Two hurricane-strength tropical cyclones have made landfall in Yemen in the past week. Last Tuesday, Cyclone Chapala made landfall in mainland Yemen, the first such landfall on record. On Sunday, Cyclone Megh made landfall on the Yemeni island of Socotra as the equivalent of a category three hurricane. That is not normal.

Cyclone Chapala made a historic landfall along the coast of Yemen early on Tuesday, becoming the first hurricane-strength storm to make landfall there since reliable records began. The cyclone came ashore near Al Mukalla, an Al Qaeda-controlled city that’s home to more than 100,000 people.