Forecasters Warn of New El Niño

Nate expected to hit Mexico, while Maria churns in Caribbean

(NEWSER) - Irene, Katia, and Lee all made not-so-nice headlines, and unfortunately there’s more where they came from: Tropical Storms Nate and Maria are currently taking shape in the Caribbean and Atlantic. Nate, formed in the southern Gulf of Mexico, is expected to drop anywhere from 2 to 8 inches of rain on parts of Mexico, and could start moving north by tomorrow—by which point it could also strengthen into a hurricane. More»

Outer Banks empties out as East Coast readies

(AP) - A hurricane warning has been issued for the North Carolina coast as powerful Hurricane Earl bears down on the East Coast, while a hurricane watch now extends into Delaware. Visitors have been evacuating Ocracoke Island in ferries and told to leave neighboring Cape Hatteras in North Carolina's Outer Banks, and federal authorities are warning people all along the Eastern seaboard to be prepared to evacuate. More»

Lajamanu is 326 miles from nearest river

(NEWSER) - Forget about cats and dogs—it literally rained fish for two days in one tiny, landlocked Australian town. Meteorologists say the spangled perch likely got sucked up by a thunderstorm, frozen, then dropped above the town, the Telegraph reports. Local records say it is the third time the town, Lajamanu, has been hit in 30 years. Many of the small white fish were still alive. "What if anything bigger falls out of the sky next?" one man asks. "It could be crocodiles." More»

Strongest warm-water phenomenon in a decade drenches coasts

(NEWSER) - The strongest El Niño in more than a decade is the culprit behind the wretched weather bombarding much of the country this winter, from the snowstorms that buried the mid-Atlantic states in December to the rains that drenched California last month. “Ocean temperatures are somewhere upwards of two degrees above average,” a meteorologist tells NPR . “So we have had what we would characterize as a strong El Niño.” More»

(AP) - Tropical Storm Claudette made landfall on the Florida Panhandle near Fort Walton Beach early this morning after dumping heavy rains on the area. The storm has been weakening as it moves farther inland, with winds at around 40mph, and forecasters said it would probably become a tropical depression later in the day. But in the Caribbean, Hurricane Bill became the first hurricane of the 2009 Atlantic season. More»