Weekly Earth’s Extreme Weather Report — Wednesday, October 21, 2026

By Paul Harrison, Orbis Weather

Covering 14 to 21 October 2026

Super Typhoon Champi, the strongest storm on Earth so far in 2026, swept past Guam and is now heading for the far north of the Philippines, Taiwan and Japan’s southern islands. Around the Mediterranean, record rain caused deadly flash floods from Istanbul and Rhodes to eastern Spain, southern France, Corsica and Italy.

• Super Typhoon Champi: 287 km/h (178 mph) sustained winds per JTWC on 21 October; more than 1,000 people sheltered on Guam.
• Cut-off low “Adam”: 632 mm (24.88 in) in 36 hours at Pego, Spain; 5 deaths in Spain and France, and a sixth in Italy’s storms.
• Istanbul floods: 8 deaths after the city’s heaviest rain in 84 years of records.
• Mexico: a cold front killed 10 people in Veracruz, days after Hurricane Trudy brushed the Pacific coast.
• El Niño: NOAA keeps an El Niño Advisory, with a strong-to-very strong event likely through early 2027.

The week at a glance

The deadliest events were in Mexico, Türkiye and Spain; most other regions saw warnings and local damage rather than major loss of life.

Figures are as reported on the dates shown and may change as assessments continue.

The biggest stories

Super Typhoon Champi: Guam hit, Taiwan and the Ryukyus next

Champi is the strongest storm of 2026 so far. The Weather Network reported a peak of 296 km/h (184 mph) and 895 mb on 20 October. Its centre passed within 19 km (12 miles) of Guam’s southern tip on 18 October. AccuWeather reported roofs ripped off, power and water cuts, up to 170 wells out of action and more than 1,000 people in 15 Red Cross-supported shelters (19–20 October). No casualty figures were given. US President Trump approved an emergency declaration for Guam (AP, 17 October).

At 03:00 UTC on 21 October, JTWC warning 27 put Champi 520 nautical miles south-southeast of Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, with 1-minute winds of 287 km/h (178 mph) and 902 mb. JMA gave 10-minute winds of 216 km/h (134 mph) and 900 hPa. PAGASA, which calls the storm Rosal, raised Signal No. 2 for Batanes. Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration expects the greatest influence on 23–24 October, with possible “extremely heavy rain” in the northern mountains (Focus Taiwan, 21 October). JMA forecasts it near the Sakishima Islands about 23–24 October before it weakens towards Tsushima on 26 October.

Cut-off low “Adam”: record rain from Valencia to Corsica

A cut-off low, called DANA Adam in Spanish media, brought some of the week’s most extreme rainfall. Pego, Alicante, recorded 632 mm (24.88 in) in 36 hours, including 465.2 mm (18.31 in) on 19 October (AEMET provisional data, via The Watchers, 20 October). Four people died in the Valencia region and Catalonia. Guardia Civil carried out 496 rescues and 2,141 evacuations, and restrictions applied in 145 municipalities. Red warnings also closed schools in Mallorca on 19 October (Euro Weekly News, 18 October).

The system then moved to southern France and Corsica. A 75-year-old was swept away at Saint-Mitre-les-Remparts, and one person is missing after a vehicle was carried off by the Fium’orbu river in Corsica (Euronews, 21 October). Météo-France measured 191 mm (7.52 in) in one hour at Solenzara airport during a red alert for Haute-Corse. Separately, storms across Italy on 20 October killed a soldier at Jesolo when wind snapped a tree, and Savona received more than 200 mm (7.87 in) (The Social Post and Italpress, 20–21 October). Orange alerts remain in force in six Italian regions on 21 October (TGCom24).

Istanbul and Rhodes: deadly floods in the eastern Mediterranean

Istanbul’s flash floods on 14–15 October were the deadliest European weather event of the week. Governor Davut Gül said 261 mm (10.28 in) fell at Beykoz, the heaviest rain in 84 years of records. By 19 October, 8 people had died, 6 in Istanbul and 2 in Kocaeli, and one was missing (Euronews, 19 October). About 2,000 homes and 900 businesses were seriously damaged.

