Earth ChangesS


Fire

Houses set alight as lava from volcano eruption reaches Icelandic town

iceland volcano
© AFP VIA GETTY IMAGESAn aerial photo shows the first fissure erupting on Sunday morning.
Houses have caught fire in the fishing town of Grindavík in south-west Iceland after a volcano erupted for the second time in less than a month.

Two fissures formed near the town on Sunday after an increase in seismic activity that prompted authorities to evacuate the community the day before.

A first eruption began at 8am when a crack opened in the ground about 450 metres from the town. Protective barriers of earth and rock pushed lava from the first fissure away from the town. However, a second crack then opened around midday on the edge of town, measuring around 100 metres by the evening, with that lava engulfing the homes.


Fire

Volcano erupts on southwestern Japanese island of Suwanosejima

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A volcano has erupted on the remote island of Suwanosejima in southwestern Japan, the government said early Sunday.

No damage has been confirmed due to the eruption, public broadcaster NHK reported, citing a local police station in Kagoshima prefecture.

The government later issued a level 3 volcanic alert - out of 5 - for Suwanosejima, restricting the entrance to dangerous areas surrounding the volcano.

Reporting by Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru and Kantaro Komiya in Tokyo; Editing by Toby Chopra and Mark Potter


Fire

Indonesia evacuates 6,500 people after Lewotobi volcano spews clouds of ash

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Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki spews volcanic materials from its crater during an eruption in East Flores, Indonesia, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024.
Indonesian authorities have evacuated about 6,500 people on the island of Flores after Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki volcano spewed thick clouds of brownish ash over the past few days.

No casualties or major damage have been reported so far.

The eruptions in East Nusa Tenggara province are part of hot gas spills that have become more frequent in recent days.

The 5,197ft mountain is one of the "twin volcanoes" - the Lewotobi Laki-laki and Lewotobi Perempuan - in the Flores Timur district.


Fire

Indonesia: Marapi volcano erupts for second time in just over a month

Mount Marapi spews volcanic material from its crater during an eruption in Agam, West Sumatra, Indonesia, on January 14, 2024.
© Givo Alputra/APMount Marapi spews volcanic material from its crater during an eruption in Agam, West Sumatra, Indonesia, on January 14, 2024.
Indonesia's Marapi volcano has erupted for the second time in weeks, the country's geological agency said Sunday.

According to the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, the 2,891-meter-high (9,500 feet) volcano began erupting at 6 a.m. local time (6 p.m.ET).

The volcano in West Sumatra province erupted at least twice, the agency said according to Reuters.

Reuters also reported nearby houses, vehicles and evacuation tents set up by the local disaster agency were covered in volcanic ash.


Sun

Birds 'falling from trees' as Aussie town on verge of record heat streak

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According to one local, birds are not coping well with the ongoing heat.
The history books are on the verge of being re-written with one Aussie town so hot that birds are reportedly falling from trees. Resident of Western Australia have been warned to brace for more extreme heat this weekend as one of the country's hottest towns continues to swelter through a brutal four-week stretch of daily maximum temperatures above 43C.

The temperature peaked at 45C in Marble Bar, in northwest Western Australia on Friday. If the streak continues through to Monday, it will be the town's longest run of consecutive days where the mercury has risen to such uncomfortable heights.

Caravan park manager Cath Nation said the extreme heat was tough on the small outback town and most people retreated indoors by about 9am each day to escape it. But sadly, most wildlife don't have the same luxury and as a result have been paying the price.

"We've got birds dropping out of trees," she told AAP. "I was just taking a walk down near the camp kitchen and there were dead birds laying there, carked it, keeled over, too hot."

Comment: Meanwhile over the same 4 week-period the eastern side of the country has endured record-breaking floods:


Snowflake Cold

Arctic freeze continues to blast huge swaths of the US with sub-zero temperatures

Ice forms along a dam built in the Des Moines River as temperatures remain below zero Fahrenheit on January 14, 2024, in Des Moines, Iowa.
© Joe RaedleIce forms along a dam built in the Des Moines River as temperatures remain below zero Fahrenheit on January 14, 2024, in Des Moines, Iowa.
A dangerous Arctic blast will continue sweeping across the U.S. on Monday and linger through at least midweek, prolonging a bitter cold that set record-low temperatures in parts of the country and threatens to further disrupt daily life, including an NFL playoff game and the first-in-the-nation presidential nominating contest in Iowa.

