Earth ChangesS


Tsunami

Two die as Storm Bora sweeps across Greece - flash floods after a foot of rain

Nikos Papanikolaou & Alex Kleiderman
BBC
Sun, 01 Dec 2024 11:02 UTC
The mayor of Rhodes has called for a state of emergency to be declared on the island
© RetuersThe mayor of Rhodes has called for a state of emergency to be declared on the island
Two men have died as torrential rains and gale-force winds cause flooding and damage across Greece.

More than 30cm of rain was reported to have fallen on the island of Rhodes - one of the first areas to be impacted by Storm Bora - since Saturday.

The deaths occurred on the island of Lemnos where flooding damaged roads and buildings and residents were asked to evacuate their homes, amid fears that a dam could overflow.

Damage has also been reported in Greece's second-largest city of Thessaloniki on the mainland, with the rain and storms likely to affect the majority of the country in the hours to come, the National Meteorological Service of Greece said.

On Lemnos, the rural road network linking the villages of Kontias with Thanos and Agios Dimitris has been completely destroyed.

A 70-year-old man in Kontias died when he fell over as he tried to clear up his house. A 57-year-old farmer was found dead by firefighters after being reported missing by his family near a flooded dam close to the village.

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Snowflake Cold

Arctic blast cripples post-Thanksgiving travel as thundersnow and blizzard conditions threaten millions

Freddie Clayton, Kathryn Prociv, Daniel Arkin, Gabriella Rudy and Dennis Romero
NBC News
Sun, 01 Dec 2024 14:41 UTC
Lake-effect snow falls in Lowville, N.Y., on Friday night.
© Cara Anna / APLake-effect snow falls in Lowville, N.Y., on Friday night.
An Arctic blast gripped the northern Plains, Midwest and Great Lakes on Saturday, with millions of Americans under freeze warnings.

More than 17 million people were cautioned Saturday under National Weather Service winter alerts, including 3.6 million under lake-effect snow warnings, 4.5 million under freeze warnings, 8.5 million under winter weather advisories, and 1 million under frost advisories.

Affected areas included the Great Lakes and the Central Plains to the Appalachians, with many of those freeze warnings focused on the Southeast.

The National Weather Service warned that the Arctic airmass is delivering the coldest temperatures since last winter. Wind chills in the northern Plains and upper Midwest are expected to plunge below zero Saturday morning. Parts of North Dakota could experience wind chills as low as minus 30 to 40 degrees, according to the agency.

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Arrow Down

At least 20 killed, 100 missing as landslides after heavy rains bury homes in Uganda (UPDATE)


Al Jazeera
Thu, 28 Nov 2024 11:15 UTC
At least 13 dead after landslides bury 40 homes in villages in eastern Uganda
At least 13 dead after landslides bury 40 homes in villages in eastern Uganda
More than 10 people have been killed and many others are feared dead after heavy rains caused landslides in eastern Uganda.

The Uganda Red Cross Society said on Thursday at least 13 bodies had been recovered after landslides "completely buried" 40 homes in six villages of the mountainous district of Bulambuli the previous night.

Images on local media showed huge swaths of fallen earth covering the land in the village of Masugu, about a five-hour drive from the capital, Kampala. Videos and photographs shared on social media purported to show people digging for survivors in the village of Kimono.

The Uganda Red Cross Society said the rescue effort was continuing but the death toll was likely to rise.


Comment: Update December 1

Deutsche Welle reports:
At least 20 people have died after landslides submerged several villages in a mountainous area of Uganda. More than 100 others are still missing and the death toll is expected to rise. Relief workers are combing through the rubble of dozens of homes.


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Lightning

Lightning kills 2 children in Pemba, Zambia


znbc.co.zm
Sun, 01 Dec 2024 11:32 UTC
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Two siblings have been struck to death by lightning in Pemba district, Southern province.

