Floods
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Cloud Lightning

US: Heavy rains flood streets, disrupt transportation, stall cars in Mid-Atlantic


Associated Press
Sat, 09 Jul 2011 02:22 UTC
Heavy rains have been wreaking havoc in the Mid-Atlantic region, flooding streets, stalling cars, delaying rail and air travel and canceling outdoor events.

Flash flood warnings were in effect Friday evening was Washington and much of Maryland. Firefighters in Washington rescued at least two people from vehicles stalled in water in Southeast.

ABC7News reported delays of at least an hour at the area's three airports. CSX and Norfolk Southern trains were ordered to reduce speeds.

In Frederick, sections of several streets were closed because of flooding.

In Maryland and Washington, utilities, already slammed by power outages caused by late Thursday's storms, worked to restore power as Friday's weather battered the area.
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Umbrella

US, Maryland: Heavy Rain Floods Buildings, Roads in City of Frederick

Pam Rigaux
WTOP
Sat, 09 Jul 2011 06:18 UTC
Image
© Bill Green/Frederick News-PostTwo girls brave the rushing floodwaters Friday afternoon to walk along the path and through the covered bridge in Baker Park. Much of the park was covered by the heavy rain.
More than 2 inches of rain fell on the Frederick area Friday afternoon, flooding basements and streets in downtown Frederick, authorities said.

The brunt of the rain, 1.2 inches, fell between 3 and 3:30 p.m., said Paul Walker, senior meteorologist with AccuWeather.

The sudden rainfall overloaded the city's drainage system and flooded streets, said Chip Stitley, superintendent of stormwater and sanitary sewer for the city's Department of Public Works.

The floods were concentrated in the City of Frederick, said Steve Leatherman, technical services bureau chief for the Frederick County Division of Fire and Rescue Services. Parts of Highland, East Church, Patrick and Market streets, among other roads, were closed for short periods, he said.

"It was a situation where water flooded the roads and then receded," Leatherman said.
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Better Earth

Scotland: Panic stations as flash floods hit the Capital

V. Raimes, A. McEwen & C. Mortimer
The Scotsman
Sat, 09 Jul 2011 12:21 UTC
Residents and businesses describe how downpour turned streets to rivers in a matter of minutes
Image
© BBC NewsWitnesses said cars in Balcarres Street were bobbing about in the water.
Flash floods brought chaos to the streets of Edinburgh as almost a quarter of the average monthly rainfall for July fell in just three hours leaving cars floating away, homes ruined and residents stranded.

The downpour turned streets in Morningside, Colinton and Oxgangs into rivers and caused an estimated £100,000 worth of damage to vehicles at a car showroom.

Emergency council workers joined firefighters to deal with the flooded areas while a number of bus services had to be diverted.

One of the worst hit areas was Balcarres Street in Morningside, where the flooding began just after 2.40pm. Shaun Robertson, 22, and Lee Craig, 26, both painters and decorators, were trapped in their van in the middle of the road for over an hour.
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Cloud Lightning

US, New York: Rockland storm downs trees, floods roads, cuts power to 4,000

James O'Rourke
lohud.com
Fri, 08 Jul 2011 21:56 UTC
Image
© Peter Carr/The Journal NewsCars are stranded on Mill Creek Road in New City after Friday's heavy rain.
Another round of thunderstorms wreaked havoc in Rockland on Friday, downing trees, flooding roadways and causing damage to power lines and a utility substation that left about 4,000 homes and businesses without power.

The thunder could be heard and the lightening seen as early as 2:30 p.m. in some areas, but the brunt of the storm didn't move across the county until about 4 p.m.

Heavy rains caused flash floods in some places, and heavy winds downed trees in others. That left some county roads impassable.

Friday evening, hours after the rains eased and the flood waters receded, Melvin and Marilyn Israel stood at the entrance to their Mill Creek Road home in New City, listening as workers pounded nails into their roof to secure a tarp.

Beneath the tarp, a gash had been left by a massive tree that had fallen.
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Cloud Lightning

US: Heavy Rains Soak Eastern Philadelphia, Strand Motorists


LDNews
Fri, 08 Jul 2011 21:10 UTC
Image
© Unknown
Philadelphia - Heavy rains soaked eastern on Friday, washing out numerous roads as well as a fireworks display and a minor league baseball game.

The National Weather Service warned of flash floods in Philadelphia and its suburbs for several hours following torrential midday downpours. The storm flooded streets and stranded motorists in Delaware County, where lightning split a large tree in Ridley Township, WPVI-TV reported.

Two inches of rain fell within an hour during the late afternoon in Bechtelsville, according to the weather service.

A weekly fireworks show in New Hope was postponed because of the weather, as was the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees game against the Buffalo Bison.

The rain delayed the start of the Philadelphia Phillies game against the Atlanta Braves by nearly two hours.

PECO reported scattered power outages in Philadelphia and its suburbs.

In northeastern Pennsylvania, reports from western Wayne County indicated flooding west of Honesdale near campsites. The weather service said up to 5 inches of rain may have fallen since early Friday afternoon.

