Earth ChangesS

Light Sabers

Some 100 dead as floods hit China

At least 94 people have died and 25 have been reported missing as the result of flooding in seven Chinese provinces, the Xinhua news agency said Monday.

More than 16 million people live in the affected areas, and authorities have evacuated more than 500,000. The western provinces of Jiangsu, Anhui, Henan, Hubei, Sichuan, Chongqing and Shaanxi were hit hardest.


Life Preserver

Tidal Waves Pound India's Kanyakumari Coastline

Violent tidal waves have been battering the coastlines of Kanyakumari district lately, killing four people and destroying more than 50 fishing boats, menacing coastal communities in the southern tip of India.

Cloud Lightning

Ice, floods, tornadoes: What's next for Kansas?

Every once in a while, Sharon Watson scans the Kansas skies, waiting for swarms of locusts or other biblical plagues.

Who could blame her?

"At this point, most of us here are expecting just about anything," said Watson, director of public affairs for Kansas Emergency Management. "We're all kind of wondering, 'What's next?' "

USA

"Rock snot" algae found in Connecticut River, a cause for concern

WATERBURY, Vt. -- A species of invasive algae with an unusual nickname has been found in the northern stretches of the Connecticut River, the first time it's ever been spotted in the Northeast. Didymosphenia geminata, sometimes referred to as "rock snot," has been seen growing on rocks near Bloomfield, which concerns state biologists.

The algae can smother aquatic plants and destroy fish habitats.

Cloud Lightning

Flooding In South Japan Causes Mass Evacuations

Heavy rain continued to take its toll on southern Japan on Saturday, with a man drowning in a flooded rice paddy, and four others injured in flood-related accidents. Thousands had to evacuate their homes.

©AP Graphics Bank
People wade through flooded street, Misato, Japan.

By midday Saturday, a powerful weather front had dumped over 20 inches of rain on southern Japan since Wednesday, according to the Meteorological Agency.

Red Flag

South Dakota Fire Kills 1, Burns Homes

HOT SPRINGS, S.D. - One of dozens of fires across the West raced out of a canyon in South Dakota's Black Hills "with a vengeance" on Sunday, killing a homeowner and destroying 27 homes, authorities said.

Magnify

Flashback Britain faces big freeze as Gulf Stream loses strength

The Gulf Stream currents that give Britain its mild climate have weakened dramatically, offering the first firm scientific evidence of a slowdown that threatens the country with temperatures as cold as Canada's.

©Unknown

The Atlantic Ocean "conveyor belt" that carries warm water north from the tropics has weakened by 30 per cent in 12 years, scientists have discovered. The findings, from the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton, give the strongest indication yet that Europe's central heating system is breaking down under the impact of global warming.

Bizarro Earth

Best of the Web: What's the Worst That Could Happen?


Bizarro Earth

Volcanic Fumes Kill 6 Teens in Indonesia

JAKARTA, Indonesia - Poisonous fumes from an Indonesian volcano killed six teenagers who were camping on the mountain, a doctor said Sunday.

Red Flag

Nevada Wildfires Force Hundreds to Flee

RENO, Nev. - An 8,000-acre wildfire forced hundreds of people in the town of Winnemucca to leave their homes, one of more than a dozen blazes that charred a combined 55 square miles in northern Nevada.