The following is a list of weather events that occurred in 2008. The year began with La Niña conditions. There were several natural disasters around the world from various types of weather, including blizzards, cold waves, droughts, heat waves, tornadoes, and tropical cyclones. In early May, powerful Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar, killing or leaving missing at least 138,373 people and becoming the deadliest single weather event of the year. There were several other weather events that caused significant death and destruction, such as Typhoon Fengshen, which killed over 1,400 people, and the 2008 Afghanistan blizzard, which killed over 900 people. In the United States, there were a total of twelve billion-dollar disasters which caused between $80 billion and $104.8 billion in damage (adjusted for inflation). A total of 572 deaths were reported due to weather-related phenomena in the United States, and over 2,400 injuries.
Global conditions
The year began with La Nina conditions that developed the previous year. The La Nina peaked in February, and after that, sea surface temperatures (SSTs) near the equators began to warm up. As a consequence, by June, NOAA assessed that the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) had transitioned to its normal phase. This neutral phase remained through the remainder of the year, with below-average SSTs. Despite being the coldest year since 2000, the year was still one of the top 10 warmest years on record.
Weather summaries by type
Cold waves and winter storms
In early January 2008, a blizzard impacted parts of Iran, killing 21 people. At around the same time, the Pacific Northwest was hit by a storm system, causing at least 12 deaths. In mid-January, the third-deadliest blizzard in history struck Afghanistan, killing at least 926 people. At around the same time, a cold blast struck China, causing heavy snow and ice until early February, accompanied with cold weather. Direct economic losses were estimated at over $22 billion($32.9 billion in 2025), and at least 129 people were killed.In early February, a snowstorm impacted the Central Plains and the Great Lakes, causing at least 4 deaths. Later in the month, a system moved through the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, killing at least 6 people. In March, the North American blizzard of 2008 moved through parts of the United States and Canada, killing 17 people and causing nearly $800 million of damage. On May 26 and 27, Mongolia was hit with a heavy snowstorm causing at least 52 fatalities. Hundreds of thousands of heads of livestock were killed or went missing. In late October, a blizzard in Tibet dumped nearly 25 inches of snow. Six people were reported dead. In December, the December 2008 Northeastern United States ice storm knocked out power to over a million people and caused three fatalities. Soon after, a snowstorm impacted large swaths of Canada and the United States, killing eight people in an avalanche in British Columbia.
Droughts
In late 2007, drought enveloped Zimbabwe while the country's economy struggled and political problems continued. This problem continued into 2008. Kenya was also in drought starting in 2008 that persisted into 2011, causing an estimated $12 billion in losses. In addition, a multi-year drought enveloped Victoria and New South Wales in Australia between 2007 and 2009. This drought was devastating for farmers. California was also in a dry spell, which contributed to the devastating 2008 California wildfire season.
Floods 2008 was characterized by large amounts of precipitation in parts of the world, including northern South America. Between November 2007 and February 2008, heavy rain hit parts of Bolivia, causing floods that killed 50 people.
In January, 46 people in eastern Africa died from floods triggered by unexpected heavy rain. In February, heavy rain in Angola triggered floods in Namibia, covering thousands of square kilometers of land and killing at least 42 people by early March. This led to a cholera outbreak and by the 16th of April, 958 cases were reported, with four of them being fatal. In addition, the Philippines received heavy rain, causing flooding and landslides and killing 45 people. In March, the Midwest received heavy rain, leading to floods that killed 17 people. In late May, southern parts of China received four rounds of torrential rainfall, resulting in multiple rounds of floods that in total killed over 150 people. During the monsoon season, floods hit parts of India, killing over 2,400 people and submerging over 1,800 villages. The Kosi embankment broke, sending large amounts of water and flooding villages in northern Bihar and Nepal. In September, heavy rains caused the retaining wall of a reservoir in China to collapse, causing a major mudslide that inundated a village and killed 277 people. In early October, Algeria experiences flash flooding, killing 89 people near the town of Ghardaïa. In late October into early November, northern and central areas of Vietnam and parts of southern China experienced flooding after three days of heavy rainfall. At least 100 people were killed, with 66 in Vietnam and 34 in China. A few weeks later, Santa Catarina, Brazil was hit by deadly floods caused by heavy rainfall that killed at least 128 people.
Heat waves and wildfires
In March, a long-lasting, intense heatwave gripped southern Australia, breaking many records. In Adelaide, it was the longest heatwave ever recorded at the time. In April, several wildfires burned in the south-central United States, with one wind-driven fire killing three people in Colorado. In June, a heatwave broke several records in the northeastern United States. About twenty fatalities were recorded, eighteen of which were in the Philadelphia area. Later in the month, California experienced a heat wave, with some records being broken. Six more people were killed when another heatwave hit the Philadelphia area in mid-July. In addition, around the same time, large amounts of dry thunderstorms swept across California, causing over 2,000 fires. During the summer, wildfires killed over a dozen firefighters and one civilian and injured several others. A helicopter accident killed nine people, most of them firefighters. In August, four people were killed in the Dallas area after a long period of hot, humid conditions impacted the area.
Tornadoes
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