Annual Global Climate and Catastrophe Report: Impact ... - Aon

AnnuAl GlobAl Cli mAte And C AtAstroph e r e port
At least seven tornadoes touched down across rural Kansas on the 7th, though no damage was reported.
Heavy rains fell across the Great Lakes, allowing numerous rivers to rise in Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. On the
8th, the system produced at least 25 tornadoes across parts of Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio.
Significant damage occurred in Sangamon County, Illinois, where a tornado touched down at two separate
locations. The EF1 tornado brought 100 mph (160 kph) winds in the town of Laomi, damaging or destroying
at least 37 structures. Two tornadoes touched down in Wayne County, damaging or destroying ten homes and
outbuildings while downing hundreds of trees. In Greenville, Illinois, a tornado destroyed a church and a farm
house. In Lawrence County, Indiana, an EF1 tornado with 95 mph (155 kph) winds damaged 16 homes and
destroyed farm equipment and barns. One home was destroyed as the tornado lifted an empty school bus and
dropped it through the roof. In Defiance County, Ohio, an EF0 tornado damaged three homes and a barn. In
Findlay, Ohio, the Blanchard River crested and flooded the downtown area. Numerous roads were submerged
and dozens of homes and businesses sustained water damage. Water poured through a broken levee along
the Iowa River near the town of Wapello. On the 9th, a secondary area of low pressure developed and caused
six to 12 inches (15 to 30 centimeters) of snow as well as winds up to 40 mph (65 kph) in the Midwest, Great
Lakes and New England. Highway authorities were forced to shut down a 130-mile (210-kilometer) stretch of
Interstate 94 from Jamestown, North Dakota to Fergus Falls, Minnesota.
Severe weather spawned a tornado across the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia on the 11th. Damage was
reported to multiple properties and power was knocked out to 1,120 homes and businesses in more than a
dozen small towns.
Weeks of heavy rains in Bosnia and Herzegovina caused significant flooding into mid-March. At least 167 homes
were destroyed as floodwaters affected the municipalities of Trebinje, Popovo Polje, Ravno, Neum and Svitava.
Dry conditions and gusty winds across Asia caused multiple sandstorms across parts of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait,
China and India. The first sandstorm was reported in Saudi Arabia on the 11th. Residents in the Saudi capital of
Riyadh ran for shelter as a thick layer of yellow dust covered cars, homes and schools. The Khaled International
Airport was temporarily closed. Kuwait also reported a heavy sandstorm. All oil exports through the Persian
Gulf were temporarily halted as shipping was deemed too dangerous. Dust storms were also reported in the
Chinese capital of Beijing on the 15th. The Central Meteorological Bureau reported that brisk winds were
blowing sand from Inner Mongolia, Gansu and qinghai provinces, regions that suffered through the worst
drought in 50 years. In India, dust storms plagued the city of Guwahati in Assam state between the 15th and
the 18th. Nearly all flights were forced to divert from Guwahati, stranding thousands of passengers.
A storm system brought flooding, tornadoes and blizzards across the U.S. Plains, Midwest and Southeast
between the 22nd and 27th, spawning at least 38 tornadoes and causing up to two feet (60 centimeters) of
snow in the Dakotas, western Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana. The storm system developed on the 22nd,
causing heavy snows across parts of Colorado, Wyoming and southwest Montana. Soaking rains fell in the
Dakotas and Minnesota, where residents prepared for massive flooding due to snowmelt and excess runoff.
By the 23rd, at least 17 tornadoes touched down in parts of Nebraska, South Dakota, Kansas, Iowa and
Oklahoma. Scattered home and vehicle damage was reported in rural Lancaster, Cass and Otoe counties in
Nebraska, while at least 15 structures sustained damage in Harris County, Iowa. In the town of Magnolia,
Iowa, 54 empty Union Pacific grain cars derailed as a tornado moved through. Rain initially fell across parts of
the Dakotas, western Nebraska and Wyoming before changing to heavy snow on the 23rd. A peak wind gust
of 90 mph (150 kph) was recorded in Perkins County, South Dakota. Highway authorities closed a 345-mile
(555-kilometer) stretch of Interstate 90 from Chamberlain, South Dakota to Gillette, Wyoming for 48 hours
as well as a 120-mile (195-kilometer) stretch of Interstate 94 in North Dakota from Bismarck to Dickinson. In
Kansas, high winds knocked over at least 13 tractor-trailers along Interstate 70.
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