New York on Friday broke its heat record for a Christmas day, as exceptional snowflakes fell in Las Vegas. The southern United States was healing its wounds after an unusual wave of tornadoes this season.
Manhattan experienced a record heat for a Dec. 25, with 18.8 ° C readings overnight Friday, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). A high not reached since the beginning of the annals in 1871, well exceeding the 17.7 ° C of December 25, 1982 recorded in Central Park.
22 degrees Thursday
New York has been going through an “Indian summer” for a week which has already set records on December 24, with more than 22 ° C reached on Thursday. A heat that contrasts with the snowy winter experienced last year in Manhattan.
Flowers are blooming on the east coast of the United States and despite the rain pouring down on the capital on Friday, passers-by were also enjoying Washington in T-shirts and sandals, with the Washington Post talking about a “tropical Christmas” .
Oh hello snow in Las Vegas! #teamwoods ☃⛷ pic.twitter.com/kTchwvIhTp
— Michael Woods (@MichaelWoods) December 22, 2015
On the other hand, snowflakes mixed with rain fell where they were not expected: Las Vegas, in the Mojave Desert (Nevada, west). An extremely rare image, only observed in 1941 then in 1988 and 2008, according to the NWS.
Deadly tornadoes
The heat observed on the East Coast also contributed to the formation of more than a dozen tornadoes that hit six states in the southern United States on Wednesday, killing 14 and injuring dozens.
Mississippi was particularly affected, with seven dead, sixty injured and one person still missing Friday, emergency services said. Among the victims is a seven-year-old child who died in a car overturned by the force of a storm.
“We are now facing flash flooding, more storms approaching right now,” said Brett Carr, a spokesman for the Mississippi emergency services.
Six people have died in neighboring Tennessee, authorities said, including three found in a car submerged in water on Thursday, firefighters said. At least one other person has lost their life in Arkansas, according to local media.
Tornadoes are common in these southern regions, especially in spring, but they are very rare at this time of year.
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