The National Weather Service said wind chills are expected to push temperatures 30 degrees below zero from the Northern Rockies to northern Kansas and into Iowa, testing the hardiness of caucusgoers willing to brave the deep chill on Monday.

"You can't sit home," former President Donald Trump told supporters Sunday. "If you're sick as a dog, you say, 'Darling, I gotta make it.' Even if you vote and then pass away, it's worth it."


Snowflake Cold

Adapt 2030 Ice Age Report: The Great Freeze Are You Prepared?

A worker helps remove snow from Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., Sunday Jan. 14, 2024.
A worker helps remove snow from Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., Sunday Jan. 14, 2024.
Looking at almost every forecast model, the Arctic air front moving across North America will trip off power grids from both Canada to the USA all drawing record electricity demand. We have not seen an event like this before and expect power outages. Repair parts for damaged infrastructure is far delayed because of shipping disruptions across the planet. Help is far away, you are on your own through this event.


Fire

Iceland volcano erupts, threatening fishing town of Grindavik

grindavik volcano iceland
© The informant/XIceland's volcano has erupted for the second time, now being dangerously close to the city of Grindavík.
The eruption followed a series of hundreds of earthquakes which prompted the evacuation of Grindavik

A volcano in southwest Iceland sent lava cascading towards the fishing town of Grindavik early on Sunday, after hundreds of earthquakes shook the region and forced the evacuation of residents overnight. The incident occurred less than a month after another powerful eruption in the region.

Saturday's seismic activity, often a calling card for an imminent eruption, prompted officials to evacuate the town, about 32 miles southwest of the capital Reykjavik, hours ahead of the volcanic event - which occurred at about 8am GMT.

The latest eruption, on the Reykjanes Peninsula where a string of volcanoes are located, follows a fissure last month that erupted and emitted a river of lava. The molten rock flowed away from Grindavik on that occasion. Residents were permitted to return to the town on December 22, about six weeks after they had been initially evacuated from their homes following weeks of earthquakes.

Airplane

Over 2,000 flights canceled across US as major winter storms move in

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Over 2,000 flights have been canceled nationwide Friday as the Midwest is pummeled by snow and the South and Northeast brace for rough weather of their own.

The Midwest and the Great Lakes are facing blizzard warnings on Friday.

Whiteout conditions, heavy snow, wind gusts up to 50mph and low visibility will continue through rush hour Friday night from Iowa to the Great Lakes, including Chicago.

Days ahead of Monday's Iowa caucuses, the National Weather Service in Des Moines is urging drivers to stay off the roads.

The weather is also crippling travel by road and air in Illinois.


Arrow Down

36 dead in Colombian highway landslide due to heavy rain (UPDATE)

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Eighteen people were killed and 35 injured in a landslide in the Choco region of Colombia on a highway near the town of Carmen de Atrato.

The landslide occurred due to heavy rains.

Governor of Antioquia, Andres Julian Rendon, said search and rescue teams had been dispatched to the region and many victims were trapped under the soil.

Vice President Francia Marquez wrote on X that the government is closely monitoring the situation.

An announcement from the Emergency Center said it received reports of landslides simultaneously, and it was noted that many more victims could be under the soil than initially thought.


Comment: Update January 15

AFP reports:
The death toll from recent landslides in northwestern Colombia rose to 36, according to an official tally Sunday, as rescuers continued to look for at least seven people.

Earlier, officials had put the toll from Friday's landslides, which hit a road linking the cities of Medellin and Quibdo, at 23 dead.

"To all the families of the victims, my heartfelt condolences," said President Gustavo Petro.

Pope Francis also offered prayers for the victims from the Vatican.

Rescuers, using sniffer dogs and bulldozers, have been racing against the clock to find survivors.

Videos shared on social media showed part of a mountain breaking loose and crashing down onto a line of cars, as screams broke out.

The landslides in Colombia's Choco department, which lies on the Pacific Ocean, followed more than 24 hours of intense rain.

The Ombudsman's Office warned of "high risk of new landslides."

"We call for all necessary actions to be taken in order to safeguard the lives of people who are at risk in the area," the office said in a bulletin.