A tragic incident occurred when lightning struck during a sudden thunderstorm, resulting in the death of around 50 sheep belonging to a local shepherd, Bandi Mallaiah. The incident occurred at Renigunta village of Rajapet Mandal, Yadadri Bhongir district on Friday.
Lightning, accompanied by gales, struck without warning, causing severe damage. The estimated financial loss due to this incident is around Rs 3 lakh. Mallaiah expressed his grief over the sudden loss of his livestock, which were his primary source of livelihood.
He is now pleading with the government to come to his aid by providing compensation and support to help him recover from this devastating loss. The local community has also expressed sympathy and urged officials to take immediate action.
The water level of one of Colombia's major rivers remained high in the rural town of Majagual on Wednesday (April 16), following heavy rains that had caused it to swell, affecting over 1,000 families, according to Colombian media reports.
A new Swiss snowfall record has been set at the Bortelsee station in the Simplon region of Switzerland, where 89 inches (226 centimeters) of snow fell within just two days, and 97 inches (247 centimeters) accumulated over three days.This unprecedented event, recorded from April 15 to 17, 2025, now stands as the largest amount of snow ever measured in short timeframes in Switzerland, surpassing the previous records of 85 inches (215 centimeters) in two days at the Bernina Pass in April 1999 and 90 inches (229 centimeters) in three days at Weissfluhjoch in February 1990.
The snowfall was primarily driven by the "Hans" depression, a low-pressure system that developed over the Gulf of Genoa. Named by Italian meteorological services, Hans channeled a strong southeasterly flow from the Mediterranean, carrying warm, moisture-laden air into the southern Alps. As this air mass encountered the mountainous terrain, it was forced upward, resulting in intense orographic precipitation on the southern slopes, particularly in the Simplon region. The interaction between this moist air and colder air masses at higher elevations led to significant snowfall, culminating in the record-breaking accumulations observed at Bortelsee.
A tragic incident has come from Durgabhat, Ponda, where on Friday, a 15-month-old baby girl named Anabiya Shaikh was mauled to death by a pack of stray dogs. According to witnesses, the child, who was waiting for her mother to go for Friday prayers, stepped outside her house when the dogs attacked her.
Despite attempts by locals to intervene, the girl was severely injured and died shortly after being rushed to the hospital. This marks a continuation of a disturbing trend of stray dog attacks in South Goa, especially affecting tourists in coastal areas.
Local residents, while reflecting on the increase in such incidents, pointed out that the area where the attack occurred is often used as a dumping ground for garbage, attracting many stray dogs searching for food. They have urged the administration to take stringent measures to control the stray dog population and ensure public safety.
Cyclone Tam brings wild weather and power outages to New Zealand's North Island
Cyclone Tam is causing major problems across the North Island of New Zealand, resulting in thousands of people without power, roads flooded, and all ferries in Auckland cancelled. Flights have also been delayed or stopped, leaving many travellers stuck before the Easter weekend.
A truck was found overturned near Kaiwaka, a Northland settlement. The rescue team had to pull out several drivers from their cars. Strong winds have ripped off roofs and knocked over trees and fences, too.
A scary moment happened in Mairangi Bay, Auckland, where a big tree fell on a house where an elderly couple lives. The tree damaged their balcony and blocked them inside. Their daughter said the tree just missed their bedroom.
In another part of Auckland, a loud bang surprised a man when the wind knocked over his fence. Many homes have been damaged, and trees have fallen on houses and cars. People are being told to stay home if they can and avoid driving unless it's necessary.
Northland MP Grant McCallum said the storm damage in Paihia is very serious and keeps happening every time there's bad weather. He said something needs to be done to protect the area, especially because so many people there rely on tourism.
A rare waterspout appeared off the coast of Phu Quoc City in southern Vietnam on Friday morning, drawing the attention of both residents and tourists near An Thoi Town.
The phenomenon occurred around 8:20 a.m., forming a visible funnel over the sea just a few kilometers from the shoreline. Witnesses recorded the rare event on their phones as the swirling column of air and mist hovered above the water.
Lien, a local at An Thoi Port, said the waterspout created a large maelstrom but did not impact nearby vessels. "It lasted about five minutes. The sky had been dark and overcast since morning, like rain was coming," she said, noting that waterspouts and tornadoes are occasionally seen in the Phu Quoc area during certain times of the year.
Torrents of water flooded through narrow streets in the Piedmont region
Two people died in the northern province of Vicenza, Veneto, after the area was hit by devastating flooding following hours of torrential rainfall on Thursday.
The bodies of two people who had been reported missing on Thursday were found by rescue workers on Friday morning, according to Italian newspaper La Repubblica.
The two residents, whom Italian media described as being father and son, "were swept away in their car near their home" in Valdagno, a small town northwest of Vicenza, according to Italy's fire service.
The Agno stream, which runs through Valdagno, burst its banks late on Thursday after the area was lashed by torrential rainfall for hours on end.
This triggered widespread flooding at multiple locations across town, with water surging through the streets and sweeping vehicles away.
The ski resort of Baqueira Beret, in one of the northwestern points in Catalonia, has recorded almost 40 centimeters of snow before the start of the Easter holidays.
The resort management recorded unexpected snowstorms between Tuesday evening and Wednesday early morning, just a couple of days before Catalonia starts celebrating Easter and takes some days off.
The amount of snow was completely a surprise for everyone, as "not even the most optimistic weather forecasts" forecast such a snow, the managing team of the site in the Vall d'Aran and the Pallars' counties said.
A huge snowfall is underway in the Alps, by far the biggest of the 24-25 season.
Unfortunately, about 80% of ski areas have already ended their seasons.
For those still open the storm is also so heavy that it has closed slopes, access roads and set the avalanche danger of a rare maximum 5 on the scale to 5 in parts of the Western Alps. There is also a fear of flooding in some areas with torrential rain on lower slopes and lower snowpack at times.
Few resorts have been able to publish snowfall measurements to far but Verbier reports from its snow stake that its had almost a metre (40") of snowfall so far, later publishing an official stat of 75cm (30").
Brydie Monaghan indy100.com Thu, 17 Apr 2025 11:40 UTC
A waterspout tornado was captured on video (April 16) whirling past a cruise ship in the Bay of Palma.
There are two types of tornado that form at sea. The first is tornadic waterspouts that form from thunderstorms, like this one, which saw lightning ripping through through the heavens off the coast of Spain. There's also fair-weather waterspouts which are typically smaller and less powerful.
Comment: See also the following report from a day earlier which includes more details about surrounding Alpine countries: Massive mid-April snowfall in the Alps - up to 4 FEET in 24 hours