Earth Changes

Snowy conditions in May atop Mauna Kea, Hawaii force closure of road, visitor station

Hawaii News Now
Tue, 03 May 2022 11:57 UTC

Mauna Kea summit's current conditions show high humidity with freezing temperatures and thunderstorms.

Heavy fog and icy conditions have closed the Mauna Kea Summit Access Road to the public along with the Visitor Information Station.

Located at an elevation of 9,200 feet, the station is reporting downright wintry conditions with ice and snow on the road, freezing temperatures and thunderstorms.

A time lapse video from the summit over the last 24-48 hours shows a healthy dusting of snow falling on the mountain. Monday afternoon, temperatures dropped to 30 degrees, but factoring in wind chill, it felt like 21 degrees, officials said.

Rangers will continue monitoring road and weather conditions and will reopen the road to the public when the conditions are safe.

Floods leave 5 dead, thousands displaced in south of Tanzania

Richard Davies
Floodlist
Tue, 03 May 2022 11:01 UTC

A period of heavy rain from late April 2022 has caused severe flooding in the Mbeya and Songwe regions of southern Tanzania, where at least 5 people have died, 5 are missing and thousands have been displaced.

According to the Tanzania Red Cross, flooding has caused extensive damage in the districts of Rungwe and Kyela in Mbeya Region and Ileje in Songwe Region. Damages include 10,000 hectares of crops, water infrastructure such as drinking water wells, several roads and at least 4 bridges. Over 400 homes have been damaged and 318 completely destroyed. Other buildings including schools and religious buildings have also been damaged.

Communities in Kyela district have been particularly badly affected. Kyela local government authority reported 5 people had died, 21 were injured and 5 more are missing. More than 630 households (around 3,150 people) have been displaced and are staying in different evacuation sites including schools and public buildings.

65 litres/m² and 1,400 lightning discharges in 4 hours for Valencian Community in Spain

Chris King
Euro Weekly
Tue, 03 May 2022 09:02 UTC

Valencian Community registers 65 litres/m² and 1,400 lightning discharges in 4 hours this Monday, May 2

The month of May in the Valencian Community has seen the region battered by heavy rain, storms, and even hailstones. In a four hour period between 4pm and 8pm this Monday, May 2, an orange warning was issued by AEMET, the State Meteorological Agency, in the southern interior of Valencia, and the north of Alicante.

AEMET's weather forecast was not wrong, and hailstorms spread in just over half an hour in municipalities such as La Font de la Figuera, in the Costera region, where the awful conditions raised fears for the almond and vineyard crops.

Bocairent, Vall d'Albaida, and the Sierra de Mariola areas were all inundated with hailstones, as were the Alicante municipalities of Banyeres de Mariola, Muro, and Alcoi. In the mountainous parts of these municipalities, the hail turned into ice, producing an image like a blanket of snow covering the ground.

Lightning strike kills 3 in Tangail, Bangladesh

Abdullah Al Numan
Dhaka Tribune
Tue, 03 May 2022 08:58 UTC

Three people have been killed and one injured in a lightning strike at Kalihati in Tangail.

The incident took place at Hatia Gudara Ghat in Dashkia Union of the upazila on Tuesday morning.

The deceased were identified as Ariful, 16, Faisal, 16 and Mostofa, 25. The injured is Rakib, 21.

Dashkia UP Chairman MA Malek Bhuiyan said Ariful, Faisal, Rakib and Rakib's brother-in-law Mostafa went to bathe in Hatia New Dhaleshwari river in preparation for Eid prayers. At that time lightning struck them at Hatia Gudara Ghat.

Later, Rakib managed to inform his family about the incident. Rakib and others were rushed to Tangail General Hospital where the duty doctor declared Ariful, Faisal and Mostafa dead.

Rare weather event: Taiwan's highest mountain gets snow in May

Chang Hsiung-feng, Elizabeth Hsu
Focus Taiwan
Mon, 02 May 2022 19:38 UTC

A rare May snowfall hit Taiwan's highest mountain Monday afternoon, caused by strong and very moist easterly winds sweeping through the island, according to the Central Weather Bureau (CWB).

It was only the fifth time since 1990 that snow had fallen in May on Yushan, also known as Mt. Jade, following snowfalls there in 1995, 1997, 2000, and 2011. The latest snow has ever been recorded on Yushan in May was on May 31, 1955, the CWB said.

The snow began to fall on the mountain at 1:30 p.m. and lasted until 2:10 p.m. Monday when it turned into rain, the CWB said, but it forecast more snow to come later in the day.

Iraq engulfed by yet another dust storm, leaving dozens hospitalised and flights grounded

The Guardian
Mon, 02 May 2022 09:24 UTC

© Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP
Dust settled across streets and vehicles and seeped into homes in Iraq's capital Baghdad as the storm hit on Sunday

Iraq was yet again covered in a thick sheet of orange on Sunday as it suffered the latest in a series of dust storms that have become increasingly common.

Dozens were hospitalised with respiratory problems in the centre and the west of the country.

A thick layer of orange dust settled across streets and vehicles, seeping into people's homes in the capital Baghdad.

Flights were grounded because of poor visibility at airports serving Baghdad and the Shiite holy city of Najaf, with the phenomenon expected to continue into Monday, according to the weather service.

"Flights have been interrupted at the airports of Baghdad and Najaf due to the dust storm," the spokesperson for the civil aviation authority, Jihad al-Diwan, said.

Deadly floods strike after 300mm of rain in Guadeloupe

Richard Davies
Floodlist
Sun, 01 May 2022 18:09 UTC

At least 2 people have died and 1 is still missing after torrential rain caused severe flooding and landslides in Guadeloupe.

The prefecture government said heavy rain began to fall in areas including Le Gosier, Les Abymes and Pointe-à-Pitre during the early hours of 30 April 2022. By the evening over 300 mm of rain had fallen, which is more than during Hurricane Maria in 2017 according to the prefecture government. Météo-France reported 312 mm of rain in Leroux, Le Gosier; 312 mm in Le Raizet, Pointe-à-Pitre and 214 in Les Abymes.

Around 80 firefighters were mobilized and carried out dozens of interventions. Several roads were flooded, causing traffic chaos and forcing many drivers to abandon their vehicles.

At least 18 people died in April due to lightning and storms in Assam, India

Business Standard
Sun, 01 May 2022 17:44 UTC

At least 18 people died in Assam in the month of April due to lightning and storms that struck different parts of the state, an official said.

Houses and other infrastructure have also been damaged owing to the inclement weather condition, he said.

The northeastern state has been receiving heavy rainfall accompanied with thunderstorms since the beginning of April, leaving a trail of destruction, the official said.

An Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) bulletin, updated till late Saturday, said three persons were killed by lightning on Friday in Jorhat, Dibrugarh and Dhubri districts.

May kicking off on frosty note across North America

Weatherboy
Sun, 01 May 2022 11:45 UTC

Chilly temperatures will greet many on the first morning of the new month of May.

While the calendar marches forward closer and closer to summer, Old Man Winter continues to hang on tight, kicking off May on a frosty note across many states.

With unusually cold air expected in some parts of the north, the National Weather Service has issued frost and freeze advisories where the early growing season could be impacted by unusually cold conditions.

Portions of California, Kansas, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island are currently under advisories from the National Weather Service due to frost and freeze concerns.

More than 1,000 firefighters battle 150 square mile wildfire in New Mexico

The Guardian
Sat, 30 Apr 2022 10:59 UTC

Hermit Peak Fire burning near the San Miguel and Mora County line, north of Sapello, New Mexico on Wednesday 27 April.

© Eddie Moore/Albuquerque Journal
Hermit Peak Fire burning near the San Miguel and Mora County line, north of Sapello, New Mexico on Wednesday 27 April.

More than 1,000 firefighters backed by bulldozers and aircraft battled the largest active wildfire in the US on Saturday after strong winds pushed it across some containment lines and closer to a town in northern New Mexico.

Preliminary overnight mapping imagery indicated that the fire that has burned at least 166 homes grew in size from 103 square miles on Friday to 152 square miles by early Saturday, officials said.

Ash carried seven miles through the air fell on Las Vegas, population about 13,000, and firefighters were trying to prevent the blaze from getting closer, said Mike Johnson, a spokesperson for the fire management team.

Calmer winds on Saturday were aiding the firefighting effort after gusts accelerated the fire's advance to a point on Friday when "we were watching the fire march about a mile every hour", said Jayson Coil, a fire operations official.