Storms
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Bizarro Earth

States of Emergency Declared in 4 States and DC as Storm Death Toll Rises

Feww
Feww Wordpress.com
Sun, 01 Jul 2012 02:18 UTC
US Hazard Map
© NOAA's National Weather ServiceUS Weather Hazards Map, July 1, 2012.
District of Columbia, Maryland, Ohio and the two Virginias declare States of Emergency amid rising storms toll.

Deadly storms across Eastern U.S. have claimed at least 13 lives and left many injured, hundreds homeless and about 5.5 million utility customers, or an estimated 17 million people, without power amid sweltering heat wave.

Widespread damage and power losses have been reported across a vast region ravaged by deadly storms since Friday.

The storms have left a trail of destruction from Indiana to New Jersey, with the worst-hit areas being in Washington Metropolitan area, Maryland, West Virginia, and suburban Virginia.

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell called the widespread power losses as "the largest non-hurricane power outage in Virginia history," as more storms threatened. "This is a very dangerous situation," the governor said, "the next few days in Virginia are going to be very, very difficult."
  • About 2.5 million Virginian customers, or an estimated 7.5 million people, in are still without power.
In Ohio, excessive heat, widespread power losses and utility damages prompted Gov. Kasich to declare a state of emergency. As of Saturday morning, about 1 million homes and businesses, or an estimated total of 3 million people, still faced power outages.
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Cloud Lightning

Electrifying! Record 110,000 Lightning Bolts Strike During UK 'Superstorms'

Andrew Hough
The Telegraph, UK
Fri, 29 Jun 2012 18:15 UTC
Lightning
© Marc BurtonThe spectacular bolt of lightning hit Tyne Bridge during the "superstorms".
The Met Office said more than 110,000 lightning bolts were recorded across the UK, with more than 200 strikes recorded every minute at the peak of activity.

Experts said this was 40 times higher than an average lightning storm and was the equivalent of four months' worth of strikes in one day.

Government forecasters said most of Thursday's strikes, which came as rare "super cell" thunderstorms battered the Midlands and northern regions, were fork lightning and hit the ground.

In one dramatic video, footage showed a spectacular bolt striking the lighting storm over a field in Suffolk, UK Bridge, linking Newcastle and Gateshead, which captured the intensity of the fierce storms that swept across the North.

While the Met Office does not maintain lightning records, the UK Tornado and Storm Research Organisation (TORRO) suggested Thursday's levels were a record amount to hit Britain in one day.
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Cloud Lightning

Millions evacuated in several parts of China due to heavy torrential rain and landslides

Adonai
The Watchers
Tue, 26 Jun 2012 16:30 UTC
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Several parts of China have been hit by torrential rains over the last few days, resulting in the evacuation of millions of people and property damage.

In east China's Zhejiang province, heavy rains have forced 17,000 people to relocate and affected the lives of more than 350,000 others since June 22. A 12-year-old girl was killed when her house was buried in a landslide on Saturday, June 23, in Zhejiang's Songyang county.

Rains have battered central China's Hunan province since June 21, killing one person, leaving another missing and affecting the lives of 138,000 others. A landslide was triggered in Hunan's city of Chenzhou, blocking roads and rivers and stranding 130 tourists, the report said.

South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region has been reeling under heavy downpours since June 21. In the hard-hit city of Hezhou, over 10,000 people have been evacuated and economic losses of 200 million yuan ($31.4 million) have been incurred, according to officials.

More rain and storms are expected to hit Zhejiang, Fujian and Anhui provinces in south China, as well as Yunnan, Sichuan and Guizhou provinces in the south-west over the next three days, the weather office said.
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Cloud Lightning

Torrential rain causes havoc across Ireland with parts of Cork worst hit - wettest June on record

Patrick Counihan
IrishCentral.com
Sat, 30 Jun 2012 16:06 UTC
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© Renate Murphy (@renatemurphy) Douglas village in Cork this morning.
Ireland has been hit by torrential rain as the summer disappears again - with parts of Cork and Belfast flooded.

Emergency services are struggling to cope with the flash floods across the country as homes are left without electricity.

The towns of Douglas, Bandon and Clonakilty in Cork are badly flooded with some areas under three feet of water.

Residents were evacuated from the Ballyvolane area of Cork city while there is no access in or out of Clonakilty.

The Irish Independent reports that up to 15,000 homes in Cork are currently without electricity after the overnight storms which saw 70mm of rain fall in a few hours.

Flooding has also been reported in parts of Sligo and Tipperary and motorists have been warned to take extreme care.

Cork County Council has confirmed that it activated a flood response plan after the torrential rain.
Ireland's weather service Met Eireann issued a flood alert to more than a dozen county councils with 70mm of rain forecast to fall in parts of Munster, Connacht, south Leinster and the midlands.
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Cloud Lightning

Violent derecho storms ravage Eastern U.S. leaving 5 dead and 2 million without power


The Extinction Protocol
Sat, 30 Jun 2012 15:59 UTC
Violent evening storms following a day of triple-digit temperatures wiped out power to more than 2 million customers across the eastern United States and caused at least five fatalities - including a 90-year-old Virginia woman asleep in bed when a tree slammed into her home, and two young cousins on a camping trip in southern New Jersey. No significant damage was reported in Hampton Roads, according to police dispatchers in the five cities. Widespread power outages were reported from Indiana to New Jersey, with the bulk of the service interruptions concentrated on Washington, D.C., and the surrounding areas.


