Earth Changes

Coming polar plunge could be winter's coldest

Kristina Pydynowski
Accuweather.com
Tue, 28 Jan 2014 10:16 UTC

A blast of frigid air will grip most of the eastern two-thirds of the United States through Wednesday and could yield the lowest temperatures so far this winter in some communities.

The impending polar plunge will rival the frigid days from earlier this January for the coldest daytime highs and nighttime lows so far this winter. This does not include South Florida.

The arctic air first plunged into the Upper Midwest, northern Plains and northern Rockies on Sunday and is continuing to press to the Gulf and Atlantic coasts through Tuesday.

The magnitude of this cold blast will be enough to produce a far-reaching threat of frostbite, hypothermia, frozen pipes and water main breaks.

Winter is coming: Polar blast is only a taste of things to come

Climate Change Dispatch
Mon, 27 Jan 2014 09:54 UTC

Just in time for Obama's State of the Union Address, where he is supposed to invoke global warming and the power of his mighty pen, comes another polar plunge the likes of which may not have been seen before:

"A blast of brutal cold will grip most of the eastern two-thirds of the United States through Wednesday and could yield the lowest temperatures so far this winter in many communities.

The impending polar plunge will rival the frigid days from earlier this January for the coldest daytime highs and nighttime lows so far this winter. This does not include South Florida.The arctic air first plunged into the Upper Midwest, northern Plains and northern Rockies on Sunday and is expected to continue pressing to the south and east through Tuesday.

The magnitude of this cold blast will be enough to produce a far-reaching threat of frostbite, hypothermia, frozen pipes and water main breaks.

Care should also be taken to ensure that livestock and other animals housed outdoors have adequate shelter.

Especially across the Midwest and Northeast, officials may decide to cancel or delay school due to the extreme cold. Some vehicles may struggle or fail to start for motorists.

While highs will be held to the 30s southward to the I-10 corridor, the Midwest and Northeast are bracing for the harshest conditions."

Read the rest here...

Thousands of dead fish wash up in Grainger County, Tennessee

Kayla Strayer
WATE.com
Mon, 27 Jan 2014 09:36 UTC

They can be seen washed up on shore and floating in the Holston River below the Cherokee Dam.

Tens of thousands of dead fish are now washing up on the shores of the Holston River in Grainger County. 6 News has been investigating this since viewer Chris Joyce first alerted us Monday morning by posting this photo on our Facebook page.The white spots in the picture are the fish. They are scattered downstream from Cherokee Lake, just off Tampico Road in rural Grainger County.

"It's just a shock to see it in your own backyard," Joyce said. After seeing thousands of dead fish near his home, Joyce turned to 6 News for answers. "I got to looking. There was a lot on the water, a lot on the banks. I took pictures of it and sent it in. This is the first time I've ever seen anything like this," Joyce said.

Sinkhole forces evacuation in Florida

The Telegraph
Mon, 27 Jan 2014 05:55 UTC

The hole was discovered outside a house in Holiday, Florida on Sunday morning.

Local fire authorities evacuated the elderly resident of the house, as well as neighbours as a precaution.

Pasco County Fire and Rescue officials said the hole is 20 feet wide and 15 feet deep and does not appear to be growing.

This incident is the latest in a series of sinkholes to open up in Florida. Last year houses were evacuated in Dunedin after a hole opened up in November, and near the same location a man was killed in February when a chasm opened in his bedroom.

Storm blows Canadian bird 3,000 miles on to Tyrone lough, Northern Ireland

Michael Mcglade
Tyrone Times
Tue, 28 Jan 2014 08:05 UTC

Pacific Diver (Pacific Loon)

Recent storms are believed to have blown a bird over 3,000 miles from Canada to a lough in Co Tyrone.

The solitary Pacific Diver bird - known as a loon - which was spotted on Lough Fea near Cookstown in recent days has attracted dozens of bird watchers from as far as Scotland.

Several images of the bird - which spends much of its time diving under water for small fish - have been captured by delighted bird watchers.

More bird watchers are expected to descend on the lough this weekend, as news of bird's bizarre appearance spreads.

