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| S P E C I A L | El Niño Returns |
An expanded Web version of segments seen on CNN
Computer models were right about El Niño
February 13, 1998
Helicopter crewman pulls girl from raging waters in Los Angeles
Web posted at: 9:05 a.m. EST (1405 GMT)(CNN) -- Massive storms along the coast of California devastated some parts of the state last week. Weather forecasters say they also served as proof that sophisticated computer forecasting systems were accurate this time around, predicting El Niño's punch months in advance and giving the state valuable lead time to prepare for the worst.
Now, long-range forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are predicting more of the same from what they are calling one of the most powerful El Niños of the century.
Watch Ann Kellan's report
2 min. VXtreme streaming video
El Niño's powerful jet stream, carrying warm moist air, will continue to steer weather patterns within the United States, and around the world, forecasters say, bringing yet more floods, mudslides and torrential rains to California.
The southwest, from Texas into the central Great Plains, and the Gulf Coast into Florida and parts of the Southeast are also expected to be wetter than usual over the next two months.
High winds caused damage and injuries in the Florida Keys
But people in the Ohio Valley, parts of the northeast, the Great Lakes, and the northern Rockies can expect drier than normal weather.
In sum, El Niño will be a major weather factor for the rest of the winter, just as it was in last week's heavy rains and massive flooding along the entire California coast, said NOAA Meteorologist Robert Livezey.(90K/8 sec. AIFF or WAV sound)
Is El Niño to blame for every weather problem this year? 758K/21 sec. QuickTime movie Temperatures as well as precipitation are being affected by the El Niño weather pattern. Parts of the West, Northwest and Northeast are getting a break from the chill of winter, with warmer than normal temperatures courtesy of El Niño, meteorologists predict, while it will be basically cold from Texas across the Southeast, said NOAA Meteorologist Ed O'Lenic.
Livezey added that in El Niño years, mid-Atlantic states are much more likely to get big snowstorms.
East Palo Alto residents cope with flood waters While California is getting soaked. other parts of the world are drier and warmer than normal because of El Niño, like Australia, Indonesia, southeastern Africa, and South and Central America. These conditions will continue in the coming months.
However, the end is in sight, NOAA says. If their computer models continue to hold up, El Niño will start to fade in the spring, and will all but disappear by the summer.
The El Niño phenomenon is sparked by a periodic warming of the Pacific Ocean.
Correspondent Ann Kellan contributed to this report.
Strange Brew | Fire and Rain | The Trackers
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CNN Weather:
Related stories:
- Californians get respite after week of storms - February 9, 1998
- Storms bash Atlantic, Pacific coasts - February 5, 1998
- El Niño: Preparing is harder than forecasting - October 14, 1997
- El Niño summit braces for 'climate event of the century' - October 14, 1997
Related sites:
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- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
- DisasterRelief.org
- Directory listing of NWS flood warnings - posted by Ohio State University
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