Storms
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Biohazard

'Exercise extreme caution': 40 shipping containers lost in rough seas off Vancouver Island


CTV News
Fri, 22 Oct 2021 13:40 UTC
The containers were adrift approximately 69 kilometres west of Vancouver Island just before 3 p.m., according to U.S. officials.
© USCGThe containers were adrift approximately 69 kilometres west of Vancouver Island just before 3 p.m., according to U.S. officials.
The Canadian Coast Guard and United States Coast Guard are warning boaters after 40 shipping containers were tossed from a cargo ship Friday in rough seas off Vancouver Island.

The containers were adrift approximately 69 kilometres west of Vancouver Island just before 3 p.m., according to U.S. officials. (USCG)

The cargo vessel Zim Kingston was inbound for Vancouver when it listed to one side, dropping the containers into the ocean near the mouth of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the authorities said.

The U.S. Coast Guard Navigation Center sent out a broadcast to mariners Friday afternoon warning that the lost containers may be partially submerged and not easily visible from the surface.

"Mariners should exercise extreme caution" when transiting the region, the centre warned.

The Canadian Coast Guard also sent out a notice on NavWarn about the affected area.

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Cloud Precipitation

Alicante province in Spain suffers widespread flooding

Chris King
Euro Weekly
Sat, 23 Oct 2021 12:38 UTC
Alicante province suffers widespread flooding.
© twitter @ProyoctoMastralAlicante province suffers widespread flooding.
According to the State Meteorological Agency, AEMET, Alicante province endured some exceptional spells of rainfall during Friday, October 22. In the southern half of the Valencian Community, especially in the Vega Baja del Segura area, where the Dama de Guardamar school was forced to be evacuated.

As reported by the Emergency Coordination Centre on its Twitter account, around 30 cars were reported as stranded in floodwater caused by the heavy rains in urban areas of this Alicante region.

By about 2pm the rains had stopped and started to head north from Vega Baja, where they hit Baix Vinalopo and Alicante. Here the storms deposited significant amounts of more than 70 litres/m² of rain in the municipality of Torrevieja.


Comment: Almeria further south was also hit by heavy flooding on the same day:



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Cloud Precipitation

Torrential rainfall triggers deadly floods in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire - 2.3 inches of rain in just 30 minutes

Richard Davies
Floodlist
Fri, 22 Oct 2021 14:54 UTC
Flood damage in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire 22 October 2021.
© ONGFlood damage in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire 22 October 2021.
At least 4 people have died and several were injured after heavy rain caused flooding and severe material damage in parts of the city of Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) in West Africa.

Heavy rain caused buildings to collapse as well as flooding and landslides in several parts of the city. Roads were blocked and vehicles left stranded in flood waters. Images shared on Social Media showed wrecked cars and damaged homes.

The municipalities of Yopougon, Attécoubé, Abobo and Adjamé were among the worst affected. GSPM firefighters helped rescue or evacuate people from floods and damaged buildings. As of 22 October, GSPM reported 4 fatalities and 4 people injured.

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Tornado2

Tornado damages Brisbane airport as supercell storm batters south-east Queensland, Australia - Almost 4 inches of rain in an hour reported

Mostafa Rachwani
The Guardian
Fri, 22 Oct 2021 13:03 UTC
A tornado touched down in Brisbane on Friday causing damage at the airport, mainly at the international terminal.
© Bureau of Meteorology/TwitterA tornado touched down in Brisbane on Friday causing damage at the airport, mainly at the international terminal.
A tornado has damaged buildings at Brisbane airport as a supercell thunderstorm battered south-east Queensland.

The Bureau of Meteorology confirmed a tornado formed near the airport at about 10am on Friday, with video footage showing it touching down for only a minute or two.

The storm cell hit about 11am, with footage taken at the airport showing catering pods being blown around on the tarmac near a boarding gate.

The Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) said there was some damage, mainly centred on the international terminal.

