Earth ChangesS


Attention

Oroville Dam update: Mandatory evacuation orders lifted, but dangers remain as new storm approaches

Hailey Branson-Potts
Los Angeles Times
Tue, 14 Feb 2017 18:30 UTC
Oroville dam damage
© Josh Edelson/AFP/Getty Images

Water released so far by emergency spillways at Oroville Dam in Northern California washed away roadways, eroded the landscape and flooded communities downstream.
Authorities lifted mandatory evacuation orders Tuesday for communities downstream of the imperiled Oroville Dam amid a lessened flood risk, but they stressed that an incoming storm system means the danger is not over and that many residents might have to flee again.

Although the storms are expected to be far weaker than the ones that inundated Northern California last week, any additional rainfall could exacerbate the problems in the region, where more than 100,000 people were evacuated Sunday amid concerns that a damaged spillway at Oroville Dam could fail.

Officials have been lowering the level of Lake Oroville for several days, preparing for the storm. Both the main and emergency spillways are damaged, but officials are hoping to continue using the main spillway throughout the storm to keep the lake below maximum capacity. By doing that, they hope to avoid more water flowing down the emergency spillway, which was so damaged Sunday that officials feared it could collapse and cause major flooding downstream.

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Sun

Over 700 flying foxes 'cooked' during heatwave in Singleton, Australia

Rebecca Lynch
9news.com.a
Mon, 13 Feb 2017 22:11 UTC
Some of the bats were found lifeless hanging from the trees, while others littered the grounds of the town's central park.
Some of the bats were found lifeless hanging from the trees, while others littered the grounds of the town's central park.
More than 700 flying foxes have died during a heatwave in the New South Wales Hunter region town of Singleton, with many of their corpses still hanging from trees.

The mass death at the Burdekin Park colony began Friday and peaked as temperatures hit 47C over the weekend, Wildlife Aid Inc bat coordinator Jaala Presland told 9news.com.au.

Video shows the native animals' lifeless bodies hanging upside down from trees and littering the ground of the town's central park.


"We had half a dozen [live bats brought in] on Friday evening. Saturday we knew the temperatures were looking high again and we had 80 come in, and the death was sort of starting to tally," Ms Presland said.
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Cloud Precipitation

Western U.S. faces renewed flood threat as storm onslaught resumes

Renee Duff
AccuWeather
Tue, 14 Feb 2017 21:19 UTC
Oroville Dam
Oroville Dam
Potent storms will return to the western United States at midweek, bringing a renewed threat for travel disruptions and flooding.

The weather pattern that has promoted dry weather along the West Coast since the weekend will break down on Wednesday. This will allow the river of moisture to resume from Washington to California.

"After a few dry days across the West Coast, stormy weather will return, first across the Pacific Northwest and later across all of Caliifornia," AccuWeather Meteorologist Brett Rathbun said.

Pacific Northwest, Northern California to face drenching rain, ice and snow

Locally heavy rain will push inland along the Interstate-5 corridor from Seattle to Portland, Oregon, throughout Wednesday. During Wednesday night, soaking rain will sink southward into San Francisco and Sacramento, California.

Excessive runoff due to the saturated nature of the soil can cause flash flooding as well as mudslides. Rivers can rise above flood stage and overflow their banks.

Motorists will face hazards such as excess water on roadways and reduced visibility.

weather map
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Cloud Precipitation

Flood alert issued in Hungary with melting ice causing mayhem


euronews
Tue, 14 Feb 2017 21:08 UTC
Floodwater in Hungary
Floodwater in Hungary
Parts of Hungary are on flood alert, with melting ice causing mayhem.

It is the flip side of a rise in temperatures, after weeks of freezing conditions.

Some homes are submerged in the east of the country, with boats and piers also damaged..

When blocks of ice came dangerously close to a power plant, icebreaker vessels were deployed.


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Snowflake

Village evacuated for fear of dam break as heavy snow and rainfall continues to hit Iran


Press TV
Mon, 13 Feb 2017 20:35 UTC
This February 13, 2017 photo released by Iran's Tasnim news agency shows a car covered with snow in the central Iranian city of Arak.
This February 13, 2017 photo released by Iran's Tasnim news agency shows a car covered with snow in the central Iranian city of Arak.
Fears that a dam could break in southern Iran has prompted officials to evacuate a village as the country continues to be hit with heavy snowfalls not seen in years.

Reports on Monday said that officials had ordered the evacuation of Kazemabad, a small village on the outskirts of the city of Fasa, in the province of Fars.

The order came after the local authority responsible for water and sewerage management warned about a spillway failure at Salman Farsi Dam, which is located near Fasa. Initial reports said the villagers had resisted evacuation.

