In more ways than one, the weather made headlines throughout 2025. Parts of the South in the United States saw heavy snow in January while California saw raging wildfires. Severe storm outbreaks made an early appearance in March while a 12-year drought of EF-5 rated tornadoes ended in June with a storm that moved through North Dakota.

Later in the summer, historic flooding struck Texas Hill Country. While no hurricanes from the Atlantic or Gulf of America made landfall in the U.S. throughout the summer and fall, Hurricane Erin edged close to the U.S. East Coast, creating deadly surf and rip currents. Winter started making an appearance in late November and early December with heavy snowfall and a blast of Arctic air. Flooding also affected the Pacific Northwest towards the end of 2025.

Mother Nature reminded us we need to be vigilant when it comes to weather. From heavy snow to severe storms and flooding, there were 10 weather events that stood out in 2025 that were both historic and unfortunately deadly.

GULF COAST STATES SEE SNOW

2025 started off with record snowfall and blizzard conditions along the Gulf Coast from Jan. 20-22. High levels of moisture from the Gulf of America drifted north, moving over a very cold airmass that was near the surface, leading to snow from southeast Texas into the eastern Carolinas. The National Weather Service in Lake Charles, Louisiana, issued its first ever blizzard warning as heavy snow and high winds moved across the state from Jan. 21-22. Record snowfall was recorded for many areas along the Gulf Coast but Pensacola, Florida, came in at 10 inches on Jan. 21. This challenged the record for the snowiest day ever recorded in Florida.

RAGING WILDFIRES IN CALIFORNIA

While snow and Arctic air affected the Gulf Coast early in the year, wildfires were raging across southern California. Two of the most notable wildfires, the Palisades and Eaton fires, affected Los Angeles County and burned just over 37,000 acres. Both fires started on Jan. 7, and they spread rapidly due to pre-existing drought conditions and Santa Ana winds. Santa Ana winds blow from east to west as cool, dry air moves down the side of mountains and heats up. Wind gusts can often exceed 50 mph with Santa Ana winds and as the Palisades and Eaton fires started in early January, off and on Santa Ana wind events made it difficult to extinguish these fires. They were finally contained by Jan. 31 but ended up burning more than 16,000 structures.

SPRING SEVERE STORM OUTBREAK

By early spring, the right ingredients came together for a severe storm outbreak in the center of the country. One notable event occurred on March 14-15 across the Mid-Mississippi Valley and Southeast. According to the Storm Prediction Center, there were a total of 95 tornado reports on March 14 with an additional 74 on March 15. Strong south winds forced moist air from the Gulf north and when combined with high wind shear, or winds that change direction and speed with height in the atmosphere, the environment was ripe for tornadic storms. There were 80-mph winds around 3,000-4,000 feet above the ground recorded with this storm system as well. DTN had warned of the dangerous situation as it was setting up: https://www.dtnpf.com/….

SECOND TORNADO OUTBREAK

A second tornado outbreak occurred across the Upper Midwest and Ohio Valley on May 15-16. One storm managed to produce an EF-4 tornado just south of Marion, Illinois. On the Enhanced Fujita Scale or EF Scale, damage estimates match wind gusts near 166-200 mph to be classified as an EF-4. National Public Radio stated at least 27 people died as multiple tornadoes moved through Kentucky and Missouri in mid-May. To read more about the destruction and devastation these storms caused, visit: https://www.npr.org/…. Also see how much the tornado numbers were climbing by that point of the year, according to DTN: https://www.dtnpf.com/….

EF-5 TORNADO IN NORTH DAKOTA

Later in June, an EF-5 tornado near the town of Enderlin, in southeast North Dakota, ended more than a decade-long drought of EF-5 tornadoes in the U.S. An EF-5 rating is the highest on the EF Scale with wind speeds over 200 mph. The last time the U.S. saw an EF-5 tornado was in Moore, Oklahoma, on May 20, 2013. According to a report by the National Weather Service in Grand Forks, North Dakota, the tornado that came close to Enderlin had winds more than 210 mph as it tipped over several fully loaded grain hopper railcars. It also tossed an empty tanker car about 475.7 feet. Additional details regarding this tornado can be found here: https://www.weather.gov/…. Also see https://www.dtnpf.com/…, written at the time before the EF-5 rating was determined.

