Earth ChangesS


Windsock

100 meter high sandstorm sweeps across Kashgar in northwest China


CCTV America
Tue, 17 May 2016 15:26 UTC
Sandstorm in Kashgar, China
© YouTube/CCTV America (screen capture)
This is not computer-generated scenes for Hollywood big-money thrillers. It is a real sandstorm sweeping across the Kashgar Prefecture in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region late Monday.

With walls of packed sands falling over and on people and buildings from as high as 100 meters, visibility was reduced to arm's length at best. Local meteorological authorities issued an orange alert the second highest severity. Massive sandstorms have hit Tumxuk City and Minfeng County in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region since Monday.

A powerful sandstorm swept Tumxuk on Monday evening. Videos shot by local residents show that a huge amount of sand and dust was blown about a hundred meters high, and the visibility on roads was reduced to less than five meters.The sandstorm lasted for four hours with strong winds, dusty weather and temperature slump.

Affected by a strong cold wave, a sandstorm hit Minfeng County in Hutan Prefecture at around 06:00 on Tuesday. The maximum wind speed of 9.4 meters per second lowered the visibility to less than 60 meters, destroying trees and billboards along roads.


Comment: Some other sandstorms to hit China in recent weeks include:

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Cloud Precipitation

17 people killed and 4 missing in western Indonesia floods


Daily Mail
Mon, 16 May 2016 19:17 UTC
Rescuers recover the body of a victim after a flood hit Dua Warna waterfall in Sibolangit, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, May 16, 2016. Nearly two dozen students were missing in rain-triggered floods and landslides at the waterfall which is popular tou
© AP Photo/Binsar BakkaraRescuers recover the body of a victim after a flood hit Dua Warna waterfall in Sibolangit, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, May 16, 2016. Nearly two dozen students were missing in rain-triggered floods and landslides at the waterfall which is popular tourism attraction among locals.
Rescuers on Monday found the bodies of 17 people who were among 20 university students and two guides who went missing in rain-triggered floods and landslides at a popular waterfall in western Indonesia, an official said.

One student was found alive and was being treated at a hospital, said Darwin Surbakti, an official from the local Disaster Management Agency. The search for the four people still missing was to be resumed Tuesday.

"Rescuers have discovered 17 bodies, of which 14 have been recovered while three others are still under the rubble," Surbakti said.

The disaster occurred Sunday as more than 70 students were visiting the Dua Warna waterfall in Sibolangit in North Sumatra province.

Six bodies were found about 3 kilometers (2 miles) downstream from the waterfall, Surbakti said.

Rescuers search for victims after a flood hit Dua Warna waterfall in Sibolangit, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, May 16, 2016. Nearly two dozen students were missing in rain-triggered floods and landslides at the waterfall which is popular tourism attra
© AP Photo/Binsar BakkaraRescuers search for victims after a flood hit Dua Warna waterfall in Sibolangit, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, May 16, 2016. Nearly two dozen students were missing in rain-triggered floods and landslides at the waterfall which is popular tourism attraction among locals.
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Cloud Lightning

Infant miraculously survives lightning bolt that kills both parents in Jharkhand, India


The Huffington Post
Tue, 17 May 2016 19:02 UTC
Lightning
A tribal couple was yesterday killed while their infant daughter escaped when lightning struck them at Ranighaghar village, police said.

The victim couple, Mukesh Hembram and Suhagini Soren, along with their seven-month-old daughter were returning to their home at Jamjori when rain accompanied by thunderbolt lashed the area, Officer in-charge of Jamjori police station, Rampukar Singh said.

The couple took shelter under a tree near a pond where they were struck by the lightning, he said, adding, they were killed instantly while the child fell from her mother's lap and escaped death.

The child was reported to be safe, Singh added.

Source: PTI
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Hourglass

Study: Within 50 years mega-tsunami may strike & devastate Hawaii


RT
Sun, 15 May 2016 18:52 UTC
Tsunami
© File photo. Chilean Navy / AFPNaval officers monitoring the islands of Hawaii before an imminent hit by a tsunami following a powerful earthquake off Japan, in the port city of Valparaiso, 120 km northwest of Santiago.
There is a possibility that within the next 50 years, a large earthquake will hit Alaska and generate a tsunami that would cover Hawaii, leaving the island state in utter devastation.

Researchers at the University of Hawaii at Manoa have found that there is slight, but potential chance of about 6.5-12 percent that a 9+ magnitude earthquake will rock the Aleutian Islands and trigger a mega-tsunami that could easily reach Hawaii, disrupting its infrastructure and economy, the study published Friday in the Journal of Geophysical Research says.
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Attention

Dead whale found on beach in Sonoma County, California

Hannah Albarazi
sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com
Mon, 16 May 2016 18:38 UTC
Dead whale spotted near Bodega Bay.
© Sonoma County Sheriff's OfficeDead whale spotted near Bodega Bay.
A dead whale was spotted in the surf at a Sonoma County beach on Monday afternoon.

According to the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office, the dead whale was spotted at Salmon Creek Beach by crew aboard one of their helicopters on Monday afternoon.

