Earth ChangesS


Bizarro Earth

Tsunami warning lifted in El Salvador and Nicaragua after 7.0 magnitude earthquake strikes in Pacific Ocean

El Salvador earthquake map
© USGSThe 7.0 magnitude quake struck at a depth of 20 miles (33 kilometers), some 96 miles (154km) south-southwest of Puerto Triunfo in El Salvador

Earthquake hits, triggering tsunami warnings, after Nicaragua Caribbean coastline battered by hurricane


A 7.0 magnitude earthquake has shaken El Salvador and Nicaragua, just an hour after a powerful hurricane hit Nicaragua's eastern coast.

The double whammy was a grim test for a largely poor region which lacks resources and emergency plans for natural disasters.

Salvadoran authorities issued a tsunami alert as a precaution after the tremor, which struck around 75 miles off the coast of El Salvador, at a depth of 20 miles beneath the Pacific Ocean, according to the US Geological Survey. The quake was first measured at a magnitude of 7.2 but was then downgraded.

"Hazardous" waves measuring about up to 1m (three feet) were anticipated to hit coastal areas within 300km of the quake's epicentre. Officals warned anyone living on the Pacific coast of El Salvador to withdraw at least 1km away from the shore.

The tsunami warnings were lifted within hours of the earthquake on Thursday, according to the assistant director of the Sinapred national disaster prevention agency, Guillermo Gonzalez, said at a press conference.

Mr Gonzales said they would continue to monitor the threat from hurricane Otto, which continued to dump heavy rain and winds on Nicaragua.

Fire

Wildfires in Israel force over 80,000 people to evacuate Haifa, Netanyahu blames 'arsonist terrorism'

Israeli firefighters
© Baz Ratner / ReutersFirefighters work as a wildfire burns in the northern city of Haifa, Israel November 24, 2016.
Tens of thousands of people were told to immediately evacuate Israel's third largest city, Haifa, as wildfires encouraged by extreme wind rage through the country for the third day.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blamed "arsonist terrorism" for the blaze.

More than 80,000 people were forced to leave their homes and rush from Haifa while authorities struggle to bring the fire under control. It has been spreading especially quickly due to dry weather and strong winds.

Arrow Down

Huge sinkhole opens up in Selly Oak, UK

The damage to Harborne Lane Island
The damage to Harborne Lane Island
A huge sinkhole has opened up in Harborne Lane after a burst water mains disaster flooded Selly Oak.

Millions of gallons of water cascaded down the road and into surrounding streets, with many areas remaining shut to traffic until at least the weekend.

Harborne Lane will remain shut from the new roundabout at the junction of the A38 up to the petrol station just before the junction with Quinton Road.

A river of water surged down the roads yesterday after the water mains burst turning the area into a raging torrent.

Seven Trent Water said the pipe had now been switched off and the water drained but the the company was working on cleaning up and starting repairs.

There was a huge crater where the burst pipe was situated in Harborne Lane.

Cloud Precipitation

Northern Italy on high alert, battered by 3 days of heavy rainstorms

Floods Italy
Severe weather warnings have been put in place in parts of northern Italy as more storms are expected on Thursday, following three days of heavy rain.

Liguria and Piedmont are at highest risk, with red and orange alerts (the two highest levels) across the two regions.

Bad weather can also be expected across the north, with yellow alerts in place in Valle d'Aosta, Tuscany and Lombardy and particularly strong rains predicted for Thursday afternoon and evening.

The video below shows the heavy rain in Liguria on Wednesday, where around 300mm of rain has fallen in the past three days, with 600mm in one area, Fiorino in Genoa, Liguria.




Wolf

Three women recovering from grisly wounds after dogs attack in Cache County, Utah

Dog attack
Three Millville women are recovering from grisly wounds after being attacked by two dogs Tuesday afternoon.

One of those dogs, a 4-year-old pit bull, was euthanized Wednesday morning, according to her owners.

