Earth ChangesS


Phoenix

'Firenado' spins up as large wildfire blazes in Cape Town, South Africa


The Weather Channel
Wed, 04 Mar 2015 03:09 UTC
wildfire in south africa
© AP Photo/Schalk van ZuydamA couple stands on the beach as they look at the fire, rear, at Houtbay on the outskirts of Cape Town, South Africa, Tuesday, March 3, 2015.
A large wildfire burning in and around the South African city of Cape Town continued to rage for a fourth day on Wednesday, forcing officials to evacuate some 500 people.

Conditions were even powerful enough to spark a "firenado." According to weather.com digital meteorologist Jon Erdman, a firenado is a rapidly spinning vortex that forms when air superheated by an intense wildfire rises rapidly, consolidating low-level spin from winds converging into the fire.

The inferno destroyed three homes and left five more damaged overnight as the sky glowed orange around Table Mountain National Park, according to an emergency spokesperson.

Those who were evacuated spent the night with family or friends, or they were lodged in a nearby community center. Some of the evacuees were allowed to return to their homes Wednesday afternoon, Cape Town disaster risk management spokesperson Charlotte Powell said.
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Cloud Precipitation

Landslide and flooding after heavy rain hits Scotland


BBC News
Tue, 10 Mar 2015 02:40 UTC
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Work has been taking place to clear the landslide on the A87
Heavy rain in Scotland has caused a 100 tonne landslide and flooding on roads across parts of the Highlands.

The A87 Invergarry to Kyle of Lochalsh road was shut overnight at Cluanie but traffic is now getting through.

Some rivers reached their highest levels on record and eight people were rescued from a flooded caravan park near Beauly.

More than 30 flood warnings are in place across Scotland.
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Wolf

Yet another child mauled to death by a pack of dogs in India

Ashish Sharma
The Times of India
Sun, 08 Mar 2015 18:35 UTC
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Feral dogs in India
In a chilling replay of dogs attacking children in Bareilly, which has become a serious menace in the district, a 10-year-old was mauled to death by a pack of stray dogs here on Sunday, police said.

The child, Mohd Kaif, was playing with his friend, 11-year-old Ayaan, in a park near his house in Gulistaan colony in Jalalabad kasba at 8am when the incident occurred. Residents said they heard the children shouting and rushed to their aid, but it was already too late. Kaif was killed on the spot while his Ayaan escaped with minor injuries.

Zeeshan Ali, a resident of the colony, said the dogs were from a nearby plywood factory. The residents of the colony protested outside the factory and blocked traffic, before police reached the spot and brought the situation under control.

Comment: See also: Pack of feral canines attack pregnant woman in Bareilly, India

12-yr-old boy dies in dog attack, 5th victim in 40 days in Bareilly, India

Eight-year-old boy attacked by pack of dogs in Baheri, India

Feral dogs kill 5-yr-old in Bareilly, India: Third fatality in a month of 10 attacks

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Wolf

Pit bull terrier kills man trying to help owner in East Wheeling, West Virginia


Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Mon, 09 Mar 2015 18:18 UTC
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A pit bull terrier
A pit bull attacked and killed a man who was trying to help the dog's ill owner in a home in East Wheeling, W.Va., authorities said.

Wheeling police and other emergency responders were called to the home late Sunday night regarding a dog attack and had to force their way into the residence, where they found both victims.

One victim was badly injured; the other person was unconscious. Both were taken to local hospitals, where they were pronounced dead, police said. Their names have not been released.

Wheeling police Lt. Phil Redford says police believe the dog's owner suffered a heart attack and that the other man was attacked by the dog as he tried to resuscitate the owner.

Animal control officers removed the pit bull from the home and it has been quarantined.

No further information was released.
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Wolf

Kicked dog gets revenge on driver by attacking his car with friends, China

Jimmy Nsubuga
Metro (UK)
Mon, 09 Mar 2015 17:32 UTC
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© RexThe stray dog got its revenge
You don't kick this dog and get away with it.

An angry stray that was struck by a motorist decided to get revenge by damaging his most prized possession - his car.

The man kicked the dog because it was lying in his parking spot.

The dog then vanished but came back later with a few of his pack and damaged the car.

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© Picture: RexHe brought a few friends
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Question

Loud "strange" noises and bangs heard in Crawley, UK

C Ballinger
Crawley News
Sun, 08 Mar 2015 16:25 UTC
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People across Crawley have reported hearing "strange" noises and bangs last night (Saturday, March 7)
People across Crawley have reported hearing constant loud noises all over the town last night

Residents living in almost every neighbourhood have been asking what was the cause of the bangs which could be heard on Saturday night (March 7).

Aneliese Whittaker tweeted the Crawley News to say there were "strange loud sounds heard all across Crawley, Horley and Gatwick".

People have reported on social media that the noises sounded like a bomb being detonated, constant thunder and fireworks, or even like the sonic boom heard in parts of Kent and Sussex last October.