Some communities in Monroe County were still cleaning up from a strong storm Thursday that downed trees and left more than 10,000 people without power.

Most customers had their electricity restored by Friday, the Pocono Record reported.
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Bizarro Earth

Scientists monitor Iceland's Katla volcano amid flooding


The Washington Post
Sat, 09 Jul 2011 20:39 UTC
Katla Volcano
© UnkownKatla Volcano
Scientists are monitoring Iceland's Katla volcano amid signs that a small eruption may be taking place.

The acting head of the Civil Protection Agency Iris Marelsdottir, says flooding is taking place near the volcano, caused by the melting of its ice cap.

But she says the flooding may have other causes - such as high geothermal heat - so it not yet clear whether there is an eruption.

Katla typically awakens every 80 years or so, and last erupted in 1918.

Iceland, in the remote North Atlantic, is a volcanic hotspot. In April 2010 ash from an eruption of its Eyjafjallajokul volcano grounded flights across Europe for days, disrupting travel for 10 million people.

Katla sits beside Eyjafjallajokul.

Source: The Associated Press
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Alarm Clock

Icelandic Authorities Monitor Activity At Mýrdalsjökull Glacier

Mark Dunphy
Irishweatheronline.com
Sat, 09 Jul 2011 12:00 UTC
Image
© UnknownCovering and area of over 500 square kilometres, Myrdalsjokull glacier covers the Katla active volcano.
A glacial flood or jokulhlaup in southern Iceland, most likely from the Katla volcano, badly damaged a bridge leading to the closure of a busy road on Saturday.

Iceland's Civil Protection Agency (CPA) says flooding is taking place near the volcano, most likely caused by the melting of its ice cap. However, the CPA stated that it could not rule out high geothermal heat as the cause.

RUV - The Icelandic National Broadcasting Service - reported that the flood is thought be the result of a small eruption underneath the icecap of Mýrdalsjökull, probably in the Katla crater.

Comment: For more information about Iceland's recent volcanic activity, see these Sott links:

Volcano erupts in Iceland, spurs 50 quakes

Iceland's Grimsvotn volcano erupting

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Cloud Lightning

US Colorado Monsoon Floods Denver-area


The Washington Post/ Associated Press
Thu, 07 Jul 2011 00:00 UTC
Image
© CBS DenverDoug Clark took this photo of a car that either plunged into or was swept into a swollen viaduct on July 7 after heavy rain
Denver - A fast moving storm has dumped heavy rain in the Denver area, causing minor street flooding and trapping some people in their cars in high water.

Denver fire officials tell KUSA-TV that some people were rescued from submerged cars in north Denver Thursday afternoon. Tornado sirens went off, but it wasn't clear if a funnel cloud was spotted. The National Weather Service said up to 2 inches fell in less than an hour in the northeast Denver area.

South of Denver, lightning knocked out power for about an hour to 240 utility customers in Colorado Springs. The Gazette reports lightning also ignited a small fire at a house in Fountain in El Paso County.

There were no immediate reports of injuries. Heavy rains were also reported in southern Colorado.
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Info

US: 2011 Flooding Could Rival Great Flood of 1993


OurAmazingPlanet
Thu, 07 Jul 2011 11:18 UTC
Flooding
© NOAA
The devastating flooding that has impacted areas around the Mississippi, Missouri and other midWestern and Plains regions won't be letting up anytime soon, and this year's raging waters could rival the historic floods that swept the region in 1993, forecasters said this week.

With rivers running high and soils completely saturated, just a small amount of rain could trigger more flooding, including in areas that have already seen major to record flooding, according to scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The floods could last for many more weeks.

"The sponge is fully saturated - there is nowhere for any additional water to go," said Jack Hayes, director of NOAA's National Weather Service. "While unusual for this time of year, all signs point to the flood threat continuing through summer."

NOAA's Climate Prediction Center is forecasting above-normal rain in most of these vulnerable areas in the next two weeks, and above-normal rainfall in much of the region in the one- and three-month outlooks. Adding to the flood threat will be the rising temperatures over the Rockies, which will release water from the remaining snowpack.
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Cloud Lightning

US: Summer Floods Threaten Record Levels as Rain Predicted

Molly O'Toole
Reuters
Wed, 06 Jul 2011 21:36 UTC
With rivers still running above flood stage and soils saturated, forecasters predicted on Wednesday this summer flooding season could rival the worst in United States history.

In the "Great Flood of 1993," record-breaking floods from April to August cost more than $25 billion in damages in at least nine states.

But due to current high water levels and soaked soil, just a small amount of rain could trigger more flooding in areas that have already seen record flooding this 2011 season, the National Weather Service reported Wednesday.

These factors indicate the flooding threat will continue through the summer, and potentially rival the flood of nearly two decades ago.

"There is nowhere for any additional water to go," Director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's NWS Jack Hayes said in the NOAA statement. "While unusual for this time of year, all signs point to the flood threat continuing."
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