At Least Six Killed in Severe Storm System; Top Eight Weather Stories of 2018.
SAVIDGE: Six people are dead after a powerful winter storm tore through part of the country this week; parts of the plains and the upper Midwest hit by one to two feet of snow. That includes places like Duluth, Minnesota where people saw more than 12 inches in just one day. That same system brought severe storms to the south dumping more than a foot of rain across parts of Louisiana and Mississippi. CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar is live in the weather center. And Allison, no sooner than we see that system leave, a new front moving in behind it?</s>ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, and that's starting in the southeast, where they really don't need any more rain. So Here's a look at the system in question. That's that first system finally starting to exit. So most of the northeast and the mid- Atlantic are seeing an end to their rain. You've got a few light snow showers still remaining around the Great Lakes region. But it's down south. This is where the focus now shifts to because you still have rain chances in the forecast down there after that system pushed through. Look at the total of snowfall. Finland, Minnesota picking up 24 inches. Even portions of South Dakota picking up two feet of snow. But the southern side was all rain. And yes, a lot of reports of eight to ten inches but yes, even one report of 15.5 inches of rain in Mississippi. So it's very obvious, they don't need any more rain. But unfortunately, you have rain in the forecast for the southeast for the next three days. Now, today the focus remains this next system. The low pressure system is sitting over the Gulf of Mexico. That's where it just starts to surge more moisture up basically stretching from Texas all the way over towards Florida. Then that system -- what it does in the coming days, that's where it becomes important for areas say of the mid-Atlantic, the northeast and the Midwest. Here's what we're talking about. There comes that low as it begins to push off to the north. Really ramping up especially with the moisture and the heavy rain on Sunday. Then by Monday, it pushes off to the east. Places like the Ohio Valley, into areas of the northeast. And Unfortunately, say that you have plans for New York City on New Year's Eve, it looks like right as the ball drops, you're going to be looking at rain showers not only in New York but also cities like Philadelphia, Cleveland, Knoxville, stretching down towards Atlanta, and it's the southern cities where you're really going to have the bulk of that heavy rain. Widespread</s>SAVIDGE: We're not just talking about people getting wet for their celebrations. We're talking about real danger here. Allison Chinchar -- thank you very much for that. There's a new government finding on coal power plants and it could lead to more toxins in your area. The Environmental Protection Agency proposed new rules on regulating hazardous air pollutants. The new rules would change how the EPA determines the benefits of limiting some emissions. And it could make it tougher for the agency to create new regulations. Essentially, the EPA now says the current formula for the Obama administration just plain costs too much. Environmental activists say the dramatic change first reported in the "New York Times" could do irreparable harm to public safety. Raging wildfires, debilitating blizzards and deadly hurricanes and floods -- you name it and 2018 had it, brutal in terms of severe weather events. CNN meteorologist Chad Myers has a look back.</s>CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: 2018 brought another year of extreme weather and natural disasters to the U.S. Impacts of manmade climate change evident in every region of the country even as the U.S. takes a step backward in fighting this global crisis. Here are the top eight stories for 2018. Number eight, the Hawaii volcano. Kilauea, the most active volcano in the world lived up to its reputation. In early May, it came to life once again.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This really does look like hell on earth.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is as impressive, as mesmerizing and it's terrifying as it gets.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The lava which reach temperatures topping 2,100 degrees destroyed 700 homes.</s>MYERS: Number seven -- the Alaska earthquake. On November 30th, a powerful 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck Alaska. It hit very near Alaska's most populated city of Anchorage causing roads to buckle, knocking out power to 10,000 people.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This was the worst, most violent quake they had ever felt.</s>MYERS: The quake was considered the most significant for Anchorage since 1964. Fortunately, no serious injuries or deaths were reported. Number six, Florida red tide.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is an epic event of biblical proportion.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is the worst toxic algae bloom in recent memory wiping out dolphins, sea turtles, other marine life by the thousands.</s>MYERS: While the process that creates Florida's red tide and green slime are natural, many scientists say the increased agricultural runoff and pollution from the early season subtropical storm Alberto made the problem even worse. Number five, the Maryland flood. On May 27th, storms pounded the Baltimore area.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Flash flooding has turned this Maryland town's main street into a raging river. Cars have been swept up by the roaring muddy water rushing through Ellicott City, Maryland.</s>MYERS: Many there were still rebuilding from their flash flood of 2016. It was considered a once in a thousand year event. It took only two years for history to repeat itself. Number four, it's a term known to meteorologists but this year two storms got everyone talking about it.</s>FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Bomb cyclone.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bomb cyclone.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bomb cyclone.</s>ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Bomb cyclone.</s>MYERS: So what is a bomb cyclone? It's not just a nor'easter, it's a big storm that develops rapidly. There's warm air over the ocean. There's very cold air over the land. And there's a jet stream in between. That allows the storm to rapidly intensify, develop into a nor'easter but a big one, one that loses 24 millibars of pressure in 24 hours. That's a technical term. Certainly not every nor'easter is a bomb cyclone. Two of these nor'easters struck this year. The first in early January, left 19 dead and caused over $1 billion in damage. As the storm worked its way up the coast, it brought the first snow since 1989 in Tallahassee, Florida. And Ice and snow to Charleston, South Carolina. The storm hit the northeast very hard with nearly 9 inches of snow in New York City and a tide over 15 feet in Boston Harbor, big enough to break the record from the benchmark blizzard of 1978. In March another coastal bomb left nine dead and $2 billion in damage knocking out power to over a million at the peak of the storm. Number three in our list is Hurricane Michael. Michael made landfall on October 10th as the strongest storm to hit the continental U.S. since Hurricane Andrew. The category four hurricane was just one mile per hour short of being a Cat 5. The storm claimed 46 lives, most of those killed were in Florida where the Florida Panhandle was devastated. The small town of Mexico Beach was ground zero.</s>BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: We have just now flown over Mexico Beach and it's is gone, it's obliterated. It's awful to look at. I've never seen anything like this. Number two is Hurricane Florence. The storm made landfall on September 14th along the North Carolina coast.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We notice that inner eye wall. There it goes. There goes the lights.</s>MYERS: And much like Harvey in Houston the year before, the hurricane stalled for days bringing historic rain, nearly three feet of rain impacted some areas of North Carolina. The storm dumped as much as 10 trillion gallons of water. As much as eight months' worth of rain fell in just a few days. Many rivers in both North and South Carolina saw their all-time record crest. More than 50 people perished in the storm. Increasingly, scientists are concerned that hurricanes like Michael and Florence could be the new normal. Increased heat especially in the oceans can potentially lead to stronger and wetter storms. Perhaps no place in the U.S. has begun to see the consequences of climate change more than California. Years of record drought were replaced suddenly by historic flooding in late 2017. That yo-yo effect laid the perfect foundation for large and destructive wildfires and deadly mudslides. California is number one on our list with floods and fires. In January of this year, heavy rains fell over the Thomas Fire burn scar bringing a wall of debris and mud to communities below. Areas of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties were the hardest hit. This year's fires were the most destructive and devastating in California history. And they burned in almost every month.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The term, we hear, it's new normal. It's not new anymore. This is the normal. And it's not a season. It's year round.</s>MYERS: The Mendocino Complex Fire that started in July became the largest ever recorded for the state. But the worst came in November when strong winds pushed the Camp Fire into the town of Paradise.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is nothing like what we've had before.</s>MYERS: There was such panic. Some drivers abandoned their cars as they tried to flee on foot. Some 40,000 people resided in the path of that fire. In the end, 85 died. And nearly the entire town of 14,000 homes burned to the ground.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A whole town was wiped off the face of the earth.