Earth ChangesS


Volcano

Philippines: Mayon Volcano erupts, unleashes fast-moving pyroclastic flow, disrupts traffic, prompts warnings from authorities

Massive eruption of Mayon volcano in  the Philippines earlier today at 05:38 PM. Massive density of pyroclastic flows collapsed at the southwestern slope of  the volcano.
Massive eruption of Mayon volcano in the Philippines earlier today at 05:38 PM. Massive density of pyroclastic flows collapsed at the southwestern slope of the volcano.
Mayon Volcano erupted late on Saturday afternoon, unleashing a fast-moving pyroclastic flow and thick ash plume that disrupted traffic and prompted warnings from authorities.

The event involved a pyroclastic density current, locally known as "uson," which surged down the volcano's slopes.

Camera footage shows lava flow collapse-fed pyroclastic density current at the southwestern slopes of Mayon Volcano at 5:38 pm, as captured by the The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).


Tsunami

Early floods devastate Habiganj haors in Bangladesh; Boro farmers staring at heavy losses

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© Anamul haq Milad
Early flooding has submerged vast swathes of Boro paddy fields across Habiganj's haor areas, leaving thousands of farmers in uncertainty at the peak of the harvesting season.

According to Additional Deputy Director Deepak Kumar Biswas of Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) in Habiganj, paddy on 3,360 hectares have gone under water as of noon today, affecting more than 1,500 farmers.

An estimated 10,840 tonnes of ripe paddy have already been lost, he said.

Of the total affected land, 1,207 hectares are in Ajmiriganj upazila, with the rest spread across haor areas in other upazilas. However, the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) could not provide a breakdown of the damage outside Ajmiriganj.

Deepak added that nearly 49 percent of the ripe crop remains unharvested, warning that continued rainfall and rising water levels could significantly increase the losses.


Comment: Related report from 3 days prior: Northern Bangladesh faces early flood threat after record rainfall of 17.2 inches in 24 hours


Snowflake

Greece records coldest May Day in 70 years

Visuals from Mount Olympus capture the intensity of this weather system, showing heavy fog accumulation and fresh snowfall.
© Alina Zienowicz / Wikimedia commons CC BY-SA 3.0Visuals from Mount Olympus capture the intensity of this weather system, showing heavy fog accumulation and fresh snowfall.
This year's May Day has officially been recorded as the coldest in Greece in the last seventy years, as a sudden weather shift brought "winter" back to many parts of the country.

A sharp drop in temperature, accompanied by strong northern winds and heavy rainfall, resulted in an unusual scene for the season. Mercury levels plunged significantly below the seasonal average for early May.

Regional highlights

In Northern and Central Greece, maximum temperatures struggled to exceed 12 - 14°C (53.5°F-57°F), while in mountainous regions, unexpected snowfall was reported at higher altitudes.


Tsunami

Heavy rainfall hits South China, causes flooding, residents evacuated - 10 inches of rain in 24 hours and 8 inches in just 3 (UPDATES)

Stranded residents are transferred on a boat in Qinzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, April 27, 2026. Heavy rainfall hit Qinzhou on Monday.
© Ao Shuaichang/XinhuaStranded residents are transferred on a boat in Qinzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, April 27, 2026. Heavy rainfall hit Qinzhou on Monday.
A short-duration heavy rainfall hit Qinzhou, Qinzhou, South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, causing flash floods, and some schools announced class suspensions, local media reported.

According to the local fire department, 25 fire trucks and 150 firefighters were dispatched, and 30 trapped people had been urgently evacuated and relocated as of 11 am.


Comment: Update April 28

AP reports:
Heavy flooding from torrential rain left cars submerged and forced the evacuation of more than 200 residents in a southern Chinese city, state media reported Tuesday.

Rescue crews deployed inflatable boats to help relocate some residents trapped in their homes in Qinzhou city in Guangxi region, official news agency Xinhua reported. Video footage from Xinhua showed rescuers wading through chest-high water and firefighters carrying elderly residents in their arms.

Qinzhou authorities said the city's meteorological station recorded rainfall of over 270 millimeters (about 10 inches) during a 24-hour period ending at 8 a.m. on Monday. That was the highest amount recorded there on a single day in April.

The authorities quoted meteorological analyst Lin Nan in a WeChat post saying that such intense rainfall in South China's coastal regions typically occurs only after the arrival of the summer monsoon in mid to late May. It is rare to see such a heavy downpour in late April, Lin said.

On Tuesday morning, schools across the city resumed classes and traffic ran normally in most places, according to a news outlet operated by the Chinese emergency management authorities.
Update April 29




Rainbow

Mysterious green glow seen in Hawaii sky likely rare atmospheric phenomenon

green glow hawaii atmosphere gravity waves
© Jake AsuncionA green sky over Hawaii at sunset on April 25 and April 26.
A mysterious green ripple in the sky over Hawaii has flummoxed the government and military, but a rare atmospheric phenomenon is likely the culprit.

A strange green ripple was seen in the sky over Kailua-Kona in late April.

A video showing a mysterious green glow in the sky during sunset above Hawaii this weekend has perplexed officials.

KHON reports that the sight over Keahole Point on Saturday and Sunday flummoxed officials at the local Army base, Department of Transportation and Observatory. However, a rare low-light atmospheric phenomenon was the likely culprit.

Hardhat

Giant hailstones strike near Springfield, Missouri - smashing up cars and killing an emu at zoo

This is a huge hail stone that fell near Springfield, MO
This is a huge hail stone that fell near Springfield, MO
Hail pellets the size of softballs pelted the area near Springfield, Mo., on Tuesday, reportedly damaging cars, homes, and gas meters and even killing a 21-year-old emu at a local zoo.

