Earth ChangesS


Eye 1

U.S.: I-15 shut down by Vegas transformer fire


UPI
Sun, 15 May 2011 19:47 UTC
Las Vegas, Nevada -- Las Vegas police said it took about two hours to clear up a traffic mess caused by an electrical transformer explosion behind the Monte Carlo casino.


The blast and resulting fire created a cloud of smoke that shut down the northbound lanes of Interstate 15.

Metro Police told the Las Vegas Sun there were no injuries and Monte Carlo guests had to be evacuated.

The cause of the explosion, which occurred around 12:30 a.m. MDT, was not known.
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Phoenix

Canada: Forest Fires Force Hundreds to Evacuate from Their Homes Near Slave Lake

Laura Tupper
CTV News
Sun, 15 May 2011 14:29 UTC
Image
© Ray PetlockThe Town of Slave Lake has declared a state of emergency as wildfires force 260 people from their homes
The number of evacuated residents near Slave Lake is climbing rapidly as forest fires continue to rage out of control near the community. So far five homes and ten other buildings have been destroyed while strong winds continue to hamper firefighting efforts.

Close to 1,000 people have been forced from their homes since the fires broke out Saturday afternoon. Initially, about 260 people were evacuated from the Poplar Lane and Mitsue areas but Sunday afternoon, another 700 residents were ordered out of the area because of another fire burning southwest of the community.

Displaced residents are being sent to a Red Cross reception centre at Northern Lakes College. Two schools in the area are being set up as temporary shelters for evacuees.
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Bizarro Earth

Papua New Guinea - Earthquake Magnitude 6.5 - Bougainville Region


USGS
Sun, 15 May 2011 14:31 UTC
Papua Quake_150511
© USGSEarthquake Location
Date-Time:
Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 18:37:10 UTC

Monday, May 16, 2011 at 04:37:10 AM at epicenter

Location:
6.157°S, 154.446°E

Depth:
43.2 km (26.8 miles)

Region:
BOUGAINVILLE REGION, PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Distances:
122 km (76 miles) W (273°) from Arawa, Bougainville, PNG

248 km (154 miles) WNW (283°) from Chirovanga, Solomon Islands

331 km (206 miles) SE (131°) from Rabaul, New Britain, PNG

709 km (441 miles) WNW (301°) from HONIARA, Solomon Islands

825 km (513 miles) E (86°) from Lae, New Guinea, PNG
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Bizarro Earth

Central Mid Atlantic Ridge - Earthquake Magnitude 6.0


USGS
Sun, 15 May 2011 12:59 UTC
Atlantic Quake_150511
© USGSEarthquake Location
Date-Time:
Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 13:08:12 UTC

Sunday, May 15, 2011 at 11:08:12 AM at epicenter

Location:
0.461°N, 25.601°W

Depth:
10 km (6.2 miles) set by location program

Region:
CENTRAL MID-ATLANTIC RIDGE

Distances:
1276 km (793 miles) ENE (57°) from Natal, Brazil

1624 km (1009 miles) S (188°) from PRAIA, Cape Verde
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Cloud Lightning

Palestine: Thunder, Lightning Bring in Heavy Rains Across Country


The Jerusalem Post
Sun, 15 May 2011 03:22 UTC
Image
© Marc Israel Sellem
Unseasonal downpours spread throughout central and northern regions; rain expected to continue with risk of flash floods in Negev.

Unseasonal rainfall continued overnight Friday, with local thunderstorms breaking out across the country.

Heavy downpours were felt in central and northern areas. There were heavy downpours in central and northern areas, and rain was expected continue on Saturday, with the chance of flash floods in the Negev.

Unseasonal amounts of rain were measured, with 9.8 mm falling in Ariel, 8mm in Ashdod and 2.8 mm in Tel Aviv.
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Attention

US: Floods Hit Bridgeport Ohio

Jamie Ward
WOWK 13
Fri, 13 May 2011 10:36 UTC
Pounding rains shut down roads in Bridgeport on Friday.

Heavy rains pounded the Ohio Valley Friday. Water rushed down through the streets of Bridgeport, tearing up roads, crippling cars, and creeping into the basements of the people who live there.

Crews were called in around 4 p.m. Friday. Bridgeport Mayor, John Callarik, says that the heavy rain was just too much for the sewers to handle

"What happened up above, is our main sewer line is all clogged up and it came over the top", he says. Authorities say all that water than came rushing into town, closed a number of roads in the Kerwood section for about four hours and backed up traffic during rush hour. The Bridgeport Fire Department says that aside from flooding, the biggest issue was making sure people were able to get around..
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Cloud Lightning

US: Flash flooding; State of Emergency in Wellsville

Eileen Buckley
WBFO
Sat, 14 May 2011 00:00 UTC
Image
© Yahoo! 2010 Data NavteQ2009
Buffalo, New York - A flash flood watch is posted for Southern Erie, Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua and Wyoming Counties from Noon Saturday through the evening.

Heavy rains caused flash flooding for portions of the Southern Tier Friday.

A state of emergency is in effect in the Village of Wellsville in Allegany County. Roads were damaged and flooded in Wellsville, Belmont and Scio.

Emergency crews evacuated some of the residents.

Wellsville Police say dozens of streets and roadways are impassable and are closed. Some of the roads could be closed for the next several days.

Officials are asking residents to avoid any unnecessary travel in areas affected by the flash floods.
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Radar

New Zealand: Aftershocks Continue Daily after Christchurch Earthquake 2011

Debbie Roome
Suite101
Sat, 14 May 2011 00:00 UTC
Image
© Debbie RoomeThe Back View of Buildings on High St after Christchurch Earthquake 2011
A series of aftershocks woke a number of Christchurch residents in the early hours of Sunday 15th May, 2011.

Aftershocks continue to rattle Christchurch on a daily basis with 7 occurring between 4pm on the 14th May and 3pm on the 15th May. Some of these shocks relate to the 7.1 September 2010 earthquake and others to the 6.3 February 2011 earthquake.

Aftershocks on the 15th May 2011

According to the Geonet website, Christchurch was shaken by 3 large aftershocks between 1am and 3am on Sunday 15th May. The first was a 4.0 magnitude centered near Springston. This aftershock was close to the area of the September 2010 earthquake. The second and third aftershocks measured 4.6 and 4.0 and both were in the ocean off the East Coast. They were centered just over 20 kilometers from Cathedral Square in Christchurch central.

These aftershocks disturbed many people's sleep and Facebook comments reported that frightened children ran and climbed into bed with parents. Other people described the tremors as a good shake and shudder. One person said their windows rattled and there was also a comment about chairs on wheels moving.
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Bizarro Earth

US: Here Are The Refineries And Nuclear Power Plants Threatened If The Morganza Spillway Is Opened-Shut

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Fri, 13 May 2011 18:30 UTC
As we reported previously, Obama has found himself on the verge of another environmental scandal now that he has no choice but to redirect the Mississippi river via the Morganza spillway - either lose millions in barrels of daily refined production and potentially the impairment of the Colonial Pipeline, two events which would promptly cause gas prices to soar to new records, or redirect the river via the Spillway, and cause the flooding of millions of acres, and numerous towns and cities, and possibly another New Orelans bases crisis.

It seems Obama has picked the lesser of two evils: i.e., protect the oil: "The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said on Friday it anticipates opening the Morganza Spillway on the western bank of the swollen Mississippi River to divert floodwaters into the Atchafalaya River basin and protect Baton Rouge, Louisiana, New Orleans and refineries from flooding.

The Corps of Engineers had been planning next week to open the spillway, about 45 miles (72 km) northwest of Baton Rouge, but could do so as soon as Saturday as high water continues making its way downriver." On the other hand, opening the spillway will also lead to plant impairments: " Opening the spillway will disrupt operations at Alon USA Energy's 80,000-bpd Krotz Springs, Louisiana, refinery. An Alon spokesman said on Friday that the plant was operating normally as crews continued to build a second levee to prevent Atchafalaya River waters from flooding the refinery within 10 to 14 days of the Morganza opening.
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Heart - Black

More Dead Dolphins Wash Up On Orange Beach Alabama

DerektQuote
Youtube
Fri, 13 May 2011 18:01 UTC
"Our entire food chain within the gulf of Mexico is affected, there's no denying that."

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