The incident happened on Thursday, November 28, 2024, around 16 hours at Kanchele village in Chief MOYO's area.

The children, who had just come back from school, met their fate when lightning struck their parents' iron-sheets roofed house, as it was raining on the material day.

Southern Province Police Commanding Officer, AUXENSIO DAKA has confirmed and identified the deceased as JACK HACHIDUNTULA, aged 13, and CHARITY HACHIDUNTULA, aged 5.

Meanwhile, Mr DAKA says another person has died, when the vehicle, which was transporting the bodies of the 2 children who were struck by lightning, was involved in an accident.

The accident happened on the same day on the Great North Road, as the family of the 2 deceased children was taking the bodies to Pemba Police Station and to report the matter.
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Attention

668 killed in elephant attacks in last 3 years in Odisha, India


New Indian Express
Wed, 27 Nov 2024 20:53 UTC
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At least 668 people have been killed in elephant attacks in Odisha in the last three years, Forest and Environment minister Ganesh Ram Singhkhuntia informed the Assembly on Tuesday.

In a written reply to a question from Sanatan Mahakud (BJD), the minister further said during that period, 509 people from different parts of the state were injured in elephant attacks. Around 149 people died of the same reason in 2022-23 alone.

"Elephant herds have destroyed around 73,620 acre of crops and damaged 10,259 houses during the last three years," Singhkhuntia informed.

Replying to another question by BJD MLA Tusharkanti Behera, the minister said 40 elephants, five leopards and 200 other wildlife species have died between July 1 and November 20 this year in the state.

He said departmental inquiries have been conducted into the deaths of elephants and leopards. "While 26 people have been arrested in connection with elephant deaths, two forest guards and one forester have been placed under suspension for dereliction of duties. Similarly, 14 arrests have been made in connection with death of leopards in the state," the minister added.

Comment: Related: 2,853 killed by elephant attacks in India during past 5 years

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Snowflake Cold

Storm buries parts of Ontario under nearly a metre of snow, thousands without power


Global News
Sat, 30 Nov 2024 19:37 UTC
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Thousands are without power in parts of Ontario hit hard by a blast of winter weather delivering gusty winds and heavy snow, with more to come.

Snow blowing off lakes Superior and Huron has closed a stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway, knocked out power and buried some communities under nearly a metre of snow.

Hydro One, the provincial utility, says its crews are working to restore power to more than 30,000 customers, mostly in hard-hit central Ontario.

Bracebridge and Sault Ste. Marie, two of the hardest hit areas, are digging out from around 80 centimetres of snow, with another 40 to 50 centimetres in Saturday's forecast.

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Tsunami

Egypt says 16 people missing as tourist boat sinks after being hit by large wave off Red Sea coast


Al Jazeera
Mon, 25 Nov 2024 21:23 UTC
A photo shared online by the Red Sea Governorate of Egypt shows the Sea Story luxury yacht, which authorities report capsized early on November 25, 2024
© Red Sea GovernorateA photo shared online by the Red Sea Governorate of Egypt shows the Sea Story luxury yacht, which authorities report capsized early on November 25, 2024
Sixteen people including 12 foreign nationals are missing after a tourist boat capsized off Egypt's Red Sea coast, the local government has said.

The boat, Sea Story, was carrying 44 people, including 31 tourists of varying nationalities and 13 crew on a multi-day diving trip when it sank on Monday near the town of Marsa Alam, the Red Sea Governorate said in a statement, revising an earlier report of 14 Egyptian crew aboard.

Twenty-eight people were rescued and had only minor injuries such as bruises and scrapes with none requiring hospitalisation, it said.

Red Sea Governor Amr Hanafi said that preliminary reports suggested a sudden large wave struck the boat, sinking it within five to seven minutes.