Neither the type of whale nor the cause of its death was immediately reported by the Sheriff's Office.
Today, our helicopter Henry1 spotted this dead whale in the surf at Salmon Creek Beach pic.twitter.com/3bUY1k7rO3

— sonomasheriff (@sonomasheriff) May 16, 2016
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Cloud Lightning

Shocking update: Lightning strikes kill 81 people in just two days in Bangladesh


The Indian Express
Tue, 17 May 2016 13:50 UTC
Lightning
"Such a high casualty figure in lightning just in two days is rare not only in Bangladesh but also in the world," disaster management minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya said.

At least 81 people were killed by lightning strikes in Bangladesh in two days during the recent spell of thunderstorms, a rare high casualty in the country attributed to climate change by the authorities.

"Such a high casualty figure in lightning just in two days is rare not only in Bangladesh but also in the world,"disaster management minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya told a media briefing at his office. "The intensity of lightning has increased in recent years due to climate change sparking a massive public fear," he said.

Secretary of the ministry Shah Kamal said that the government included lightning in the list of natural disaster since August last year in view of its growing intensity claiming 81 lives on May 12 and 13 alone in 26 districts. Most of the deaths occurred in rural parts of north and central Bangladesh. According to official count, lightning killed 17 people last year.
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Alarm Clock

Swarm of earthquakes recorded under Mount Hood, Oregon

Tony Hernandez
OregonLive.com
Mon, 16 May 2016 08:36 UTC
Mount Hood, Oregon
© Andre Meunier/StaffFile photo -- The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network and the U.S. Geological Survey websites are reporting almost two dozen tremors in 24 hours around the Mount Hood Village area as of 8 a.m. May 16, 2016.
Scientists are monitoring a swarm of earthquakes on Mount Hood in the past 24 hours, but there's no cause for alarm, a geophysicist said Monday morning.

The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network and the U.S. Geological Survey websites reported more than five dozen in the Mount Hood Village area as of 11:30 a.m.

The 62 minor earthquakes registered less than 2.0 magnitude and began about 6 p.m. Sunday, according to the seismic network website.

Most of the tremors are clustered east of Timberline Highway and north of U.S. 35 in Mount Hood Village, an area designated by the U.S. Census that included a population of 4,864 in 2010.

Mount Hood has experienced at least 72 earthquakes in 30 days, according to the seismic network.

John Vidale, director of the seismic network, said his data indicates the tremors have been occurring along a fault three miles deep on the south of the volcano.

"Swarms are pretty common around here, and this is probably the biggest one in Hood for a few years," Vidale said.
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Wolf

Young boy killed by family pit bull terrier in Durban, South Africa


Times Live
Mon, 16 May 2016 17:34 UTC
Pit bull
© Gallo Images
A three-year-old boy died of extensive injuries after being attacked by a pit bull in Durban on Monday.

Netcare 911 said paramedics called out to a dog bite incident arrived at a family home in Umlazi at 11:39 and found the child lying on the kitchen floor with "extensive injuries from the violent attack".

Reports from the scene indicated that the dog was owned by the child's family.

"Reports indicate that the child was attacked in the garden and was then moved to the house by family members.

Tragically, it was found that the child had died before our arrival due to the extensive injuries that he sustained over the entire body," the emergency service said on their Facebook page.

Police are investigating the incident.
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Fire

Another 'out-of-control' wildfire forces evacuation in Alberta; state of local emergency issued in province's northwest


CTV News
Mon, 16 May 2016 12:59 UTC
Fox Creek wildfire, Alberta
© Fox Creek Fire Department, FacebookAn out of control wildfire is burning 10 kilometres north of Fox Creek, near the North Trilogy plant.
A rapidly growing wildfire has sparked another mandatory evacuation order in Alberta, this time in the province's northwest.

A state of local emergency was issued Sunday evening in the Municipal District of Greenview because of a blaze between Fox Creek and the hamlet of Little Smoky, about 260 km northwest of Edmonton.

Provincial officials say the fire is near an energy industry plant and is burning on either side of Highway 43.

The evacuation order does not apply to the Town of Fox Creek or the Hamlet of Little Smoky. No road closures are in effect at this time.

Evacuees have been asked to report to a reception centre at the Paradise Inn in Valleyview, east of Grande Prairie. Residents are asked to check in even if they don't want to stay at the hotel.

Small pets are welcome at the hotel. Large animals and outside pets will be sheltered at the Valleyview Agricultural Grounds.

The temperature is expected to rise through the week, with rain not expected until Wednesday. The muncipality had previously instituted a fire ban, applying to any outdoor fires and use of off-road vehicles on public land due to the extremely dry conditions.

Comment: Wildfire seasons are more destructive and lasting longer almost everywhere on Earth

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Attention

24 pilot whales die following beaching in Baja California, Mexico


The Bellingham Herald
Sun, 15 May 2016 13:39 UTC
Beached pilot whales
Beached pilot whales
Two dozen pilot whales died after beaching themselves on the Baja California Peninsula despite efforts to move them into deeper waters, Mexico's navy say Sunday.

The statement said naval personnel worked along with soldiers, environmental ministry agents and local fishermen trying to save the whales on the western shore of the Gulf of California.

Only three of the 27 whales that came ashore were saved, the statement said. Some whales returned to the beach after being led into deeper water.

The statement speculated the mammals were disoriented, saying no signs of injuries were noted.


Source: The Associated Press
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