Earth ChangesS


Bizarro Earth

Sweden: Flooding in Malmö as heavens open

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© B. Larsson Rosvall/ScanpixBus passengers were involved in a dramatic boat rescue in western Sweden on Friday morning, 13 Aug 2010
Torrential rain showers pummelled southern Sweden on Saturday night, causing flooding and road closures in parts of Skåne.

Emergency services were inundated with phone calls from home owners whose basements were flooded as the incessant rain made its presence felt.

The region's main city, Malmö, was pounded by 66 millimetres of precipitation in a few short hours, according to meteoroligical agency SMHI.

Rescue workers were also called out to help motorists whose cars had stalled in the rising waters.

Per Bergkvist was out driving on Malmö's inner ring road when he ran into difficulties around the Fosie exit, local newspaper Sydsvenskan reports.

"The water reached up to the car doors," he told the newspaper.

Bizarro Earth

Philippines: Flashflood hits 50 families in Zamboanga City

At least 50 families in the village of Marcos Drive Putik here woke up Sunday dawn with their homes flooded.

Feliciano Mariano said he and his family woke up with their house on the 3rd Street in the same village already submerged in water.

Even the house of Francisco Barredo, the city's Social Welfare Officer, was not spared.

"Water is rising and current is very strong, people have to be evacuated immediately," Barredo said Sunday morning.

He said two other riverside villages, Boalan and Tugbungan, suffered the same situation.

At around 7 a.m. Sunday, two Air Force helicopters flew over the flooded villages.

Naval Forces Western Mindanao commander Rear Admiral Alexander Pama said two teams of disaster relief and rehabilitation personnel were able to rescue at least 24 families.

Pama said evacuation and rescue operation continued as 4 p.m. Sunday.

Zamboanga City Water District spokesperson Dolly Galvan said due to continuous rains, the water level at the Pasonanca dam has reached the critical level of 75.5 compared to the normal level of 74.

Bizarro Earth

Mauritius: Earthquake Magnitude 6.3 - Reunion Region

Mauritius Quake_160810
© USGSEarthquake Location
Date-Time:
Monday, August 16, 2010 at 03:30:55 UTC

Monday, August 16, 2010 at 07:30:55 AM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
17.788°S, 65.692°E

Depth:
10.6 km (6.6 miles)

Region:
MAURITIUS - REUNION REGION

Distances:
320 km (200 miles) NE of Ile Rodrigues, Mauritius

900 km (560 miles) ENE of PORT LOUIS, Mauritius

3135 km (1950 miles) SSW of COLOMBO, Sri Lanka

Bizarro Earth

New Zealand: Undersea Volcano Collapses

An undersea volcano, aptly named Rumble lll, has partly collapsed, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa) says.

The west side of the volcano, on the Kermadec Ridge, 200km northeast of Auckland, collapsed over the past several years, reducing its height by 120 metres, Niwa marine geologist Richard Wysoczanski said.

The collapse was confirmed during an oceanographic voyage during May and June this year.

"Our seabed is a lot more active than we thought," Dr Wysoczanski said.

"These volcanoes, as well as the non-volcanic ridges, can also cause landslides that could potentially generate a tsunami that would impact on New Zealand."

Dr Wysoczanski said the first leg of the voyage focused on geophysical surveying of the Kermadec Arc seafloor and seafloor massive sulphide deposits that sometimes develop over hydrothermal vents.

Rumble lll is one of more than 30 large submarine volcanoes on the Kermadec Arc which are rich in iron, lead, zinc and copper.

"We are investigating these volcanoes and mineral deposits to determine their size and the biological communities they support," Dr Wysoczanski said.

Bizarro Earth

Papua New Guinea: Earthquake Magnitude 6.3

PNG Quake_150810
© USGSEarthquake Location
Date-Time:
Sunday, August 15, 2010 at 15:09:30 UTC

Monday, August 16, 2010 at 01:09:30 AM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
5.708°S, 148.337°E

Depth:
183.1 km (113.8 miles) set by location program

Region:
NEW BRITAIN REGION, PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Distances:
145 km (90 miles) WNW of Kandrian, New Britain, PNG

185 km (115 miles) NE of Lae, New Guinea, PNG

435 km (270 miles) NNE of PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea

2460 km (1530 miles) NNW of BRISBANE, Queensland, Australia

Chalkboard

Thieving parrots hatch a plan to unlock food

Kea parrots are renowned thieves in their native New Zealand, and with good reason - even a complicated sequence of locks can't foil them.


Bizarro Earth

Mariana Islands: Earthquake Magnitude 6.6

Marianna Quake_140810
© USGSEarthquake Location
Date-Time:
Saturday, August 14, 2010 at 23:01:05 UTC

Sunday, August 15, 2010 at 09:01:05 AM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
12.211°N, 141.408°E

Depth:
22.5 km (14.0 miles)

Region:
MARIANA ISLANDS REGION

Distances:
390 km (240 miles) WSW of HAGATNA, Guam

465 km (290 miles) WSW of Rota, Northern Mariana Islands

465 km (290 miles) NE of Yap, Micronesia

570 km (355 miles) SW of SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands

Bizarro Earth

More Landslides as China Mourns Victims of Gansu Disaster

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© AP
At least 38 people are reported missing in a new landslide Saturday in China's flood-ravaged Sichuan province, as the nation observes a day of mourning for victims of last week's massive landslide in the northwest.

The State Council ordered flags throughout China and at all Chinese embassies lowered to half-staff Sunday to honor 1,239 people killed in Gansu province. The official announcement said public entertainment, including all games, music shows and movies, should be suspended on Sunday.

Authorities said more than 500 people are still missing in the northwestern province. Soldiers are working around the clock to clear debris from Gansu's Bailong River, to reduce the chance of further flooding with any new rainfall.

Bizarro Earth

Mariana Islands: Earthquake Magnitude 6.3

Marianna Quake_140810
© USGSEarthquake Location
Date-Time:
Saturday, August 14, 2010 at 07:30:16 UTC

Saturday, August 14, 2010 at 05:30:16 PM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
12.328°N, 141.473°E

Depth:
9.7 km (6.0 miles)

Region:
MARIANA ISLANDS REGION

Distances:
375 km (235 miles) WSW of HAGATNA, Guam

450 km (280 miles) WSW of Rota, Northern Mariana Islands

480 km (300 miles) NE of Yap, Micronesia

560 km (345 miles) SW of SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands

Bizarro Earth

Mariana Islands: Earthquake Magnitude 6.9

Mariana Quake_130810
© USGSEarthquake Location
Date-Time:
Friday, August 13, 2010 at 21:19:32 UTC

Saturday, August 14, 2010 at 07:19:32 AM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location:
12.409°N, 141.487°E

Depth:
4.7 km (2.9 miles) (poorly constrained)

Region:
MARIANA ISLANDS REGION

Distances:
375 km (230 miles) WSW of HAGATNA, Guam

445 km (275 miles) WSW of Rota, Northern Mariana Islands

485 km (300 miles) NE of Yap, Micronesia

550 km (340 miles) WSW of SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands