Earth ChangesS


Attention

Shaking all over! Magnitude-4.8 earthquake detected in waters near Warrnambool, Australia


abc.net.au
Thu, 17 Sep 2015 17:29 UTC
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© Geoscience AustraliaGeoscience Australia said the earthquake was 36 kilometres deep.
A magnitude-4.8 earthquake has been detected in waters off Victoria's south-west coast, Geoscience Australia says.

It happened about 150 kilometres from the town of Warrnambool at 12:45pm and was also felt on King Island in Bass Strait.

The Bureau of Meteorology said no tsunami warning had been issued while Geoscience Australia said there were no reports of damage.

Seismologist Hugh Glanville said it was unlikely the tremor was triggered by a powerful quake that hit Chile just hours earlier.

"There is always a remote possibility that big earthquakes could trigger off smaller earthquakes in other parts of the world," he said.

"If an earthquake was about to happen and then the shaking from a really big earthquake gave it a little push, that could push it over the edge, but it's really hard to determine.
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Cloud Precipitation

Floods leave 4 dead, many homeless in Freetown, Sierra Leone

Richard Davies
Floodlist
Wed, 16 Sep 2015 15:03 UTC
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© Develop Africa
Major flooding brought by torrential rain hit parts of Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, yesterday 16 September, 2015.

In a statement issued late yesterday, the government confirmed that 4 people have been killed in the floods and many left injured The situation is considered so dire that the government have requested all but essential workers to remain at home today, 17 September 2015.

Homeless

The government said that many have been left homeless by the flooding. The government said that Siaka Stevens stadium, Attouga stadium and the open field at ferry junction have been prepared as emergency settlements for those displaced by the floods.

The flooding has devastated several settlements around the capital. Flood water is said to be over 1 metre deep in many places. Many local observers in Freetown are saying this is some of the is the worst destruction and devastation they have seen in recent years.

One of the worst hit areas is Kroo Bay. Via his Twitter feed, Sierra Leone journalist, Umaru Fofana, said:
"Terrible what I just saw. Just emerged from Kroo Bay - Sierra Leone's largest slum - which is completely inundated".
The video below was posted on Facebook yesterday and is thought to be of the devastation brought by the flooding in Kroo Bay, Sierra Leone.

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© Develop Africa

Comment: Flooding reports in 2015 are approaching the high number noted around this time of year in 2014 -



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Arrow Down

Drone film gives terrifying glimpse of growing sinkhole in northeast Russia


RT
Wed, 16 Sep 2015 13:17 UTC
Image
Ruptly
Northeast Russia's apocalyptic sinkhole that has swallowed up everything above it keeps growing bigger. A RUPTLY drone has provided a better picture of the scale of damage.

The city of Solikamsk was first hit by the disaster in November 2014. Then, it was a modest 30 meters (98 feet) wide in diameter. But it's since grown to a whopping 125 meters, causing increasing damage to its rural surroundings.

And the sinkhole shows no sign of a slowing appetite, as the collapsing soil keeps sucking up nearby houses. It is estimated to be about 75 meters deep, and can already be seen from space.

It's thought the gaping hole emerged following underground floods at Solikamsk-2's mine, owned by the world's number one potash producer, Uralkali.

The crater's origin is different from the natural phenomenon that is behind the craters in northern regions of Siberia, which have recently stunned scientists. Craters in permafrost regions are linked to the process of erosion and gas hydrates in the soil, which leads to underground explosions.

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Cloud Lightning

Lightning bolt kills 1, injures 6 in Iloilo, Philippines

Joel Franco
newsinfo.inquirer.net
Wed, 16 Sep 2015 12:36 UTC
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One person was killed while six others were injured on Wednesday afternoon when a lightning struck a hut in Banrangay Calicuang in Dingle town in Iloilo.

The lone fatality was identified as Jojo Arban of Lemery town in Iloilo who went to the farm to work as a laborer.

Wounded were Roland Tuazon, 34; Reyland Teñeso, 28; and Herminildo Tamayo, 55 all of Barangay Tanghawan in Dingle; Reymund Daraug, 22 of Barangay San Jose, Dingle; Ninoy Narciso, 25 of Daraug Street in Dingle and Danny Dusaran, 36 of Barotac Viejo town.

The victims took shelter in the middle of a farm to take shelter from the heavy rain about 3 p.m. Suddenly, they heard a loud explosion and were thrown out of the hut.

"We were having shelter at the hut when we heard a huge explosion and we felt our bodies were trembling and the hut was shaking," Tuazon said in Hiligaynon.

Arban, the lone fatality, fell in the canal.

​The survivors were confined at Iloilo Provincial Hospital in Pototan town. They complained of body aches and dizziness.

Comment: Not previously covered by Sott, here are some links to other recent reports of single deaths caused by lightning so far in September from across the world -

Sri Lanki: 42-year-old man struck down by lightning

Philippines: Lightning kills fisher

Uganda: Lightning Kills One, Injures Two

U.S.: Lightning strike kills Lehi woman

India: Lightning kills farmer in Peddagummadpally village

Bangladesh: Lightning kills schoolgirl

Philippines: Woman killed by lightning strike

All of which seems to indicate that there's no let up in the increasing amount of lightning strike fatalities occurring on the planet lately. See also: Update: Lightning kills 32 in two Indian states within a day

Sott Exclusive: Shocking weather! Lightning fatalities across the planet on the increase

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Attention

3.2 earthquake strikes Croatian capital Zagreb

Cyrus Engineer
Daily Express, UK
Tue, 15 Sep 2015 09:18 UTC
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A quake measuring 3.2 on the Richter scale struck the Croatian city of Zagreb on Tuesday evening.

