Earth Changes

Colorado avalanche kills 2 backcountry skiers in area called 'Death Pass'

Travis Fedschun
Fox News
Mon, 18 Feb 2019 14:05 UTC

Two backcountry skiers were killed over the weekend in an avalanche in an area of Colorado known as "Death Pass," officials said.

Crested Butte Search and Rescue said in a Facebook post the two backcountry skiers were reported missing on Saturday night near the town of Crested Butte, and tracks were discovered leading into a fresh avalanche field near the area known as "Death Pass."

"No tracks exiting the slide were found and faint beacon signals were located in the slide area," the group said.

A search and rescue group determined shortly after midnight that conditions were too dangerous, and the search was called off for the night, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. On Sunday, a team of six Crested Butte Search and Rescue members found the men's bodies.

'Three suns' phenomena seen over China

The Irish Times
Sun, 17 Feb 2019 18:01 UTC

An optical phenomenon known as a solar halo, or a sun dog, has been caught on camera in China.

Video footage courtesy of CCTV can be viewed here.

Let it snow! Sierra ski resorts get up to 9 feet of snow from recent storms

abc7news.com
Sun, 17 Feb 2019 15:14 UTC

Sierra ski resorts get up to 9 feet of snow

An astonishing amount of snow has fallen in the Sierra courtesy of the latest storms that have wreaked havoc from the Bay Area all the way up to Lake Tahoe.

The totals may be measured in inches, but the ski resorts have received several feet, much to the delight of skiers and snowboarders seeking fresh powder.

ABC7 news meteorologist Drew Tuma looked at the numbers on Sunday night and they are incredible.

These are 7-day totals. Squaw Valley leads the way with a whopping 109 inches of snow! That's about 15-and-a-half inches of new snow every day. Homewood Mountain Resort is right on Squaw's heels with 108 inches. Northstar comes in with 95 inches. Heavenly follows with 91 inches. Then comes Kirkwood Mountain Resort at 88 inches. Sierra-at-Tahoe received 79 inches.

Comment: NASA releases image of massive February snowpack in the Sierra Nevada compared to that of same month in 2018

Hailstorm damages crops in 30 villages across Rangamati, Bangladesh

The Daily Star (Bangladesh)
Mon, 18 Feb 2019 13:47 UTC

A cropland lies ravaged at a field of Sijakmukh village in Saroatoli union of Baghaichhari upazila under Rangamati hill district after a hailstorm lashed the area yesterday.

A hailstorm coupled with rain left different crops on vast tracts of land damaged at 30 villages in Baghaichhari upazila of the district yesterday.

Besides, at least 15 to 20 tin-roofed houses were completely damaged as the hailstorm lashed through Baghaichhari, Saroatoli, Amtoli and Khedarmara unions in the upazila.

The affected villagers claimed that the extent of loss caused by the storm is around Tk 50 lakh.

The affected villages include Sijakmukh, Mohish Pujje, Baghaichhari, Kedarmara and Battola village.

Red Sea locust swarms spark UN warning for UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt

The National (UAE)
Sat, 16 Feb 2019 13:26 UTC

Swarms of locusts, like these, have descended on Abu Dhabi's Al Dhafra area.

Massive swarms of locusts are bearing down on Saudi Arabia and Egypt as they spread rapidly along the shores of the Red Sea, the United Nations has warned.

Breeding along the coasts of Eritrea and Sudan, the swarms are spreading farther afield, with at least one having crossed over the Red Sea to Saudi Arabia in mid-January and more a week later.

Swarms also went north along the Red Sea towards Egypt.

In January, Abu Dhabi's Al Dhafra area was covered in a cloud of the flying insects.

Curfews imposed in Chile as 5 simultaneous wildfires spiral out-of-control

Strange Sounds
Mon, 18 Feb 2019 10:37 UTC

Chile wildfires tear through Valparaiso on Pacific coast in 2014

In central regions of Chile, a curfew has been imposed due to forest fires going out-of-control in urban areas. The Chilean has already killed 2 last week. Two days ago, 5 fires have started simulteneously and are now threatening buildings in Penco and San Pedro de la Paz. Residents had to flee the flames. Regional authorities suspect arson as the cause of the fire and have introduced a curfew from 11:00pm to 7:00am in 10 provincial communes.

More manatees than usual are dying in Everglades National Park, Florida

Ron Brackett
The Weather Channel
Sun, 17 Feb 2019 10:16 UTC

Something is killing an unusual number of manatees in Everglades National Park, and Florida wildlife officials aren't sure what it is.

"A number of dead manatees have recently been reported in the park. Necropsies are inconclusive, but biologists are considering environmental factors such as red tide and cold weather," said a Facebook post from the park.

Four bodies have been recovered, but nine manatee deaths have been reported in the park, the Miami Herald reported. Cold weather was cited as the cause in two of the deaths, but biologists have yet to learn what killed the other two.

Michelle Kerr, a spokeswoman for the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, told the Herald the bodies have been found in remote locations that make it more difficult to determine the cause of death.

Powerful 6.4 magnitude earthquake strikes Papua New Guinea

Sputnik
Mon, 18 Feb 2019 01:28 UTC

The country is located in the so-called Ring of Fire where a large number of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur.

The 6.4-magnitude quake was reported at around 14:35 GMT with the epicentre located 47 km from the city of Namatanai, New Ireland. There is no official information about any victims or damage caused by the earthquake at the moment.

The report comes just a few months after another powerful quake struck 148 km (92 miles) south of the island of Rabaul.

Major wildfire engulfs forest in Chernobyl's EXCLUSION ZONE

RT
Sun, 17 Feb 2019 19:39 UTC

Sign warns about high levels of radiation

A major blaze has broken out in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone - the site of the worst nuclear disaster in human history. The fire hit a forest some 20 kilometers away from the ill-famed nuclear power station.

The blaze inside Chernobyl's 'dead zone' in northern Ukraine started on Sunday when dry grass caught fire, the Ukrainian emergency service said in a statement. The blaze then reached a forest near the abandoned village of Bychki located some 24km (15 miles) away from the damaged nuclear reactor.

Some 5 hectares (12 acres) of forest went up in flames. Three firefighting vehicles and 18 emergency crew members were dispatched to tackle the blaze, according to the emergency service's statement.

The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, an area heavily contaminated by the disaster, has repeatedly witnessed wildfires over recent years. A large fire broke out there in June 2018. Another blaze, which scorched 25 hectares (60 acres) of land, hit it in 2017.