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© Unknownderecho storm over Virginia June 29, 2012. A derecho (Spanish for straight) is a widespread and long-lived, violent convectively induced straight-line windstorm that is associated with a fast-moving band of severe thunderstorms in the form of a squall line usually taking the form of a bow echo.
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Cloud Lightning

Superstorm smashes UK as flash-flooding and 5-inch long hailstones cause widespread damage

Rob Cooper and Jaya Narain
Daily Mail
Thu, 28 Jun 2012 15:15 UTC
A huge clean-up operation was being carried out in parts of Britain today after yesterday's downpours brought flooding chaos to parts of the country. Hailstones as big as golf balls pummelled parts of Leicestershire after black thunderclouds descended. Residents reported cars being dented and damaged by the ice, some even smashing windows.

Torrential storms also left hundreds of homes flooded and motorists having to be rescued from their vehicles. At the storm's peak, 153 lightning strikes were being recorded every minute. The Environment Agency has 10 flood warnings in place in the Midlands, North East and North West, but the worst of the weather looks to be over.

Forecaster Nick Prebble, said: "Today there will be a mixture of sunshine and showers across the UK with temperatures cooling off. "Most parts of Britain could experience the odd passing shower during the day, but the focus of the heavy downpours will be across Scotland. "Northern parts could also have a few thunder storms but the weather doesn't appear to be as severe as yesterday."

Image
© North News and Pictures LtdFloodwaters rise around stranded cars as the rain teems down in Heaton, Newcastle upon Tyne where roads were transformed into lakes in a matter of seconds
Additional pictures
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Bizarro Earth

100 killed in landslides and flooding, 250,000 dislocated, as heavy torrential rains pound Bangladesh


The Extinction Protocol
Thu, 28 Jun 2012 10:37 UTC
Landslides and flooding caused by heavy monsoon rains have killed at least 100 people in southern Bangladesh and many more are missing, the government said Wednesday. Officials said the landslides occurred mainly in remote villages with poor roads, making rescue work more difficult.

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© Unknown
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Cloud Lightning

Powerful tornado sucks caravan into the air with terrified security guard inside as it wreaks havoc in sleepy village

Matt Blake
Daily Mail
Thu, 28 Jun 2012 09:02 UTC
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© Nikki Griffin/SWNWDumped: Mr Sinclair said he felt like 'a tennis ball in a tumble dryer' as he smashed against the walls, into cupboards and appliances
A granddad today relived the moment a tornado sucked his caravan into the air and dumped it in a field... while he was trying to relax inside.

David Sinclair, 49, said he felt like a 'tennis ball in a tumble drier' as the twister bounced his mobile home through the buffalo paddock, in Long Sutton, Lincs, before squashing him under his own fridge.

He managed to drag himself free and stagger to a nearby farmhouse for help and was rushed to hospital with suspected internal bleeding.
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Cloud Lightning

Saskatoon hit with high winds, power outages


CBC News
Wed, 27 Jun 2012 11:59 UTC
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© Dan Zakreksi/CBCTree limbs were snapped off on 3rd Avenue in Saskatoon on Wednesday.
Electricity was out again in parts of Saskatoon, thanks to high winds bashing tree limbs into power lines.

Reports said some areas downtown, as well as homes in the Sutherland area, were in the dark Wednesday morning.

Broken branches littered some streets and city crews were called out to clean up the damage.

The day before, thousands of residents on the west side lost power for several hours after lightning struck a transmission structure outside the city. For them, the lights came back on before midnight.
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Arrow Down

More Florida sinkholes open up, including 100 foot wide gash in Marion Country

Amanda Evans, Dave D'Marko & Margaret Kavanagh
cfnews13.com
Tue, 26 Jun 2012 05:11 UTC
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A sinkhole looks to swallow an entire truck near Ocala Monday morning.
Severe weather from Tropical Storm Debby overnight has left a mess Monday morning in Marion County, where emergency managers said a tornado may have touched down.

Marion County emergency managers reported a possible tornado touchdown around 11 p.m. in Ocala, near Highway 326 and Northwest 80th Avenue, about six miles southwest of Lowell.

Officials said six to seven buildings were damaged, including a barn with a damage roof. The damage reportedly spanned a mile to a mile and a half north to south.

The storm knocked down trees, left debris along the roadways and caused some flooding around storm drains in the area.

"I was in bed and it woke me up," said Joanne Stover, who lives near the reported touchdown. "It sounded like a train, and the house started moving. Then it was just over."

Limbs from some trees have been caught up in some power lines, knocking out power for more than 2,000 customers.
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