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Thu, 21 Oct 2021
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Fall-like air breaks record lows from early 1900s in parts of southern US

US record low July temps
© AccuWeather
The storm system that triggered severe thunderstorms in parts of the Carolinas on Tuesday signaled the end to the prolonged stretch of stifling heat and humidity that has been baking the Southeast.

An unusually strong cold front, by late July standards, pushed through much of the Southern states and triggered severe weather on Tuesday. North Carolina was hit the hardest by Tuesday's storms, with nearly two dozen reports of wind damage across the state.

The passage of this front has brought lower temperature and humidity levels to much of the region which will linger through much of this week.

A recently installed weather station run by Virginia Tech Meteorology showed a low temperature of 38 F in Canaan Valley, West Virginia Wednesday morning. The station is situated at an elevation of 3,105 feet.

High temperatures, with the exception of the Florida Peninsula, should generally be in the 80s through Friday, and comfortable humidity levels should cap temperatures to around 90 F.

Nighttime low temperatures, especially away from coastal locations, are forecast to trend into the 50s and 60s, which will challenge or even break records.

"Some cities in the Southern states that may challenge record lows include Little Rock, Arkansas, Dallas, Oklahoma City, Houston, San Antonio and Nashville, Tennessee," according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.

"In some cases, it hasn't been this cool at night during this part of the summer in more than 100 years."

As the week progresses, these cities and others will challenge daily record lows.

Attention

Bison charges and injures 9-year-old girl in Yellowstone National Park

A 9-year-old girl was injured after a bison charge

A 9-year-old girl was injured after a bison charged her in Yellowstone National Park on Monday, the park's public affairs office said
A 9-year-old girl was injured after a bison charged her at Yellowstone National Park on Monday, July 22, according to the park's public affairs office.

CNN reports Yellowstone officials are looking into a video posted to Twitter on Monday night and being circulated by local media.

While Yellowstone hasn't confirmed the authenticity of the video, it shows a bison charge at three people. An adult man and woman run away, while a little girl is violently thrown into the air by the bison.

The girl was part of a group of about 50 people near Observation Point Trail in the park's Old Faithful Geyser area, according to the news release.


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Two landslides in southwest China kill 16 with 30 missing

More than 800 rescuers have been scouring
© He Junyi/CNS
More than 800 rescuers have been scouring the area
At least 16 people have died in two landslides in southwestern China and rescuers are looking for 30 missing, Chinese state media reports.

A landslide on Tuesday night buried 21 houses and caused at least 15 deaths in Guizhou province's Shuicheng county, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Thursday.

Eleven people were rescued and sent to a hospital while another 30 remained unaccounted for. Heavy rain is believed to be the main cause.


Biohazard

Toxic algae bloom turns Vancouver harbour waters blood red

vancouver red tide
© Pete Cline @yvrnewsphotog
Throughout the week, several photos have been posted online of the Vancouver harbour. These were not ordinary pictures, as the waters looked bright red!

This is not the first time the waters in Vancouver have turned this vibrant blood red color and it is entirely due to an algae bloom.

The algae producing this phenomenon — Noctiluca scintillans — is erroneously known as "red tide". It is not to be confused with red tide poisoning in fish.

Comment: With our planet undergoing extreme temperature swings in its descent to a much colder climate overall, as well as a number of other contributing factors, these algae bloom events appear to be on the increase:


Fire

Powerful explosion obliterates suburban house in Christchurch, New Zealand - Gas suspected but cause unknown

christchurch gas explosion
Five days after a giant gas explosion reduced a Christchurch home to ruins, experts outside an official investigation are still at a loss to understand how it happened.

But an industry group representing gasfitters has told the Herald it will soon be requiring members to have in place a minimum liability of $2 million before they carry out work.

Nine homes were damaged when a sudden blast obliterated a Marble Court house in the northern suburb of Northwood, sending chunks of roof tiles and other debris over the neighbourhood.

Neighbours and others who raced to the aid of the six people inside at the time were amazed that no one was killed. As of yesterday, one man remained in a critical condition at Christchurch, while another person was in a stable condition at Middlemore Hospital, which had a serious burns unit.

A gas contractor who worked on the house, which was having gas issues, just one day before it exploded, arrived at the chaotic scene on Friday and fronted to police officers.


