Sinenhlanhla Masilela IOL Sat, 21 Sep 2024 12:49 UTC
Motorists have been stranded on snow-blocked roads in parts of KZN and the Free State.
The N3 Toll Route has been closed from Estcourt in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands to Harrismith in the Free State due to heavy snowfall.
This after the snowfall left motorists stranded in their vehicles and unable to move due to the thick snow on Friday evening.
Arrive Alive issued a warning to motorists to avoid Harrismith in the Free State and Howick in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands.
"In the interest of safety, all traffic is being stopped at Tugela Plaza in KwaZulu-Natal and the Harrismith South Interchange in the Free State. Where possible, vehicles are being turned around at strategic locations on the route."
Unusually heavy snowfall caused major disruption on South Africa's roads Saturday with people still stranded at midday after spending the night stuck in their vehicles.
The key N3 highway linking Johannesburg and the east coast city of Durban was one of the worst affected and several portions were closed, with even detours impassible, officials said.
Emergency services were working to reach people in their vehicles but it was still not clear how many were affected and in what condition they were, N3 Toll Concession operations manager Thania Dhoogra told the ENCA broadcaster.
"Emergency services have been working flat out through the night. They have been attempting to reach as many roads users as they can," Dhoogra said.
Blankets and meals had been delivered to some stranded motorists, the government of the KwaZulu-Natal province said in a statement at midday.
Trucks had been parked on the side of the road since Friday, Road Traffic Management Corporation communications officer Simon Zwane told AFP. "Buses travelling between provinces have been stuck at petrol stations for around seven hours," he said.
Motorist Muhammad Goolam told the Newzroom Afrika channel that he had spent the night in his car with his children outside the town of Harrismith, around 270 kilometres (170 miles) southeast of Johannesburg.
"Over 13 hours, food supplies out, I don't see us managing to drive out of here without any assistant from emergency personnel," he said.
Some areas had seen up to two metres (six feet) of snowfall, the Arrive Alive road safety campaign said in a post on X.
At least two people died from hypothermia after they were trapped in the heavy snow on the N3 in KwaZulu-Natal over the weekend.
During a briefing on Sunday afternoon, KZN acting Premier Thembeni Madlopha-Mthethwa said while some motorists still remain trapped, many have been rescued.
This comes after road users spent two nights in their cars as they were unable to move due to the heavy snow.
One person was killed and at least seven were missing on Sept 21, officials said, as "unprecedented" rains triggered floods and landslides in Japan's quake-hit region of Ishikawa, where authorities told tens of thousands to evacuate.
A dozen rivers in the region, on the west coast of central Japan that was hit by a large quake on New Year's Day, had burst their banks as at 11am (10am Singapore time), Land Ministry official Masaru Kojima said.
One person was killed, three people were missing and two people were seriously injured in Ishikawa, the region's government said in a statement, with two of the missing reportedly carried away by strong river currents.
Another four people, who were working for the land ministry to restore a road in Wajima, were also missing, ministry official Koji Yamamoto told AFP.
"About 60 people have been working to restore a road hit by the quake but a landslide occurred" on Sept 21 morning, he said.
"I asked (contractors) to check the safety of workers... but we are still unable to contact four people."
Akash Upadhyay cgnews24.com Mon, 23 Sep 2024 11:13 UTC
Recently, the Sunshine Coast in Queensland experienced a severe weather event. Giant hailstones over 6 cm in diameter were reported, leading to significant concerns for residents. The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) issued a warning for a very dangerous thunderstorm in the area. This situation has raised alarms and prompted many to take precautions.
What Happened on the Sunshine Coast?
On the afternoon of the storm, residents in the Sunshine Coast faced unexpected weather. Hailstones, some as large as tennis balls, fell from the sky. These large hailstones can cause severe damage to homes, cars, and vegetation. The intense storm brought heavy rain and strong winds, adding to the chaos.
Local authorities and meteorologists quickly alerted the community. Warnings were sent out through various channels to ensure everyone was aware of the dangers. It is crucial for residents to stay informed during such weather events.
