Earth Changes

26 killed as torrential rain triggers flash flood, roof collapse in Pakistan

The New Indian Express
Thu, 21 Feb 2019 16:03 UTC

Earlier, the Balochistan government issued flood emergency alert to Lasbela and other effected areas and called out the Pakistan Army for the rehabilitation activities.

© Balochistan Insights
Earlier, the Balochistan government issued flood emergency alert to Lasbela and other effected areas and called out the Pakistan Army for the rehabilitation activities.

At least 26 people were killed on Thursday in the incidents of roof collapse and flash floods, triggered by torrential rains that lashed several cities in Pakistan, according to a media report. At least 10 people were killed in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.

Four people, including two children and a woman, were killed in landslide and roof collapse incident in Dir, the Express Tribune reported. Uninterrupted rainfall has flooded the provincial capital Peshawar while flash flood submerged villages near the southwestern town of Lasbella, in Balochistan province, it said.

Wrong place, wrong time: Warbler that should be wintering in southern Asia turns up in Greater Manchester, UK

Gaynor Clarke
Wigan Today
Tue, 19 Feb 2019 12:12 UTC

Hope Carr Nature Reserve, Leigh. Blyth's Reed

Blyth's Reed at Hope Carr Nature Reserve, Leigh.

Bird watchers are all aflutter after a rare species was spotted at a nature reserve.

Several sightings of Blyth's reed warbler have now been confirmed at a United Utilities nature reserve in Leigh.

Blyth's reed warblers are a very rare sight in Britain and even rarer in the North West.

Birding experts at Leigh Ornithological Society believe the sightings at Hope Carr Nature Reserve are the first in Greater Manchester and the first time the tiny bird has been spotted in the UK at this time of year.

It usually spends the winter in India, Bangladesh or Sri Lanka.

Saskatchewan sees the coldest February in 80 years

Christy Climenhaga
CBC
Thu, 21 Feb 2019 11:47 UTC

© Environment Canada
Seasonal forecasts and pegging below seasonal temperatures for much of western Canada over the next three months.

If it feels the like coldest February you can remember, you're likely not wrong.

This month, Saskatchewan has been plagued with daily extreme cold warnings. Temperatures have dipped into the minus 40s, with wind chills so frigid that forgetting your tuque can mean frostbite in minutes.

As of Wednesday, Regina had 9 days where the temperature had not warmed up past -20 C. Temperatures overnight have been brisk - in the minus 30s or even minus 40s - but there has not been much recovery in temperatures during the daytime.

Saskatoon has fared even worse, with 10 days with daily highs below -20 C. To put that in perspective, a normal year would have us seeing daily highs in the minus single digits and lows in the minus teens, so these conditions are 10 to 20 degrees below normal in many areas.

Shiveluch eruption in Russia's Kamchatka sends ash plume 3.7 miles into sky

Muhammad Irfan
Urdupoint
Thu, 21 Feb 2019 11:47 UTC

The Shiveluch volcano, located in Russia's Kamchatka Territory, belched column of ash 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) above sea level into the sky on Thursday, the local branch of the Geophysical Survey of the Russian academy of Sciences (GS RAS) told Sputnik.

"Video data have shown that early on Thursday, Shiveluch volcano was registered to spew a column of ash to the altitude of 6,000 meters above the sea level. The ash cloud is stretching to the northeast of the volcano," the agency's representative said.

According to the local branch of the Russian Emergencies Ministry, no ash fallout has been registered in nearby settlements.

Shiveluch is the northernmost active volcano in Kamchatka. The volcano has been active since November 2018.

Sinkholes in BC, Canada sparks local state of emergency, 14 homes evacuated

Rafferty Baker
The Weather News Network
Fri, 15 Feb 2019 17:59 UTC

© Rafferty Baker/CBC
The Seawatch neighbourhood of Sechelt, on B.C.'s Sunshine Coast, is under an evacuation order because of sinkholes.

The evacuation order was issued for 14 homes in the upscale Sunshine Coast subdivision.

Residents of 14 ocean-view homes on B.C.'s Sunshine Coast have been ordered to leave after an engineering report found that nearby sinkholes are putting them at risk.

As of 1 p.m. Friday, District of Sechelt declared a local state of emergency for the Seawatch neighbourhood perched above the west side of Sechelt Inlet north of Vancouver.

The area is surrounded by blue fencing to keep intruders - and residents - away from the homes.

