Super El Niño fuels US wildfires, Great Plains dust risk, and southern flooding

AccuWeather forecasts a 70% chance that a super El Niño will develop, bringing a surge of extreme weather across the United States and Europe. In the western U.S., drought‑stricken areas such as Utah, the Northwest, Northern California, the Great Basin and Four Corners face an “extreme wildfire” threat, with forecasters warning that “conditions are expected to turn dry and very windy late this week, posing extreme risk for new fire development and erratic behavior in active fires.”

The drought has intensified in Colorado, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Wyoming, prompting concerns of a “mini‑Dust Bowl” that could depress crop yields and raise food‑price pressures. Meanwhile, the southern U.S. is expected to receive above‑average rainfall, raising the possibility of localized flooding as “drought‑recovered” areas become overwhelmed by heavy precipitation.

Europe is also feeling the heat, with parts of France recording temperatures above 104 °F, the nation’s hottest day on record. Experts such as AccuWeather meteorologist Brandon Buckingham and Tory Farney, vice‑president of Verisk Weather Solutions, emphasize that while each El Niño is unique, the projected pattern could produce significant wildfire, agricultural and flood challenges across the affected regions.