Earth ChangesS

Cloud Lightning

Plane is struck by THREE lightning bolts at once over Birmingham, UK

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Thunderstruck: These huge bolts of electricity struck the KLM flight as it came in to land over Birmingham
A bright flash of light and booming noises in a cramped seat thousands of feet in the air would be enough to put off even the most hardened fliers.

But passengers landing at Birmingham airport on Friday afternoon were led by example as their captain coolly steered them through three lightning blasts and left it until afterwards to calmly explain what happened.

Passengers spoke of a 'massive bang' as one of the bolts struck the body of the KLM service from Amsterdam, but the blasts had no effect on the landing, which proceeded as normal to touch down at 4.30pm.


Cloud Lightning

Giant hailstorms and heavy rain kill at least 16 people in China

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Destruction: This factory workshop was completely destroyed when giant hailstones hit the area of Dongguan in southern China's Guangxi province
Heavy storms and giant hailstones have left at least 16 people dead and caused widespread property damage in southern China.

The poor weather has lasted more than a week, bringing landslides and flooding - particularly in the autonomous Guangxi province, which borders Vietnam.

Local authorities say at least 16 people have been killed, although that figure is likely to rise as the true extent of the devastation cannot be fully assessed until the poor weather subsides.

Yesterday the Civil Affairs Department of Guangxi said at least 70 houses had collapsed, with another 1,716 badly damaged, and more than 2,000 hectares of crops destroyed.

Local weather forecasts said heavy rain and hail is expected to continue to hit parts of Guangxi over the next few days, before subsiding in the latter half of this week.

Landslide and flood warnings are likely to remain in place well into next week.

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No protection: A roof in Dongguan is covered in holes after giant hailstones crashed through the ceiling

Attention

Rare albino baby dolphin surfaces in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina

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A dolphin was filmed in the Ashley River in January that might have been the young white dolphin seen in Wappoo Creek the past few weeks.
A rare animal might be hunting with its mother in Charleston Harbor - an albino dolphin.

A young white dolphin has surfaced near the Wappoo Creek bridge on Folly Road most afternoons the past few weeks, wowing spectators, including diners at the Charleston Crab House, who jump from their seats to the window and deck outside.

"They go crazy. They scream," said owner John Keener. "It runs right alongside its mom all the time."

Jim Mossman, a videographer for the city of Charleston, inadvertently might have shot a video of the baby in January, while capturing a pod in the Ashley River near the West Ashley Bikeway. The smaller dolphin's coloring drew him, he said. "I don't think I've ever seen a baby dolphin, much less a white one."

An albino dolphin is an eye-catcher, but the animal will have a tough go in the wild. Still, its appearance is a heart-warmer in a year when a virus has been decimating the population. More than 1,000 dolphin have died so far, more than 100 in South Carolina alone. And a second wave of the virus-caused deaths is expected as waters warm.

Attention

Total of dead dolphins increases to 5 in Beaufort County, South Carolina

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Two more dolphins have been found dead off Beaufort County shores this weekend, bringing the total since March 17 to five.

The dolphins were reported Saturday and Sunday, according to Wayne McFee, of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, at Sea Pines on Hilton Head Island and Sands Beach in Port Royal, respectively.

Employees from the S.C. Marine Mammal Stranding Network, Charleston, were on their way to Beaufort County on Monday morning to retrieve the animals.

Three previous dolphins deaths have been reported in recent weeks.

A bottlenose dolphin washed ashore March 17 on Hilton Head Island between Sea Pines and Marriott's Grande Ocean Resort and died before marine biologists could reach it. That was an older male, and had a heart condition and probable pneumonia.

Attention

Dead Bryde's whale found on beach in Plover Cove, Hong Kong

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Marine experts are dwarfed by the whale
The bloated carcass of a whale the length of a bus has been found at a remote beach in the New Territories' northeastern tip.

The 10.8-metre-long animal, found beached in an inner bay off Hung Shek Mun, in Plover Cove Country Park, was thought to be a female Bryde's whale.

When marine experts arrived yesterday morning, the rotting carcass was lying partially submerged in the shallow water, giving off a stench. It had a number of cuts on its body.

Arrow Down

Sinkhole opens up in Chelmsford and at other locations in Massachusetts

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Firefighter George Ryan examines the sinkhole at Brian Road and Boston Road.

