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Spanish floods (2024) -

On October 29, parts of southern and eastern Spain were hit with sudden torrential rain that led to severe flash flooding across the region. Some areas received a year's worth of rain in a matter of hours. The flooding caused devastation, resulting in over 220 deaths. The country was left in shock following the disaster and declared three days of mourning for the victims. 

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Hurricane Milton (2024) -

In October, Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida, bringing powerful winds and heavy rain as it moved across the state. The storm caused widespread power outages and devastation along coastal areas. The category 3 storm led to the death of 24 people and caused billions of dollars worth of damage.

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Tornado in Missouri (2023) -

A deadly twister touched down in Missouri in the early hours of April 5, killing five people and destroying many homes. It tore through the southeastern area of the state, passing through rural communities where it uprooted trees and turn buildings into piles of rubble. One building was even flipped onto its side. Rescue teams had to use chainsaws to cut through fallen trees in order to gain access to homes in search of victims and survivors. "The damage is pretty widespread. It's just heartbreaking to see it," commented Sgt. Clark Parrott of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. 

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Tornado outbreak in Georgia and Alabama (2023) -

On Thursday, Jan. 12, a huge storm system passed through the states of Georgia and Alabama causing serious damage and killing several people. A powerful twister ripped through the historic town of Selma, Alabama, reportedly tossing cars in the air and tearing down buildings. Eight lives were lost in the violent storm. Six of the deaths occurred 41 miles (66 kilometers) northeast of Selma, where a tornado destroyed 40 homes. A further 53 people were injured. 

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Storm Elliot (2022) -

The winter of 2022 was marked by a wide-reaching and violent storm system that moved across the US, wreaking havoc throughout the Great Plains and many other parts of the country. The state of Louisiana was bombarded with devastating tornadoes while an ominously named bomb cyclone brought a "once in a generation" snow storm to much of the country. Many people froze to death while others were killed in the destruction of violent weather events like tornadoes. By the end of the year, the death toll had surpassed 50 people. 

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Tornadoes in Iowa (2022) -

Multiple tornadoes swept across central and southwest Iowa on March 6, killing at least seven people, two of whom were children younger than five, and injuring more, the Washington Post reports. The National Weather Service received 42 reports of tornadoes, some of which were duplicate reports from the same tornado, in the south central and southwest areas of the state, in an early season outbreak that turned out to be much worse than forecasters predicted. The most destructive tornado was described as “large and extremely dangerous” by the Weather Service,  and the supercell tracked upward of 150 miles (241 km). The Weather Service tweeted that the damage near Winterset, about 25 miles southwest of Des Moines, was consistent with a twister that would earn a rating of at least 3 on the scale from 0 to 5 for tornado intensity.

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Tornadoes across American Midwest (2021) -

A string of tornadoes devastated the American Midwest as they ripped through six states in December, killing at least 80 people and obliterating homes and businesses. The tornado outbreak reportedly began as a series of overnight thunderstorms, including a supercell storm in northeast Arkansas. That storm then moved to Missouri and Tennessee, and then Kentucky, where the twisters hit the small town of Mayfield worst. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear told reporters on December 12 that he presumed the death toll was going to exceed 100 in his state alone. The damage included totally flattened homes, uprooted trees, a collapsed candle factory, and more. 

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Czech Republic tornado (2021) -

A horrifying tornado swept through the south-eastern region of the Czech Republic in June of 2021. It resulted in five deaths and hundreds of injuries. In addition to the tornado, hailstones the size of tennis balls were reported. The peaceful region was turned into a war zone by the incident and thousands of homes have been destroyed or damaged. “It’s living hell,” said South Moravia regional governor Jan Grolich. 

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Czech Republic tornado (2021) -

The tornado struck several towns and villages along a 25km (15 mile) stretch, razing many of them to the ground. Wind speeds of at least 219km/h (136 mph) were recorded. Trees were uprooted, cars were flipped, and buildings were destroyed. The destruction resulted in mass power outages in the region and fires billowing black smoke into the sky. 

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Hurricane Dorian (2019) -

Hurricane Dorian was a catastrophic Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that struck the Bahamas in 2019. It was the worst storm in the region's history, and also hit some of the southern US states like Florida and Georgia. It caused an estimated US$5 billion in damages and killed 74 people. Many more were never found. 

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Gujarat earthquake (2001) -

The catastrophe happened in Gujarat, one of the states of India. The earthquake had a moment magnitude of 7.9 and devastated the area.

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Gujarat earthquake (2001) -

Also known as the Bhuj earthquake, this natural disaster killed at least 20,000 people and injured more than 150,000 others.

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Gujarat earthquake (2001) -

It destroyed or damaged more than a million buildings, including nearly all the villages of Gujarat.

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European heat wave (2003) - The European heat wave was one of the deadliest heat waves of the last 500 years, with at least 30,000 deaths (more than 14,000 in France alone) reported. Sadly, recent summers have become increasingly deadly. 

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Bam earthquake (2003) - A massive earthquake struck the center of Bam, in southeastern Iran, with a magnitude of 6.6.

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Bam earthquake (2003) - More than 26,000 people were killed in the course of this disaster, and another 30,000 were injured.

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Bam earthquake (2003) - Several houses were destroyed in what was the country's biggest natural disaster.

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Indian Ocean earthquake/tsunami (2004) - On December 26, 2004, a 9.1 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. 

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Indian Ocean earthquake/tsunami (2004) - The earthquake formed a series of tsunamis that spread across the Indian Ocean and caused the loss of more than 250,000 lives across a dozen countries.

