Earth Changes
A prolonged period of below-average rainfall has put the entire state of California under some level of drought, ranging in severity from moderate to exceptional, for the first time in 15 years.
The latest drought monitor released by the National Climatic Data Center this week shows that the entire state is under moderate drought conditions, but within that map, 76.6% of the state is experiencing extreme drought conditions, and for 24.7% of the state, the level of dryness is "exceptional."
During the same period last year, none of the state was considered to be under extreme or exceptional drought conditions, and just 30% fell under the "severe" category, according to the assessment released Thursday.
"This is a really serious situation here in California and people need to be cognizant of that and start conserving water as much as they can," said Jayme Laber, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service who is part of a team of scientists who contribute to the weekly drought monitor.
February was among the wettest on record with 6.11" in Seattle. March did it one better and smashed the all-time rain record with a whopping 9.44 inches.
While April likely won't make those lofty heights (11th wettest on record), when combined with the soggy February and March, they make quite the rain trio.
It's now the wettest February-to-April on record in Seattle, with 19.33" as of Thursday and more is on the way. The old record was 18.97 inches set in 1972.
The relatively dry January will likely prevent us from setting the wettest four-month start to a year, currently at 23.03 inches -- 5th wettest, but well behind the all-time record of 26.21 inches set in 1972.
While April likely won't make those lofty heights (11th wettest on record), when combined with the soggy February and March, they make quite the rain trio.
It's now the wettest February-to-April on record in Seattle, with 19.33" as of Thursday and more is on the way. The old record was 18.97 inches set in 1972.
The relatively dry January will likely prevent us from setting the wettest four-month start to a year, currently at 23.03 inches -- 5th wettest, but well behind the all-time record of 26.21 inches set in 1972.
A big explosion and fire destroyed three buildings, damaged several others, sent debris flying for blocks and jolted people awake early Friday in a Washington town, firefighters and North Bend residents said.
About the only good news was the time -- 3:45 a.m. -- when few people were in the business district of the Cascades foothills town about 30 miles east of Seattle.
"We are very, very fortunate that it happened in the early morning. If it was two hours later the street would have been very busy," said Josie Williams, public information officer for Eastside Fire and Rescue.
A couple of minor injuries were reported at an assisted living facility where windows were blown out, she said.
About the only good news was the time -- 3:45 a.m. -- when few people were in the business district of the Cascades foothills town about 30 miles east of Seattle.
"We are very, very fortunate that it happened in the early morning. If it was two hours later the street would have been very busy," said Josie Williams, public information officer for Eastside Fire and Rescue.
A couple of minor injuries were reported at an assisted living facility where windows were blown out, she said.
Comment: Another shoe is about to drop: Entire town in Wyoming evacuated after unexplained blast at gas plant
Final death toll from massive Harlem explosion: 8 - Cause remains unknown, but investigators suspect natural outgassing after discovering unusually high levels of methane in soil
Massive explosion destroys apartment complex in Ewing, New Jersey - 1 killed, seven injured
10 injured after massive explosion obliterates two houses in Essex, England
TransCanada pipeline explosion in Manitoba shuts off gas for 4,000 residents in sub-zero temperatures - Cause unknown
Ice moving a Bridge In Sainte-Marie de Kent, New-Brunswick, Canada. The bridge has been moved 3 ft - 6 ft.
© Xinhua
A street in Dunhuang is shrouded in floating dust during the storm, April 23.
A street in Dunhuang is shrouded in floating dust during the storm, April 23.
A local resident told the news agency that it was as dark as evening by 3pm, with fierce wind and dust battering the city. Another local internet user said it was pitch dark in Dunhuang, a county-level city in Jiuquan, by around 2pm on the same day. The sky turned reddish-orange around half an hour later, the internet user said.
© BGNES
© Unknown
Villagers took shelter on roofs as waters rose about them.
Villagers took shelter on roofs as waters rose about them.
The governor of Jowzjan province warned that the number of victims was likely to rise.
People have been left trapped on the roofs of their homes and rescue helicopters have been deployed.
There are reports of flooding in other provinces in the north and west.
"Thousands of homes have been destroyed and thousands are suffering", Jowzjan's governor Boymurod Qoyinli told the BBC. He said that more than 80 people are missing and that 3,000 homes have been destroyed.
© NASA/REUTERS
The B-31 Iceberg as it separated from a rift in Antarctica's Pine Island Glacier
The B-31 Iceberg as it separated from a rift in Antarctica's Pine Island Glacier
The iceberg covers about 255 square miles, making it roughly six times the size of Manhattan - and is up to 500 meters thick.
Known as B31, glacial crack that created the iceberg was first detected in 2011 but the iceberg separated from Antarctica's Pine Island Glacier in November.
NASA glaciologist Kelly Brunt said that the iceberg is not currently presenting a danger, but needs to be continually monitored.
"It's one that's large enough that it warrants monitoring. There is not a lot of shipping traffic down there. We're not particularly concerned about shipping lanes. We know where all the big ones are."
US temperatures through April 23 are the third coldest on record
Generated by :
./ghcn.exe US23042014.txt through=0423 > US23042014_through_0423.csv
YearTDeptUS.png (688×531)
./ghcn.exe US23042014.txt through=0423 > US23042014_through_0423.csv
© AP Photo/The Bismarck Tribune, Lauren Donovan
In this photo taken on Wednesday, April 23, 2014, white-suited workers wearing respirators clean up the illegal filter sock dump in an abandoned gas station in Noonan, N.D., near the Canadian border. Radiological readings were to be conducted to be sure the building and soil was back to normal.
In this photo taken on Wednesday, April 23, 2014, white-suited workers wearing respirators clean up the illegal filter sock dump in an abandoned gas station in Noonan, N.D., near the Canadian border. Radiological readings were to be conducted to be sure the building and soil was back to normal.
The Canadian company hired to clean up the largest dump found so far, located at an abandoned gas station in Noonan, also said that it suspects the soil at the site is contaminated and that samples were being analyzed.
The twin disclosures highlight a growing problem from North Dakota's booming oil development - illegal disposal of oil filter socks, which are tubular nets that strain liquids during the oil production process and contain low amounts of radioactive material. Health officials have said that radioactive filter socks increasingly are being found along roadsides, in abandoned buildings or in commercial trash bins - sometimes those of competing oil companies.
State Environmental Health Chief Dave Glatt said investigators are examining the new site north of Crosby - a town about five miles from the Canadian border - which was discovered late last week by Divide County Emergency Manager Jody Gunlock.
Gunlock said he found 15 garbage cans and about 25 bags full of the oil filter socks.
"So maybe one-fourth of what we found down in Noonan," Gunlock said, "But you know, it's still a significant amount and it's still an environmental problem."
Comment: Record rainfall is not the only natural calamity happening in Washington state, or the rest of the US for that matter:
Yet another natural gas explosion: Mysterious explosion jolts Washington town, destroys three buildings