Storms
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Cloud Lightning

Lightning bolt kills family of 6 in Madagascar

lightning
© Johannes Plenio
Six people from the same family were "killed on the spot" by a lightning strike in Madagascar over the weekend while sheltering from a storm, officials said Monday.

The relatives -- including a three-year-old child -- were killed in the central village of Bakaro on Saturday.

Another person suffered superficial burns.

"Twenty-five farmers sheltering from rain under a thatched cottage after leaving their rice field were hit by a lightning bolt," said medical inspector William Patrick Rakotondralambo of the Fitsinjovana commune.

Snowflake Cold

Up to 70cm (28 inches) of fresh snow falls in 24 hours over the Alps

snow alps
There's been heavy snowfall again in the Alps, particularly in the past 24 hours.

A fortnight after the three weeks of heavy snow that brought the Eastern Alps (Austria, Germany and Eastern Switzerland) to a standstill, this time it's the turn of the Western Alps, France and Western Switzerland in particular, to get the big dumps.

The biggest 24 hour accumulation reported so far is at the small resort of Cordon in the Northern French Alps with 70cm (2 feet, 4 inches) of snowfall.


Les Marécottes - Salvan in the Swiss Valais region over the border has posted the second biggest at 65cm (2 feet, 2 inches).


Arrow Down

2 dead, 1 missing due to floods, landslide in the Philippines

A landslide renders this road at the village of LS Sarmiento in Laak town, Compostela Valley, impassable to vehicles.
A landslide renders this road at the village of LS Sarmiento in Laak town, Compostela Valley, impassable to vehicles.
Two people died while another is still missing after a series of flooding and landslides brought by the tail-end of a cold front that triggered heavy rains in Davao region, an official of the Office of Civil Defense regional office (OCD 11) said.

OCD 11 Information Officer Leslie Francisco identified those who died as Rommel Gogo, 28, who was buried alive when a landslide occurred in Barangay, Tapia Montevista, Compostela Valley last Saturday, January 26; and Dennis Pesadilla from Barangay Ngan, Compostela, who drowned last Sunday, January 27.

Krisel Hermosora, 12, from Barangay Bayabas, Nabunturan has not been found since she was swept away by strong water current of the Handorumog River.


Cloud Precipitation

Rivers at record levels after 620mm (2 feet) of rain in 48 hours in Queensland, Australia

Daintree River flood at Daintree, Queensland, January 2019
© Douglas Shire CouncilDaintree River flood at Daintree, Queensland, January 2019
Torrential rain and swollen rivers have left communities cut off and farmland inundated in parts of northern Queensland, Australia.

According to figures from Australia's Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) over 620 mm of rain was recorded in Whyanbeel Valley, situated between Port Douglas and Daintree in northern Queensland, in a 48 hour period to 27 January. Several other areas received over 500mm during the same period.

BoM said the Daintree River rose to 12.6m on 26 January, well above major flood stage of 9m and biggest major flooding of the Daintree River since 1901. Roads have been washed out and the river ferry at Daintree damaged. Local authorities warned that some residents in remote areas could be cut off for days.


Cloud Lightning

Lightning bolt kills two children in Zambia

lightning
© Johannes Plenio
Two girls of same family aged 10 and 12 have been struck to death by lightning while another is battling for her life at Kalulushi General Hospital.

The deceased have been identified as Mercy and Fidess Mugala.

The incident happened on Friday when the three children were playing in the house while it was raining heavily in Kitwe's Kamakonde Township.

The other child whose identity has been withheld suffered burns on both his legs and currently nursing injuries at Kalulushi General Hospital.

Meanwhile, Nkana Member of Parliament Alexander Chiteme has pledged to help the bereaved family with funeral expenses.

Comment: A day later an individual was fatally struck by lightning in Germiston, South Africa.


Cloud Lightning

Lightning bolt kills 2 women in Zambia

lightning
© Johannes Plenio
Two women aged 17 and 23 years in Chiengi district have died after they were struck by lightning.