Eight persons, including some school children, were killed and one person was injured after being struck by lightning at a village in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon district on Monday, police said.
The incident took place at around 1. 30 pm in Joratarai village under Somni police station area, they said.
After being alerted, senior administration and police officials rushed to the spot.
"As per preliminary information, eight persons, including some school children, died in the lightning strike.
Besides, one person was reported to be injured and was hospitalised," Rajnandgaon Superintendent of Police Mohit Garg told PTI over phone.
Further details are awaited, he added. Garg and the district collector were on way to the village.
Earlier this month, seven men were killed and three were injured after they were struck by lightning in Balodabazar-Bhatapara district.
Heavy rains in southern regions left one dead and resulted in the flooding of farms, roads and houses and damage to cultural heritages, disaster authorities said on Sunday.
An 89-year-old man was found dead in a reservoir in Jangheung, South Jeolla Province, after falling into a drainage ditch near his home on Saturday, according to disaster safety officials as reported by Yonhap news agency.
The southwestern region was hit with torrential downpours, with Yeosu receiving up to 400 mm and Jangheung, Gangjin and Suncheon experiencing more than 300 mm of rainfall since Thursday.
More than 1,030 hectares of farmland in South Jeolla Province were damaged, while 300 tons of grain stored in Jangheung were flooded.
Severe flooding in Chad since July has claimed 503 lives and affected around 1.7 million since July, the United Nations said Saturday in its latest assessment of the disaster.
The floods have also destroyed 212,111 houses, flooded 357,832 hectares (885,000 acres) of fields and drowned 69,659 heads of cattle, said the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Chad.
All of the country's provinces had been hit, Chad's water and energy minister Marcelin Kanabe Passale told journalists Saturday morning, warning of more trouble to come.
"The waters of the Logone and Chari rivers have reached a critical height likely to cause obvious serious flooding in the coming days," Passale said.
Thunderstorms have been ongoing in the region for days now.
After an unusual influx of heavy rain and thunderstorms in recent days, parts of the Sahara are changing colour and turning green.
Satellite imagery below displays vegetation blooming, with its southern extent creeping further northward into the arid desert, particularly when observing the change between September 2023 and September 2024.
Since mid-July, the ITCZ has shifted further north, more so than usual, pushing thunderstorms into the southern Sahara, as noticeable on the WeatherRadar above.
This shift in the ITCZ may also impact the rest of the Atlantic hurricane season, with a northward shift in the ITCZ thunderstorms also displacing the usual location of atmospheric waves that travel westwards from Africa into the Atlantic, a key ingredient for the birth of tropical systems.
An earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale struck the San Luis region in western Argentina.
Reuters quoted European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) as saying that the earthquake struck at a depth of 129 kilometers below the surface of the earth, with no initial reports of damage or casualties as a result of the earthquake.
Last August, a 5.5-magnitude earthquake struck Jujuy Province in northwestern Argentina.
In another heart wrenching case of canine terror, a four-year-old boy was mauled to death by stray dogs in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district on Thursday.
The incident unfolded in Rampur Maniharan police station area, where a pack of ferocious dogs attacked the boy while he was playing. It is learnt that the boy identified as Vishant, son of Vinay, a resident of village Mazra Qazipura of Rampur Maniharan police station area, was playing in the field on Thursday when a pack of dogs attacked Vishant.
Hearing the boy's screams, his father Vinay and mother Sapna, who were working in the field, ran towards the spot. But, before they could reach the spot, the pack of dogs dragged the child and entered the field leaving him writhing in pain due to grievous injuries in his belly.
The room being hung around with a collection of the portraits of remarkable men, among them were those of Bacon, Newton and Locke. Hamilton asked me who they were. I told him they were my trinity of the three greatest men the world had ever produced, naming them. He paused for some time: "The greatest man," said he, "that ever lived, was Julius Caesar."
~ Letter to Dr. Benjamin Rush
- Thomas Jefferson
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Recent Comments
Is that part of the issue - the idea that this could never happen to us, only to other people? I believe it is.
Comment: AFP reports: Update September 22
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