"Future sinkholes or landslides could damage existing infrastructure such as underground utilities, roads or sidewalks, or private property including buildings and retaining walls," says the engineering report commissioned by the district. "Injury or even death are possible consequences."

Comment: Sinkholes are opening up all over the planet: 2 giant sinkholes open up in central Turkey

One dead after rare on-piste avalanche in Swiss Alps

BBC News
Wed, 20 Feb 2019 14:14 UTC

One person has died and three people are injured after an unexpected avalanche on a marked ski slope at a popular resort in the Swiss Alps.

Hundreds of rescuers searched through the night, but called off the search Wednesday morning after no-one was reported missing.

A 34-year-old French national died in hospital, Swiss police said.

The avalanche was unusual in that it fell on a popular, marked slope when the avalanche risk was deemed low.

Most people caught in avalanches are skiing "off-piste", away from the slopes maintained by ski resorts and used by the majority of tourists.

Such slopes are usually very safe, as the snow around them is carefully monitored and managed to avoid risks.

The avalanche risk in the region was set at only two out of five on Tuesday.

It happened in Crans-Montana at about 14:20 local time (13:20 GMT), when the avalanche engulfed 400m (1300ft) of piste marked out for skiers, local police commander Christian Varone said.

The dead person had been working in Crans Montana's ski patrol service, police said.

NASA releases photo of mysterious 'dragon' aurora over Iceland

Jasper Hamill
Metro
Tue, 19 Feb 2019 10:48 UTC

A view of the mysterious dragon aurora snapped in Iceland

Nasa has released incredible pictures of an unusual 'dragon' aurora roaring silently in the sky over Iceland. The stunning natural wonder was caused by particles emited from the sun which smash into the atmosphere to cause a dramatic light display.

Nasa wrote: 'Have you ever seen a dragon in the sky? Although real flying dragons don't exist, a huge dragon-shaped aurora developed in the sky over Iceland earlier this month.

'The aurora was caused by a hole in the Sun's corona that expelled charged particles into a solar wind that followed a changing interplanetary magnetic field to Earth's magnetosphere.

'As some of those particles then struck Earth's atmosphere, they excited atoms which subsequently emitted light: aurora. 'This iconic display was so enthralling that the photographer's mother ran out to see it and was captured in the foreground.

The dragon aurora is strange because it appeared during a time of low sunspot activity, which means our star is not emitting as many charged particles or 'solar wind' as it normally does.

'No sunspots have appeared on the Sun so far in February, making the multiple days of picturesque auroral activity this month somewhat surprising,' Nasa added.

Comment: Grand solar minimum: Data shows this is the lowest cycle since records began

Comment: See also:

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Video footage from central Ohio shows rare 'thundersnow'

WKBN
Wed, 20 Feb 2019 11:09 UTC

A rare weather occurrence was caught on camera near Piqua, Ohio -- in the Dayton area -- early Wednesday morning.

That flash of light is called "thundersnow," also known as a winter thunderstorm.

One of the Ohio Department of Transportation's traffic cameras picked it up.

What you didn't hear was the loud boom that went along with it.

Source: CNN

Comment: Footage of the event was also captured 60 miles east in Dublin, Ohio by YouTube user 'Ty's Coins':

Exploding transformer? Strange blue flash of light seen in northern Wales, UK

Sputnik
Mon, 18 Feb 2019 19:06 UTC

Conspiracy theorists claim that a strange bright blue light that emanated in the sky over North Wales earlier this month marked the descent of aliens at a secret underground base.

The footage that fuelled this alien speculation was filmed by a member of the Hawarden-based National Police Air Service on 7 February, though some commenters suggested that the eerie phenomenon was caused by a ball lightning or power outage.

However, UFO investigator Russ claims that the light was connected with an underground facility he believes to be lying beneath the North Wales coast.

"I don't know what it was, but it could have been a UFO that came down, something that landed in the area or even something that was brought to the area," he told North Wales Live.

Comment: See also: Exploding Transformers - More than meets the eye?

Adapt 2030 Ice Age Report: Fireballs and Repeating climate cycles

Adapt 2030
Wed, 20 Feb 2019 19:20 UTC

The number of fireballs reported in the USA has continued to increase since 2003 along with Near Earth Objects.

Urban Heat Island study shows that temperatures can rise as much as 4C at low night time temperatures.

Deserts bloom across the Middle East unleashing a locust plague that is unlike anything seen in generations.