Storms
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Cloud Lightning

Swollen rivers still threatening some parts of Czech Republic

CZ flood
© ČTKPersistent rain on the night of 22 July lead to rise of Moravia river. The river burst its banks and disrupted transport between Hanušovice and Králíky
Prague - Swollen Czech rivers are still threatening some parts of north-east Bohemia and north Moravia, but meteorologists say rain should start abating tonight.

Yet, they have extended the warning against floods until 10:00 CEST on Saturday in the above parts of the Czech Republic.

Heavy rains started afflicting the country on Wednesday.

Some lower-category roads have been closed in the Liberec Region, north Bohemia, in the Kralovehradecky Region, east Bohemia, and in the Olomouc Region, north Moravia.

Some people who were evacuated in the regions could return to their homes today, while others preventively stay outside their homes.

Ambulance

Chinese D-train derails and falls from bridge

Dramatic pictures have just been released of a major train incident in the Wenzhou region of eastern China.

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© UnknownThe Chinese D train derailed with two of its carriages falling off a bridge.
The Chinese D train derailed with two of its carriages falling off a bridge after being crashed into by another train, reports suggest. The number of casualties, however, is still unknown, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

The train, travelling from Hangzhou to Wenzhou, went off the rails in eastern China's Zhejiang province around 8:30pm (1230 GMT), it reported, citing local firefighting sources.

It is thought to have come to a halt on the bridge near Wenzhou when its power failed following a lightning strike. A second train collided from behind, pushing carriages of the D train off the bridge.

Sun

SOTT Focus: Connecting the Dots: Cosmic Changes, Planetary Instability and Extreme Weather

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© NASA / SDOThe Solar Dynamics Observatory's view of the coronal mass ejection of June 7, 2011.
With Earth Changes now clearly happening and time pressing, the editors of Sott.net are faced with the urgency of catching up with an avalanche of significant news items and trying to make sense of things! Recent weather events have been unprecedented: both spring and early summer have been bizarre across the globe, to say the least.

You name the weather or geological type of phenomenon; someone in the world had it: volcanoes, earthquakes, torrential rain, floods, sinkholes, tornadoes, droughts, wildfires ... even summertime snow! Let's review them all as best as we can, starting from the top: the cosmic factor.

Solar Activity
© Mike BormanImage Taken: Jun 4, 2011
Location: Evansville, Indiana, USA
Cosmic Changes Are Under Way

Changes on planet Earth comprise such a wide variety of phenomena, from extreme weather anomalies to volcanoes and earthquakes, so perhaps it's a good idea to zoom back and see if we can make sense of any changes in the cosmic climate that may be affecting us. Yes, we are aware that this approach goes against the sanctioned narrative claiming that these changes are caused by carbon-burning human beings living in an isolated bubble that can only grow warmer. But the pieces of the puzzle on the table point to a different, larger picture.

A huge central piece is our sun, which is not surprising, since this ongoing explosion in space is what brings order to our corner of the universe and to life to Earth. For the last couple of years the sun was expected to go into high activity in accordance with its usual 11-year sunspot cycle. But scientists were left scratching their heads as our local star remained quiet. Now it's giving off such a display of flares that it has NASA scientists going 'ooh and ahh'.

Snowman

Chile hit by 'white earthquake' of heavy snow

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© ReutersA bird rests on the head of a sheep after a heavy snowfall at Balmaceda, Chile
A "white earthquake" of heavy snow has blanketed parts of Chile leading the government to declare a "disaster area" in eight municipalities where around 16,000 people were left isolated.

Temperatures plunged to as low as -23 C (-9.4F) in some rural areas as severe snowfall wreaked havoc, leaving people without food supplies, mobile phone signals or radio communications.

Miguel Mellado, governor of the province of Cautin, said that in four days from Sunday to Wednesday the area had seen "four months worth of snowfall."

In the town of Lonquimay, around 350 miles south of the capital Santiago, more than 6,500 people were trapped in their homes after snow piled up to 2.3 metres (7ft 6ins), while in surrounding rural areas it was reported to have reached 9ft.

According to the Chilean newspaper El Mercurio, the sub-zero temperatures froze pipes leaving many residents without water while even fuel in car's petrol tanks had become frozen.

Sebastian Pinera, the Chilean President, was due to visit the affected region on Friday to see the extent of the problems and the emergency aid efforts for himself.