Local Iranian media said Sunday that 28 out of 31 provinces were affected by heavy rain and snowfall. According to reports, around 4,500 people were attended to on the roads and some 380 people were rescued from heavy snow. One single person was hospitalized, officials said without elaborating.

Rainfall also caused power cuts in parts of the southwestern province of Khuzestan.

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Camera

Stunning polar stratospheric clouds shine over Sweden, Finland


Space Weather
Tue, 14 Feb 2017 19:49 UTC
Around the Arctic Circle, observers are reporting an outbreak of polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs). "Yesterday, Feb. 13th, the sky was filled with their brilliant colors from sunrise to sunset," says Mia Stålnacke, who sends this picture from Kiruna, Sweden:
Polar stratospheric clouds
© Mia Stålnacke
These clouds are newsworthy because normally the stratosphere has no clouds at all. Home to the ozone layer, the stratosphere is arid and almost always transparent. Yet, Stålnacke says, "we've been seeing stratospheric clouds very often this winter and last."

According to multiple longtime residents of the area, the Feb 13th display was exceptional. "Everyone I spoke to agrees it was the best they had ever seen," says Chad Blakley, who operates the Lights over Lapland tour guide service in Abisko, Sweden.
Polar stratospheric clouds in Sweden
© Mia Stålnacke
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Question

50 dead owls seen along 20-mile stretch of Interstate-84 near Jerome, Idaho


kboi2.com
Tue, 14 Feb 2017 19:57 UTC
Dead barn owl
Dead barn owl
Dozens of dead owls have been reported by drivers along Interstate-84 in southern Idaho making for an eerie stretch of road.

Over the weekend, Nichole Miller and Christina White of Boise were driving home to Boise from Twin Falls when they spotted some road kill along the interstate.

"I saw a bird on the side of the road -- I thought it was a chicken," Miller said. "But then we saw more (road kill) and I saw the stripes on the feathers and it was not a chicken."

It was definitely, an owl, she said. And it wasn't the only one.
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Wolf

Dog attacks on farm livestock reach record levels in the UK

Philip Case
Farmers Weekly
Tue, 14 Feb 2017 19:48 UTC
Dog attack
Dog attacks on livestock have reached record levels with more than 1,000 reports of sheep and cattle worrying on farms in 2016 at an estimated cost of £1.4m.

The alarming figures sparked a warning from rural insurer NFU Mutual with the firm calling on the public to do more to prevent dogs worrying livestock.

With many families expected to visit the countryside during half-term and the Easter holidays, the insurer is asking dog owners always to keep their pets on a lead.

The public has been urged to report out-of-control dogs to a local farmer or the police.
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Megaphone

Mysterious boom in Ohio shakes homes, knocks items off wall

Karin Johnson
WLWT5
Mon, 13 Feb 2017 18:55 UTC
Hamilton, Ohio water tower
© wcpo.com
Some say it shook homes, knocked items off their walls.

Numerous people living on the west side of Hamilton reported hearing a loud boom around 5:40 p.m. Sunday. Some say it even shook their homes and knocked items off their walls.

"No other way to explain it other than a loud boom," Darryl Pies said. "It was different than firecrackers or perhaps a transformer blowing up. I mean,it was 'boom,' and a little bit of a rumble after that."

Earl Caudill said he felt it. "I felt the concussion. You could feel the concussion from it," he said. "Of course, you come out to see if you could see smoke and stuff. There was no smoke out here."

Multiple people called 911 after hearing the noise. "It shook my mom's apartment. I mean, it was huge, and now all kinds of people are saying they felt it, so it was something," one caller said. Another caller said, "It was so bad that it blew a clock off my wall."

Comment: The evening before, another loud boom was reported 180 miles away by residents of Mansfield, Ohio.

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Dig

Repairs underway to large sinkhole in East Oakland, California

Harry Harris
East Bay Times
Mon, 13 Feb 2017 14:37 UTC
East Oakland sinkhole
© Harry Harris/Bay Area News GroupA large sinkhole appeared Sunday on East 27th Street in East Oakland.
Workers from several agencies on Monday were continuing to repair a large sinkhole that appeared Sunday morning in East Oakland, damaging utility lines and partially swallowing a parked car, officials said.

The hole, about 25 feet wide, 25 feet long and 20 feet deep, opened about 9:21 a.m. in the 2600 block of East 27th Street in the lower Dimond district.

No one was in a parked 1991 BMW that was left partly submerged. It was later towed out.

On Monday, there were workers from the City of Oakland, PG&E and a private contractor at the scene. It was not known when the hole would be refilled and all repairs completed but crews were working around the clock to expedite the repairs, officials said..

Some underground sewer and storm drain lines were damaged as well as the roadway, officials said, but the extent of the damage or how many users were affected was not immediately available.
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