Massive rainfall inundated parts of Central and Eastern Europe in mid-September, dumping as much as two-thirds of some cities’ annual rain in just a few days. The rainfall from the weather system, called Storm Boris, drove floods that claimed 24 lives. But early warnings from weather forecasters gave many cities time to prepare, and infrastructure improvements in others helped protect residents from the deluges, says Maja Vahlberg, a climate risk consultant with the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre. It’s a sign, she says, that some parts of Europe, at least, are beginning to adapt to the more extreme weather brought on by human-caused climate change.

Last night, winds developed into a storm on the Estonian coast and islands, resulting in broken trees, power outages and disrupted ship traffic. Southwesterly and southerly winds remain gale force. In the evening, wind gusts on the coast reached 20-25 m/s, with gusts of 27 m/s on Osmussaari. Inland there were also gusts of 15-20 m/s. Strong wind gusts broke trees and branches, power outages occurred and there were reports of roof damage. Overnight, rain, heavy rain and thunderstorms will occur in many places. There is thunder in western Hiiumaa. There are powerful flares under the clouds! A slight weakening of the wind is expected in the morning.

A small cyclone today caused heavy rainfall in Denmark that will go down in history. The day was the rainiest September day ever recorded in Denmark. The rain fell over Western Jutland for more than 15 hours. 144.6 millimetres fell in Esbjerg. Also today`s rain will go down in history as the fifth highest rainfall ever recorded in a 24-hour period. The water level in the Vejle River has risen by 1.3 metres this afternoon and continues to rise strongly.

Hurricane Helene left an enormous path of destruction across Florida and the entire southeastern U.S. on Friday, killing at least 44 people in four states, snapping trees like twigs, tearing apart homes and sending rescue crews on desperate missions to save people from floodwaters. Among those killed were three firefighters, a woman and her 1-month-old twins, and an 89-year-old woman whose house was struck by a falling tree. According to an Associated Press tally, the deaths occurred in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.