Hail is basically made up of balls of frozen rain—during thunderstorms, as warm air carries rain droplets high up into the atmosphere, the rain freezes. As more water layers on top of a frozen droplet, it forms a hailstone. Some of the largest hailstones can fall as fast as 72 miles per hour, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

This week's hailstorm was "unusual" but "not unheard of" in the region at this time of year, says Alan Gerard, a former NOAA meteorologist and founder of the newsletter Balanced Weather.


Black Cat

4-year-old killed in lion attack in Gujarat, India - 5th such attack in the state in 5 months

4-year-old killed in lion attack in Una; Animal captured after night-long operation
4-year-old killed in lion attack in Una; Animal captured after night-long operation
A four-year-old girl was killed in a lion attack near Damasa village in Una taluka on Monday evening. The incident has left residents upset, with many questioning the forest department's vigilance in the area.

According to locals, the child was sitting on the porch of her house when a lion suddenly entered the premises, picked her up, and ran towards nearby fields. Villagers raised an alarm and chased the animal, but the girl was later found dead a short distance away.

Forest officials reached the spot and launched a search operation during the night. The lion was eventually tranquilised and captured within a few hours.

The incident has once again highlighted the growing concern of human-wildlife conflict in the region, especially in areas where lion movement is frequently reported.

Comment: See also: Lioness kills five-year-old boy in Gujarat, India - 4th such incident in the state in 4 months

To provide some context the whole of the Indian lion population (which exists solely in the state of Gujarat) according to Wikipedia stands at just 891 individuals:
[...]

The Indian population has steadily increased since 2010. In 2015, the 14th Asiatic Lion Census was conducted over an area of about 20,000 km2 (7,700 sq mi); the lion population was estimated at 523 individuals, and in 2017 at 650 individuals. In 2020 the population was 674 and by 2025 it had increased to 891.

[...]
Illustrating the rare and atypical nature of this event for Asiatic lions, Wikipedia also mentions only 2 other recent killings - in 2012 and 2013:
[...]

In July 2012, a lion dragged a man from the veranda of his house and killed him about 50 - 60 km (31 - 37 miles) from Gir Forest National Park. This was the second attack by a lion in this area, six months after a 25-year-old man was attacked and killed in Dhodada

[...]



Lightning

Deaths by lightning: An unsettling reality - Study shows nearly 4,000 killed from 2010-2023 in Bangladesh

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As farmers across the country worked in the fields on Saturday to bring in the season's largest rice harvest, 10 of them were killed by lightning in seven districts.

That very day (April 18), lightning also killed two fishermen.

These deaths once again highlight how Bangladesh's rural workforce remains dangerously exposed, despite government pledges to mitigate the impact of one of the country's deadliest weather hazards.

For the family of Abdul Kalam, a farmer who died after being struck by lightning in Tahirpur upazila of Sunamganj on Saturday, the loss is immediate and devastating.

His father, Abu Bakar, said, "My son died from lightning and left behind twin seven-year-old sons and a toddler daughter. Of my five sons, he was the only one who stayed with us and was the breadwinner of the family. Now, at the age of 70, I don't know how my family will survive."

Cloud Lightning

Lightning strikes kill 13 in nine districts of Bangladesh

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At least 13 people were killed by lightning strikes across nine districts on Wednesday amid ongoing storms and rainfall. The fatalities occurred between morning and afternoon.

Of them, four were reported in Patuakhali, two in Jamalpur, and one each in Gazipur, Mymensingh, Rangpur, Shariatpur, Barguna, Rajbari and Bagerhat.

In Patuakhali, four people, including a woman, were killed by lightning in Kalapara and Rangabali upazilas. All were engaged in agricultural work and were in open fields at the time.

According to police and local sources, Zahid Uddin (28) died around 1pm while working in a maize field in Tarikata village of Kalapara. Setara Begum (55) from East Chakamaiya village died around 2pm while taking cattle out to graze. At the same time, Khalek Howlader (55) of Shantipur village was struck while returning home with cattle from the field. Earlier, at around 9am, Sourav Majumder (22) from Charganga village in Rangabali was killed while bringing cattle from the field. The matter was confirmed by Officer-in-Charge (OC) Md Jasim Uddin of Rangabali Police Station and OC Nazrul Islam of Kalapara Police Station.

Cloud Precipitation

Poland: Scary photos show shocking damage to plane battered by hail after it flew into a violent storm: 'Serious threats'

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An image collage containing 2 images, Image 1 shows The front of an Airbus A320 shows significant damage, including large dents and stripped paint, after flying through a hailstorm, Image 2 shows Close-up of the front of a plane, with the nose cone showing severe damage and peeled paint from a hailstorm
Shocking photos show the horrific damage a plane sustained after flying into a severe hailstorm that forced the captain to abort the flight.

The Airbus A320 had departed Poland's Katowice-Pyrzowice Airport on April 21 and was en route to an undisclosed location when the aircraft encountered a violent thunderstorm.

The pilot attempted to circumvent the inclement conditions, only to fly straight into an onslaught of hail, which severely battered the aircraft, Jam Press reported. The airline has yet to be identified.

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The plane’s nose imploded after being struck by hail.
Left with few other options, the pilot made a midair U-turn and returned to its point of departure, landing safely.

However, the airplane didn't emerge from the ice storm unscathed. Footage released by Polish aviation maintenance firm LS Technics showed the extent of the damage, including a fuselage that was pockmarked with craters and a gaping hole in the nose cone.

In several places, the paint had peeled away, exposing the underlying structure.