Floods
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Life Preserver

China flood deaths rise to 57, thousands evacuated


The Times of India
Tue, 20 Sep 2011 15:48 UTC
China Flood
© The Times of IndiaUnprecedented rains over the past week have swamped parts of China.
Heavy rains and floods across China have left 57 people dead, dozens of others missing and hundreds injured, while more than a million residents have been evacuated from their homes, the government said.

Unprecedented rains over the past week have swamped parts of northern, central and southwest China, and although the affected region is breathing a tentative sigh of relief as the downpours pause, rivers continue to swell.

The ministry of civil affairs said in a statement that the rain had forced authorities to evacuate more than 1.2 million people from their homes.

"Constant strong rainfall has caused serious flood disasters in Sichuan (southwest), Shaanxi (north) and Henan (central China) -- 12.3 million people were affected, 57 died and 29 are missing," it said late on Monday.
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Cloud Lightning

1.3 million urged to evacuate as typhoon nears Japan


MSNBC
Tue, 20 Sep 2011 14:34 UTC
Image
© APResidents wade through a flooded street caused by an approaching typhoon in Nagoya, Japan, on Tuesday.
Heavy rains already trigger floods; at least 2 missing, roads damaged

A major hurricane that could hit Tokyo or Kyoto overnight has already triggered floods, left two people missing and forced officials to urge 1.3 million people in central Japan to evacuate.

Typhoon Roke could make landfall closer to Kyoto Tuesday night if it moves to the west of the forecast track, Rick Knabb, The Weather Channel's tropical weather expert, told NBC News.

"If it goes right at Tokyo, landfall near there might be roughly 2-4 a.m. ET," he added. "If it goes far enough right of track, the center could miss Japan altogether, but still with significant effects there."

Public broadcaster NHK said about 1.3 million people have been advised to leave their homes due to rising rivers. In the city of Moriyama, 80,000 residents were ordered to evacuate.

Heavy rains as the storm approached caused floods and road damage in dozens of locations in Nagoya and several other cities, the Aichi state government said.
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Cloud Lightning

Pakistan Floods: World Ignoring Humanitarian Crisis

Dean Nelson
The Telegraph, UK
Fri, 16 Sep 2011 20:40 UTC
The world is ignoring a growing humanitarian crisis in Pakistan's Sindh province where a second year of catastrophic floods has forced up to two million to flee their homes, washed away vital crops and left millions at risk of disease, according to aid agencies and local political leaders.

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Cloud Lightning

Heavy rains, floods kill 233, affect 5.5 million in Pakistan


CNN
Thu, 15 Sep 2011 11:38 UTC
floods,pakistan
© AFP/Getty ImagesCommuters on a flooded street following rains in Karachi on September 10.
Islamabad, Pakistan -- Heavy rains and flooding have killed at least 233 people in Pakistan, a disaster agency spokesman said Wednesday, as a weather forecast calls for more rain over deluged parts of the country.

Seven people have died in the past 24 hours, said Irshad Bhatti, a spokesman for the National Disaster Management Authority.

At least 5.5 million people have been affected by the flooding since August, said Zafar Iqbal Qadir, chairman of the disaster authority.
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Cloud Lightning

Severe Flooding in Santa Catarina, Brazil

Sarah de Sainte Croix
The Rio Times
Fri, 09 Sep 2011 16:54 UTC
Brazil Flood
© RecreationThe city of Blumenau, in the state of Santa Catarina, southern Brazil.
Ten towns in the state of Santa Catarina in the South of Brazil are in an official state of emergency and a further 25 are on high alert, following several days of heavy rain and flooding. The situation looks likely to get worse, with more rain forecast for the coming days.

According to CIRAM (the Information Centre for Environmental Resources and Hydrometeorology in Santa Catarina), an average of more than 100mm of rain has fallen across the region in the last three days, causing rivers to rise dangerously and provoking landslides in several locations.
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Cloud Lightning

'Huge Losses' as Pakistan Floods Kill 200


Agence France Presse
Mon, 12 Sep 2011 16:45 UTC
Pakistan flooding
© AFP/File, A. MajeedSome 5.3 million people have been affected by this year's flooding in Pakistan
More than 200 people have been killed by devastating rains in Pakistan, which is still struggling to rebuild after last year's worst floods in living memory, officials said Monday.

