Earth Changes

Record-breaking snowfall hits Ottawa, Canada

Andrea Bagle
The Weather Network
Tue, 16 Feb 2016 08:13 UTC

For those questioning if winter had called it quits, a major snow storm Tuesday proved it is only mid-February after all. The snow pushed into southern Ontario early Tuesday, doubling commute times and prompting bus cancellations first thing.

Close to 10 cm of snow was recorded in major cities like Toronto and Markham before easing through the afternoon hours.

"Snowfall amounts in the Greater Toronto Area were in the 5 to 10 centimetre range, as this area was only grazed the western edge of the huge snow shield associated with this winter storm," said Environment Canada in a storm summary.

The storm in eastern Ontario however, was relentless.

"The highest 24 hour snowfall accumulation for Ottawa was recorded Tuesday with a whopping 51 cm of snow," says Weather Network meteorologist Erin Wenckstern. "That smashed the old record of 40.6 cm of snow set back on March 2, 1947."

Ireland just had its wettest January in 70 years

Ralph Riegel
Irish Independent
Wed, 03 Feb 2016 22:49 UTC

© Sabrina O'Brien / sabrinaobrienphotography.com
The River Nore floods Thomastown in Kilkenny, central Ireland, January 5th 2016

Parts of Ireland endured the wettest January since 1948 after the dampest December on record.

Met Éireann confirmed what the nation already suspected by revealing that every single Irish weather observatory confirmed rainfall above normal January averages.

That came after December ranked as the warmest and wettest on record with Dublin's Phoenix Park recording its highest average monthly temperature (8.9 degrees) for 160 years.

The monitoring station at Dublin Airport has now recorded its wettest January since 1948 with 189 percent more rainfall than normal levels.

Strange oily substance coats homes in Michigan neighborhood

Stevie Borrello
ABC News
Wed, 17 Feb 2016 19:29 UTC

Residents in Harrison Township, Michigan, got a rude surprise on Sunday when they awoke to find a strange oily substance coating their cars and homes.

Days later, what the substance is and where it came from remain a mystery.

"Everybody's concerned," Harrison Township resident Paul Schlutow, 73, told ABC News today, adding that his major concern is finding out if the substance is harmful.

Schlutow said he contacted several organizations on Tuesday morning, including the local fire department, the Department of Environmental Quality and even the nearby Selfridge Air National Guard Base.

Very unusual this time of year! Miami, Florida wakes to tornado warning, wind damage

RT
Tue, 16 Feb 2016 16:52 UTC

A tornado warning issued in south Florida Tuesday morning woke up residents, if the giant thunderstorms hadn't already.

Officials have not yet confirmed any actual tornadoes touched down, but several reports by locals online say "tornadoes" overturning a trailer on a highway, damaging cars, and downing trees.

With thousands of sharks spotted off the coast of Florida this week, could this be the perfect recipe for a Sharknado?

Northwest Florida and Mississippi were hit by tornadoes Monday with ten homes receiving significant damage, according to Escambia County spokeswoman Joy Tsubooka.

Comment: Unusual weather is happening all over the globe. Check out the January edition of SOTT's Earth Changes Summary for more extreme weather, planetary upheaval and meteor fireballs.

Gas explosions in Dominican Republic injure 40, level homes

La prensa
Tue, 16 Feb 2016 21:42 UTC

© AP Photo/Ezequiel Abiu Lopez
A police officer stands in the rubble of homes and cars destroyed by an explosion from a nearby gas distribution center owned by Solgas in the Los Rios neighborhood of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016. According to officials, two early morning explosions destroyed several homes and injured at least 40 people

At least 40 people were injured when a liquefied petroleum gas distribution station blew up in Santo Dominto, Dominican authorities told EFE.

Eight of the injured are in serious condition with burns over 60 percent of their bodies, as well as suffering other injuries.

The explosion, which caused traffic chaos in the capital, also caused the collapse of a nearby three-story building, where firefighters are continuing to look for possible victims or survivors among the ruins.

Officials with the Dominican Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Distributors told EFE that the explosion occurred due to a gas leak caused by a faulty valve on one of the station's tanks.

