A family of four apparently escaped serious injury when lightning struck near them on Saturday night, knocking all four to the ground.
The victims were among those who were at Walters Park in Phillipsburg for a Little League all-star baseball game, which was stopped when severe weather moved in around 8 p.m. Witnesses said one of the boys had played in the game, and the family was headed to their car when the incident occurred.
Earth Changes
The world's largest cattle ranch has been forced to sell off its livestock and mothball operations because of the severe drought gripping much of Australia.
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| ©Chris McLennan |
| Drovers muster cattle at Anna Creek Station, South Australia |
KURIHARA - Rescue teams digging their way through a ravine buried in mud Sunday pulled three bodies from a hot springs inn, bringing the death toll to nine after a powerful earthquake rocked northern Japan.
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| ©AP Photo/Kyodo News |
| Rescue workers, right, surround a body they retrieved from a two-story hot spa inn, left, which was destroyed by a landslide triggered by Saturday's earthquake in Kurihara, Miyagi prefecture (state), northern Japan, Sunday June 15, 2008. Soldiers fighting through a torrent of mud and rocks dug out three bodies at the hot spring Sunday, bringing the death toll from a magnitude 7.2-earthquake that hit the mountains of northern Japan to at least nine, with more than 200 injured. |
Heavy rains that hit southern and eastern China have left at least 62 people dead or missing, while over one million residents have been evacuated, the government and state media said Sunday.
Rains were expected to continue to pound southern China through Tuesday with water levels in major rivers threatening towns in Jiangxi, Guangxi and Guangdong provinces, the state meteorological bureau said.
According to the civil affairs ministry, at least 55 people have been killed and seven others were missing following torrential rains which have pummelled nine provinces since last week, the Beijing News said.
More than 1.27 million people have been evacuated in the hardest hit regions, with large swathes of farm land submerged and economic losses already amounting to over 10 billion yuan (145 million dollars), it said.
Rains were expected to continue to pound southern China through Tuesday with water levels in major rivers threatening towns in Jiangxi, Guangxi and Guangdong provinces, the state meteorological bureau said.
According to the civil affairs ministry, at least 55 people have been killed and seven others were missing following torrential rains which have pummelled nine provinces since last week, the Beijing News said.
More than 1.27 million people have been evacuated in the hardest hit regions, with large swathes of farm land submerged and economic losses already amounting to over 10 billion yuan (145 million dollars), it said.
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| ©AFP/File/Liu Jin |
| The earthquake-hit area of Beichuan county -- in China's southwestern province of Sichuan -- was flooded on June 10. Heavy rains in southern and eastern China have left at least 62 people dead or missing, while more than one million residents have been evacuated. |
KURIHARA - Rescue squads and military helicopters raced to find 11 people missing after an earthquake in mountainous northern Japan sent hillsides crashing down Saturday, killing at least six and injuring more than 140.
The 7.2-magnitude quake triggered several major landslides, blocking roads and stranding about 100 bathers at a hot spring resort. Crews searching for the missing had to hike mountain trails and dig their way to the worst-hit areas.
"It was the worst quake I have ever felt," said Rinji Sato, whose grocery store in this town near the epicenter was a mess of shattered bottles and food thrown from shelves. "We were just lucky this didn't hit a big city."
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| ©Associated Press |
| A woman reacts to news of a relative's death following a landslide caused by an earthquake in Kurihara, Japan, Saturday, June 14, 2008. A magnitude 7.2 earthquake ripped across the mountains and rice fields of northern Japan on Saturday, killing at least six people as it sheared off hillsides, jolted buildings and shook nuclear power plants. At least eight people were missing. |
The 7.2-magnitude quake triggered several major landslides, blocking roads and stranding about 100 bathers at a hot spring resort. Crews searching for the missing had to hike mountain trails and dig their way to the worst-hit areas.
"It was the worst quake I have ever felt," said Rinji Sato, whose grocery store in this town near the epicenter was a mess of shattered bottles and food thrown from shelves. "We were just lucky this didn't hit a big city."
PARADISE - High wind on Saturday continued to stoke fires across Northern California that had destroyed dozens of homes and forced thousands of residents to flee.
At least 66 homes had been destroyed with 17 others damaged in the Butte County town of Paradise, about 90 miles north of Sacramento. The fire had contributed to at least one death - an elderly woman who suffered a heart attack while evacuating.
Only 35 percent of the fire was contained Saturday, and it had charred more than 36 square miles. Five firefighters suffered minor injuries.
That blaze was just one of a series vexing firefighters across Northern California. A wildfire in Monterey County continued to chew through the Los Padres National Forest, and flames in the Santa Cruz County kept hundreds of residents away from their mountain homes.
At least 66 homes had been destroyed with 17 others damaged in the Butte County town of Paradise, about 90 miles north of Sacramento. The fire had contributed to at least one death - an elderly woman who suffered a heart attack while evacuating.
Only 35 percent of the fire was contained Saturday, and it had charred more than 36 square miles. Five firefighters suffered minor injuries.
That blaze was just one of a series vexing firefighters across Northern California. A wildfire in Monterey County continued to chew through the Los Padres National Forest, and flames in the Santa Cruz County kept hundreds of residents away from their mountain homes.
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - The dark, filthy water that flooded Iowa's second-largest city finally started to recede Saturday after forcing 24,000 people to flee, but those who remained were urged to cut back on showering and flushing to save the last of their unspoiled drinking water.
Wilkins Ice Shelf has experienced further break-up with an area of about 160 km² breaking off from 30 May to 31 May 2008. ESA's Envisat satellite captured the event - the first ever-documented episode to occur in winter.
Wilkins Ice Shelf, a broad plate of floating ice south of South America on the Antarctic Peninsula, is connected to two islands, Charcot and Latady. In February 2008, an area of about 400 km² broke off from the ice shelf, narrowing the connection down to a 6 km strip; this latest event in May has further reduced the strip to just 2.7 km.
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| ©ESA Envisat |
| Wilkins Ice Shelf, a broad plate of floating ice south of South America on the Antarctic Peninsula, is connected to two islands, Charcot and Latady. In February 2008, an area of about 400 km² broke off from the ice shelf, narrowing the connection down to a 6 km strip; this latest event in May has further reduced the strip to just 2.7 km. |
Wilkins Ice Shelf, a broad plate of floating ice south of South America on the Antarctic Peninsula, is connected to two islands, Charcot and Latady. In February 2008, an area of about 400 km² broke off from the ice shelf, narrowing the connection down to a 6 km strip; this latest event in May has further reduced the strip to just 2.7 km.
This year may set records for tornadoes and tornado-related deaths. "We have already seen more than 115 tornado-related deaths, making this the deadliest tornado season since 1998," said Greg Carbin, a meteorologist at NOAA's Storm Prediction Center in Norman, OK.
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| ©Chris Foltz, NOAA |
| Tornado in Kansas on May 22, 2008. |
PARADISE - As a wildfire bore down on his home of 15 years, hopscotching between properties here, Larry Knifong decided to take his chances and stay - that is, until the flames raced up a ridge toward this ranch-style house.