Coincidentally, the loon famous for its haunting wail, is commonly found in Ontario, Canada, which also has a town called Cookstown.

Many Tibetan monasteries and famous sites destroyed this winter by mysterious 'wildfires'

Richard Finney
Radio Free Asia
Tue, 28 Jan 2014 07:22 UTC

Smoke billows from forest fire in Nyagchuka county, Tibet, Jan. 25, 2014. Yes folks, it's the middle of the Himalayan winter!

A forest fire burning out of control in western China's Sichuan province appears set to spread to a monastery and the main town of a Tibetan-populated county, following the near-total destruction of the center of another Tibetan town in a neighboring province two weeks ago, sources say.

The cause of the fire, which began on Jan. 25 in a hilly area of Nyagchukha (in Chinese, Yajiang) county in the Kardze (Ganzi) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, is still unknown, a local source told RFA's Tibetan Service on Sunday.

"But the fire was still burning on Jan. 26," RFA's source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"If the fire is not brought under control soon, it may spread to the Nyagchukha county seat and to a small monastery located on the side of a mountain called Phagmo Hill," he said.

Nyagchukha, one of 11 counties under the jurisdiction of Kardze prefecture, is famous as the home of Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, a popular and well-respected Tibetan religious leader jailed by China since 2002 on bombing charges widely believed to have been contrived.

"Interesting situation, fighting fires in the wintertime" - Oregon firefighters finally get Shady Cove wildfire under control

Ryan Pfeil
Mail Tribune, Oregon
Tue, 28 Jan 2014 07:09 UTC

Some snow remains on the ground and some creeks are still frozen, yet these fires burned right next to them?...

A wildfire that broke out Thursday in logging debris on private timberlands northeast of Shady Cove and grew to 125 acres was contained by fire crews over the weekend.

Oregon Department of Forestry and U.S. Forest Service firefighters have completed fire lines around most of the Alder Creek fire, ODF spokesman Brian Ballou said Monday. The fire started in piles of logging debris that were lighted in late November and early December, according to Grayback Forestry President Mike Wheelock, who also sent crews to help battle the blaze.

The fire about 15 miles up Elk Creek Road drew at least two 20-person hand crews, one bulldozer, seven engines and two water tenders. The blaze left some areas untouched, including spots where snow remained on the ground or creeks were still frozen.

"Interesting situation, fighting fires in the wintertime," Ballou said.

He added seeing a wildfire this early in the year is unusual.

'Winter wildfire' torches 70 acres in Union Country, South Carolina - where daytime temperature is currently 31F! - cause unknown

FOX Carolina
Mon, 27 Jan 2014 07:01 UTC

Firefighters in Union County and surrounding areas battled a brush fire that torched over 50 acres of land on Monday afternoon.

Union County Sheriff David Taylor said the fire was first called in at 2 p.m. and spread rapidly, burning 50 to 70 acres of land off Bentle Town Road.

By nightfall, Taylor said most of the fire was under control after firefighter from multiple counties responded to the blaze. Scott Hawkins of the South Carolina Forestry Commission (SCFC) said they sent six units to help in the suppression of the wildfire.

Twin landslides in Indonesia kill 19 people

Press TV
Tue, 28 Jan 2014 06:10 UTC

A photo of a village on Indonesia’s Java Island hit by flash flooding and landslides

At least 19 people have lost their lives and ten others have gone missing following twin landslides triggered by torrential rains in Indonesia.

National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said on Tuesday that five houses were buried under a pile of mud cascaded down from the surrounding hills in Mekarsari village of East Java's Jombang District during the early hours of the day.

No new continent 'hottest' temperature records since 1978

Anthony Watts
WUWT
Tue, 28 Jan 2014 00:00 UTC

Something to consider for the SOTU address tonight where "extremes" of all kinds are likely to be discussed.

If indeed we are seeing hottest ever type scenarios, or if you prefer, greater extremes, where are the continental representations of this? If on the other hand, what we are experiencing is within bounds of natural variations, you would expect to see new continental records set. See the map: