Brrrr... Record Cold Hits Central Asia-- 654 Dead in Afghanistan

January 2008 was globally the 2nd Coldest in 15 Years.

Record low temperatures killed at least 654 people in Afghanistan this winter.

Afghan refugees look on as they wait to get relief during a relief distribution by UNICEF in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2008. Bitter cold weather and heavy snow left at least 37 people dead in central Afghanistan, a provincial governor said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

An Afghan official said at least 654 people have died from the record low temperatures.
The AP Singapore reported

Bitter cold, snowstorms and avalanches have killed at least 654 people in Afghanistan this winter, a government official said.

Weather-related incidents have also left 84 people injured and killed at least 100,000 cattle, said Abdul Matin Edrak, head of the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Commission.

Afghanistan is one of the world's poorest countries and is largely mountainous, with winter temperatures often plunging well below freezing.

Neighboring Turkmenistan sent aid to help the Afghan people cope with the extreme conditions.

An Afghan refugee woman along with her daughter waits for relief during a relief distribution by UNICEF in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2008. (AP Photo)

January 2008 was chilly.
The month of January was globally the second coldest January in 15 years- via Instapundit.
Watts up with that reported:

There has been a global drop in temperature of 0.63 degrees Centigrade in the past 12 months.

Of course we already have had a heads up from all the wire reports around the world talking about the significant winter weather events that have occurred worldwide in the last month, but until now, there hasn’t been a measure of how the planet was doing for the winter of 2007/2008.

Remote Sensing Systems of Santa Rosa just posted the latest MSU (Microwave Sounder Unit) data.

January posted a -.08°C near global anomaly between -70S and 82.5N latitude (the viewshed of the satellite sounder). That makes it the coldest month since January 2000, and the 2nd coldest January for the planet in 15 years. Both northern and southern hemispheres posted negative anomalies of -.120°C and -.038°C respectively, happening for the first time since January 2000.

Previously:
Brrrr... Antarctica Records Record High Ice Cap Growth
Brrrr... South America Has Coldest Winter in a 90 Years
Brrrr... Iraqis See First Snow in 100 Years As Sign of Peace
Brrrr... Worst Snowstorms in a Decade in China Cause Rioting
Brrrr... Jerusalem Grinds to a Halt As Rare Snowstorm Blasts City
Brrrr... Worst Snowstorms in 50 Years Continue to Cripple China
Brrrr... China Suffers Coldest Winter in 100 Years
Brrrr... Pakistan Suffers Lowest Temps in 70 Years-- 260 Dead

UPDATE: More on global cooling HERE.
Hat Tip Steve Carter