Cloud Precipitation

Heavy rainfall kills at least 8, causes landslides and flooding in Greater Recife, Brazil

flood
According to the Fire Department, eight people died this Wednesday, July 24th, as a result of the heavy rainfall that has been affecting the Metropolitan Region of Recife (RMR) since dawn.

The storm also brought down walls and trees and caused several flooding points, hindering bus traffic. In some neighboring cities, school classes have been canceled.

Two deaths recorded by the Fire Department occurred on the Estrada do Passarinho, in the Recife area, and another in the neighborhood of Dois Unidos, also in the capital city of Pernambuco. Two other deaths were confirmed in Águas Compridas, in Olinda. There were also three deaths recorded in Caetés, in Abreu e Lima.

On Estrada do Passarinho, Natalicio Vicente da Silva, 69, and Ivonete Maria da Silva, 63, are victims of a barrier landslide.



Cloud Precipitation

Death toll due to floods reaches 108 in Nepal

The torrential downpour has affected around 35 of the 70 districts across the country.
© ANI
The torrential downpour has affected around 35 of the 70 districts across the country.
The death toll in floods and landslides triggered by incessant rains since last two week in Nepal has risen to 108, with 33 others still missing, the country's Home Ministry said on Wednesday.

At least four people were killed, and seven others went missing in flash floods in western Nepal's Lamjung district on Wednesday.

In addition, nine other people have sustained injuries in the incident, Chief District Officer Dijan Bhattarai told ANI.

The identities of the deceased is yet to be ascertained, albeit they are believed to be workers at a hydropower project in the region. The infrastructure at the hydropower project has also been damaged due to flash floods.


Attention

Dark omen? Russian satellite captures unsettling photo of erupting Peruvian volcano

The Ubinas volcano snapped from space.
© Roscosmos
The Ubinas volcano snapped from space.
Russian space agency Roscosmos has released a remarkable, if slightly ominous-looking, satellite image of Peru's Ubinas volcano, taken as it spewed an enormous column of grey ash into the sky.

Snapped from the Resurs-P satellite at a height of thousands of kilometers, the ominous image makes it appear as though a spooky skull is spilling a huge plume of ash out of its mouth into the Peruvian countryside.

The volcano, which is located in the Moquegua region of southern Peru, began erupting last Thursday, sending a pillar of ash 12km into the air. A state of emergency was declared and thousands of people were ordered to evacuate as ash rained down on hundreds of schools and health centers.

Ubinas has now ceased erupting but the most recent report from the Geophysical Institute of Peru (IGP) said another eruption on Wednesday couldn't be ruled out.

Cloud Precipitation

Over 5 million affected by monsoon floods in Bangladesh

Bangladesh: Floods killed 94 people over last 2 weeks

Bangladesh: Floods killed 94 people over last 2 weeks
According to the latest estimates from Bangladesh's National Disaster Response Coordination Centre (NDRCC), over 70 people have died and 5 million have been affected across 21 districts by the monsoon floods that began earlier this month.

Of the 21 districts, the worst-hit are Kurigram, Jamalpur, Gaibandha, Sirajganj, Sunamganj, Bogura and Bandarban.

The death toll for this year's monsoon flooding has climbed to 71, including 56 from drowning, 8 from snake-bites and 7 from lightning.

It is estimated that 5,302,698 people are directly affected by the current flooding. As many as 27,170 houses have been destroyed and 419,336 damaged. As of 24 July there were an estimated 287,513 people displaced.


Cloud Lightning

At least 73 people killed by lightning in 24 hours across 3 states of northern India

lightning
As monsoon batters India, incidents of death due to lightning are being reported across the country. At least 73 people died and many more were injured due to lightning in the states of Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh in the last 24 hours. While Bihar reported 39 deaths, Jharkhand reported 28 and Uttar Pradesh reported six.

In Jharkhand, six people died each in Jamtara and Latehar, four in Chatra, three each in Garhwa and Dumka, two each in Giridih and Pakur, and one each in Dhanbad and Deoghar.

In Jharkhand, six people died each in Jamtara and Latehar, four in Chatra, three each in Garhwa and Dumka, two each in Giridih and Pakur, and one each in Dhanbad and Deoghar. Three in Dhanbad and Latehar, and two in Chatra were also injured. Rs four lakh ex-gratia has been announced to the victims' families by both Jharkhand and UP government.