Top 5 El Niño Episodes in Recorded History
El Niño is on it's way, but what does that mean for those of us living in the United States? In a previous blog, we discussed what El Niño is and what to expect from an El Niño episode. The 2015-2016 El Niño forecast shows it may be the strongest episode in history. Let's take a look at the strongest El Niño occurrences on record so that we know what to expect this year and can properly prepare for the event.
The 1982-1983 El Niño was the strongest and most devastating weather event of the century. It led to major flooding across the southern United States and a lack of snow in the northern part of the country. In 1982-1983, the U.S. Gulf States and California received excessive rainfall. Portions of central and southern California suffered record-breaking rainfall amounts. The damage consisted of not only flooding, but also mudslides. Some mudslides destroyed communities in a flash, also causing many casualties. San Mateo County, California suffered heavy surf, severe beach erosion, and major damage to roads and coastline due to landslides and wave action. Above average severe weather also caused problems in the Gulf States. While no single storm could be blamed on El Niño, many forecasters believe that the event did increase the chances of severe weather occurring.
The 1997-1998 El Niño was regarded as one of the most powerful El Niño events in recorded history, resulting in widespread drought, flooding and other natural disasters across the globe. The winter of 1997-1998 was marked by a record breaking El Niño occurrence and unusual extremes across the country. Overall, the season was the warmest and the wettest it had ever been since 1895. Severe weather events included flooding in the southeast, an ice storm in the northeast, flooding in California and tornadoes in Florida.The unique weather pattern caused wetter than normal conditions across the southern third of the country and warmer than normal conditions across the northern two-thirds of the country. Droughts in the Western Pacific Islands and Indonesia, as well as in Mexico and Central America, were the early (and sometimes constant) victims of this El Niño episode. The year 1998 ultimately became the hottest year in record history up to that point.
While these two El Niño episodes were the strongest in recorded history of their time, there are a couple of others worth mentioning. The El Niño episodes of 1957-1958, 1965-1966 and 1972-1973, while not categorized as "very strong," were considered strong and also took a toll on the United States. Fortunately, these El Niño occurrences didn't do quite as much damage as those mentioned about, but they still caused dramatic changes in the weather. The northern parts of the United States experienced a warmer and drier than average winter, therefore those regions experienced reduced snowfalls. Meanwhile the southern parts of the country experienced both cooler and wetter than average winters.
As you can tell from the past occurrences of El Niño, the weather is typically out of the ordinary. Now is the time to start preparing for the 2015-2016 episode, especially with the forecast showing that it could end up matching or even exceeding the 1997-1998 occurrence in strength. Big Bags USA® flood barrier systems can handle the highest demands at a fraction of the cost normally associated with rapid deployed systems. They are the perfect flood control solution to have on hand, as they're useful in a number of situations that could arise due to the upcoming El Niño. From traffic safety to slope stabilization, our flood protection systems can mitigate damages caused by flooding, landslides, mudslides, coastal erosion and more! Give us a call at 1-800-337-0537 for more information about Big Bags USA®.
1. 1982-1983 El Niño - Very Strong
The 1982-1983 El Niño was the strongest and most devastating weather event of the century. It led to major flooding across the southern United States and a lack of snow in the northern part of the country. In 1982-1983, the U.S. Gulf States and California received excessive rainfall. Portions of central and southern California suffered record-breaking rainfall amounts. The damage consisted of not only flooding, but also mudslides. Some mudslides destroyed communities in a flash, also causing many casualties. San Mateo County, California suffered heavy surf, severe beach erosion, and major damage to roads and coastline due to landslides and wave action. Above average severe weather also caused problems in the Gulf States. While no single storm could be blamed on El Niño, many forecasters believe that the event did increase the chances of severe weather occurring.
2. 1997-1998 El Niño - Very Strong
The 1997-1998 El Niño was regarded as one of the most powerful El Niño events in recorded history, resulting in widespread drought, flooding and other natural disasters across the globe. The winter of 1997-1998 was marked by a record breaking El Niño occurrence and unusual extremes across the country. Overall, the season was the warmest and the wettest it had ever been since 1895. Severe weather events included flooding in the southeast, an ice storm in the northeast, flooding in California and tornadoes in Florida.The unique weather pattern caused wetter than normal conditions across the southern third of the country and warmer than normal conditions across the northern two-thirds of the country. Droughts in the Western Pacific Islands and Indonesia, as well as in Mexico and Central America, were the early (and sometimes constant) victims of this El Niño episode. The year 1998 ultimately became the hottest year in record history up to that point.
3. Other Strong El Niño Episodes
While these two El Niño episodes were the strongest in recorded history of their time, there are a couple of others worth mentioning. The El Niño episodes of 1957-1958, 1965-1966 and 1972-1973, while not categorized as "very strong," were considered strong and also took a toll on the United States. Fortunately, these El Niño occurrences didn't do quite as much damage as those mentioned about, but they still caused dramatic changes in the weather. The northern parts of the United States experienced a warmer and drier than average winter, therefore those regions experienced reduced snowfalls. Meanwhile the southern parts of the country experienced both cooler and wetter than average winters.
As you can tell from the past occurrences of El Niño, the weather is typically out of the ordinary. Now is the time to start preparing for the 2015-2016 episode, especially with the forecast showing that it could end up matching or even exceeding the 1997-1998 occurrence in strength. Big Bags USA® flood barrier systems can handle the highest demands at a fraction of the cost normally associated with rapid deployed systems. They are the perfect flood control solution to have on hand, as they're useful in a number of situations that could arise due to the upcoming El Niño. From traffic safety to slope stabilization, our flood protection systems can mitigate damages caused by flooding, landslides, mudslides, coastal erosion and more! Give us a call at 1-800-337-0537 for more information about Big Bags USA®.
If you have an immediate need for our systems, or have any questions for us, please Call us Toll Free at 1-800-337-0537 or visit www.BigBagsUSA.com.
If you have an immediate need for our systems, or have any questions for us, please Call us Toll Free at 1-800-337-0537 or visit www.BigBagsUSA.com.
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