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Indian Ocean earthquake/tsunami (2004) - The most deadly tsunami since 1900, waves reaching a reported height of 30 ft (9 m) killed over 170,000 in Indonesia alone.

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Hurricane Katrina (2005) - On August 29, 2005, one of the biggest tropical hurricanes of the last century hit the southeastern United States.

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Hurricane Katrina (2005) - With winds in excess of 275 km (170 miles) per hour, the storm soon ranked as the worst natural disaster in US history, claiming over 1,800 lives.

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Hurricane Katrina (2005) - The most affected areas were Florida, the Bahamas, and the Gulf of Mexico. New Orleans, Louisiana, also suffered greatly, as the city was 80% underwater by August 30.

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Kashmir earthquake (2005) - Also in 2005, the Pakistan-administered portion of the Kashmir region suffered an earthquake which reached a magnitude of 7.6 and a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles).

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Kashmir earthquake (2005) - The tremors were felt as far as India and Afghanistan, and wreaked havoc on people's homes and lives.

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Kashmir earthquake (2005) - In total, around 80,000 people died in this catastrophe, and many others were injured.

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Cyclone Nargis (2008) - In May 2008, an intense tropical cyclone caused the worst natural disaster in the history of Myanmar, a country in Southeast Asia.

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Cyclone Nargis (2008) - At least 138,000 people died, and whole cities and villages were devastated.

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Haiti earthquake (2010) - Haiti suffered from a large earthquake on January 12, 2010, with a magnitude of 7, and several following earthquakes between magnitudes of 5.5 and 5.9.

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Haiti earthquake (2010) - The earthquake caused massive long-term damage, with an estimated 250,000 homes devastated by the catastrophe.

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Haiti earthquake (2010) - As a result of this earthquake, over one million people were left homeless and without suitable living conditions.

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Haiti earthquake (2010) - Though the number is debated, the Haitian government estimated 316,000 people died in this catastrophe. An estimated three million people—nearly one-third of the country’s total population—were affected.

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Sendai earthquake and tsunami (2011) - This massive earthquake occurred in northeastern Japan in March 2011. It had a magnitude of 9.

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Sendai earthquake and tsunami (2011) - The earthquake initiated a series of large tsunami waves that devastated many coastal areas, leaving thousands of families homeless.

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Sendai earthquake and tsunami (2011) - The catastrophe caused almost 16,000 deaths.

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Hurricane Sandy (2012) - Hurricane Sandy was a tropical cyclone that affected Jamaica, Cuba, the Bahamas, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and some states in the eastern US. It was unpredictable and devastating.

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Super Typhoon Yolanda (2013) - On November 7, 2013, an astonishingly fast typhoon of 315 km (196 miles) per hour struck the east coast of the Philippines.

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Super Typhoon Yolanda (2013) - Also known as Typhoon Haiyan, this was one of the most powerful tropical cyclones ever recorded.

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Super Typhoon Yolanda (2013) - Over one million homes were devastated, and over 14 million people across 44 provinces were affected by this Category 5 storm. 

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Super Typhoon Yolanda (2013) - The typhoon is estimated to have killed more than 6,000 people, while also leaving about 1,800 missing.

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Super Typhoon Yolanda (2013) - Over four million people were displaced, forced to endure the long and difficult process of re-establishing routine life and rebuilding all their infrastructure.

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India-Pakistan floods (2014) -

In September 2014, the Kashmir region suffered disastrous floods and landslides caused by torrential rainfall, reportedly killing nearly 1,300 people.

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Nepal earthquake (2015) - A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Nepal on April 25, 2015, killing more than 8,800 people.

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Nepal earthquake (2015) - It damaged or destroyed nearly 900,000 buildings, created avalanches in the Himalayas, and was reportedly the nation's deadliest disaster on record.

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Hurricane Matthew (2016) - The most talked-about natural disaster of 2016 hit the Caribbean hardest in terms of fatalities, particularly in Haiti. Reports listed death totals for the tiny island nation as anywhere from 500 to over 1,000.

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Hurricane Matthew (2016) - The Category 4 hurricane reportedly had maximum sustained winds of 233 km (145 miles) per hour, and spread to the east coast of the US as well, leaving 48 dead.

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Hurricane Maria (2017) - In September 2017, Hurricane Maria materialized as a deadly Category 5 hurricane which devastated Puerto Rico, Dominica, and the US Virgin Islands.

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Hurricane Maria (2017) - It is regarded as the worst natural disaster on record to affect those islands, and claimed over 3,000 lives.

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California wildfires (2018) -

Twin wildfires burning through northern California became the state’s largest on record, scorching more than 290,000 acres and displacing hundreds of thousands of people.

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Cyclone Idai (2019) - In early April 2019, Cyclone Idai became one of the worst tropical cyclones on record to affect Africa and the Southern Hemisphere.  

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Cyclone Idai (2019) - It caused catastrophic damage in Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Malawi, leaving more than 1,000 people dead and thousands more missing, along with serious outbreaks of cholera.

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Cyclone Kenneth (2019) -

Cyclone Kenneth was the second powerful tropical storm to hit southeast Africa within a span of five weeks, devastating areas still reeling from Cyclone Idai.

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Cyclone Kenneth (2019) -

It was reportedly the strongest storm to hit the region since records began, destroying nearly 3,400 homes and displacing thousands more. 

See also: In pictures: Hurricane Milton hits Florida

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