Extreme Weather Of The Week (PHOTOS)

Extreme weather continues into 2013 in the U.S. Midwest, as last year's prolonged drought remains in several states. Parts of some states have received more than a foot of snow in recent weeks, according to the Associated Press, "But climatologists say it would take at least 8 feet of snow – and likely far more – to return the soil to its pre-drought condition in time for spring planting."

The House of Representatives passed a $9.7 billion bill on Friday to pay flood insurance claims from Hurricane Sandy. The Senate -- which approved a $60 billion in Sandy aid pacage in late December -- also passed the partial relief bill.

Outside the U.S., Cyclone Dumile slammed the French island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean this week, destroying a highway and damaging the electric network with heavy rain and 110 mile per hour winds. Find images of the damage to Réunion below.

A new documentary from CNN examines extreme weather in the U.S. and the beginning of what scientists have dubbed a "superstorm era" following Hurricane Sandy. CNN national correspondent David Mattingly told HuffPost, "[Storms like Sandy] are coming more frequently and more powerfully than they have in the past. We know that."

Click here to read about the worst natural disasters of 2012 and some of the year's most extreme weather.

Find photos of some of the week's most extreme weather below: