Earth ChangesS


Lightning

Lightning kills 2 cops in Oriental Mindoro, Philippines

Aaron Recuenco
Manila Bulletin
Thu, 15 May 2025 12:04 UTC
Police inspect the area where two officers were killed in a lightning strike after the cops parked their motorcycles at the Mimaropa Regional Mobile Force Battalion headquarters in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro, on Wednesday evening, May 14, 2025
Police inspect the area where two officers were killed in a lightning strike after the cops parked their motorcycles at the Mimaropa Regional Mobile Force Battalion headquarters in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro, on Wednesday evening, May 14, 2025
Two rookie policemen died when they were struck by lightning inside a police camp in Naujan town of Oriental Mindoro on Wednesday night, May 14.

The incident was only discovered more than an hour after the incident when a policeman passed by the area and noticed the two cops on the ground of the parking lot for motorcycles of the Regional Mobile Forces Battalion in Barangay Pinagsabangan.

A report from the Police Regional Office 4B stated that the two policemen may have been parking their motorcycles when they were struck by the lightning, possibly around 10:30 p.m. when the series of lightning were observed.

The patrolling cop immediately sought assistance from fellow policemen to bring the two to the hospital. They, however, were declared dead.
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Tsunami

Virginia boy found dead after heavy rains and flooding hit several states, swamping schools and homes

Tucker Reals, Emily Mae Czachor
CBS News
Wed, 14 May 2025 16:48 UTC
An aerial photo shows the flooded downtown area of Westernport, Maryland, May 13, 2025.
© Ricky Carioti/The Washington PostAn aerial photo shows the flooded downtown area of Westernport, Maryland, May 13, 2025.
Flash floods sparked by heavy rain hit parts of Virginia, western Maryland and Pennsylvania this week, leaving a 12-year-old boy dead in Virginia and forcing elementary schools in rural Maryland to evacuate, authorities said.

Search and rescue crews believe they found the body of the missing boy, Jordan Sims, at around 8:45 a.m. Wednesday morning, Albemarle County Fire Rescue said. The Medical Examiner's Office in Richmond will confirm the identity.

"This is a heartbreaking outcome, and our hearts are with the Sims' family and loved ones," said Albemarle County Fire Rescue Chief Dan Eggleston in a statement. "We are incredibly grateful to our local and regional partners who supported this search effort with urgency, professionalism, and care."

The fire rescue service had said Tuesday night that county police received a call late in the afternoon about a boy being swept away by a flood-swollen creek. The fire department said search efforts had to be put on hold after about three hours, "due to limited visibility in the overnight hours and the safety of all those involved."

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Hardhat

China: Sweltering 30 C day turns to icy night: parts of Beijing hit by egg-sized hail

Li Yawei
Global Times
Tue, 13 May 2025 11:37 UTC
Egg-sized hailstones shared by netizens
Egg-sized hailstones shared by netizens
Locals baked in 30 C heat by day but had to duck hailstones the size of eggs after dark on Tuesday in Beijing!

Parts of Beijing were pelted with hail stones, with some ranging from 1 to 4 centimeters on Tuesday evening, leaving residents surprised, "This isn't normal!" some car owners found the windshields of their cars were battered by the hailstones.

At 8 pm on Tuesday, the Beijing Meteorological Observatory issued an update on its official Weibo account that thunderstorms with short-term gales of up to level 8 intensity and hail would occur overnight.

Yellow thunderstorm warnings, blue wind warnings, and yellow hail warnings were issued by the observatory, and localized severe gusts and hail will batter some regions during the night, the observatory noted.

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Cloud Precipitation

Spain: Majorca's beaches are turned white with ICE as freak hailstorm hits the tourist hot spot

David Averre
Daily Mail
Tue, 13 May 2025 11:06 UTC
Scarcely believable footage showed how vehicles sustained damage from the hail as others became stuck amid ice floes several inches thick in Villar del Arzobispo, with residents powerless to free them
Scarcely believable footage showed how vehicles sustained damage from the hail as others became stuck amid ice floes several inches thick in Villar del Arzobispo, with residents powerless to free them
Majorca was battered by freakish hailstorms yesterday that left renowned tourist hotspots on the Spanish island covered in ice and overrun with flood waters.

Tourists and locals alike were sent running for cover as huge hailstones pelted the resort of Porto Cristo, where idyllic beaches turned from golden to white in a matter of minutes as chunks of ice blanketed the sand.

Municipalities such as Manacor, Sant Llorenç and Sa Pobla were the worst affected, but large swathes of the islands were engulfed in the deluge.

Shocking video footage circulating on social media showed how furniture and tiles on typically sun-soaked decking outside hotels and private flats were smashed by the hailstorms as holidaymakers cowered inside.

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Seismograph

Magnitude 6.4 earthquake strikes Pacific nation of Tonga

Islamuddin Sajid
Anadolu Agency
Wed, 14 May 2025 09:27 UTC
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A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck the Pacific island nation of Tonga, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said on Wednesday.

The earthquake of magnitude 6.4 hit Tonga Islands at 0415GMT with a depth of 243 kilometers (150.99 miles), the USGS said on X.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties, and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue a tsunami warning following the tremor.