Alistair Bruce-Ball, a BBC sports journalist, tweeted: "Just experienced minor earthquake in Zagreb.

"Stadium shook. Arsenal here for start of their Champs Lge Grp tmw.

"Maksimir stadium still standing. Tremor measured at 3.2 apparently."

The earthquake's magnitude and timing was reported by the EMSC, a not-for-profit scientific organisation based in Paris.

Comment: Is this seismic event nature reflecting back the human chaos currently evident is this part of the world at the moment? Croatian police say 5,650 migrants have entered Croatia so far

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Bizarro Earth

Chile 8.3 mega-quake: 1 million evacuated, at least 5 dead & 20 injured


RT
Thu, 17 Sep 2015 00:00 UTC
Chile earthquake
© Vladimir Rodas / AFPPeople remain outside a building during a strong quake in Santiago on September 16, 2015

A massive 8.3 magnitude quake followed by a series of aftershocks has rocked the Chilean coastline, shaking houses and forcing people to evacuate into the streets as authorities issued tsunami warnings for the area.

17 September 2015
  • 04:55 GMT

    ONEMI has canceled Tsunami warnings for the Island of San Felix and Juan Fernandez Archipelago in addition to the regions of Los Rios, Los Lagos, Aysen and Magallanes. However, the rest of the coastline remains under tsunami alert.
  • 04:54 GMT

    President Bachelet has declared a "disaster area in the town of Choapa," according to Chilean Deputy Interior Minister, Mahmud Aleuy.
  • 04:41 GMT

Comment: Remember this?

Massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake strikes Chile

Now consider this:

Earthquake frequency increasing: Rate of strong quakes doubles in 2014

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Attention

Half of ocean life has died out within the past 45 years says study


RT
Wed, 16 Sep 2015 02:38 UTC
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© Antonio Bronic / Reuters
Overfishing and other similar threats have caused the number of fish and animals in the ocean to have halved since 1970 with conservation group WWF calling the situation 'critical'.

Not only fish are dying out: The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) study tracked the populations of some 1,234 species, such as seals, turtles, dolphins and sharks.

"There is a massive, massive decrease in species which are critical," said Marco Lambertini, director general of WWF International.

When it comes to dinner staples such as tuna or mackerel, populations have fallen by a shocking 75 percent since the seventies, according to a study by the WWF and the Zoological Society of London (ZSL).

Unfortunately all the threats are man-made. The study claims that the global fishing fleet is too big, and between $14bn and $35bn go into supporting it every year.

Comment: There may be more going on here than than just over-fishing and pollution. The Sixth Extinction and grander cosmic phenomenon need consideration as well.

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Umbrella

First tsunami waves triggered by 8.3 earthquake strike Chilean coastline


RT
Thu, 17 Sep 2015 01:28 UTC
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© Esteban Zuniga/AFP
The first tsunami waves triggered by a massive 8.3 earthquake have reached the Chilean coastline, according to local reports.

There were no immediate reports of any major damage caused by the tsunami waves. Earlier, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center cautioned that some coastal areas of Chile could see waves reaching more than three meters above the tide level.
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Bizarro Earth

Huge 8.3 earthquake, 5 aftershocks hit Chile, tsunami warning issued


RT
Wed, 16 Sep 2015 23:22 UTC
Illapel Quake_160915
© USGS
A powerful 8.3 magnitude earthquake followed by five strong aftershocks has struck off the coast of central Chile. Authorities have issued tsunami warning for the area, urging people along the coastline to evacuate.

"Based on the preliminary earthquake parameters ... widespread hazardous tsunami waves are possible," the Warning Center said, adding that greatest danger was for Chile and Peru.

Tsunami waves "along some coasts" of Chile could reach more than three meters above the tide level, PTWC warned. In Ecuador and Peru waves of up to one meter are possible.

The quake, which had originally been estimated as a magnitude 7.9, occurred at 7:54pm local time, 55 kilometers west-northwest of Illapel, and 232 kilometers north-northwest of Santiago, the USGS reported. Its epicenter center was located at a depth of 33 kilometers.

The earthquake prompted the National Emergency Office (ONEMI) to issue a tsunami alert for the entire coastline, as it urged people to "remain calm and go to the meeting points in security zones."

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Fish

Kayakers nearly crushed to death by huge whale


RT
Wed, 16 Sep 2015 13:34 UTC
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© Sanctuary Cruises / YouTube
Two kayakers miraculously escape death after a massive humpback whale launched itself out of the water and nearly crushed them outside Moss Landing harbor in California, a viral YouTube video shows.

"We stopped to see a large aggregation of humpbacks feeding and carrying on with random acts of hijinks. There were also a lot of kayakers right in the middle of it all," wrote Sanctuary Cruises, a whale-watching group which shot the footage.
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