Sierra Coe credits two Good Samaritans who risked their own safety to help her after the dogs rushed at her and wouldn't back down outside the Millville Post Office.

Laura Ferguson was one of those women.

On Wednesday evening, she sat in her living room with her legs elevated and bandages covering her leg, arm and ankle.

"This one bled a lot," she said, pointing to her knee.

Her arm and leg have deep puncture marks. Her ankle is the worst off, with a gaping hole exposed to the bone.

Bizarro Earth

7.2 magnitude quake strikes off the coast of El Salvador - Tsunami alert issued

El Salvador Earthquake
© USGS
Details to follow. USGS report.

Wolf

Vicious attack by dog pack leaves three hospitalised in western Sydney, Australia

Dog attack
A blood-spattered driveway is a stark reminder of a vicious dog attack that wounded three people, including a police officer.

Not even tasers were enough to subdue the three savage dogs who attacked Diane, 43, and her partner Peter, 48, outside their Penrith home in western Sydney on Wednesday night.

The animal's owner, Kirk Wake, 29, has been charged after failing to keep the dogs locked up, according to 9 News.

Two of the dogs were described as being of American Staffordshire-cross-Pitbull appearance.


Attention

Ailing humpback whale stranded on New York sandbar euthanized

Veterinary team from NOAA, the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation, International Fund for Animal Welfare, and North Carolina State University assess the stranded humpback whale.
© NOAAVeterinary team from NOAA, the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation, International Fund for Animal Welfare, and North Carolina State University assess the stranded humpback whale.
An ailing humpback whale that became grounded on a sandbar in a bay was euthanized on Wednesday, three days after rescuers first tried to set it free.

The death of the whale, which weighed between 15 and 20 tons and was about 33 feet long, angered some environmentalists and locals who had watched the rescue effort. One state senator called for a hearing into the failed rescue.

Officials with the Riverhead Foundation of Marine Research and Preservation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration insisted the best chance for the whale's escape was hoping a high tide would allow it to free itself, but that never occurred.

They suggested it was likely the whale may have been ailing and that was the reason it became stranded in Moriches Bay, on eastern Long Island. The shallow bay has rarely been the site of whale visits.



Cloud Lightning

Gardener killed and colleague severly injured by lightning bolt in Malaysia

Lightning death
© TBP
A gardener was killed while his colleague sustained injuries when they were struck by lightning at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan(SMK) Datuk Peter Mojuntin here on Tuesday.

Fazlie Lai Fauzi, 36, succumbed to his injuries at the scene while his colleague, Maidah Banir, 46, is reported to be in critical condition at the intensive care unit of Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH).

It was learnt that both victims were working in the school compound when the incident happened around 3.20pm.

District police chief DSP Rosley Hobden confirmed the incident and said the injured victim was still being treated in hospital for his injuries.

Police have classified the case as a sudden death report due to lightning.

Source: The Borneo Post

Snowflake

More weird weather hits Australia; snow falls in Tasmania just days ahead of summer

snow in Tasmania November 2016
© Tasmanian Rover Ski Club.Snow falling in Tassie has sent internet punters into a tail spin.
Just when you think the weather in Australia can't get any weirder, it always manages to, and then some.

With summer merely days away it has begun to snow in Tasmania.

Footage shows snow falling in our southern most state late Wednesday afternoon has gone viral and left internet users stunned.

The footage was uploaded to the Tasmanian Rover Ski Club social media accounts as a possible last minute push for potential ski bunnies to flock to the slopes.

"It is only 7 days until summer though you would not think that on Ben Lomond late this afternoon," the post reads.

The footage has been viewed over 170,000 times since it was first posted.

The temperature today in Tasmania will reach a low of 7 degrees.

Tasmanians could be witnessing a new trend, the Apple Isle having been struck by out-of-season around the same time last November and again in February this year.

In stark contrast, neighbouring Victoria this week experienced severe thunderstorms, high winds, grassfires and a steep drop in temperature from a November record high - all in one day.