Earth ChangesS


Cloud Precipitation

Widespread flooding, mudslides, evacuations as biggest storm in years hammers California

Matt Hamilton, Frank Shyong, Adam Elmahrek and Howard Blume
Los Angeles Times
Mon, 23 Jan 2017 11:01 UTC
The storm pummeling Southern California Sunday was likely the strongest to hit Southern California since 2010, officials said, and brought with it a slew of complications for residents.
The storm pummeling Southern California Sunday was likely the strongest to hit Southern California since 2010, officials said, and brought with it a slew of complications for residents.
The third in a series of powerful winter storms unleashed a deluge in Southern California on Sunday, flooding numerous roads and freeways, setting new rainfall records and stranding some in dangerously rising waters.

Forecasters had predicted this storm would be the strongest and several years, and it didn't disappoint. While earlier storms produced periods of heavy showers, this one delivered several hours of sustained pounding rain, with damaging results.

Coastal areas of Los Angeles County were among the hardest hit, with Long Beach Airport setting a new all-time rainfall record, 3.87 inches. The intense rain was too much for local roads. Sunday afternoon, both the 110 Freeway in Carson and the 710 Freeway in Long Beach were shutdown due to extreme flooding that left cars stranded like islands in a lake.

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Tornado2

Tornadoes leave at least 19 dead as severe storm outbreak pummels the U.S. South

Eric Chaney and Ada Carr
The Weather Channel
Sun, 22 Jan 2017 08:48 UTC
Tornado damage
© APTornado damage
A deadly outbreak of severe weather that has killed at least 19 people began to impact Florida Sunday, downing power lines that sparked a 50-acre brush fire in Citrus County.

A tornado that tore through Albany, Georgia, left at least 4 dead. The town of roughly 77,000 people saw significant damage with trees and power lines downed and blocking streets in the Radium Springs area, WALB reports. A child was reportedly trapped by a tree during the storm.

In a Facebook live video, County Commission Chairman Chris Cohilas described the town as looking as if a nuclear bomb went off.

"We need a lot of help," he said in the video. "This is really bad."


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Tornado2

Death toll from extreme US storms surges to 18, tornado warnings still in place


RT
Sun, 22 Jan 2017 17:01 UTC
US tornado damage
© lonology / Instagram
At least 18 people have been killed and scores more injured after severe storms lashed the southern US states.

Fourteen people were killed in Georgia, and four people died in Mississippi as a result of the adverse weather.

The deaths occurred as a direct result of severe weather according to State Emergency Management officials.

Georgia's Gov. Nathan Deal has declared a state of emergency Sunday morning for seven counties in the state.

"These storms have devastated communities and homes in SouthCentral Georgia, and the state is making all resources available to the impacted areas," Deal said in a statement.


Comment: The responsible storm system is unusually strong for winter and much more characteristic of spring. North Little Rock, set a record for its lowest January pressure. See also:

Study: Tornado outbreaks are increasing - but scientists don't understand why

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Attention

Diver survives brutal shark attack on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Jen Offord
International Business Times
Sun, 22 Jan 2017 19:36 UTC
Shark attacks
An Australian diver was lucky to survive a shark attack off the coast of Queensland on Saturday after he was forced to wait eight hours to receive treatment. The diver, who was said by the Cairns Post to be experienced, was eventually admitted to Cairns Hospital on Sunday afternoon.

The 55-year-old was attacked near the Great Barrier Reef by a large Bull shark - an aggressive breed, according to experts - at around 12:40pm local time on Saturday. The bull shark, apparently four metres long, repeatedly bit the diver causing "serious lacerations" to his left arm and abdomen, the newspaper said.
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Cloud Precipitation

Dangerous flooding hits California, Arizona; several rescues reported

Sean Breslin
The Weather Channel
Sat, 21 Jan 2017 17:00 UTC
Cabins and vehicles were swept away by floodwaters at the El Capitan Canyon Resort & Campground, Friday, Jan. 20, 2017.
© Mike Eliason/SBCFireCabins and vehicles were swept away by floodwaters at the El Capitan Canyon Resort & Campground, Friday, Jan. 20, 2017.
Heavy rainfall brought dangerous flooding to parts of Southern California and Arizona, and in some areas, people were trapped and needed rescue.

