2012 marked the fewest fatalities from natural disasters in a decade in meteorology, although there were several damaging and deadly floods, tropical cyclones, tornadoes, and other weather events. These include blizzards, cold waves, droughts, heat waves, and wildfires. The costliest single weather event of the year was Hurricane Sandy, which struck the northeastern United States in late October, with overall economic costs estimated at over US$67 billion.
Overview The year began with La Niña conditions, meaning cooler than normal waters in the eastern Pacific Ocean near the equator. By later in the year, the global weather pattern shifted to more neutral conditions. The global temperature was 1.03 °F (−17.21 °C) above average, making it the tenth-warmest year ever recorded. Throughout 2012, there were 9,655 people killed by natural disasters, which marked the fewest global fatalities in a decade. This included 3,574 deaths related to hydrological events. The lower than usual death toll was due to fewer flooding and cyclonic events. Asia was the continent most often affected during the year.
Deadliest events
Types The following listed different types of special weather conditions worldwide.
Cold snaps and winter storms In January, cold temperatures of −30 °C (−22 °F) killed 112 people in Ukraine, while avalanches and a cold wave killed 45 people across Afghanistan.
Floods Throughout the year, floods killed 673 people in China, including July flash floods in Beijing which killed 79 people and left 10¥billion (US$1.6 billion) in damage. In May, floods and landslides killed 131 people in Rwanda. In June, monsoonal floods in northern India killed 122 people. In early July, a low pressure area in the Black Sea dropped 280 mm (11 in) of rainfall in a few hours in parts of southwestern Russia, causing flash flooding that killed 172 people. In September, monsoonal floods in Pakistan killed 455 people.
Heat waves and droughts Drought conditions persisted across much of North America throughout the year, causing at least US$39.9 billion in damage, much of it from crop failures. A strong heat wave during the summer killed 129 people. Elsewhere, drought conditions in northeast Brazil led to their government allocating R$2.7 billion (US$1.35 billion) worth of assistance for farmers and water distribution.
Tornadoes
During the year, 939 tornadoes were confirmed to have touch down in the United States, which is lower than the year prior. 4 EF4 tornadoes touched down in the country, the strongest tornado of the year occurred on February 29, with winds up to 180 miles per hour, it struck Harrisburg, Illinois. The 2 deadliest tornadoes of the year killed 10 people each as they struck Henryville, Indiana and West Liberty, Kentucky both on March 2. The Henryville tornado was rated as an EF4 with winds up to 175 miles per hour, while the West Liberty tornado was rated as an EF3 with estimated wind speeds up to 140-150 miles per hour. The most notable tornado outbreak occurred on March 2-3, where a severe weather outbreak of 75 tornadoes killed 42 people and inflicted US$4.1 billion in damage across the southeastern United States and into the Ohio Valley.
Tropical and subtropical cyclones
At the start of the year, Tropical Cyclone Benilde was moving across the south-west Indian Ocean. The strongest tropical cyclone worldwide in 2012 was Typhoon Sanba in the western Pacific Ocean. On September 13, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) estimated maximum sustained winds of 285 km/h (180 mph). The costliest storm of the year was Hurricane Sandy, which formed in October in the Caribbean Sea; after moving across Cuba, Sandy later evolved into a large extratropical cyclone that struck New Jersey, causing $65 billion in damage across the northeastern United States. Much of the damage was in the New York City metropolitan area, with train service disrupted for several weeks. The deadliest storm of the year was Typhoon Bopha, which killed 1,901 people and left US$1.16 billion in damage after it struck the Philippine island of Mindanao on December 3. As the year ended, there were two tropical cyclones that lasted into early 2013 – Cyclone Freda in the South Pacific Ocean, and Tropical Cyclone Dumile in the south-west Indian Ocean. In the Atlantic, there were 19 tropical storms, of which 10 became hurricanes, attaining winds of at least 120 km/h (75 mph). In the eastern Pacific, there were 17 tropical storms, of which 10 became hurricanes. The North Indian Ocean was inactive, with only five tropical cyclones, of which two became cyclonic storms.
Wildfires Throughout the year, wildfires in the United States burned more than 9,200,000 acres (37,000 km2) of land, killing eight people and causing US$2.3 billion in damage.
Extratropical cyclones and other weather systems In late June, a costly and deadly derecho moved across the eastern United States, leaving 4.2 million people without power. The strong winds caused US$3.8 billion in damage and resulted in 28 fatalities.
Timeline This is a timeline of deadly weather events during 2012.
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