Earth ChangesS


Fish

Whale mortality rises in San Francisco Bay with 22 confirmed carcasses in 2025

Harsh Vardhan
The Watchers News
Thu, 19 Jun 2025 01:54 UTC
Gray whale deaths in San Francisco Bay reached 22 as of mid-June 2025, with data showing continued population decline and signs of ecosystem stress and malnutrition.

San Francisco Bay
© Copernicus EU/Sentinel-2, EO Broweser, The Watchers. Acquired on June 12, 2025
At least 22 whale carcasses have been confirmed in the San Francisco Bay Area so far in 2025, including 19 gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus), two unidentified baleen whales, and one minke whale. This is the highest number reported in the region since 2021, when an Unusual Mortality Event (UME) affected gray whales along the Eastern North Pacific.

Data collected by local observers and the Marine Mammal Center indicate that more than 30 gray whales have been seen alive in San Francisco Bay over the same period. This represents an increase from just 6 whales observed by May 2024.

Approximately one-third of those whales remained in the bay for more than 20 days, with visible signs of varied health that ranged from normal to emaciated condition.

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Tsunami

Heavy rains flood cities in southern China - 22.5 inches of rain in 24 hours (incl. 5.5 inches in 2)


bastillepost.com
Wed, 18 Jun 2025 12:16 UTC
Heavy rains flood cities in southern China
Heavy rains flood cities in southern China
Torrential rains continued to batter southern China on Tuesday, causing severe flooding and prompting mass evacuations in parts of Guangdong Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

Huaiji County in Guangdong's Zhaoqing City was particularly hard hit, with urban streets submerged in flood water and tens of thousands evacuated.

The Sui River at the county's hydrological station reached a peak of 55.22 meters at 7:05 Wednesday local time, exceeding the warning level by 5.22 meters and marking the highest flood level since records began.

Authorities in Huaiji acted swiftly, initiating a top-level flood control emergency response on Tuesday evening. Schools, businesses, and transportation services were suspended, and all emergency shelters were opened.

Across the county, 19 towns have been affected, impacting over 78,000 people, with more than 29,000 evacuated. No casualties have been reported so far.


Comment: ChinaNews.com.cn reports:
[...]

According to meteorological and hydrological monitoring, from 8:00 on the 17th to 8:00 on the 18th, the average rainfall in the province was 39.8 mm. The number of towns and streets with rainfall exceeding 25 mm accounted for 54.1% of the total number of towns and streets in the province. 31 towns and streets recorded extremely heavy rains of more than 250 mm, 174 towns and streets recorded torrential rains of 100 to 250 mm, 307 towns and streets recorded heavy rains of 50 to 100 mm, and 382 towns and streets recorded heavy rains of 25 to 50 mm. The towns and streets with the largest rainfall in each city include: Tanshui Town, Yangchun City, Yangjiang City, 572.5 mm, Nahuo Town, Dianbai District, Maoming City, 427 mm, Xiaosanjiang Town, Lianshan Zhuang and Yao Autonomous County, Qingyuan City, 326.1 mm, and Xiashuai Zhuang and Yao Township, Huaiji County, Zhaoqing City, 315.5 mm.

[...]


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Tornado2

14 reported tornadoes spotted across the state of Minnesota


FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul
Mon, 16 Jun 2025 10:08 UTC
Sheila Brauer, a resident of Little Marion Lake, estimated the picture she took of the waterspout was about a quarter mile from her cabin.
© Sheila BrauerSheila Brauer, a resident of Little Marion Lake, estimated the picture she took of the waterspout was about a quarter mile from her cabin.
Fourteen tornadoes were reported across Minnesota Monday evening as severe storms impacted the majority of the state.

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Lightning

25 killed in lightning strikes in under 24 hours across Uttar Pradesh, India


Hindustan Times
Mon, 16 Jun 2025 09:36 UTC
Officials inspect the scene where a hut was reduced to ashes in a lightning strike, killing four members of a family, in Prayagraj.
© Hindustan TimesOfficials inspect the scene where a hut was reduced to ashes in a lightning strike, killing four members of a family, in Prayagraj.
At least 25 people were killed in lightning strikes in 14 districts of Uttar Pradesh from Saturday night to Sunday morning, officials said.

As per data released by the relief commissioner's office, five deaths were reported in Prayagraj district, four in Jaunpur, two each in Lalitpur, Gorakhpur, Bareilly and Bijnor, and each in Lucknow, Kanpur Dehat, Kushinagar, Shahjahanpur, Hardoi, Sambhal, Jhansi and Jalaun districts.

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday directed officers concerned to promptly launch relief work in the districts hit by storm, rain and hailstorm.

The chief minister directed the district administration officers to visit the affected areas. He also directed them to provide financial assistance to the family members of the deceased and others who suffered losses. The injured should be given proper treatment, he added.

Yogi said officers should conduct a survey to assess crop loss and send a report to the government so that further action can be taken.
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Lightning

Residents see dead pelicans fall out of the sky during a thunderstorm in Mobile, Alabama on June 14

Kathryn Bruch, Thomas Boni, Akievia McFarland
News Nation Now
Mon, 16 Jun 2025 17:51 UTC
MMMMM
© Mason Terrill / News 5 Photographer
Mobile, Alabama, police recently responded to reports of pelican corpses falling from the sky in one neighborhood, which sat there for days, according to NewsNation affiliate WKRG.

WKRG spoke with residents, who believe that a lightning strike might've caused the pelicans to fall from the sky.

One woman said she heard two loud booms during a thunderstorm and saw birds on the ground after it passed.

"Ain't no way, we looked outside, 16 birds just in our yard," resident Destany Williams said. "Nowhere else, just in the yard. This ain't no coincidence... This is the end of the world for real."

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Lightning

Lightning kills 14 in Bihar, India in 24 hours, a day ahead of monsoon entry


abplive.com
Tue, 17 Jun 2025 17:42 UTC
mmmm
Tragedy struck Bihar on Monday as sudden lightning storms claimed 14 lives and left 11 others injured across four districts. The victims, many of them farmers, children, and daily wage workers, were caught off guard by the deadly weather while going about their routine.

A Sudden Storm, A Trail of Grief

Heavy rains accompanied by lightning swept through Buxar, West Champaran, Katihar, and other districts, turning a routine monsoon day into one of devastation. Among the deceased were four residents from Buxar, three each from West Champaran and Katihar, and one person each from Lakhisarai, Kaimur, Sitamarhi, and Bhagalpur.

In West Champaran, three lives were lost in separate incidents in the Ramnagar and Lauriya areas. A woman was among the deceased. Seven others, including four women, were injured in these lightning strikes. Among them, a child's condition is said to be critical.
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Attention

35-foot blue whale found dead near Makran Coast, Pakistan

Arsalan Khattak
propakistani.pk
Tue, 17 Jun 2025 17:30 UTC
mmmmm
A blue whale, measuring about 35 feet, was found dead in Gwatar Bay, Makran Coast at the border Pakistan and Iran.

The discovery was made by local fisherman Ahmad Baloch, who spotted the whale floating near Kuntani, Balochistan.

It is believed the whale died several days earlier in open waters between the two countries and drifted toward the bay due to rough sea conditions and strong currents.

While the exact cause of death remains undetermined, experts suspect the whale may have become entangled in gillnets, commonly used for fishing in the region.

The blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) is one of three baleen whale species in Pakistani waters, alongside the Bryde's whale and the Arabian humpback whale.

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Arrow Down

Massive landslide after heavy rainfall tears through village of Borca di Cadore in Italian Dolomites

Julia Schneemann
SnowBrains
Mon, 16 Jun 2025 17:16 UTC
The fire department rushed to free trapped residents of the alpine village of Borca di Cadore in Italy.
© Vigili del Fuoco XThe fire department rushed to free trapped residents of the alpine village of Borca di Cadore in Italy.
A massive landslide unleashed by violent overnight storms tore through the alpine village of Borca di Cadore in Italy's Veneto region early Monday, burying homes and vehicles under tons of mud, rock, and debris. Located just south of Cortina d'Ampezzo in the Dolomites, the village was hit shortly after midnight during a thunderstorm that dumped heavy rainfall across the region.

Around 20 houses were damaged, with at least ten residents trapped in their homes as boulders and mud blocked entrances. Ground floors were flooded, vehicles were destroyed, and power outages further complicated rescue efforts. Emergency crews, including firefighters and civil protection, worked through the night to evacuate families and clear blocked roads. The main route to Cortina, the SS51 Alemagna state road, was closed for hours and remains partially obstructed.

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Earthquake

Tectonic plates can spread subduction like a contagion — jumping from one oceanic plate to another

Evan Howell
Live Science
Fri, 13 Jun 2025 00:00 UTC
volcano
© Universal History Archive/Getty ImagesThe Andes Mountains formed from the convergence of the Nazca plate and the South American plate. Aracar, seen in a satellite image from Feb. 20, 2000, is one of many volcanoes in the Andes range.
Subduction zones, where one tectonic plate dives underneath another, drive the world's most devastating earthquakes and tsunamis. How do these danger zones come to be? A study in Geology presents evidence that subduction can spread like a contagion, jumping from one oceanic plate to another — a hypothesis previously difficult to prove.

This result "is not just speculation," says University of Lisbon geologist João Duarte, who was not involved in the research. "This study builds an argument based on the geological record."

Because subduction drags crust deep into the earth, its beginnings are hard to examine. The new study provides a rare ancient example of potential subduction "infection." Its authors say they've discovered evidence that neighboring collisions triggered East Asia's "Ring of Fire," a colossal subduction system currently fueling earthquakes and volcanoes from Alaska to the southern Indian Ocean.
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Hardhat

Residents picking up after tennis-ball-sized hail hits Winnett, Montana

Charlie Klepps
ktvq.com
Tue, 17 Jun 2025 14:15 UTC
mmmm
© Haley Kiehl
Residents in the Winnett area are picking up the pieces Monday, following a chaotic storm that brought tennis-ball sized hail to the area.

Residents told MTN that majority of the larger hail was found outside of town, while golf-ball sized hail hit downtown.

Watch this video to see the damage:


That larger hail hit hard at the Kiehl Ranch, about 20 minutes southwest of Winnett.

"It was so loud," said Haley Kiehl on Monday afternoon. "We saw one fall right out, and I thought a bird fell out of the sky, it was so big."

Kiehl said the storm interrupted her family's work around the property, as they quickly hid for cover in their shop. She said that the hail fell for the next 10-15 minutes and that it was hard to hear anything.

"That was hands down the biggest hail I've ever seen," Kiehl said.
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