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Windsock

Storm Aurore blasts parts of Western Europe leaving 250,000 French homes without power - 109 mph winds recorded


France24
Thu, 21 Oct 2021 19:19 UTC
A picture shows a fallen tree after the Aurore storm on October 21, 2021 in Plozevet, Brittany.
© Fred Tanneau/AFPA picture shows a fallen tree after the Aurore storm on October 21, 2021 in Plozevet, Brittany.
A powerful autumn storm, named Aurore, blasted parts of western Europe on Thursday, knocking out power to a quarter of a million French homes and damaging buildings in at least four countries.

Train services were disrupted by uprooted trees littering tracks in France, Germany and the Netherlands and roofs were ripped off many buildings, including at part of the stadium used by the professional soccer club in the Belgian port city of Antwerp.

A tornado early Thursday caused damage in Schwentinental, a town near the German Baltic Sea port city of Kiel. Fire service official Kai Laessig told German news agency dpa that it destroyed greenhouses and brought down trees, which hit cars, but no one was injured. Several houses were damaged.

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Snowflake

At least 13 people dead due to heavy snowfall in Uttarakhand, India

Vipin Negi, BD Kasniyal and Kalyan Das
Hindustan Times
Thu, 21 Oct 2021 17:48 UTC
Rescue workers taking an injured trekker rescued from Lamkhaga Pass to hospital on Thursday
Rescue workers taking an injured trekker rescued from Lamkhaga Pass to hospital on Thursday
At least 13 people, including 10 trekkers, have died at separate places in Uttarakhand after getting trapped due to snowfall in the mountainous region, officials said on Thursday. The dead include three porters working for the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), posted along the India-China border in Uttarkashi district. Five people have been rescued while six remain missing.

One of the trekkers' groups went missing en route to Lamkhaga Pass near Harsil in Uttarkashi district, 230 km from Dehradun, on October 14. Of the nine porters accompanying them, six managed to return safely. They informed the authorities about the three missing porters and eight trekkers.

District disaster management officer (Uttarkashi) Devendra Patwal said the rescuers compromising State Disaster Response Force and air force personnel spotted five of the bodies near Lamkhaga Pass on Thursday morning. "The bodies will soon be airlifted from the spot," he said. "The rescue workers managed to rescue one of the trekkers who was found alive there. He has been shifted to the army hospital in the district." Seven of these eight missing trekkers were from West Bengal while one was from Delhi.


Comment: Also relevant: Flood death toll rises to 46 in the Indian state of Uttarakhand - Almost 19 inches of rain in 24 hours (UPDATE)

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Cloud Lightning

2 of family killed in lightning strike in West Bengal, India


Devdiscourse.com
Thu, 21 Oct 2021 11:06 UTC
Two people have died after they were struck by lightning at Manoaha, a village near Agotime Kpetoe.
Two people have died after they were struck by lightning at Manoaha, a village near Agotime Kpetoe.
Two members of a family were killed after lightning struck them in West Bengal's Malda district, police said on Thursday.

The incident took place in Alal gram-panchayat area under the Gajol Police Station limits on Wednesday when the two were working in a paddy field, an officer said.

Manirujjaman (36) and his nephew Amir Hossain (14) died on the spot, he said. The bodies have been sent to Malda Medical College for post-mortem examinations, the officer added.
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Cloud Lightning

Lighting kills 11 cows simultaneously in Cambodia


Khmer Times
Thu, 21 Oct 2021 10:25 UTC
The dead cows in the barn.
© Koh SantepheapThe dead cows in the barn.
At least 11 cows were killed by lightning at the same time.

The incident is said to have happened at about 09:30 October 20, in a rice field in Boeung Tim village, Ta Pon commune, Sangke district, Battambang province.

The cows were killed by lightning as their owners chased them to graze together the fields while others while others were killed while tied up in the barn.

