A 7-year-old girl has died from injuries suffered from a dog attack according to the East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office.

EBRSO states that they were contacted by emergency officials and the St. George Fire Department in regards to a dog attacking a small child in the 25000 block of Kendalwood Road around 6:35 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 6.

The girl was transported to a local hospital where she later passed away from her injuries.

"This is an awful, heartbreaking tragedy," Sheriff Sid Gautreaux said. "My heart goes out to this family, and they will remain in my prayers."

EBRSO homicide is currently investigating the case. Animal Control was notified and has the dog in custody. Updates will be provided as available.

Kilauea, one of the world's most active volcanoes, began erupting again in Hawaii on Thursday, nearly a month after federal officials said activity there had ceased.

The U.S. Geological Survey said webcam images showed lava flow within the Halemaʻumaʻu crater in the volcano's summit caldera.

The agency upgraded the volcano's alert level from watch to warning and said it was evaluating possible hazards. So far the eruption has been contained to the crater, it said.

Children are being winched out of remote communities, while livestock and wallabies are seeking refuge on small islands in what has been described as the worst flooding in Western Australia's history, in the state's northern Kimberley region.

"People in the Kimberley are experiencing a one-in-100-year flood event, the worst flooding WA has ever seen," the state's Emergency Services Minister Stephen Dawson said.

"This situation is still changing and it's proving to be extremely challenging."

About 60,000 cubic metres of water per second is flowing down the swollen Fitzroy River, which is expected to create a 50-kilometre-wide inland sea as it spreads across the flood plain.

Deaths due to dog eclipse previous records.

Deaths by pit bull might; it's all in how you count them.

Dogs caused the deaths of a record 62 Americans and three Canadians in 2022, the fortieth consecutive year that ANIMALS 24-7 has logged fatal and disfiguring dog attacks occurring throughout the U.S. and Canada.

The U.S. and Canadian totals combined come to 65, preliminary data indicates.

The U.S. toll eclipsed the previous record, 56 deaths in 2017, by six.

The previous record toll for the U.S. and Canada combined, also reached in 2017, was 57, eclipsed by eight.

It has been a deadly and destructive start to the year in California, as a series of severe storms slammed the state this week, toppling trees, submerging streets and sending water cascading into homes and businesses.

The latest storm hit hard on Thursday - a powerful "atmospheric river" that brought with it hurricane-force winds and torrents of rain. At least two deaths have been reported in connection with the latest storm, including a child whose home was hit by a falling tree in Sonoma county. By Thursday morning, more than 163,500 people were without power, with little reprieve in sight.

The downpour is the latest of three atmospheric rivers to pummel the drought-stricken state, spurred by a bomb cyclone that drew the long plumes of moisture from across the Pacific.

As heavy rains reached southern portions of the Valley, the storm also brought lightning with it.

Workers in Visalia captured the moment that a transformer was struck by lightning, leading to an explosion.

Gilberto Raya captured a video of the explosion Thursday afternoon while at work at the CJ Hammer Pump & Machinery facility.

"We were working, I heard it was pouring. So I decided to go outside and record it. When I was recording, out of nowhere I heard the lighting. I turned my phone & recorded it."

A police officer stationed at Cowdray park police base in Bulawayo was struck and killed by lightning on Tuesday.

Peter Gwaza (42) and her girlfriend Priority Dube (30) were walking along a footpath near Ezimhlophe secondary school when the tragedy struck.

Police confirmed the incident in a statement.

"The ZRP reports a sad incident in which Peter Gwaza (42) and his girlfriend Priority Dube (30) were struck by a bolt of lightning on 3/01/23 while walking along a footpath in Cowdray Park," said a ZRP statement.

Gwaza died on the spot while Dube sustained burns on the stomach and bruises on her hands and face.

The area's councillor Kidwell Mujuru said five people have so far been struck by lightning in the suburb which claimed two lives while three sustained injuries.

