Storm Daniel

Storm Daniel also known as Cyclone Daniel, was a Mediterranean tropical like cyclone that affected southeastern Europe. It was the deadliest and costliest Mediterranean tropical-like cyclone ever recorded as well as the deadliest cyclone worldwide since Cyclone Nargis in 2008. It was also the deadliest weather event of 2023 as of September 2023. Atleast 6,850 have been confirmed death while around 10,000-1,000,000 are reportedly missing. Most of these fatalities occured in Libya.

Background

Beginning to take shape around September 4, 2023, this weather system formed as a low-pressure system. It had far-reaching effects, causing extensive flooding in Greece, Bulgaria and Turkey. As time passed, this system transformed into a Mediterranean low, officially named Storm Daniel. Soon, it developed quasi-tropical characteristics (TLC) and moved towards the Libyan coast. There, it unleashed catastrophic flooding before weakening into a remnant low. This storm's formation was a consequence of an omega block, where a high-pressure zone became sandwiched between two low-pressure zones, forming a weather pattern resembling the Greek letter Ω.

References

  1. ↑ "Storm Daniel continues to sweep through the Mediterranean Basin | Copernicus". www.copernicus.eu. Retrieved 2023-09-14.
  2. ↑ "Libya floods: Warning over shortage of body bags as fears of disease rise in Derna". Sky News. Retrieved 2023-09-14.
  3. ↑ Kitsantonis, Niki; Kwai, Isabella (2023-09-06). "Extreme Rains Cause Flooding in Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey, Killing 14". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-09-15.
  4. ↑ "What is an omega block - and how is it causing our extreme weather?". Sky News. Retrieved 2023-09-15.