Earth ChangesS


Attention

Rare pod of killer whales spotted off the coast of Orange County, California on January 30

Tony Kurzweil
Yahoo! News
Fri, 31 Jan 2025 12:52 UTC
A pod of orcas showed up off Newport Beach on Jan. 30, 2025, a rare appearence for the group that has only been spotted a handful of times and never documented off Orange County’s coastline.
© Molly BattsA pod of orcas showed up off Newport Beach on Jan. 30, 2025, a rare appearence for the group that has only been spotted a handful of times and never documented off Orange County’s coastline.
A pod of killer whales made an unexpected visit off the coast of Orange County Thursday.

The pod of CA56 killer whales (orcas) was spotted by a Davey's Locker whale-watching boat about 12:30 p.m. just two and a half miles from Newport Beach harbor.

Video showed the whales getting remarkably close to the boat as the passengers and crewmembers looked on.

This particular pod of orcas is rarely seen, with Thursday's sighting believed to be the furthest southern documented sighting, Davey's Locker & Newport Landing spokesperson Jessica Rodriguez said.

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Attention

'Super pod' of 1,500 dolphins captured on video off the coast of California on January 24


The Taipei Times
Thu, 30 Jan 2025 12:09 UTC
A cluster of dolphins swim across Carmel Bay on the central coast of California on Friday last week.
© Evan BrodskyA cluster of dolphins swim across Carmel Bay on the central coast of California on Friday last week.
A miles-long cluster of dolphins has been filmed leaping and gliding across Carmel Bay off the central coast of California, forming an unusual "super pod" of more than 1,500 of the marine creatures.

"They were on the horizon I feel like as far as I could see," said Captain Evan Brodsky, with the Monterey Bay Whale Watch, who captured drone footage of Friday's huge gathering of Risso's dolphins.

The sighting was rare, as Risso's dolphins typically travel in groups of only 10 to 30 animals, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.

From an about 6m-long inflatable boat, Brodsky and a small team out searching for gray whales watched mesmerized as the dolphins jumped out of the bay, peeking around as they leaped in the air. This type of dolphin with its stocky body and bulbous head can weigh as much as 499kg and reach up to 3.9m long.

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Tsunami

Sicily in Italy hit by flooding after month's rain falls in 4 hours (6 inches) - including extreme hail


The Local (Italy)
Mon, 03 Feb 2025 11:35 UTC
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Firefighters rescued residents from flooded streets and cars were washed away in the Sicilian province of Messina on Sunday after a month's worth of rain fell in just four hours.

Almost 150 millimetres (six inches) of rain fell in the area, overloading the drainage system.

City officials said in a statement that the province had experienced an "event of exceptional magnitude".

Hours of heavy rainfall caused mudslides, while vehicles parked close to waterways were dragged downstream by flood waters.

Motorway operator Anas closed two sections of the Orientale Sicula state road and diverted traffic to alternative routes after the Fiumedinisi and Agrò rivers burst their banks.

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Boat

Best of the Web: More flooding and extreme rainfall hits Queensland, Australia - 39 inches of rain in 48 hours

Blair Jackson and Aisling Brennan
News.com.au
Sun, 02 Feb 2025 13:09 UTC
Flooding in North Queensland brings the prospect of crocodiles entering suburban areas
© 9NewsFlooding in North Queensland brings the prospect of crocodiles entering suburban areas
One person has died in the major flooding event smashing North Queensland as residents are warned things could get worse with water and power supply being affected.

An emergency alert was issued for the Bluewater area at 2.41pm on Sunday as heavy rainfall continues across the far northern parts of the state.

Anyone in the Bluewater area is being told to leave immediately due to the emergency flood warning.

"Dangerous flooding happening now at Bluewater," the alert stated.

"Leave immediately if safe to do so or move to higher ground."

Premier David Crisafulli confirmed the death on Sunday morning.


Comment: Earlier recent report from Thursday, January 30 of the flooding and heavy rain which had already hit the the region: Residents evacuated due to flooding in far North Queensland, Australia - over 15.7 inches of rain in 48 hours

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Arrow Down

Landslide closes Thousand Steps in Laguna Beach, California on January 31


ktla.com
Sat, 01 Feb 2025 13:01 UTC
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A popular and heavily trafficked beach in Laguna Beach was closed Friday morning after the cliffside that overlooks it gave way and slid to the ground below.

Details: https://ktla.com/news/california/land...