The main problem facing firefighters and technical personnel was ensuring that the blaze did not spread to another large nearby tank that had to be constantly chilled to prevent a new tragedy.

The sources said that the LPG station was up to date with all its permits.

Huge rock slide near Glenwood Springs, Colorado closes I-70

WCVB
Wed, 17 Feb 2016 02:54 UTC

Drivers trying to get through the Rocky Mountains Tuesday faced a 200+ mile detour after a stretch of Interstate 70 was closed due to multiple rock slides.

Photos shared by the Colorado Department of Transportation on social media showed several massive boulders on the highway. One photo showed damage to a tractor-trailer.

Transportation officials said the rock slide caused damage to the interstate, retaining wall and bridge/guardrail.

Colorado State Police closed the interstate between Exit 116 in Glenwood Springs and Exit 140 in Gypsum and said Tuesday it would remain shut down "until further notice."

Interstate 70 is one of the few direct roads that travel across the Rocky Mountains. Drivers using the recommended detour faced major traffic delays from the narrow, 203-mile alternate route that will take almost four hours to travel.

Signs and Portents: Two-headed calf born in China

Kirstie McCrum
Daily Mirror, UK
Tue, 16 Feb 2016 19:20 UTC

© CEN
Weird occurrence: The calf and Gan Yuanhua, who says that it was born from a cow who has had three healthy calves previously

A calf born with two heads has stunned farmers in a small village.

The animal was born from a cow who has given birth to three healthy calves in the past.

And it would likely have been dismissed by villagers, they say - had they not seen it with their own eyes.

Farmer Gan Yuanhua said: "I heard the cow shuffling around and making odd noises in the shed, and I knew she was about to give birth."

From his home in Shaijin Village in Linshui County, in south-west China's Sichuan Province, he said he initially thought the cow had given birth to twins when he saw the two heads and did not realise immediately that it was a mutation.

Two sperm whales die after beaching on coast of East China

Nectar Gan
South China Morning Post
Tue, 16 Feb 2016 17:52 UTC

Authorities and experts measured the giant carcasses

Two sperm whales have died after beaching themselves on the East China coast in the past two days, the China News Service reported.

On Sunday, villagers found one dead whale beached near Yangkou, in Jiangsu province, while another whale lingered in the deeper water of a channel nearby.

The second whale then became stranded and died on Monday afternoon, about 10km from the first while.

Fisherman Yin Qiufeng said he spotted the whale on the beach early on Sunday.

"[At first] I thought it was a capsized ship, but at a second glance I found it was a huge fish," Yin said. "In the beginning I didn't dare go too close to have a better look because I thought it was still alive, but later I found out it was already dead."

Another dead whale found on coast in Odisha, India; fifth this month

Debabrata Mohanty
The Indian Express
Tue, 16 Feb 2016 17:35 UTC

In the fifth case of whales washing ashore on Odisha coast, the carcass of another giant whale was found near Mangala river mouth in Puri on Tuesday morning.

Divisional Forest Officer Puri wildlife division Chittaranjan Mishra said the forest department officials have seized the decomposed body of the 38-feet-long whale.

"We will bury the body of the whale after ascertaining its cause of death and and send some of its parts to Bhubaneswar to know the species of the whale. We have sought the experts' opinion," he said.

Odisha forest and wildlife department officials have written a letter to the Ministry of Forest and Environment for investigation into the cases of whale carcasses washing ashore.

2 volcanoes erupt within two hours in Nicaragua

Strange Sounds
Tue, 16 Feb 2016 16:46 UTC

The Telica and Momotombo volcanoes are two stratovolcanoes in Nicaragua.

On February 13, 2016 both erupted within two hours. Enhanced volcanic activity in the region.

According to the Nicaraguan Institute of Territorial Studies (INETER), the Telica volcano, located in the Leon department, erupted at 8:28 a.m. Saturday morning, launching a column of ash and gas some 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) into the air. At least 20 smaller eruptions were recorded at the volcano in the subsequent hours. Ashfall was reported in some nearby communities.

About two hours after the first explosion at Telica, the Momotombo volcano - which had been essentially dormant for 100 years before exploding to life in December - launched a column of ash and gas more than 1,600 feet (500 meters) into the air.