Heavy rains were causing flooding and sinkholes in many parts of Massachusetts Sunday.

Flooding prompted local and state police to close a number of roads and highways Sunday morning. On parts of Memorial Drive near the Longfellow Bridge, police were warning drivers to be aware of large puddles of water.

South of Boston, Mass. State Police reported that amps from Route 195 east and westbound were closed to Route 18 due to flooding. Route 18 itself had flooded in New Bedford, and police closed it between Route195 and Route 6, reopening the southbound side at around 12:30 p.m.

In Freetown, the ramp from Chase Road to Route 140 in was closed as well because of flooding.

Alarm Clock

Yellowstone Bison filmed running along road in Yellowstone Park

Animals can often sense trouble long before humans. These Bison are coming down the hills in droves and fleeing on the road to get away from Yellowstone. Is the volcano there going to erupt?


Comment: 4.8 magnitude earthquake in Yellowstone National Park


Attention

4.8 magnitude earthquake in Yellowstone National Park


YELLOWSTONE VOLCANO OBSERVATORY INFORMATION STATEMENT

Sunday, March 30, 2014 10:31 AM (Sunday, March 30, 2014 16:31 UTC)

YELLOWSTONE VOLCANO (VNUM #325010)
44ยฐ25'48" N 110ยฐ40'12" W, Summit Elevation 9203 ft (2805 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: NORMAL
Current Aviation Color Code: GREEN

The University of Utah, a YVO member agency, sent out the following press release about a magnitude 4.8 earthquake that occurred this morning at 6:34 AM MDT.

PRESS RELEASE
University of Utah Seismograph Stations
Released: March 30, 2014 08:15 AM MDT

The University of Utah Seismograph Stations reports that a light earthquake occurred at 06:34 AM on March 30, 2014 (MDT). The epicenter of the magnitude 4.8 shock was located 4 miles north-northeast of Norris Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. This earthquake is part of a series of earthquakes that began in this area on Thursday, March 27. As of 8:15 am today, this series has included at least 25 earthquakes in addition to the main shock, with the largest of magnitude 3.1. The magnitude 4.8 main shock was reported felt in Yellowstone National Park and in the towns of West
Yellowstone and Gardiner, Montana.

Anyone who felt the earthquake is encouraged to fill out a survey form on either the Seismograph stations web site: www.quake.utah.edu or the U.S. Geological Survey web site: earthquake.usgs.gov.

Attention

Three dead dolphins found in four days, Miaoli, Taiwan

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© CGACGA personnel bury the dolphin after it washed ashore in Miaoli, March 25.
Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said on Tuesday that it had found a third dead dolphin in four days on a beach in northern Taiwan's Miaoli county.

CGA personnel who checked the dolphin after receiving a report from local residents, said it was a bottlenose dolphin around 2.5 meters long and weighing around 230 kilograms.

As the carcass had started to decompose, CGA officials buried it on the beach with the help of the Taiwan Cetacean Society.

The CGA discovered the other two dead dolphins in the county on March 21 and 23.

Arrow Down

Firefighters rescue dog trapped in sinkhole, Frederick, Maryland

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© NBCCrossroads Emergency Vet Clinic in Fredrick, Maryland was the last place Susanne Geary expected to find herself with her 14-year-old Lhasa Apso, Samantha, Sunday afternoon.

Firefighters in Frederick, Md., successfully rescued an elderly blind and deaf dog who got trapped inside a large sinkhole Sunday.

Officials were called to Old Farm Drive and Wainwright Court Sunday morning after a homeowner reported that the dog had fallen into the hole that opened overnight. Officials blew warm air into the hole during the rescue effort in order to protect the dog, a 14-year-old Lhasa Apso, from hypothermia.

Reporter Abby Theodros of WHAG-TV in Hagerstown reported the sinkhole is shaped "like a hockey stick," which made the rescue even more difficult.

Officials were eventually able to get a rope around the dog and pull her up out of the hole. Frederick police say the sinkhole was about three feet wide and 12 feet deep. The city says it did not directly affect houses or the road and that there is no threat to residents.

The sinkhole was caused by the rainy weather, authorities said.

WHAG posted this photo of the rescue on its Facebook page.

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