There was heavy thunderstorm in the early hours of Wednesday in some districts in Battambang province.
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Cloud Lightning

Lightning strike kills 2 people in Ghana

Eric Nana Yaw Kwafo
Modern Ghana
Wed, 20 Oct 2021 18:21 UTC
Two people have died after they were struck by lightning at Manoaha, a village near Agotime Kpetoe.
Two people have died after they were struck by lightning at Manoaha, a village near Agotime Kpetoe.
According to information gathered from sources, the two deceased were on the farm with five other people on Monday, October 18, 2021, when storms brought in heavy rains.

Around 15:30 when the thunderstorms became immense, it is reported that all seven farmhands run for shelter to ensure their safety.

Unfortunately, in the process, the two men yet to be identified were struck by lightning and sadly lost their lives instantly.

With a report filed to the Kpetoe District Police in the Volta region, the bodies of the deceased were conveyed from the farm and have been deposited at the morgue awaiting autopsy so it can be preserved and processed for burial.

Meanwhile, the police are conducting investigations into the matter to be sure the two indeed died from the strike of the lightning.
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Hardhat

Storms bring giant hail to suburbs north of Mackay, Australia - Record hailstones for country at 16cm (UPDATE)

Warren Barnsley
7news.com.au
Tue, 19 Oct 2021 12:09 UTC
Yalboroo local Gerard Collins found this massive hailstone after the storm on Tuesday.
© Gerard CollinsYalboroo local Gerard Collins found this massive hailstone after the storm on Tuesday.
Giant hailstones have fallen north of Mackay in Queensland, damaging vehicles and structures.

The hail storm hit the Bloomsbury and Yalboroo areas on Tuesday afternoon, with locals reporting cricket ball sized stones and larger.

"That's some big ice falling down ... I'm gonna have some dints in the car after this" said one man in video he took after being caught in the storm at Yalboroo.

The State Emergency Service has responded to at least one call for assistance in Yalboroo.

The incident was part of a series of severe weather events hitting Queensland on Tuesday.


Comment: Update:The Australian reports on October 20:
Australian record set as giant 16cm hailstones hammer North Queensland

Queensland: Tornadoes one day, 16cm hailstones the next.

A new Australian hail record is believed to have been set after giant ice stones pelted Yalboroo, north of Mackay, on Tuesday afternoon, smashing windshields and drawing the attention of international weather watchers.

The Bureau of Meteorology said it had seen credible footage of hail measuring 16cm in diameter, which would top the previous record of 14cm set in Brisbane's southwestern suburbs about the same time last year.

"It's very impressive - obviously not for the residents underneath it - but some very impressive hail," senior meteorologist Dean Narramore said.

"We saw some photos of hail next to a tape measure, the team will be looking at that to see if we can verify it."


Social media was flooded with images of hailstones, some clearly bigger than an adult's hand.

"That's not hail. That's more like a glacier," Karen Gillick wrote on the Higgins Storm Chaser Facebook page.

Giant hail pelted the Yalboroo community north of Mackay.
Giant hail pelted the Yalboroo community north of Mackay.
"Hail this size should be called "Widowmaker" hail," said Patrick Schubert.

"Holt sh*tballs. Looks more like an iceberg. It's true. Everything in Australia is trying to kill us," said Kerrie Murphy

"An insurance company's nightmare," added Bret Dalziel.

Footage posted by Christopher Harvey showed severe damage to his car, with the windscreen smashed in.

Christopher Harvey was caught in the hail north of Mackay.
Christopher Harvey was caught in the hail north of Mackay.
"That is some big ice. Jesus. I'm going to have some dints after this," Mr Harvey said.

Storms are expected to linger over the southeast and central Queensland coasts on Wednesday, with large to giant hail a possibility,

Elsewhere, showers are tipped for the Illawarra and a storm could hit Sydney.

A large weather front and low pressure system over Western Australia had winds of up to 108km an hour battering Rottnest Island and bringing heavy rain. The BoM said this was likely to move into South Australia, pushing hot and damaging winds across the state's north and western regions.

Severe to extreme heatwave conditions are expected to continue across the top end after several Northern Territory towns set October temperature records.

Tennant Creek soared to 42.4 degrees on Tuesday.


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