On Rhodes, 202 mm (7.95 in) fell in about six hours on 14 October, according to the National Observatory of Athens. A 62-year-old man died when his car was swept into the sea at Stegna. The mayor asked for a state of emergency (The Watchers, 15 October).

Mexico: a cold front turns deadly after Hurricane Trudy

Cold Front No. 2 killed 10 people in Veracruz on 19 October (SinEmbargo, 19 October). Four women of one family died when a landslide toppled a wall onto their home in Coatzacoalcos. Six members of another family died in Las Choapas from carbon monoxide from a generator run indoors during a power cut. Rain reached 265.0 mm (10.43 in) at La Cangrejera, and 53 municipalities reported damage (El Imparcial, 20 October).

On the Pacific side, Hurricane Trudy peaked at Category 3 with 195 km/h (120 mph) winds on 16 October, per NHC advisory 13. It never made landfall, but Meteored México reported one death in Guerrero, waves up to 7 m (23 ft) and the closure of Manzanillo port (19 October). NHC issued its final advisory at 03:00 UTC on 20 October. Trudy’s moisture is now feeding a flash flood threat in the US Southwest.

Climate context

A strong El Niño is under way and still growing. NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center kept an El Niño Advisory in its 8 October discussion, saying “El Niño continues to strengthen”, with a strong-to-very strong event likely through January–March 2027 and a Niño-3.4 anomaly of +2.1°C (+3.8°F). Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology said on 13 October that “El Niño is at near-record levels”, and JMA (9 October) said the event is “likely to peak on record”. CPC notes that impacts consistent with El Niño are more likely, “though not guaranteed”. Euronews (20 October, with AFP and AP) linked the Iguazu and Paraná floods and drought in El Salvador and Sudan to El Niño; Infobae made the same link for rains in Ecuador and Argentina (18–20 October).

The week ahead

Champi’s approach to Taiwan and Japan’s southern islands is the main hazard of the coming days.

• Super Typhoon Champi (West Pacific): JTWC warning 27 (03:00 UTC, 21 Oct) forecasts gradual weakening to 213 km/h (132 mph) by 00:00 UTC on 23 Oct. Taiwan’s CWA expects the strongest effects on 23–24 Oct; AccuWeather forecasts up to 450 mm (17.7 in) of rain in Taiwan.
• Eastern Pacific system EP94: NHC (11 p.m. PDT, 20 Oct) gives a 90% chance of a tropical depression forming within 48 hours, south of the Gulf of Tehuantepec, moving away from Mexico.
• US Southwest flash floods: Trudy’s moisture brings up to 76 mm (3 in) of rain, locally 127 mm (5 in), to Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Colorado and Southern California on 21–22 Oct (The Weather Channel, 05:42 EDT, 21 Oct). WPC’s 20 Oct extended discussion adds a flood risk for New Mexico and west Texas on 24 Oct.
• Atlantic coastal low (Invest 93L): NHC (2 a.m. EDT, 21 Oct) gives a 40% chance of brief subtropical development off the mid-Atlantic coast; high winds, coastal flooding and dangerous surf continue regardless.
• Europe and Arabia: the UK Met Office has a yellow wind warning for southern England and Wales from Thursday night to midday Friday, with gusts to 113 km/h (70 mph) on exposed coasts (issued 19 Oct). Saudi Arabia’s National Centre of Meteorology expects storms through 28 Oct, worst on 23 Oct (Gulf News, 20 Oct).

About this report

The Weekly Earth’s Extreme Weather Report summarises the world’s most significant weather extremes of the past seven days and the hazards ahead. Casualty and damage figures are early reports and often change. Official warnings come from national weather services; follow evacuation orders from local authorities immediately.