Meanwhile another 57 year old woman in Mwansabombwe District had died after her grass-thatched house in which she was collapsed due to heavy rains.

The first incident involved a 23 year old Jane Mumba and 17 year old Janet Muyamba both of Musinsa village, Chief Puta who were struck by lightning and died on the spot.

The incident occured on Thursday around 13:00 hours at the named village.

Comment: On the same day another bolt claimed the lives of a mother and her baby in Tanzania while in India recently lightning strikes killed 2 people in Uttar Pradesh.


Tornado2

Fifth tornado in FOUR days strikes Turkey's Antalya, flipping buses and damaging aircraft

Turkey airport tornado
© DHA
The fifth tornado in four days struck Turkey's southern Antalya province Saturday, flipping buses and causing damage to planes and the city's international airport.

After a rough evening, authorities said 12 people had been injured, two buses and a minibus had overturned and two sets of airstairs had toppled over due to high winds.

Speaking to Turkish news channel NTV, Antalya Governor Münir Karaloğlu said that two planes and a police helicopter had suffered significant damage in the storm. He stated that none of the injured were in critical condition.

He said authorities are surveying the damage and doing their best to clean up the airport to avoid further delays.

Meanwhile Environment and Urbanization Minister Murat Kurum said 229 buildings had sustained damage in the powerful storm and tornadoes.

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Dönmez said that the freak weather had also caused major damage to 140 transformer stations in Antalya, adding that power will be restored to most households by the end of the day.


Comment: Three days ago a powerful tornado hit Turkey's Antalya region leaving two dead.


Snowflake

Blizzard paralyses Moscow with 50+ car collisions & dozens of flight delays

Moscow blizzard
© YouTube
Dozens of accidents, including massive pileups blocking major motorways, have virtually brought the Russian capital to a standstill amid an extreme snowstorm that also temporarily disrupted air traffic in Moscow.

The Moscow authorities have deployed over 12,000 pieces of equipment to clear snow from roads and sidewalks across the city. Nevertheless, severe weather conditions in and around Moscow caused massive pileups on Saturday.

On the Simferopol highway, more than 50 vehicles were involved in several collisions, halting traffic in both directions for miles. Videos from the scene shared on social media show the extent of the damage. Luckily, no one died in the accidents, with only three injuries being reported. It took the authorities hours to clear the road before motorists could finally proceed.


Snowflake

Deadly storm slams Italy, Balkan Peninsula, Turkey with heavy rain and snow

10 metres snow drifts near Muş, Turkey on Jan 24th.
10 metres snow drifts near Muş, Turkey on Jan 24th.
At least two people were killed in the the violent storm, that will impact much of the Balkan Peninsula and Turkey into this weekend.

There is the potential that this storm could be distinguished as a medicane, a more tropical-like cyclone moving through the Mediterranean Sea.

Snow is expected to fall from the Dinaric Alps into the interior Balkan Peninsula before expanding northward into eastern Poland, Belarus and western Ukraine.

The heaviest snow fell in the higher elevations of Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo during the beginning of the storm.

Heavy snow continues to expand across most of Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro and northeast Albania into Saturday with widespread snowfall of 8-15 cm (3-6 inches). The hardest hit lower elevations can expect up to 30 cm (12 inches) with mountainous locations receiving up to 60 cm (24 inches) of total snowfall by Saturday night.



Snowflake Cold

Adapt 2030 Ice Age Report: Power prices spike up 4X - Coldest in a century across Canada

Canada snow
Power prices up 4X as Texas experiences extreme cold and record power demand, at the same time Quebec government asking people to turn down the heat as power demand exceeds supply as -50F temperatures make it the coldest January in over 100 years. Ottawa and Quebec break 100 year cold and temperature records.


Comment: Wild Canadian winter: 11 feet of snow, days of -65C windchill