The region lies along the seismically active Pacific Ring of Fire, where tectonic plate boundaries frequently generate powerful earthquakes and volcanic activity.
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Seismograph

6.0 magnitude earthquake hits Türkiye, Greece, and Egypt, triggering tsunami warning


TurkiyeToday.com
Wed, 14 May 2025 09:17 UTC
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A significant earthquake with a magnitude of 6.0 struck the eastern Mediterranean early on Wednesday.

The epicenter was located near the Greek island of Kasos, at a depth of approximately 78 kilometers (48.67 miles), according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

The tremors were felt across multiple countries, including Greece, Türkiye, Egypt, Lebanon, and Jordan.

Greek media reported that people on the Rhodes, Karpathos, and Kasos islands were sent an emergency alert about "a potential tsunami risk" shortly after the earthquake.
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SOTT Logo Media

SOTT Focus: SOTT Earth Changes Summary - April 2025: Extreme Weather, Planetary Upheaval, Meteor Fireballs


Sott.net
Tue, 13 May 2025 18:25 UTC
ecs0425
Solar Cycle 25's post-peak phase of sustained but declining activity started this month, yet X-class flares and geomagnetic storms indicate activity is still high, with medium levels of sunspots, so a rebound cannot be completely discarded. This activity is reflected in the extreme weather down here in April, from unseasonable snowstorms and catastrophic floods to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

Arctic air plunged into mid-latitudes, triggering cold snaps and heavy snowfall in regions expecting the warmth of spring. In Seoul, South Korea, cherry blossoms mingled with the first mid-April snow since 1907, while the Alps were buried under eight feet of snow in just three days. Minnesota reeled from a 15-inch (38 cm) blizzard, and Turkey's capital, Ankara, faced icy roads after unexpected snow. These anomalies, also hitting Ukraine, Poland, and New Zealand, with surprisingly cold temperatures for Spring, highlight erratic weather patterns and the winter lingering on further and further.
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Doberman

4-month-old child dies after being attacked by rottweiler in Gujarat, India


Free Press Journal
Tue, 13 May 2025 16:59 UTC
4-Month-Old Child Dies after Being Attacked By Rottweiler At Residential Society |
4-Month-Old Child Dies after Being Attacked By Rottweiler At Residential Society
A shocking incident surfaced from Gujarat's Ahmedabad, where a four-year-old baby lost her life after being attacked by a pet dog in Gujarat's Ahmedabad on Monday. The disturbing incident was recorded on CCTV installed in the society. The video soon went viral on social media.

The incident took place in Ahmedabad's Radhe Residency. According to a report by Aaj Tak, Pratik Dhabi's sister took his four-month-old girl child, named Rishika, in her arms and went outside. Notably, a girl living in the same society was walking in the parking area with her Rottweiler pet dog.

However, when the girl was talking on the phone, the dog's leash slipped out of her hand, and the animal attacked Rishika's aunt. In the CCTV footage, it could be seen that when the woman with the baby in her arms fell to the ground, the dog attacked the child.

(Warning distressing footage)

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Binoculars

Birds in North America give us another sign of our 'slow-moving extinction crisis' - 75% population decline between 2007 and 2021

Jenn Gidman
newser.com
Fri, 02 May 2025 16:42 UTC
Long-term population trends for America's birds. Credit: State of the Birds long-term population trends
© Cornell Lab of Ornithology.Long-term population trends for America's birds. .
Research finds 75% of bird species in North America are seeing a population decline

North America has a bird problem—not too many, but perhaps too few in the not-so-distant future. New research published Thursday in the journal Science reveals that 75% of the continent's bird species are on a downward spiral, seeing their populations decline between 2007 and 2021. The Washington Post calls the phenomenon "the latest sign of a slow-moving extinction crisis that threatens entire ecosystems," and one that "should serve as a canary in the coal mine for people who live alongside birds."

Researchers analyzed nearly 500 different bird species in North America using the eBird online database, which serves as a landing spot for millions of bird sightings around the globe. Especially alarming was the finding that population loss for most species was largest in spots where resident birds are most prevalent, meaning our feathered friends "are struggling even in their strongholds." The Post notes there doesn't seem to be any one overarching reason for the population declines, with theories ranging from human encroachment on bird habitats and pesticides in their food chain, to rising temps in the Arctic that are disrupting local birds' natural breeding cycle.
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Volcano

Thermal camera captures moment Mount Kanlaon volcano erupts spewing ash 3km (1.8 miles) in to the air in the Philippines


BBC
Tue, 13 May 2025 16:18 UTC
Volcano eruption spews debris into sky as ash falls on villages across Philippines
Volcano eruption spews debris into sky as ash falls on villages across Philippines
A volcano in the Philippines has erupted, spewing ash 3km (1.8 miles) in to the air.

The eruption of the Mount Kanlaon volcano on the Negros island was caught on a thermal camera, showing debris falling.

A four-mile evacuation radius has been in place around the volcano, following an earlier eruption in December.

There have been no reports of injuries.

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