Storm Harry Was Officially The Strongest Storm Ever Recorded In Malta

Storm Harry was the strongest storm ever recorded in Malta, according to data collected by the Oceanography Malta Research Group within the Department of Geosciences at the University of Malta.

Measurements from a nationwide marine and coastal monitoring network show that the storm, which struck on 20 January 2026, exceeded all previous events in terms of wave height, wind strength and duration.

During Storm Harry, the BLUE buoy, deployed more than four kilometres offshore from the Grand Harbour by OMRG in collaboration with the Environment and Resources Authority, recorded a maximum wave height of 13.1 metres.

This is the highest wave ever measured in Maltese waters.

The buoy also measured a peak wind gust of around 95 kilometres per hour. Crucially, extreme conditions persisted for around 40 hours, with sustained winds exceeding 15 metres per second.

By comparison, a second severe weather event between 26 and 29 January produced similar gusts of up to 92 kilometres per hour but lasted for only about nine hours.

Coastal HF radar stations operated by OMRG captured how the sea reacted to the storm, recording surface currents of up to 80 centimetres per second. These radars, linked with similar systems in Sicily, provided near real time maps of water movement, essential for maritime safety and emergency response.

Fixed underwater monitoring stations also showed intense mixing through the water column, with sensors measuring temperature, salinity, oxygen and pH every hour down to 50 metres.

Storm Harry was also marked by exceptional electrical activity. OMRG detected 667 lightning strikes across the central Mediterranean on 20 January, including 113 within 50 kilometres of Malta and eight over land.

All observations were consistent across multiple instruments, confirming the scale of the event. The monitoring network is managed by Prof. Adam Gauci, with live data publicly available at www.ocean.mt.

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