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Volcano

Japan: Sakurajima eruption sends ash 2,700 meters high as volcanic lightning strikes on January 30


MSN
Sat, 01 Feb 2025 12:48 UTC
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Sakurajima unleashed a powerful explosion at 8:13 p.m. on January 30, sending a towering plume of ash 2,700 meters above the crater.

This marks the volcano's 22nd explosive eruption of 2025, adding to its intense activity.

Witnesses also reported a rare display of volcanic lightning, illuminating the darkened skies as the eruption unfolded.

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Tsunami

Storm Ivo strikes western France with heavy rain and winds; no casualties reported


Economic Times
Thu, 30 Jan 2025 14:57 UTC
Aerial photograph of floods in Redon, western France.
© Damien MeyerAerial photograph of floods in Redon, western France.
Drone visuals showed the extent of major flooding near the western French town of Redon on Thursday (Jan 30), as the floods were expected to reach a historic peak.

Surrounded by rivers, the town, which is home to ten thousand people, was "almost isolated" according to French media.

Flooding has persisted since storms Ivo, Eowyn, and Herminia, along with heavy rainfall, hit the region over the weekend, submerging streets and homes.

Over a thousand residents of the Ille-et-Vilaine department have been evacuated from their homes but no casualties have been reported.

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Cloud Precipitation

Hawaii slammed by triple threat of severe thunderstorms, blistering wind, blizzard-like snow

Hayley Vawter, Emilee Speck, Scott Sistek, Julian Atienza
Fox Weather
Fri, 31 Jan 2025 13:38 UTC
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A powerful storm system is pummeling Hawaii with flash flooding, damaging wind gusts, severe thunderstorms and blizzard-like conditions on the high mountain peaks. The storm has left thousands without power, roads blocked by floods and fallen trees and grounded island air traffic.

Flash Flood Warnings persisted late into Thursday evening over Honolulu and Maui. County offices in Maui were closed on Friday due to the downpours. Crews across the state worked to reopen roads that were closed due to downed trees or flooding.

The Big Island declared a State of Emergency on Thursday afternoon.

Video from Honolulu showed heavy rain and urban flooding. One Honolulu resident shared a video on social media of what looked to be a strong river that he said was normally a dry creek.

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Arrow Down

Sinkholes near Tokyo merge, man still trapped on 3rd day


KYODO
Thu, 30 Jan 2025 12:25 UTC
Photo taken from a Kyodo News
© KyodoPhoto taken from a Kyodo News helicopter on Jan. 30, 2025, shows a large sinkhole at an intersection in Yashio in Saitama Prefecture, near Tokyo. A sinkhole opened up on Jan. 28, swallowing a truck and a man believed to be its driver. Another sinkhole appeared during work to rescue him and the two holes later joined to become one large hole.
A sinkhole at an intersection near Tokyo that swallowed a truck collapsed further Thursday and merged with a second opening that had formed nearby, as rescue efforts continued into a third day to save the driver.

The sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, has expanded to roughly 40 meters wide and up to 15 meters deep since first appearing on Tuesday, according to local fire authorities. The prefectural government had estimated its width at around 20 meters.

Firefighters plan to deploy heavy machinery inside the hole to remove earth and rubble.

While the trapped 74-year-old man was initially able to speak, communication has been lost since Tuesday afternoon, with the driver's seat of the truck buried in debris.

A sewer pipe running underground in the area was found damaged, leading the prefectural government to start discharging wastewater into the nearby Niigata River late Wednesday as an emergency step to reduce the water flowing into the sinkhole.


Comment: Earlier report: Swimming pool-sized sinkhole swallows truck in Japan, trapping driver inside

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Arrow Down

Five skiers killed in French Alps avalanches

Alex Loftus
BBC
Thu, 30 Jan 2025 12:05 UTC
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© AFP
Five skiers were killed in two separate avalanches in the French Alps on Wednesday, local officials have confirmed.

One torrent of snow came in Val-Cenis, in the south-eastern Savoie region, killing four Norwegian skiers, while a Swiss skier died further north in the Haute-Savoie region, near Chamonix.

Three of the Norwegians were killed instantly while a fourth, a woman, died in a nearby hospital after suffering severe hypothermia and a cardiorespiratory arrest.

They were part of a larger group of seven skiers and the remaining three were unharmed.

Jacques Arnoux, mayor of Val-Cenis, told AFP each member of the group had been carrying an avalanche beacon as they were off-piste skiing.
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