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Hurricane Katia heading for Irish and Scottish coasts

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© GettyHurricane Katia is heading to Britain
A hurricane is on a collision course with Britain, bringing 90mph winds and killer waves.

The sheer force of Hurricane Katia may hit western Ireland and north-west Scotland next Monday and Tuesday, US forecasters predict.

Winds of up to 90mph could cause a risk to shipping off the west coast of Ireland on Monday.

Katia will then reach Scotland and the Orkney Islands by Tuesday, according to the US National Hurricane Center in Miami.

Forecasters expect little change in its strength as the Gulf Stream propels the storm across the Atlantic.

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US: More than 100,000 told to flee Northeast flooding

Hershey, Pennsylvania - More than 100,000 residents were ordered to flee the rising Susquehanna River on Thursday as the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee dumped more rain across the Northeast, socking areas still recovering from Hurricane Irene and closing major highways at the morning rush.

The Susquehanna is projected to crest in northeastern Pennsylvania between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. Thursday at 41 feet - the same height as the levee system protecting riverfront communities including Wilkes-Barre and Kingston, officials said. Residents were ordered to leave by 4 p.m.

"There is no need to panic," Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tom Leighton said. "This is a precautionary evacuation and the safety of our residents is our biggest concern. We have prepared for this type of emergency and we are ready to respond to whatever comes our way over the next 72 hours."


Attention

US: Pennsylvania Orders 65,000 to Evacuate Flood Zone

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.


Bizarro Earth

US: Rain, Strong Winds Sweep North Georgia

State emergency officials say nearly 100 homes were damaged in north Georgia's Cherokee County from severe weather that moved through Monday.
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© 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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UK: Flood warnings and storms herald the end of summer

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© 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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Canada: Tornado rips through Quebec community, uprooting trees and damaging homes

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© CTV News
Residents in Trois-Rivieres, Que., spent Labour Day cleaning up after a small tornado ripped through the city Sunday night.

Powerful winds reaching 130 kilometres an hour uprooted trees in the community northeast of Montreal and caused damage to about 70 homes.

Andre Cantin of Environment Canada says the tornado ranked as zero on a scale up to five and was over in about a minute.

Cantin says there have been four tornadoes in Quebec so far this year and the province averages six annually.

The mayor of Trois-Rivieres, Yves Levesque, says no one was hurt in the storm.

He says the clean-up is well underway, though some are still without power.

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US: Tropical Storm Lee's Flood Threat Expands

Through Wednesday, the combination of the front and Lee's remnant low will produce a large swath of 6 to 10 inches (yellow shading on map below) of rain from the Deep South to the central Appalachians, with locally higher amounts. A much larger area extending into the Northeast has the potential to see 2 to 6 inches (green shading below).

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© The Weather ChannelHeavy rain outlook through Wednesday, September 7, 2011

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US: 'Oh my God! I'm freaked out. It's a tornado!' Video captures the terrifying moment a furious twister hit the New York State Thruway

Incredible video footage shows the moment a tornado struck the New York State Thruway last night.

A woman who had stopped in her car during a storm, films the raging winds gathering pace until, about six minutes in, a full on tornado appears in front of her.

The National Weather Service said it received multiple reports of the tornado in Montgomery County.

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© YoutubeFrightening: The video shows the twister emerging out of nowhere
'We have video evidence that certainly suggests it was a tornado,' Meteorologist Ray O'Keefe said.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo said: 'It appears a tornado touched down in the Amsterdam area Sunday evening.

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Tropical Storm Talas leaves 29 dead, 56 missing in Japan

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© 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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US: Tropical Storm Lee Spawns Tornadoes on Gulf Coast

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© ReutersWaters flood the streets near a gas station as Tropical Storm Lee slowly makes landfall in Lafitte, Louisiana September 4, 2011
Mobile, Alabama - Tropical Storm Lee spawned tornado sightings and alerts from the Louisiana Gulf Coast to the Florida panhandle on Sunday, and at least one death was reported from a traffic accident related to the storm.

More than a dozen tornado sightings were reported, and tornado warnings were in effect Sunday afternoon for portions of Baldwin and Mobile counties in southwest Alabama and Greene, Jasper, Perry and Wayne counties in southern Mississippi, according to the National Weather Service.

Weather officials had not confirmed any tornadoes touching down in the area on Sunday afternoon, but were tracking at least three twisters and funnel clouds near Mobile, Alabama, and central Mississippi near Hattiesburg.

Tornado watches stretched from southeast Mississippi, through a dozen counties in southwest Alabama and several more in the Florida Panhandle. Tornado watches also reached into southwest Georgia on Sunday afternoon, set to expire late in the evening, as rain from Lee edged eastward.