Pakistan, a nuclear-armed state suffering appalling levels of Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked violence, saw 21 million people affected in the 2010 flooding that killed 1,750 people and cost the economy $10 billion.

Aid agencies have accused the government of failing to invest in adequate prevention measures and vast swathes of farmland have been inundated for a second year in the southern province of Sindh, the nation's breadbasket.

The situation this year was even worse than last year, one official said.
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Attention

US: Pennsylvania Orders 65,000 to Evacuate Flood Zone


MSNBC
Thu, 08 Sep 2011 10:05 UTC
Susquehanna River is expected to crest at 41 feet later on Thursday

As the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee dump heavy rain on the Northeast, officials in northeastern Pennsylvania are calling for a mandatory evacuation of communities along the Susquehanna River - an area that was inundated in the historic Agnes flood of 1972.

The order affects roughly 65,000 residents.

Luzerne County Management Agency official Frank Lasiewicki told The Associated Press Thursday the river is projected to crest at nearly 41 feet between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. ET Thursday - the same height as the levee system protecting riverfront communities including Wilkes-Barre and Kingston.

Residents were ordered to leave by 4 p.m. Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tom Leighton said residents should prepare for an extended evacuation of 72 hours and advised them to take clothing, food and prescription medicine. He also asked city businesses to close their doors by noon.

The evacuations come as Lee's remnants caused havoc around the Northeast on Thursday, bringing floods that cut off major highways and caused some schools to open late or not at all.

At least three people have died.

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Bizarro Earth

US: Rain, Strong Winds Sweep North Georgia


GPBNews.com / Associated Press
Tue, 06 Sep 2011 15:07 UTC
State emergency officials say nearly 100 homes were damaged in north Georgia's Cherokee County from severe weather that moved through Monday.
Image
© Duane TateAreas of north Georgia were hit with heavy rain, winds, and possible tornadoes on Tuesday.
Twisters and heavy rains were the result of slow-moving remnants of Tropical Storm Lee that pushed through the northern portion of Georgia. Across parts of the region, there were flooded roads reported with downed power lines. Schools are closed in Catoosa, Dade and Walker counties in northwest Georgia because of flooding.

Forecasters say there's a flood warning in effect for the northwest corner of the state, with a flash flood watch extending until noon Tuesday through far north Georgia down to a line from Rome to Gainesville.

There were incidents and damage in other parts of the state due to the rough weather.

In Monroe County, Georgia emergency officials say an 18-car pile-up just north of Macon was due to the bad weather.

Officials at Fort Stewart said a lightning strike sent about 22 soldiers to the hospital on Monday, with at least three kept overnight.

Fort Stewart spokesman Pat Young said the soldiers were on the post's Donovan Field in a large, mobile tent that may have been directly hit by lightning.
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Cloud Lightning

UK: Flood warnings and storms herald the end of summer

Steven Morris
The Guardian
Tue, 06 Sep 2011 13:03 UTC
UK wind
© Gareth Fuller/PAThe Met Office says the south-east of England is likely to bear the brunt of the strongest winds.
High winds up to 50mph and heavy rainfall predicted across the UK as drivers are warned to expect difficult conditions

Flood warnings were issued and some travellers faced difficult journeys as heavy rain and strong winds whipped across parts of the UK on Tuesday.

Winds of up to 50mph were predicted on the south and south-east coasts of England and up to 50mm of rain was expected to fall within 24 hours in some areas of the north-east and north Wales.

The wet and windy weather was expected to continue throughout the week as a series of low pressure systems move through.
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Cloud Lightning

Tropical Storm Talas leaves 29 dead, 56 missing in Japan

Junko Ogura and Yoko Wakatsuki
CNN
Mon, 05 Sep 2011 15:24 UTC
japan,flood
© Getty ImagesRescue workers search for missing people amongst a destroyed house caused by floodwaters in Tanabe, Wakayama prefecture, in western Japan.
Tokyo -- The death toll from Talas, which swept across western Japan, has risen to 29, local authorities said Monday.

Another 56 people are missing, according to a tally of casualties compiled from various prefectural police.

The storm unleashed record rainfall that triggered landslides and flooding.

The Japan Meteorological Agency briefly classified the storm as a typhoon before it made landfall. But the Joint Typhoon Warning Center recorded the storm making landfall in Japan as a tropical storm.
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