During the weekend, an unusually cold Arctic outbreak for early May reached much of Europe. By Sunday morning, air temperatures had dropped below freezing as far south as northern Spain and Italy. The frost may have proved very damaging for wine-producing regions as grapevines are already in flower. Heavy snow affected Alpine regions and some violent thunderstorms were spawned in the Mediterranean as the cold air arrived.
Meanwhile, thunderstorms have produced heavy rain, flooding and tornadoes across the south and midwest US. At least 40 tornadoes were reported last week and, in Bokchito in Oklahoma, one death was reported as homes were badly damaged. Flooding has caused the deaths of several people in Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas, largely from thunderstorm-related rainfall. However, the Mississippi rose very close to its highest levels since 1993, when historic floods caused widespread damage. The river is already very high due to winter snowmelt.
Last Friday, cyclone Fani made landfall near Puri in India, bringing torrential rain and hurricane force winds to the country and Bangladesh. Gusts in excess of 100mph (160km/h) were reported and a storm surge inundated coastal defences. About 30 people have reportedly lost their lives so far, and Fani is believed to have been one of the strongest storms to hit the region in decades.
