Earth Changes
Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) reported that parts of the provincial capital Lahore recorded more than 200mm of rain in 24 hours on 20 August. Heavy rain was reported in other areas of the province, including the city of Hafizabad, which saw over 150 mm of rain during the same period.
Several houses were completely destroyed, and roofs and walls of some buildings collapsed. Local media report that at least 18 people have lost their lives in rain-related incidents. Fatalities were reported in Lahore, along with the districts of Faisalabad, Sheikhupura and Mandi Bahauddin, mostly as a result of collapsed buildings or electrocution. Heavy rainfall triggered a landslide in a coal mine in Chakwal district, killing 3 miners.
PMD has warned of more heavy rainfall in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh provinces over the coming days.
The calamity has affected 81,79,257 people in 1,317 panchayats of 130 blocks till Thursday against 81,67,671 sufferers till Wednesday evening, it said.
Of the 27 deaths, Darbhanga district reported 11, followed by six in Muzaffarpur, four in West Champaran and two each in Saran, Siwan and Khagaria.
According to the International Centre for Waterspout Research (ICWR), there were 13 sightings of water funnels throughout the Great Lakes region on Monday.
"We have confirmed a total of 13 waterspouts that formed over parts of the Great Lakes on Monday, August 17. Expect more on Tuesday," says a post from ICWR.
This footage shot by Frank Leday in the Gulf of Mexico captures at least six of the watery vortexes spiraling skyward against a blanket of dark storm clouds.
"Wow!! Ever see 6 water spouts at once?" Leday wrote on Facebook.
The storms came as the US National Weather Service predicted two tropical depressions — one in the North Atlantic and another in the Carribean — could develop into hurricanes upon hitting the Gulf. According to US media, it would be the first instance of two separate tropical storm systems in the basin in over 60 years.
KEY FACTS
The National Hurricane Center projects Tropical Depression Thirteen, over the central Atlantic, and Tropical Depression Fourteen, in the western Caribbean, will strengthen from their 35 mph sustained winds as they move toward the U.S.
There's still a great deal of uncertainty about how strong the storms could become, but it seems very likely they will become the 12th and 13th named storms — Laura and Marco — over the next day or so.
According to Vietnam Disaster Management Authority (DMA), heavy rain, flooding and landslides have caused damage in the provinces and cities of Yen Bai, Hoa Binh, Phu Tho, Ha Giang, Hanoi, Binh Duong, Vinh Phuc, Son La, Tuyen Quang, Lai Chau, Cao Bang, Dien Bien, Quang Ninh.
Some areas of Vietnam saw more than 300mm of rain in a period 16 to 19 August, including Cai Chien in Quang Ninh Province, Cat Ba in Hai Phong and Thai Nguyen City. The heavy rain fall is associated with Tropical Storm Higos which made landfall in the southern Guangdong province of China on 19 August before moving towards Vietnam and Laos.
Currently, the fire has burned 125,108 acres, according to the Rocky Mountain Area Coordination Center. For reference, the Hayman Fire burned 137,760 acres in 2002. The Spring Creek Fire, which was second on the list, burned 108,045 acres in southern Colorado in 2018.
Caught by the country's state CCTV (embedded on top), a massive sinkhole opened up and devoured at least 21 cars. The disaster happened on the evening of August 19, 2020, Wednesday.
According to reports, 15 vehicles were recovered - most likely wrecked - from the site with zero casualties. Authorities in the country are still investigating the cause of the accident, but the current weather in the area could be the culprit.
The shopping mall is situated near the Yangtze River in Sichuan province. The province is experiencing torrential rainfalls, prompting the authorities to raise its emergency response to a maximum level.
Comment: The volcanic activity of Indonesia's Mount Sinabung continues. Also this month:
- Mt. Sinabung in Indonesia erupts yet again, spewing ash 2,000 meters high
- Another major eruption forces evacuations from around Mount Sinabung in Indonesia
- Deep M6.9 earthquake strikes Banda Sea off Indonesia
- Twin shallow 6.8 & 6.9 magnitude earthquakes strike Indonesia
"During the next solar cycle, we could see cosmic ray dose rates increase by as much as 75%," says lead author Fatemeh Rahmanifard of the University of New Hampshire's Space Science Center.See also: Is there a connection between cosmic rays, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions?
In Kupang city, far south of the quake's epicentre in the Banda Sea, frightened residents ran outside as buildings and streetlights swayed.
"I was in the shopping centre when the quake hit," said resident Engky Nussi. "Many people ran outside as stuff started falling off the shelves and we were afraid something worse might happen."
The undersea tremor struck at a depth of more than 600km about 220km south of Katabu on the island of Sulawesi, the USGS said.
Deep quakes tend to cause less damage than shallow ones and USGS said there was a low likelihood of casualties and damage.
Comment: Only two days ago on Wed. 19 Aug. twin shallow 6.8 & 6.9 magnitude earthquakes hit Indonesia within 10 minutes of each other.















Comment: See also: