Earth ChangesS


Cloud Precipitation

Heavy rains cause major flooding in Montego Bay, Jamaica

Severe flooding caused mayhem in Montego Bay
Severe flooding caused mayhem in Montego Bay
Scores of Montego Bay residents are on edge following massive flooding that left them marooned in the second city on Wednesday.

Residents in the tourist city told Loop News that the development reached a stage where people had to seek refuge on top of buildings as angry flood waters took over the city.

"It is the worst I have ever seen flooding in the city and I have been living in the area for many years," said Sandra Samuels.

Another man said he along with his family members had to abandon their vehicle as floodwaters took over a street that the group was travelling on.

"We were travelling along Union Street when water came from nowhere and just started to wash away the vehicle. I had to secure my family members and take refuge at the top of a nearby building," the man who identified himself only as Charles told Loop News.


Attention

Koala bear attacks man in front yard in Wahroonga, Australia

Mr Barnett with a photo of his attacker.
Mr Barnett with a photo of his attacker
Brutal attacks don't normally come to mind when you think of the cuddly koala — but one has left a Wahroonga man in hospital for a week after it bit him in his front yard.

Michael Barnett, 84, from Yanilla Ave, Wahroonga was attacked by the koala last Monday while he was trying to rescue the animal from a flock of angry cockatoos.

Mr Barnett was unsure where the koala's natural habitat was but his property backs onto the Lane Cove National Park.

"It is an incredible story," Mr Barnett told the Hornsby Advocate. "The first koala I see in the area in over 40 years and it bites me while I am trying to rescue it."

The attack comes after a rogue ferret bit a Baulkham Hills woman while she slept earlier this week.

Comment: See also these other odd incidents: More weird animal behaviour: Koala bear chases woman on quad bike in South Australia

Woman left bloodied after attack by koala in Willaston, Australia


Attention

Girl recovering from shark attack off Melbourne Beach, Florida

Kaia Anderson, 14, of Floridana Beach (south of Melbourne Beach) was bitten by a shark this past Saturday while surfing. While being interviewed, their dog Spot wanted to be in the photo.
© Tim Shortt/Florida TodayKaia Anderson, 14, of Floridana Beach (south of Melbourne Beach) was bitten by a shark this past Saturday while surfing. While being interviewed, their dog Spot wanted to be in the photo.
Crystal-clear water and lingering mix swell revealed some excited ocean activity in Central Florida last weekend — both above and below the surface. On Saturday evening, at about an hour or two before sunset, 14-year-old surfer Kaia Anderson was bitten by what is believed to be a spinner shark off a Floridana Beach access in southern Melbourne Beach.

"Kaia lives right next door to me, she's probably the nicest girl I've ever met in my entire life, and she and her sister go surfing every single day," said local pro Chauncey Robinson, who witnessed the attack. "I'd been up at the access watching the waves for 30 minutes prior and saw a shark go through a wave, but others thought it was a dolphin, since there were a few of those out, too. Then, probably ten minutes before it happened, I saw a spinner shark jump out the back and splash in front of everyone.

Cloud Lightning

Man dies following lightning strike in Western Australia

LIGHTNING
A West Australian race course worker who was struck by lightning last week has died in hospital.

Track curating staff member Doug Fernihough, 57, was filling divots at Northam Race Club on November 16 when he was hit by lightning, suffering a heart attack and internal injuries.

He was flown to Royal Perth Hospital for treatment, but died late on Wednesday surrounded by his family.

"On behalf of the Northam Race Club, Racing and Wagering WA and the broader WA racing fraternity, I wish to extend our thoughts and heartfelt condolences to Doug's family and friends," RWWA chief executive Richard Burt said on Thursday.

Windsock

Wyoming, US: Wind gusts top 60 mph, trucks topple on highway

toppled trucks Wyoming
© Blaine McCartney/Wyoming Tribune EagleA truck driver speaks on the phone after his semitractor-trailer combination blew over in the southbound lane on Interstate 25 near the interchange with Interstate 80 on Monday in Cheyenne. High winds caused numerous accidents mainly south of Cheyenne, resulting in the temporary closure of I-25 leading to Colorado.
With wind gusts topping 60 miles per hour Monday, semitractor-trailer combinations were tottering and tipping on highways near Cheyenne.

A wind advisory was out most of the day for light, high-profile vehicles, such as trucks with empty cargo compartments.

But despite those warnings, nine semitractor-trailers had blown over on Interstate 25 between Cheyenne and the Colorado border between 9:26 a.m. and 5:15 p.m., according to Lt. David Wagener of the Wyoming Highway Patrol. The interstate was closed for about an hour around 3:30 p.m. to clean up crashes in both lanes, according to emails from the Wyoming Department of Transportation.

Comment: More wind speed events have been reported recently around the globe. However, overall wind speeds seem to have slowed down since1960.


Umbrella

Homes evacuated as severe rain floods Britain

torrential rainfall floods UK
© UKNIPTorrential rainfall hit Lancashire earlier today
Torrential rain has forced Brits to abandon their homes today as weather experts issue weather warnings across the UK.

Lancaster and Galgate were the worst affected areas, with the A6 closed in both directions and 27 residents housed in two nearby pubs.

Emergency services responded to more than 500 calls about flooding and attended more than 100 incidents across the county.

It comes hours after the Environment Agency issued 25 flood alerts and ten warnings - most being in the North West of England.

A Lancashire Constabulary spokesman said: "All agencies worked really hard in a coordinated effort to minimise disruption and protect the public and we will continue to support those communities worst affected.

Comment: Also in Europe: Atmospheric compression event in Europe brings heavy snow and biblical flood


Butterfly

Habitat loss results in a 90% population reduction of monarch butterflies in 25 years

Monarch butterflies
Monarch butterflies
Many species of pollinators are in sharp decline in Wisconsin.

Recently, a DNR program was granted more almost $70,000 to aid in helping Monarch butterflies. The grant was to help the insects during their annual trek to Mexico over the winter. The grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to restore and enhance critical monarch butterfly habitat along the Mississippi River.

But the DNR's Owen Boyle says the populations of the once-common Monarchs have fallen by 90 percent in the last 25 years.

Snowflake

Mount Agung erupts, record snow, Cosmic Ray uptick

Linda Maz shovels out her driveway on Sparks Ave. after the 57cm snowfall on the weekend.
Linda Maz shovels out her driveway on Sparks Ave. Terrace after the 57cm snowfall on the weekend.
As Terrace recovers from Saturday's 105-year record daily snowfall, Environment Canada has upgraded their snowfall warning with up to 40cm of snow Wednesday evening. The storm falls short of Saturday's 57cm snowfall, but Environment Canada meteorologist Matt MacDonald warns it will present its own challenges.


Sources

Stock Up

Adapt 2030 Ice Age Report: Wheat prices rising as crop failures mount

rice field
© SIPA Asia / Global Look Press
USDA Nov Wheat ending stocks are in and totals are down 25 Million Bushels, Wheat prices up, CME wheat futures jump $90 for delivery Dec 2018. GMO Fish in Canada, GMO potatoes for USA, new strains of rice that can grow in salt water and ready for commercialization in China. Crop losses in Australia due to hail and frost plus soggy conditions in USA delayed harvests.


Sources

Cloud Precipitation

California sees its wettest water year on record in 2016-17

Water flows through break in the wall of the Oroville Dam spillway during heavy rains on Thursday, Feb. 9, 2017.
© Rich Pedroncelli /APWater flows through break in the wall of the Oroville Dam spillway during heavy rains on Thursday, Feb. 9, 2017.
Massive floods hit Houston and devastating hurricanes struck Puerto Rico and the Caribbean. Yet one of the more remarkable stories in the past year is the catastrophe that did not happen: massive flooding in California.

California experienced its wettest water year on record in 2016-17. In previous decades, that huge volume of water would have caused lethal floods, particularly in the Central Valley.

In part, we were lucky. Reservoirs were empty from drought so they had abundant capacity, and there was sufficient time between big storms so the rainfall didn't stack up. Dams and major levees held, though the near-failing of Oroville Dam's spillway and the flooding of the small town of Maxwell in February showed it could have been much worse.