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Rescue operations underway in Tiruvannamalai where a landslide claimed two lives
According to police sources, the landslide occurred at around 4.30 pm on Sunday due to continuous downpour caused by Cyclone Fengal. The family members were identified as Rajkumar, his wife Meena, their two children, and three children of Meena's brother. The family was residing on the 11th Street in VOC Nagar in Tiruvannamalai.
As soon as the landslide occurred, their neighbours alerted the police and fire servicemen to rescue the family. Immediately, the police and fire servicemen arrived at the spot and tried to rescue them, but as rain continued to batter Tiruvannamalai, the rescue operation could not be carried out.
© Pattani Public Relations OfficeA man looks at the flooded Road 43 in Nong Chik district of Pattani on Thursday. The road serves as a main link between Songkhla and other southernmost provinces.
Heavy rain continues to pound all southern provinces along the Gulf of Thailand, and many train services have been suspended due to flooded tracks between Pattani and Yala.
The weather office issued another warning on Thursday about downpours until Sunday in eight provinces: Chumphon, Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phatthalung, Songkhla, Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat. This could further exacerbate flooding.
Water levels in key southern rivers — Pattani, Saiburi, Kolok and Tanyongmas — are forecast to rise significantly in the coming days, overflowing the banks and surging by 1.5 to 2 metres, said Thanaroj Woraratprasert, director of the National Water Administration Center at the Office of the National Water Resources (ONWR).
The accumulated rainfall in vast areas of the South has been substantial, with Narathiwat recording the highest rainfall over the past seven days, totalling 1,100 millimetres.
Comment: Update December 4
AFP reports:
More than 30,000 people have been forced to flee their homes due to severe flooding in southern Thailand, where the death toll climbed to 29, officials said on December 4.
More heavy rain is forecast in the area, where over 155,000 households have already been affected by flooding, according to the Thai government's public relations department.
Five southern provinces have been hit -- Pattani, Narathiwat, Songkhla, Nakhon Si Thammarat and Phatthalung -- forcing more than 33,000 people to leave their homes, the spokesperson for Thailand's ministry of public health said in a statement.
Disaster response teams were working to drain floodwater and evacuate flood victims to dry areas, the country's disaster agency said on its Facebook page.
The death toll now stands at 29, up from 25 reported on December 3.
Best of the Web: 'It just keeps coming and coming': Heavy lake-effect snow dumps over 4 feet on parts of Great Lakes region - nearly 5 feet for Copenhagen, New York
© Matt EisertLake-effect snow buried a vehicle in Pennsylvania's Millcreek Township.
More than two million people downwind of the Great Lakes have been under winter weather warnings. Winter storm warnings were posted off Lakes Superior and Michigan, and lake-effect snow warnings are in place off Lakes Erie and Ontario, with heavy snow reported this weekend across parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York state.
Nearly 4 feet of snow fell on parts of western New York the last few days, according to the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center, with some places exceeding the 4-foot mark Sunday. Copenhagen, New York, saw 58.8 inches - nearly 5 feet - by Sunday night, according to the weather service.
© RetuersThe mayor of Rhodes has called for a state of emergency to be declared on the island
More than 30cm of rain was reported to have fallen on the island of Rhodes - one of the first areas to be impacted by Storm Bora - since Saturday.
The deaths occurred on the island of Lemnos where flooding damaged roads and buildings and residents were asked to evacuate their homes, amid fears that a dam could overflow.
Damage has also been reported in Greece's second-largest city of Thessaloniki on the mainland, with the rain and storms likely to affect the majority of the country in the hours to come, the National Meteorological Service of Greece said.
On Lemnos, the rural road network linking the villages of Kontias with Thanos and Agios Dimitris has been completely destroyed.
A 70-year-old man in Kontias died when he fell over as he tried to clear up his house. A 57-year-old farmer was found dead by firefighters after being reported missing by his family near a flooded dam close to the village.
© Cara Anna / APLake-effect snow falls in Lowville, N.Y., on Friday night.
More than 17 million people were cautioned Saturday under National Weather Service winter alerts, including 3.6 million under lake-effect snow warnings, 4.5 million under freeze warnings, 8.5 million under winter weather advisories, and 1 million under frost advisories.
Affected areas included the Great Lakes and the Central Plains to the Appalachians, with many of those freeze warnings focused on the Southeast.
The National Weather Service warned that the Arctic airmass is delivering the coldest temperatures since last winter. Wind chills in the northern Plains and upper Midwest are expected to plunge below zero Saturday morning. Parts of North Dakota could experience wind chills as low as minus 30 to 40 degrees, according to the agency.
At least 13 dead after landslides bury 40 homes in villages in eastern Uganda
The Uganda Red Cross Society said on Thursday at least 13 bodies had been recovered after landslides "completely buried" 40 homes in six villages of the mountainous district of Bulambuli the previous night.
Images on local media showed huge swaths of fallen earth covering the land in the village of Masugu, about a five-hour drive from the capital, Kampala. Videos and photographs shared on social media purported to show people digging for survivors in the village of Kimono.
The Uganda Red Cross Society said the rescue effort was continuing but the death toll was likely to rise.
Comment: Update December 1
Deutsche Welle reports:
At least 20 people have died after landslides submerged several villages in a mountainous area of Uganda. More than 100 others are still missing and the death toll is expected to rise. Relief workers are combing through the rubble of dozens of homes.
The incident happened on Thursday, November 28, 2024, around 16 hours at Kanchele village in Chief MOYO's area.
The children, who had just come back from school, met their fate when lightning struck their parents' iron-sheets roofed house, as it was raining on the material day.
Southern Province Police Commanding Officer, AUXENSIO DAKA has confirmed and identified the deceased as JACK HACHIDUNTULA, aged 13, and CHARITY HACHIDUNTULA, aged 5.
Meanwhile, Mr DAKA says another person has died, when the vehicle, which was transporting the bodies of the 2 children who were struck by lightning, was involved in an accident.
The accident happened on the same day on the Great North Road, as the family of the 2 deceased children was taking the bodies to Pemba Police Station and to report the matter.
In a written reply to a question from Sanatan Mahakud (BJD), the minister further said during that period, 509 people from different parts of the state were injured in elephant attacks. Around 149 people died of the same reason in 2022-23 alone.
"Elephant herds have destroyed around 73,620 acre of crops and damaged 10,259 houses during the last three years," Singhkhuntia informed.
Replying to another question by BJD MLA Tusharkanti Behera, the minister said 40 elephants, five leopards and 200 other wildlife species have died between July 1 and November 20 this year in the state.
He said departmental inquiries have been conducted into the deaths of elephants and leopards. "While 26 people have been arrested in connection with elephant deaths, two forest guards and one forester have been placed under suspension for dereliction of duties. Similarly, 14 arrests have been made in connection with death of leopards in the state," the minister added.
Comment: The Indian Express reports: