Earth Changes
BRAWLEY, California - A small earthquake rattled a rugged mountain area in southeastern California, but there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage.
Orange County, Florida -- Lightning strikes put firefighters on the run all over Central Florida on Tuesday afternoon. There were several reports of lightning hitting homes and businesses. Fire gutted a house on Sarazen Drive in Pine Hills near Hastings.
Firefighters weren't sure if the lightning struck a nearby tree or the house, or maybe both. But one thing was likely, the nearby pine trees acted like lightning rods.
Firefighters weren't sure if the lightning struck a nearby tree or the house, or maybe both. But one thing was likely, the nearby pine trees acted like lightning rods.
Winter Park, Florida -- Lightning from Tuesday night's storms sparked a fire at a 10,000-square foot manor home in Winter Park. Firefighters spent Wednesday morning walking around the mansion along Preserve Point Drive looking for hotspots.
The Fire Marshal was on the scene late Wednesday morning. He said the damage was so severe, no one other than firefighters would be allowed to go inside until structural engineers can figure out how to best deal with the collapsed roof.
The Fire Marshal was on the scene late Wednesday morning. He said the damage was so severe, no one other than firefighters would be allowed to go inside until structural engineers can figure out how to best deal with the collapsed roof.
WILKES-BARRE, Pennsylvania - Floods in the Susquehanna River receded early on Thursday, lifting the threat of catastrophic flooding in the historic town of Wilkes-Barre, but water was still rising in parts of New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Days of torrential rain followed by floods had killed at least 16 people in the eastern United States by late on Wednesday. With buildings submerged, roads washed out and rivers surging, authorities declared emergencies and ordered hundreds of thousands of people evacuated across swaths of New Jersey, New York, Maryland and Pennsylvania.
"Yesterday was a war zone in the northern tier of Pennsylvania -- we choppered out over 1,000 people from rooftops, from second and third floors of their homes," Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell said in an interview on CNN.
Days of torrential rain followed by floods had killed at least 16 people in the eastern United States by late on Wednesday. With buildings submerged, roads washed out and rivers surging, authorities declared emergencies and ordered hundreds of thousands of people evacuated across swaths of New Jersey, New York, Maryland and Pennsylvania.
"Yesterday was a war zone in the northern tier of Pennsylvania -- we choppered out over 1,000 people from rooftops, from second and third floors of their homes," Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell said in an interview on CNN.
The Volcano of Fire
An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.9 struck the islands of Andaman and Nicobar in the Indian Ocean, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said Wednesday.
Local officials called the quake moderate and said there were no reports of any damage.
Local officials called the quake moderate and said there were no reports of any damage.
Ecuador's National Geophysical Agency said on Tuesday the Tungurahua volcano had registered 50 explosions in the past 24 hours.
The Tungurahua volcano, one of the most active volcanoes in Ecuador, started its second activity peak this May since the eruption process began in August 1999.
The Tungurahua volcano, one of the most active volcanoes in Ecuador, started its second activity peak this May since the eruption process began in August 1999.
WASHINGTON - Cars built by the Big Three automakers gave off 230 million metric tons of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in the United States in a year, more than the biggest U.S. electric utility, environmental researchers said on Wednesday.
General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler cars and light trucks emitted nearly three-fourths of all carbon dioxide from vehicles on U.S. roads in 2004, the year for which statistics were available, according to the watchdog group Environmental Defense.
General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler cars and light trucks emitted nearly three-fourths of all carbon dioxide from vehicles on U.S. roads in 2004, the year for which statistics were available, according to the watchdog group Environmental Defense.
PARIS - France's state weather service has issued a storm alert for the southeast Alps region, warning that hail and strong wind gusts were likely.
The alert -- the second highest on a four-level scale -- was for Wednesday afternoon through to the early hours of Thursday.
The alert -- the second highest on a four-level scale -- was for Wednesday afternoon through to the early hours of Thursday.
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. - Up to 200,000 people in the Wilkes-Barre area were ordered to evacuate their homes Wednesday because of rising water on the Susquehanna River, swelled by a record-breaking deluge that has killed at least 12 people across the Northeast.
Thousands more were ordered to leave their homes in New Jersey, New York and Maryland. Rescue helicopters plucked residents from rooftops as rivers and streams surged over their banks, washed out roads and bridges, and cut off villages in some of the worst flooding in the region in decades, with more rain in the forecast for the rest of the week.
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