Several people have died after heavy rain triggered floods and landslides in the city of Bukavu in the far east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo).

Heavy rain fell in , the capital of South Kivu Province in the far east of the country on Wednesday 04 January 2023.

Local media, including Radio Okapi the United Nations radio in the Democratic Republic of Congo, managed by MONUSCO, reported enormous material damages in the city. Dozens of homes have been damaged and at least 4 completely destroyed, leaving many people homeless. Roads in the city and the nearby municipality of Kadutu are impassable.

This past month of December, a couple of serious blasts of Arctic air spread across the continental U.S., Canada, and parts of Europe and Asia, shattering records. More than 250 million were affected by the freezing temperatures... and winter had just started.

Forecasters believe that man-made climate change has empowered La Niña, triggering the so-called Greenland Block (A powerful area of high pressure in the Northeast Pacific and lower-than-normal air pressure over the western Pacific). They even propose this is the main factor for the record freezing temperatures in the northern hemisphere this winter. Yet, we know better now: The sun defines climate, and the global cold trend may increase over the coming years.

Warm-mongers also highlighted that sea ice in Antarctica reached its lowest extent on record at the end of December. Yet, in the long-term Antarctic sea ice still shows an increasing trend. In addition, the overall snow cover in the Northern Hemisphere is the second-highest in the past 17 years.

Arctic and antarctic ice and snow increase and decrease in yearly cycles connected to larger cycles of solar activity. As the solar-minimum sets in, we can expect an overall increase in ice and snow cover.

The arctic blasts engulfed the US, coast-to-coast and top-to-bottom. 60% of the US was affected by freezing temperatures, and 2 million were left without power. The pattern flipped to warmer temperatures at the end of the month, just to welcome another forecasted polar vortex in January.

Most of Canada, from British Columbia to Newfoundland, was also hit by extreme cold. Airports canceled thousands of flights, and power outages affected more than 300,000 just in Quebec and Ontario.

The UK was pummeled by the 'snowiest period in 12 years' lasting a month. The government outlined plans to go 'lights out' in January after National Grid warned there could be blackouts due to an expected energy crisis.

It was also a time of extremes in France and parts of Switzerland with significant snow at higher altitudes, and heavy rain lower down. Even if there was a warmer trend in some parts of Europe this month, the forecasts point out to a colder January.

Parts of Moscow were covered by over 12 inches of snow this month, something not usually observed until the end of winter. The last time a similar depth of snow was recorded in Moscow in mid-December was in 1989 and 1993.

And Mexico City also got its third snowfall in 82 years, affecting primarily high-altitude areas.

Floods triggered by sheets of rain continued around the world this month, including:

• Philippines - Heavy rain caused 51 deads and the displacement of at least 46,000. 17,300 acres of crops were wiped out.
• Southern Thailand - 21 inches of rain in 24 hours.
• Northcentral Vietnam - 13 inches of rain in 24 hours.
• Namibia - 3 months' worth of rain in 24 hours.
• South Africa - Countrywide floods.
• Baghdad, Iraq - Non-stop rain for 45 days.

And at least two died and 11 were injured after a strong 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of northern California. Thousands were left without power. 80 aftershocks have rattled parts of Northern California since the event. The largest aftershock was a 4.6 magnitude quake in Rio Dell, one of the hardest hit areas.

Snowpack levels in California's mountains were at the highest level in 40 years Jan. 3 but time will tell whether the latest storms will help deliver enough water to the state to end a three-year drought streak, state water officials reported.

California's snowpack was measured at 174 percent of the historical average for the year Tuesday, boosted by recent storms that drenched the state during the holidays and brought snow to the mountains.

The state could see even more rain and snow this week and into the weekend, bringing much-needed water supplies.

"While we see a terrific snowpack—and that in and of itself may be an opportunity to breathe a sigh of relief—we are by no means out of the woods when it comes to drought," said Karla Nemeth, director of the California Department of Water Resources.