TORRENTIAL RAINS, FLASH FLOODS IN TEXAS

Flooding entered the headlines around early July as torrential rainfall hit Texas Hill Country. Kerr County, Texas, took the brunt of the damage from the flash flooding as the Guadalupe River rose over 20 feet in a matter of a few hours. More than 100 people lost their lives as the river rapidly rose. The Weather Prediction Center issued a statement early in the morning on July 4 that hourly rainfall would exceed 2-3 inches as the air had plenty of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico (America) and the tropical east Pacific. Satellite-derived precipitation estimated that nearly 6 inches of rain fell across parts of central Texas from July 3-5. See more on the flood at https://www.dtnpf.com/….

LACK OF HURRICANES FOR US

Amongst the flooding and severe weather throughout the summer months, hurricanes started developing in the Atlantic. The 2025 Atlantic Hurricane season proved to be near normal in terms of the number of named storms and hurricanes that developed. However, no hurricanes made landfall across the U.S., and the Gulf of Mexico (America) only had one tropical system. Out of all the tropical storms and hurricanes that developed in the Atlantic in 2025, Hurricane Erin got close enough to the East Coast to threaten coastal communities with life threatening surf and rip currents from Aug. 19-21. Waves were nearly 50 feet high in the storm's center but closer to the East Coast, elevated seas caused tidal flooding and extensive beach erosion.

POST-THANKSGIVING WINTER STORM

Later in the fall, winter started making its appearance, especially across the Midwest. Shortly after Thanksgiving, a significant winter storm pushed through eastern Iowa, Illinois, southern Wisconsin, and Indiana. Snowfall reports came in right at 12 inches in northeast Illinois, near Winthrop Harbor and Lake Forest. Snow totals were high enough to break records for the month of November and cause significant travel delays post-Thanksgiving. See what influenced it at https://www.dtnpf.com/….

PLUMMETING TEMPERATURES AFTER STORM

Shortly after the Midwest's winter storm, the first blast of Arctic air from Canada made its appearance across the U.S. Around Dec. 7, low temperatures started plummeting into the teens below zero across the Northern Plains. Temperatures bottomed out in the 20s across Kansas and Oklahoma on Dec. 8. For more, see https://www.dtnpf.com/… and https://www.dtnpf.com/….

PNW SEES MAJOR FLOODING

To cap off major weather events across the U.S. in 2025, major flooding hit the Pacific Northwest around Dec. 8-12 as an atmospheric river came crashing into Washington and Oregon. An atmospheric river is a corridor in the atmosphere that is very efficient at transferring water vapor from the tropics. The water vapor will eventually lead to heavy rain or snow if the atmospheric river reaches land. Additionally, higher elevation land, such as the Cascade Mountain range, can enhance precipitation too. Extensive flooding caused landslides and 49 miles of U.S. Highway 2 had to be closed due to damage from landslides and flooding. Four-day precipitation totals on Dec. 12 showed 15-20 inches in southeast King County, Washington. The Seattle-Tacoma airport broke a rainfall record on Dec. 10, clocking in at 1.6 inches throughout the day, beating the old record of 1.55 inches set in 1977.

If you're interested in reading further about some of these extreme weather events that took place throughout the year visit more links below:

-- January 2025 historic cold and snow in the South: https://www.climate.gov/….

-- January 2025 southern California wildfires: https://file.lacounty.gov/…

-- March severe weather outbreak across the Mississippi Valley and Southeast: https://www.weather.gov/….

-- Tornado outbreak in the Midwest and Ohio Valley in May: https://www.weather.gov/… .

-- Texas Hill Country flooding: https://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/… .

-- Hurricane Erin's impacts to the East Coast: https://www.noaa.gov/….

-- Post-Thanksgiving winter storm in the Midwest: https://www.weather.gov/… .

-- Pacific Northwest flooding: https://cw3e.ucsd.edu/….

Teresa Wells can be reached at teresa.wells@dtn.com

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