Near Phoenix, firefighters from several agencies worked together to save two men who were trapped in a wash, according to the Associated Press. Each of the two men was lifted separately out of the vehicle that got stuck in the rushing waters, and neither were injured in the ordeal, the report added.

The men were only identified by a Maricopa County Sheriff's Office spokesperson as a father and a son, the AP also said.

Displaced vehicles and cabins are seen near the creek at the flooded El Capitan Canyon Resort & Campground, Friday, Jan. 20, 2017.
© Mike Eliason/SBCFireDisplaced vehicles and cabins are seen near the creek at the flooded El Capitan Canyon Resort & Campground, Friday, Jan. 20, 2017.
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Igloo

More than triple average January snowfall breaks records at California ski resort

Robert
Ice Age Now
Sat, 21 Jan 2017 14:44 UTC
Snow in Squaw Alpine
© Via Twitter@squawalpine
Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows ski resor in Lake Tahoe, California, has broken the snow record for ANY month in 45 years of its existence:

Until now, the biggest snowfall was 202 inches, which came in March 2011. So far this January - 212 inches. That's more than 17 ft (more than 5 meters).

Until now, January snowfall has averaged "only" 70 inches.

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Ice Cube

Ice on Danube River 4 meters thick in Serbia


b92.net
Sun, 22 Jan 2017 12:18 UTC
Ice on the Danube
© TanjugIce on the Danube
Ice on the Danube at the so-called Dalj Bend is four meters thick, says MUP Emergency Situations Sector chief Predrag Matic.

According to Maric, two more icebreakers will arrive in Serbia, to reopen the river to navigation all the way to Belgrade.

He told state broadcaster RTS that two Hungarian icebreakers worked until late on Wednesday and would continue today, helped by a drone that will be used to observe the area and coordinate the vessels.

Maric said that the whether will be unfavorable with low temperatures until January 23, that will result in more ice forming on the river.

Serbia's own two icebreakers - the Greben and the Bor - are deployed downstream from Belgrade, defending the hydro-power plant Djerdap (Iron Gate).
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Cloud Lightning

Watch lightning strike Sutro Tower 4 times in San Francisco

Michelle Robertson
SF Gate
Sat, 21 Jan 2017 10:01 UTC
lightning struck Sutro Towers
© Jesse @sfjes
"Lightning never strikes twice," goes the old saying, but last night, lightning struck Sutro Towers at least four times.

Twitter user @sfjes caught the flashes of light on video, and the sight is electrifying, to say the least.

The Twitter user reports that he was standing only a few hundred feet from the tower, which stands between Twin Peaks and Mount Sutro. He reported witnessing seven to eight lightning bolts strike the famed San Francisco landmark.

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Tornado2

At least 4 dead as tornado rips through Hattiesburg, Mississippi


RT
Sat, 21 Jan 2017 22:41 UTC
Hattiesburg tornado damage
© @starkville_computers / Instagram
A vicious tornado ripped through Hattiesburg in Mississippi killing at least four people and causing widespread structural damage.

The tornado prompted Mayor Johnny DuPree to sign an emergency declaration as dozens of firefighters continue to search for casualties from the devastating storm.

Homes and buildings have been decimated, trees uprooted and numerous cars, and even a large truck, were flipped over. The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) said at least four people are known to have died.

The tornado caused damage across a three-county area, according to local news outlet the Hattiesburg American, quoting Lee Smithson of MEMA.


Comment: Study: Tornado outbreaks are increasing - but scientists don't understand why

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Fire

'Loud explosion' heard as residents lose power in South Wales

Jack Pitts
South Wales Evening Post
Fri, 20 Jan 2017 08:50 UTC
south wales explosion
© Connor Smitham
Almost 10,000 homes were plunged into darkness as power left parts of Swansea.

Residents around the Marina heard a loud explosion and emergency services were rushed to the scene.

The incident at Monmouth House in Cambrian Place is not being treated as suspicious and teams are working to solve the problem.

Fire station manager Steve Richards said at the scene: "It's an underground cable fault. We responded to several calls of a large explosion in the vicinity of Monmouth House.
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