Hurricane Norbert, the fifteenth named storm and tenth hurricane this year, brought flooding rains along the U.S. Pacific coast and Mexico, killing at least five with the storm's heavy rainfall and strong, gusty winds.

The storm was first named Tropical Storm Norbert on Sept. 2, but after gaining strength as it moved northwest toward Baja California Sur, it gained hurricane status on Sept. 5. On Sept. 6, the storm reached its peak intensity with maximum sustained winds of 120 mph, becoming a Category 3.

While the storm gradually weakened, becoming post-tropical on Sept. 8, it still reached tropical storm-strength winds of 40 mph and brought torrential rain to parts of western Mexico, including the Baja Peninsula from Thursday to Saturday. Rainfalls measured 2.60 inches over a 48-hour stretch at Loreto, while Colonia Juan Carras reported 10.52 inches from a 72-hour stretch ending on Saturday.

The storm also caused three fatalities in Mexico after individuals were swept away by swollen creeks and streams from the heavy rainfalls. A total of 2,500 people were evacuated from coastal communities in Mexico as the storm's outer rain bands lashed the Baja Peninsula.

Puerto San Carlos experienced the most storm damage, as levees designed to protect the village failed and flooding ensued. Officials estimate that the water was 3 feet in some areas, and approximately 2,500 properties in the village were damaged.

Beyond Mexico, moisture from the system combined with remnants of Tropical Storm Dolly, as well as the southwest monsoon, generating record-setting rains throughout the United States' Southwest region.

The most substantial damage was recorded in Arizona, where officials deemed the floods as some of the worst since 1970. Phoenix was among one of the hardest-hit cities in Arizona, where 3.29 inches of rain fell in just seven hours on Monday, the most rain the city has ever registered in a 24-hour period since 1911, and represented more than the combined rainfall total for all of June, July and August. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimates that the amount of rain in Phoenix equaled a one-in-200 year rainfall event, and roughly one out of three rain gauges in Maricopa County set all-time rainfall records on Monday.

In the Phoenix area, the storm left hundreds of properties damaged, 10,000 customers without electricity and stranded motorists on many of the area's roads and highways. Elsewhere in Arizona, Tucson, Mesa and Chandler noted widespread flood damage, as water levels reached depths of 15 feet in some locations.

Based on NOAA estimates, the rains in Chandler equaled a one-in-1,000 year rainfall event and roughly a once-in 500-to-1,000-year rainfall event in Mesa.

A state of emergency was declared in Arizona, but the monsoonal rains also impacted parts of Nevada and California. Las Vegas cited significant flash flooding, recording nearly four inches of rain. The downpour led to some of the worst flooding in Moapa Valley since 1981, as a 50-mile stretch of Interstate 15 was closed, and 190 residents from the Moapa Band of Paiutes Reservation were evacuated from their homes. Thirty homes were damaged in the town of Overton, and a state of emergency was subsequently declared for Clark County.

In Southern California, flash floods left nearly 300 motorists stranded along California State Route 74 on Sunday.

Preliminary damage reports from local officials in the U.S. and Mexico estimate total economic losses to exceed $100 million (USD).

The U.S. and Mexico were not the only places affected by heavy rainfall this week. Parts of southern Europe were also hit by severe thunderstorms, causing floods that were enhanced by recent periods of heavy rainfall. At least four people were killed in Italyand Bulgaria.

In Asia, extensive monsoonal rains led to continued flooding throughout Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Thailand, as the death toll climbed to at least 508. Hundreds of others were injured as floodwaters from overflowing rivers reached up to 18 feet in some locations.

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