Comment: This is not the first time 'strange sounds' have been heard around the Crawley area. From Facebook user Horsham on 16th November 2013:
At about 0520 this morning there was a very loud 'boom' noise over Crawley Down.

I live 10 minutes away from Gatwick airport but it didn't sound like anything from there. I also live right next to the motorway, is everything ok there??? It sounded like a sound from a sci fi film or something. Looking it up there are sounds from electro magnetic pulses like that but I just wondered if anyone else had any ideas?
In response, Nicholas Butler said:
I heard these sounds earlier this it was around 1am similar to that experienced here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amSpXvyPRrg
Being in close proximity to Gatwick Airport, one possible cause could be that of sonic booms from aircraft. But as Mr Butler explains:
I grew up on and around Airfields a sonic boom sounds like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMc9t8U-oC0 everything from a Dash 8 to a Tu-95 as aircraft with propellers go sounded nothing like that vibrant hum.


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Windsock

Waterspout filmed off Broome coast, Australia

Andrea Mayes
abc.net.au
Mon, 09 Mar 2015 16:13 UTC
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© Richard GrantRichard Grant filmed this waterspout off the coast of Broome yesterday.
A spectacular waterspout off the coast of Broome in Western Australia's Kimberley region has been caught on film by an amateur photographer.

Richard Young, an adventure tour operator, filmed the event off Gauntheaume Point, about 6 kilometres from the town centre near Cable Beach.

He said he was woken by an early morning storm on Sunday.

"I heard some thunder from my bedroom and I thought I'd go down for a bit of a look," he said.

"I've got a fascination with weather - I'm always out and about looking for unusual weather features."

Mr Young captured the vision on his SLR camera.

He said he had long been hoping to see a waterspout.

"I've been looking for one for years, and to actually see one was fantastic," he said.

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Snowflake Cold

50 settlements cut off in Bulgaria, roads blocked by huge snowdrifts, electricity supply disrupted

Robert Felix
iceagenow.info
Sun, 08 Mar 2015 14:42 UTC
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© ReutersThe situation in Smolyan
More than 50 settlements in the Plovdiv region are without electricity and water. Snowfall continues.

The situation remains tense and critical in the country, especially for the regions of Smolyan, Kardzhali, Haskovo, Pazardzhik, Plovdiv. say authorities.

The roads are impassable due to fallen trees, making it difficult for cleaning machines and the normal functioning of the roads.

Laki is in distress for a second day, with thousands of families in the mining town without electricity, says Nova TV.

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Snowflake

New world record for single-day snowfall? 78 inches (198 cm) reported in Capracotta, southern Italy


L'Italo-Americano
Sun, 08 Mar 2015 13:06 UTC
Snow record Italy
© L'Italo-AmericanoSnow prevented people from leaving their houses during the day
In Molise, it has been snowing for almost two days and the situation became critical in Campobasso, where this morning the snow first reached 16 inches and later on the day 19 inches. In areas above 1000 meters, snow accumulations reach beyond 39 inches. At the end of the day, reports say the village of Capracotta had been covered by 78 inches of snow.

Capracotta is a tiny village in the Isernia area, with less than a thousand people. It is known that the first traces of human presence date back to the Paleolithic age, with some remains of the Neanderthal man whereas the first settlements come from the 11th century.

The name comes from Longobards who used to sacrifice a goat to honor their Thor god.


Record snow in Abruzzo, 5 and March 6, 2015

Comment: The previous 'official' world record for most snow measured in 24 hours was 75.8 inches (193 cm) in Silver Lake, Colorado, over the night of April 14-15, 1921.

However, this article translated from Italian by iceagenow.info cites a 1961 meteorologist report that this was not the largest snow fall in the area:
But surely between Abruzzo and Molise it has snowed more than this many times. The great meteorologist Edmondo Bernacca wrote in the Italian Meteorological Magazine of December 1961 that in Roccacaramanico, in the municipality of Sant'Eufemia, just 878 meters above sea level in the province of Pescara, fell 365cm (11.92 ft) of snow in 24 hours.


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Cloud Precipitation

Argentina flooding update: 12 dead, around 4,000 remain displaced

Richard Davies
floodlist.com
Mon, 09 Mar 2015 14:24 UTC
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© Gobierno de CórdobaFloods in Idiazábal, Córdoba, Argentina, March 2015.
At least 12 people have been killed in the flooding that affected the three provinces of Cordoba, Santa Fe and Santiago del Estero in Argentina over the last 10 days.

Improved weather conditions in some areas has meant that some of those displaced by the recent floods have been able to return home. However, as many as 4,000 people are still waiting to return to their homes.

Santiago del Estero

According to the local civil defence agency (Defensa Civil de la Municipalidad de Santiago del Estero) around 3,500 people have been evacuated in the province as a result of flooding since 05 March 2015, when heavy rainfall pushed levels of the River Dulce to overflow.

Heavy rain between 05 and 06 March 2015, resulted in a house collapse in La Banda that injured a young child. Two people have died in the floods in Santiago del Estero, according to state newswire Telam.
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