The following is a list of weather events that occurred in 2021. 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 December, powerful Typhoon Rai moved through the southern Philippines, killing 410 people and becoming the deadliest single weather event of the year. The costliest event of the year, and the costliest natural disaster on record in the United States, was from a North American cold wave in February 2021, which caused $196.4 billion (USD) in damage; the freezing temperatures and widespread power outages in Texas killed hundreds of people. Another significant natural disaster was Hurricane Ida, which struck southeastern Louisiana and later flooded the Northeastern United States, resulting in $70 billion (USD) in damage. December saw two record-breaking tornado outbreaks, only four days apart from each other. In Europe, the European Severe Storms Laboratory documented 1,482 weather-related injuries and 568 weather-related fatalities. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration documented 796 weather-related fatalities and at least 1,327 weather-related injuries in the United States and the territories of the United States.
Global conditions The year began with La Niña conditions that developed the previous year. This was reflected in cooler than normal sea surface temperatures in the south Pacific Ocean. However, conditions were unlike typical La Niña events, with above normal temperatures in the United States in January, but colder than normal temperatures in February. By March and April, the La Niña conditions had begun to weaken. On May 13, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) assessed that the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) transitioned into its neutral phase. However, following cooler than normal temperatures in the tropical eastern Pacific Ocean, NOAA declared that the global weather conditions shifted back to La Niña by October.
Deadliest events
Weather summaries by type
Cold waves and winter storms
In January, at least 70 people in Japan died while removing snow, related to a blizzard that dropped 2.49 m (8.2 ft) of snowfall. At least 1,500 people were stranded on a highway. In February, extreme cold affected much of North America. During much of the winter, a high pressure system existed over southeastern Canada and Greenland, while lower than normal pressure existed over northeastern Asia into Alaska. A winter storm left more than 9 million people without power from northern Mexico to the northeastern United States; nearly half of the power outages were in Texas. There were 172 deaths in the United States, The system is estimated to have cost over $196.5 billion (2021 USD) in damages, including at least $195 billion in the United States and over $1.5 billion in Mexico, making it the costliest winter storm on record, as well as the costliest natural disaster recorded in the United States. It is also the deadliest winter storm in North America since the 1993 Storm of the Century, which killed 318 people. Another winter storm added on to the effects, leading to 29 deaths and $2 billion in damage, and caused 4 million power outages. At the same time, a cold wave impacted Greece. This cold wave resulted in 3 deaths, and resulted in Greece getting their heaviest snowfall since 2008. Temperatures dropped as low as −19.9 °C (−3.8 °F). In March, a record-breaking blizzard affected the Rocky Mountains. Although no one died, the system caused $75 million in damage. Cheyenne, Wyoming saw their largest two-day snowfall on record. It also became Denver's fourth largest blizzard. The storm caused car crashes which resulted in 22 injuries.
Droughts A drought in western North America began in 2020 and continued into 2021. A 20-month period from January 2020 to August 2021 recorded the least rainfall since 1895. Lake Powell hit record low levels in July 2021, and due to Lake Mead dropping so low, water restrictions were imposed. By mid-August 2021, Iowa was facing extreme drought. Drought also affected over 85% of Mexico.
Floods
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