Portal:Weather/On this day list/February

February 1

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2007: The National Weather Service began using the Enhanced Fujita scale for assessing tornado damage.

February 2

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1992: Hurricane Ekeka, an unusual winter hurricane that formed unusually far south, reached peak intensity near the International Date Line with maximum sustained winds of 115 miles per hour (185 km/h).

February 3

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1952: The Groundhog Day Storm (not to be confused with the Groundhog Day Gale) brushed by western Cuba and made landfall on southern Florida, the earliest in the year that a North Atlantic tropical cyclone has done so.

February 4

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1995: A nor'easter began impacting the Northeastern United States with strong winds and up to 25 inches (64 cm) of snow.

2008: The Super Tuesday tornado outbreak, the deadliest outbreak in the United States in over 20 years, produced 87 tornadoes which killed 57 people.

February 6

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1978: The Blizzard of '78, the worst storm in the area since 1888 and the second large blizzard in as many weeks to hit the eastern United States, began dropping more than 40 inches (100 cm) of snow on parts of the Northeastern United States.

February 7

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2009: Record high temperatures and strong, erratic winds contributed to the deadliest wildfires in Australia's history. 3,500 buildings were destroyed, and 173 people were killed.

February 8

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2013: A severe nor'easter began affecting the northeastern United States, bringing blizzard conditions and record snowfall to parts of New England.

February 9

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1870: The National Weather Service (originally known as the United States Weather Bureau) was founded through a joint congressional resolution signed by President Ulysses S. Grant.

February 10

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2013: A violent tornado caused major damage in the town of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, including damage to several buildings on the University of Southern Mississippi campus.

February 11

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1999: Cyclone Rona made landfall on the Cape York Peninsula, Queensland, Australia. Rainfall of up to 1,870 millimetres (74 in) caused historic flooding in the area that killed seven people.

February 12

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1987: Tropical Storm Clotilda, which dropped 1,855 millimetres (73.0 in) of rain in La Plaine-des-Palmistes on Réunion over three days, passed within 80 km (50 mi) of the island while approaching peak intensity.

February 13

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2006: Cyclone Vaianu reached peak intensity near Tonga.

February 14

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2011: Cyclone Bingiza made landfall in northeastern Madagascar, killing 22 people.

February 15

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2005: Cyclone Nancy passed directly over the island of Manuae in the Cook Islands, causing major damage throughout the island chain.

February 16

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1962: Severe flooding began overnight on the north shore of Germany, particularly in Hamburg, killing more than 300 people.

February 17

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2003: A major snow storm dropped 15–30 inches (38–76 cm) of snow from Washington, D.C. to Boston in the Eastern United States.

February 18

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1952: A strong nor'easter caused the ship SS Pendleton to break in two off the coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts. 32 of the 41 crew were saved in a daring rescue by the United States Coast Guard.

February 19

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2015: Cyclone Lam and Cyclone Marcia, both severe tropical cyclones, struck Northern Territory and Queensland, Australia respectively on the same day.

February 20

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2010: Flooding and landslides in Madeira, Portugal killed dozens.

February 21

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1986: The waters of Lake Michigan approached their maximum historic depth, causing severe flooding and coastal erosion.

February 22

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2000: Cyclone Eline made its final landfall near Beira, Mozambique, killing hundreds of people.

February 23

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1999: An avalanche killed 31 people in the village of Galtür, Austria.

February 24

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2007: Cyclone Gamede made its closest approach to Réunion island, where it dropped a staggering 5.5 meters (18 ft) of rain over a nine-day period.

February 25

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1995: Cyclone Bobby made landfall near Onslow, Western Australia, eventually bringing up to 400 millimetres (16 in) of rain to the Goldfields-Esperance region.

February 26

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1969: The ESSA-9 weather satellite was launched.

February 27

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1938: The first of two consecutive powerful storms struck the area around Los Angeles, California, resulting in major flooding which would kill 115 people.

February 28

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1966: The ESSA-2 weather satellite was launched.

February 29

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2012: A tornado outbreak killed 13 people in the Midwest and Upland South regions of the United States.