"Some passengers were in their cabins, which is why they were unable to escape," he added in the statement.
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Boat

At least 18 dead after boat capsizes during violent winds in flood-hit northern Cameroon

Amindeh Blaise Atabong
Reuters
Fri, 29 Nov 2024 13:08 UTC
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At least 18 people died when a boat carrying passengers heading to a market in Cameroon's Far North region capsized, a local administrative official said on Friday.

The accident occurred on Thursday on waterways leading to the district of Darak, an island in the Lake Chad Basin near the border with Chad, where seasonal floods have made boats the only viable means of getting around.

Mamat Zarma, divisional officer of Darak, said the wooden boat was en route when it was rocked by violent winds, causing it to capsize.

"So far, we have recovered the bodies of five women and 13 men," Zarma told Reuters by telephone, adding that the exact number of passengers onboard at the time of the accident was unknown.

He said search and rescue operations were ongoing to find other possible missing people.
Two weeks ago, a similar incident occurred in the nearby district of Goulfey, when a locally-built canoe carrying around 30 passengers capsized, killing four people and leaving others missing.
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Tsunami

80,000 evacuated, 4 dead as northern Malaysia 'completely paralysed' by severe floods (UPDATE)

Hadi Azmi
South China Morning Post
Thu, 28 Nov 2024 20:04 UTC
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Severe floods have displaced nearly 40,000 people across northern Malaysia, as heavy rains continue to pound the region, swelling the Golok River which acts as the border with Thailand to its highest level since 1997.

The northeast monsoon season, which runs from November to March, regularly floods Peninsular Malaysia. However, this year's wet season coincides with the La Niña weather phenomenon, which meteorologists warn could intensify rainfall and trigger extreme flooding into next month.

Speaking in parliament, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said that more than 37,000 people in six states have been relocated to some 330 temporary shelters as of Thursday morning.

"Kelantan recorded the highest number of victims at 30,582 people," he said, adding that the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) is coordinating federal and state resources to ensure the safety and welfare of flood victims.


Comment: Update November 29

The Times of India reports:
Heavy rains this week triggered widespread flooding across several Malaysian states, forcing over 80,000 people to evacuate and leaving four dead, officials said on Friday.

Disaster officials said that four people have died across the states of Kelantan, Terengganu and Sarawak. And officials at the National Disaster Command Centre confirmed that 80,589 people were moved to 467 temporary shelters across seven states.

The disaster centre confirmed deployment of search and rescue teams to assist operations in affected regions, particularly in Kelantan. The northeastern regions of Kelantan and Terengganu experienced the most severe impact.


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Tsunami

Landslide and flash floods after torrential rains leave 27 dead in Sumatra, Indonesia (UPDATE)

Binsar Bakkara
MSN
Mon, 25 Nov 2024 13:23 UTC
Rescuers search for victims after a landslide
© Binsar BakkaraRescuers search for victims after a landslide that killed a number of people and left some others missing in Karo, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024.
Rescuers in Indonesia recovered 16 bodies under tons of mud and rocks swept away in flash floods that hit mountainside villages in Sumatra, officials said.

Six people are still missing, according to officials.

Mud, rocks and trees tumbled down a mountain after torrential rains over the weekend and rivers burst their banks, tearing through four hilly districts in North Sumatra province, washing away houses and destroying farms.

Police, soldiers and rescue workers used excavators, farm equipment and their bare hands to sift through the rubble looking for the dead and missing in Semangat Gunung, a resort area in Karo district, said Juspri M Nadeak, who heads the local disaster management agency.

Rescuers recovered six bodies after a landslide hit two houses and a cottage late Sunday, he said.

Nine injured people managed to escape, he said.

Rescuers on Monday were still searching for four missing people, including two children.


Comment: Update November 28

Sky News reports:
At least 27 have died after flash floods and landslides hit the north of Indonesia's Sumatra island.

Torrential rain started striking North Sumatra province last week, causing flash floods and landslides in four districts, with extreme weather expected through to the end of the year.

As of Thursday morning, at least 27 have died as a result of the conditions.


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