The main purpose of this Main Topic: Hurricane Francine Likely to Impact Western Gulf blog will be to track planetary extreme, or record temperatures related to climate change. Any reports I see of ETs will be listed below the main topic of the day. I’ll refer to extreme or record temperatures as ETs (not extraterrestrials).😉
Main Topic: Record Setting Yagi Pummels Asia
Dear Diary. Yesterday we forecast that Hurricane Francine would pummel the western U.S. Gulf Coast, which now looks like a very good call, unfortunately. If I had to make an educated guess where Francine will make landfall as of this writing, that would be along the central Louisiana coast Wednesday afternoon or evening at a borderline CAT2/CAT3 strength looking at trends. Though powerful, I will stress that the system will not be unprecedented…unless high octane waters ramp up Francine much more than guidance, which is a possibility:
Francine may affect New Orleans more than Houston since New Orleans will be in the more destructive right front quadrant of the hurricane but should make landfall in much less populated areas of central Louisiana. I’ll add more information on Francine in my Weather Section as Monday rolls along.
That stated, hurricanes and typhoons are getting stronger due to climate change, which has begun to rapidly warm sea surface temperatures. We are waiting for a “big one” to tap into record warm Atlantic Basin energy this season. The first proverbial shoe has dropped in Asia, though. Yagi slammed Taiwan and became the strongest typhoon on record to make landfall in Vietnam over the weekend:
Here are more details on Typoon Yagi from Desdemona Despair:
Typhoon Yagi kills at least 14 in Vietnam as officials warn of heavy rain and flooding risk – more than 3 million people without electricity in northern Vietnam – One of the most powerful typhoons to hit the region over the last decade
Houses are submerged in flood after typhoon Yagi hit Yen Bai province, northwestern Vietnam on Sunday, 8 September 2024. Photo: Do Tuan Anh / VNA / AP
By Aniruddha Ghosal
8 September 2024
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) – At least 14 people have died and 176 others injured in Vietnam after Typhoon Yagi slammed the country’s north, state media said Sunday, as officials warned of heavy downpours despite its waning power.
Described by Vietnamese officials as one of the most powerful typhoons to hit the region over the last decade, Yagi left more than 3 million people without electricity in northern Vietnam. It also damaged vital agricultural land, nearly 116,192 hectares where rice and fruits are mostly grown. Hundreds of flights were canceled after four airports were closed.
The typhoon made landfall in Vietnam’s northern coastal provinces of Quang Ninh and Haiphong with wind speeds of up to 149 kilometers per hour (92 miles per hour) on Saturday afternoon. It raged for roughly 15 hours before gradually weakening into a tropical depression early Sunday morning. Vietnam’s meteorological department predicted heavy rain in northern and central provinces and warned of floods in low-lying areas, flash floods in streams and landslides on steep slopes.
People walk past broken light post after typhoon Yagi hit the city, in Hai Phong, northern Vietnam on Sunday, 8 September 2024. Photo: Minh Quyet / VNA / AP
Municipal workers along with army and police forces were busy in the capital, Hanoi, clearing uprooted trees, fallen billboards, toppled electricity poles and rooftops that were swept away, while assessing damaged buildings.
Yagi was still a storm when it blew out of the northwestern Philippines into the South China Sea on Wednesday, leaving at least 20 people dead and 26 others missing mostly in landslides and widespread flooding in the acrchipelago nation. It then made its way to China, killing three people and injuring nearly a hundred others, before landing in Vietnam.
Storms like Typhoon Yagi were “getting stronger due to climate change, primarily because warmer ocean waters provide more energy to fuel the storms, leading to increased wind speeds and heavier rainfall,” said Benjamin Horton, director of the Earth Observatory of Singapore.
Typhoon Yagi Kills at Least 14 in Vietnam as Officials Warn of Heavy Rain and Flooding Risk
Here are more “ETs” recorded from around the planet the last couple of days, their consequences, and some extreme temperature outlooks, as well as any extreme precipitation reports:
Here is more new August 2024 climatology. (More can be found on each daily post during September.):
Here is More Climate News from Monday:
(As usual, this will be a fluid post in which more information gets added during the day as it crosses my radar, crediting all who have put it on-line. Items will be archived on this site for posterity. In most instances click on the pictures of each tweet to see each article. The most noteworthy items will be listed first.)