Bulb

US, Florida: Severe Weather to Blame for Power Outages

clouds
© Scott B of W Melbourne
Intense showers and lightning moved into the Central Florida area Friday evening, causing some power outages.

A viewer, who shared a picture of what they called a 20 foot tree in their back yard, said that lightning cut it in half earlier in the day.

At the height of the stormy weather, Progress Energy said more than 3,000 customers were without power in the areas of Maitland and Casselberry, near SR 436 between Red Bug Lane and Lake Howell Road around 5:30 p.m. A spokesperson for the company said the outages were related to the severe conditions.

The company said power was expected to be out for about three hours.

Cloud Lightning

Sweden: Record-breaking lightning in June


Comment: The following article is an abridged translation of an article published by the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute.


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© smhi.se
This June set a record in lightning strikes having currents greater than 5000 A. The Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI) reported on July 4th that
During June 2011, the lightning localization system registered around 122,000 discharges to the ground with electric currents greater than 5000 A. This is the greatest number registered during June month since the monitoring system began in 2002. The previous highest value was around 52,000 registrations, which was noted in 2002.
They note the significance of this in stating that the average number of these discharges registered for a whole year is 170,000, compared to 122,000 this June alone. Occurrences of lightning in June exceeded the total for 2005, as well as for 2007.

Bizarro Earth

Australia: Sydney Records its Wettest July in 50 years as Parts of NSW are Declared Disaster Zones

Wet Sydney_1
© James Croucher / The Daily Telegraph A Sydney lady braves the weather.
Parts of NSW have been declared natural disaster zones, as Sydney has experiences its wettest July since 1950.

Downpours are playing havoc with roads and public transport across the state, while floods have trapped people in their cars.

Police and Emergency Services Minister Michael Gallacher has added Lithgow, west of the Blue Mountains, Kiama on the south coast and the Illawarra city of Wollongong to the disaster list.

"These local government areas follow on the natural disaster declarations for the Blue Mountains, Shoalhaven, Oberon and Wingecarribee made on July 7,'' Mr Gallacher said.

Almost 23mm of rain has been measured at Observatory Hill in central Sydney since 9am (AEST) on Friday.

This has taken Sydney's July total to 244mm, making it the wettest July since 1950, when 336mm was recorded. That was the wettest year since Bureau of Meteorology records began in 1858.

The latest drenching means this month is now the 15th wettest July on record.

Bizarro Earth

Monsoon Floods Kill 6, Displace More than 10,000 in Southern Bangladesh

Floods triggered by monsoon rains in southern Bangladesh have killed 6 people, displaced more than 10,000 and washed away shrimp farms close to the Bay of Bengal, authorities said Friday.

The region's Matamuhuri and Bakhkhali rivers overflowed after five days of heavy rain and inundated about 200 villages, chief government administrator Zainul Bari said. The displaced have taken shelter in school buildings in the flood-hit district of Cox's Bazar, he said.

He said flood waters damaged shrimp farms and paddy crops in the affected areas.

Bari said government relief workers are handing dried food and clean drinking water to the displaced.

Also Friday another government official Shafiq Mia said six flood-related deaths have been reported in the area, 296 kilometers (185 miles) south of Dhaka.

Cloud Lightning

Australia: Wild Weather Still Lashing Illawarra Coast

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© Google
The State Emergency Service (SES) experienced a busy night in the Hunter and on the central coast but the number of calls-outs has dropped off in the Illawarra.

A heavy weather front continues to dominate the coast, with the Bureau of Meteorology issuing a severe weather warning with very heavy surf for the Illawarra.

In the 24 hours to 9:00am Friday, Fig Tree received 74 millimetres of rain, Bellambi 71mm and Scarborough 62mm.

Grant McClory from the SES says localised flooding is still occurring and houses are experiencing rain damage.

"Total tasks since Tuesday lunchtime add up to only around 80 to 90 tasks," he said.

Cloud Lightning

Mexico on high alert for strengthened hurricane

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Mexican authorities went on high alert Wednesday as Hurricane Dora upgraded into a Category 4 storm off the country's Pacific coast.

The Mexican National Meteorological Center, citing initial reports, said the hurricane had caused flooding in the southern states of Guerrero, Oaxaca and Chiapas, resulting in some damage.

There were no immediate reports of casualties, but local residents were urged to be cautious, and Mexican emergency personnel had been put on full alert.