"Seasonal models are predicting an El Nino climate pattern that could be the strongest on record, bringing with it more extreme weather.

“I think we’re going to see weather events that we’ve never seen in modern history before,” WFLA-TV Chief Meteorologist and Climate Specialist Jeff Berardelli, in Tampa, Florida, said Friday.

An El Nino event is expected to develop from the middle of this year, impacting global temperature and rainfall patterns, according to the World Meteorological Organization. While the models indicate that this may be a strong event, the WMO cautioned that the models also have a harder time making accurate forecasts in the spring."

Jennifer McDermott reports for the Associated Press May 8, 2026. [2]