record of the latest date in the year without a covering of snow on the summit. 26th October was the previous record from both 1955 and 2016. Snow finally arrived on the summit, 3776 metres above sea level, on 6th November.

14 August 2024

Dry July in Belgium

August 1st, 2024. The head of forecasting at the Belgian Royal Meteorological Institute advised that there had only been 5 days of rain in Brussels in July 2024, the lowest for 137 years. The observation site at Uccle, in the southern suburbs of Brussels has been collecting data since 1833. Lower numbers of rain days were were observed in 1885 (2 days),1869 (4 days) and 1835 (4 days). The Belgian drought comes 3 years after the wettest July on record at the site.

1 August 2024

Vermont Flooding

30th July, 2024. Around 8 inches of rain fell in 5 hours in the Northeast Kingdom (Essex, Orleans, and Caledonia counties), causing major infrastructure damage with homes carried away by the flood. The 24 hour state record for Vermont remains 9.92 inches (252mm) from a 1999 event. Observer data from St Johnsbury cited 4.99 inches in 1 day as the local record from 1913. Data from the National Weather Service shows totals of 7.81 inches (198mm) in 5 hours, 4.38 inches (111mm) in 2 hours. Multiple media sites suggest this event correlates to a 1:1000 annual chance (unverified). Significant rain and floods had occurred in the area earlier in July from Hurricane Beryl resulting in greater runoff.

31 July 2024

Typhoon Gaemi

July 29th, 2024. Multiple locations in Kaohsiung City County, Taiwan received over 1300mm rainfall in 24 hours during Typhoon Gaemi with event totals of around 1900mm over 3 days.

25 July 2024

Hottest Day

July 21st, 22nd and 23rd this year all exceeded the previous 2023 record for global temperature with 22nd setting the new record in data going back to 1980.

17 July 2024

Intense Rainfall for Toronto

16th July, 2024. Environment Canada confirm over 4 inches, (100mm) fell in the City in about 2.5 hours during the morning of Tuesday 16th, making it the 5th wettest day at Pearson Airport. Intensities of 30mm in 30 minutes were observed in the city, caused by training thunderstorms. This followed storms on the afternoon of 15th. The Don Valley area saw the greatest impact, largely related to road flooding. The Don Valley had a significant population living close to the watercourse until Hurricane Hazel in 1954, after which the homes were expropriated and land used for an expressway and parkland.

Don Valley Parkway. 16th July, 2024 (Source Globe and Mail)

16 July 2024

UK Farming Output Fell in 2023

July 16th, 2024. Income from farming in England reduced by 19% year on year following the wettest 18 month period since 1836, according to data from the UK Govt and UK Met office. Farming contribution to the UK economy reduced by 8.7% to 1 billion GBP. The cause was part price collapse, and part poor yields caused by the extended wet weather.

6 July 2024

Wisconsin Dam Failure

July 5th, 2024. Five and a half Inches (140mm) of rain fell over the Manawa City Mill Pond, a gated small dam in Waupaca County, WI. The speed of the event saw the right abutment overtopped that subsequently failed through erosion. Unofficial data from Manawa shows rainfall of 4.12 inches (105mm) in 1 hour with 1.69 inches (43 mm) in 20 minutes, and 1.1 inches in 10 minutes within an event total of 5.5 inches (140mm). The timeline provided at the post event public meeting by the City of Manawa advises the gate openings were set on forecast rain of around 1.25 inches, that morning. The dam operator was back on site by 11am and witnessed the dam overtopping. The embankment failed completely around 1pm. Impacts included flooded homes and impacts to the functioning of the wastewater treatment plant. Manawa City has around 1400 inhabitants. The impoundment was 192 acres (0.77km2) with a max depth of 12 feet (3.65 metres).

3 July 2024

Earliest Major Hurricane on Record

July 3rd, 2024. Hurricane Beryl became the earliest category 5 system on record in the Atlantic, and only the second to occur in July, after Emily in 2005. It was also the earliest hurricane development so far east, at 49.3 degrees west, and is in the top 6 considering intensification time with 42 hours from tropical storm to maximum strength. It is the only 1 of those 6 to occur outside the month of September.

Switzerland – Rhone River Records

June 30th, 2024. The Rhone River exceeded peak height records at multiple locations above Lake Geneva, in Valais Canton. The peak discharge at Reckingen was 32% greater than any previous rated discharge in 101 years of available record, commencing 1903. Stations at Sion (108 year record) , Branson (83 year record) and Brig (59 year record) also exceeded previous record flood peaks.

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