Earth ChangesS


Arrow Down

Hiker films 20-metre deep sinkhole in field in Lingenfeld, Germany on March 24

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A man witnessed a giant sinkhole appear in the middle of a field, while he was on a hike.

In a short video clip, the walker edges towards the mysterious hole and appears to be shocked by the depth - an estimated 20m.

The sinkhole arose from the collapse of the soil in an area with underground rivers, in Lingenfeld, Germany.


Cloud Lightning

Florida coast hit by 4,000 lightning strikes in 15 minutes—'Absolutely Nuts'

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Nearly 4,000 lightning bolts struck off the southwest Florida coast in just 15 minutes on Wednesday.

A total of 3,946 lightning strikes were recorded in the Gulf of Mexico west of the cities of Naples and Fort Myers, according to WINK in Fort Myers.

"WOW! Mother Nature going absolutely nuts off the Southwest Florida coast right now," Matt Devitt, the chief meteorologist at the station, wrote on X, formerly Twitter. "4,000 lightning strikes with this storm in just 15 minutes. Check out the lightning density and tight clustering of strikes in the bottom image."

Fish

Emergency response initiated as sawfish deaths rise to 28 in Florida Keys

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An emergency effort is kicking off next week to help save endangered smalltooth sawfish, as their reported deaths has risen to 28.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Wednesday that it will begin a program to rescue and rehabilitate distressed sawfish to prevent further loss of the species.

In a press release announcing the effort, NOAA explained that it would be the first of its kind.

"If the opportunity presents itself, this would be the first attempt ever to rescue and rehabilitate smalltooth sawfish from the wild," said Adam Brame, NOAA Fisheries' sawfish recovery coordinator.

In addition to the 28 mortalities, at least 109 sawfish have been reported acting abnormally.


Comment: Earlier report from 3 weeks prior: Bizarre fish behavior baffles experts in Lower Florida Keys


Snowflake

High avalanche danger in southern Alps following over 2 feet snowfalls in 24 hours

Vars has received 60cm (2 feet) of snowfall in 24 hours.
Vars has received 60cm (2 feet) of snowfall in 24 hours.
The avalanche danger has jumped from level 2 ('moderate') to a 'high' level 4 on the scale to 5 at ski areas across the region after several reported over two-feet (60 cm) of snowfall in about 24 hours on Tuesday-Wednesday this week.

Isola 2000, Serre Chevalier and Risoul-Vars in the southern French Alps were among the areas posting 60cm (24") accumulations on their higher slopes, with Les 2 Alpes also noting that the avalanche danger there had jumped to level 4.


Helicopter

Military helicopters evacuate over 100 people from flood affected areas in Kazakhstan

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© Ministry of Defense of Kazakhstan
In accordance with the order of the Kazakh Ministry of Defense, the military personnel of thge Air Defense Forces military units left for Kostanay, Aktobe and West Kazakhstan and Abay regions to assist in evacuation of local people from flood-affected areas, Kazinform News Agency reports.

Military crews of Mi-171Sh, Mi-17 and Mi-8 transport and combat helicopters are involved in the search and rescue operation.

In Kostanay region, the pilots have evacuated 102 people including 32 children from flood-hit Kyzylzhulduz, Yekidin villages and nearby wintering grounds. The flood victims are being transported to Arkalyk town. Flights are carried out over a distance of 130 - 150 km. The helicopters are flown by colonels Kairat Tugelov, Vladimir Semyonov, lieutenant colonel Mirshat Sagindikov, major Askhat Seilov and senior lieutenant Yerssyn Zhumanov.


Cloud Precipitation

Flooding in Lisbon causes chaos

FLOOD
Lisbon is being seriously affected by the bad weather today with streets flooding.

On social media, people are already sharing images of the chaos in the Portuguese capital. A video, captured on Rua das Pretas, in the parish of Santa Maria Maior, shows a river in the middle of the city. "A shame", reads the publication's caption.

The heavy rain has caused floods and flooding in other parts of the city, causing some traffic restrictions.


Cloud Precipitation

At least 11 dead as Cyclone Gamane strikes Madagascar

Cyclone Gamane
Cyclone Gamane
At least 11 people have died after Cyclone Gamane struck the African island nation of Madagascar.

About 7000 people were affected by the devastation caused by the cyclone, which reached the north of the island on Wednesday, the National Authority for Civil Protection said on Thursday.

The cyclone moved across the island with an average wind speed of 150km/h and heavy rainfall.

In some places, winds of 210km/h were measured.


Tornado2

Waterspouts spotted off the Oregon coast

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At least two waterspouts were spotted Wednesday evening off the Curry County coast. One waterspout was near Brookings and the other was near Gold Beach.


Arrow Down

Giant sinkhole in Rome swallows two cars

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Two parked cars were swallowed by a large sinkhole - 10 metres deep and 10 metres wide - which opened up in the Quadraro district of Rome in the early hours of Thursday.

Police and firefighters closed off the street, Via Sestio Menas, after the chasm opened up at around 01.00. There was nobody injured in the incident.

The vehicles, a Dacia and a Renault, were subsequently removed and the area remained cordoned off on Thursday morning.

It is far from the first time that such an event has occurred in Rome, with the city experiencing a sharp rise in the number of sinkholes in recent years according to the Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research.


Cloud Precipitation

Aerial footage shows thousands of solar panels in Texas destroyed by hailstorm on March 15

Images captured by Fox affiliate FOX26 Houston KRIV show extensive damage to Fighting Jays Solar in Fort Bend County, Texas.
© FOX26 Houston KRIVImages captured by Fox affiliate FOX26 Houston KRIV show extensive damage to Fighting Jays Solar in Fort Bend County, Texas.
Thousands of panels on a solar farm southwest of Houston, Texas, were damaged by a powerful hailstorm on March 15.

Aerial footage showed rows of cracked photovoltaic cells at the Fighting Jays Solar Farm near Needville in Fort Bend County, local news channel KTRK reported on Saturday. Baseball-sized hail stones were observed falling in the area overnight, as per the Houston Chronicle.

The solar project, which began producing power for Texas's energy grid in 2022, generates 350 megawatts across 3,300 acres of land and is expected to power 62,000 homes.

It is one of many renewable energy installations across the state which has championed clean energy projects in recent years while benefiting the most from federal tax credits and incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act.