tagged w/ Natural Disaster
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JAKARTA, Indonesia - A powerful earthquake struck western Indonesia on Wednesday, triggering landslides and trapping thousands under collapsed buildings — including two hospitals, an official said. At least 75 bodies were found, but the toll was expected to be far higher.JAKARTA, Indonesia - A powerful earthquake struck western Indonesia on Wednesday,... more
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Rescuers pulled more bodies from swollen rivers today as residents started to dig out their homes from under carpets of mud after flooding left 140 people dead in the Philippine capital and surrounding towns.
Overwhelmed officials called for international help, warning they may not have sufficient resources to withstand another storm that forecasters said was brewing east of the island nation and could hit as early as Friday.
Authorities expected the death toll from Tropical Storm Ketsana, which scythed across the northern Philippines on Saturday, to rise as rescuers penetrate villages blocked off by floating cars and other debris. The storm dumped more than a month's worth of rain in just 12 hours, fueling the worst flooding to hit the country in more than 40 years. At least 140 people died, and 32 are missing.
Troops, police and volunteers have already rescued more than 7,900 people, but unconfirmed reports of more deaths abound, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said.
He told a news conference that help from foreign governments will ensure that the Philippine government can continue its relief work.
"We are trying our level best to provide basic necessities, but the potential for a more serious situation is there," Teodoro told a news conference. "We cannot wait for that to happen."
More @ linkRescuers pulled more bodies from swollen rivers today as residents started to dig out... more
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Two years ago, the river washed away Geetu's home and land on Char Atra, a river island in Bangladesh. His family had to start again. But with his land gone, Geetu had no job, and no way to provide for his family – a devastating blow to a proud family man.
Climate change is a reality for fishermen like Geetu. Whilst Bangladesh is a very poor country, these people are the poorest of the poor. Their life is hard, they depend on the water and yet it hurts them.
Climate change is destroying lives here. Floods are becoming deeper and longer lasting, rainfall is erratic, and river erosion is increasing. These changes are having a damaging impact on poor farmers and fishermen. When the floods last too long, their crops are destroyed, and they can’t fish.
Get involved: oxfam.org.uk/hereandnow
Credit: Dan ChungTwo years ago, the river washed away Geetu's home and land on Char Atra, a river... more
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Here's something very heartbreaking that I've found at Yahoo! News. Something that should make us continue to stand at attention when it comes to foreign lands that has to contend with these devastating disasters.
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras – A powerful earthquake toppled dozens of homes in Honduras and Belize early Thursday, killing at least six people and injuring 40 as terrified residents spilled from their homes across much of Central America.
The magnitude-7.1 quake struck at 2:24 a.m. (4:24 a.m. EDT; 0824 GMT) off the Caribbean coast of Honduras, 80 miles (130 kilometers) northeast of the beach town of La Ceiba, according to the U.S. Geological Survey in Golden, Colorado.
Ana Maria Rivera, spokeswoman for Honduras' Permanent Emergency Commission, said Jose Vicente Maradiaga died of a heart attack during the earthquake in the seaside town of Tela, and a 3-year-old boy was crushed when his roof collapsed in Mapulaca near the Salvadoran border. She didn't have Maradiaga's age or the boy's name.
"It was an earthquake of great proportions," she said.
Two other people were killed in home collapses, according to the commission's chief, Marcos Burgos, who didn't have details. At least 40 people were injured, most along the Caribbean coast.
The earthquake destroyed at least 57 homes and damaged another 65, the commission said. It said 14 schools were damaged, as were two Roman Catholic churches and three bridges.
But to understand the sheer magnitude, you must read the article as a whole.Here's something very heartbreaking that I've found at Yahoo! News. Something that... more
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Cyclone Aila lashed low-lying areas in eastern India and Bangladesh, destroying thousands of homes, stranding tens of thousands of people in flooded villages and killing at least 73 before it began to ease Tuesday.
Conservationists expressed concern over the fate of one of the world's largest tiger populations, which was in the path of the storm.
Storm surges hit coastal areas in neighboring Bangladesh, killing at least 39 people, according to Food and Disaster Management Ministry in Dhaka. It said most victims drowned or were washed away by the waves.
The country's leading newspaper, Prothom Alo, said tens of thousands of people were stranded as waters submerged their homes. It said 6-foot- (2-meter-) high waves crashed into the area, breaching dozens of flood protection embankments across the coastal region about 85 miles (135 kilometers) southwest of Dhaka.
News reports indicated the death toll could be as high as 123 in the two countries.
During the height of the storm, several rivers burst their banks inside the Sundarbans Tiger Reserve, said Khalil Ahmed, the area's district magistrate. It is believed about 250 tigers live on the Indian side of the Sundarbans, a tangle of mangrove forests, and another 250 live on the Bangladeshi side.Cyclone Aila lashed low-lying areas in eastern India and Bangladesh, destroying... more
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Wildfires are ablaze near Santa Barbara again, this time fueled in part by winds that pick up in the evening hours. This is the second time in 6 months that there have been major wild fires in the area. Santa Barbara needs a break from this stuff!Wildfires are ablaze near Santa Barbara again, this time fueled in part by winds that... more
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Following the tragic earthquake in the town of L'Aquila, Italy has been rocked by pretty sizable aftershock, which according to the US Geological Survey measured 5.6 on the Richter scale.
The aftershock caused another two apartment blocks to collapse and could be felt as far away as Rome.
Rescue workers were readying themselves to conduct what one described as a "surgical operation" on one of the buildings in central L'Aquila, where four missing students are believed to still be trapped.
The overall death toll has reportedly risen to 235.Following the tragic earthquake in the town of L'Aquila, Italy has been rocked by... more
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Rescue workers in L’Aquila are in a desperate race against time as they battle to save people from the rubble following Monday’s earthquake which left at least 179 people dead and destroyed 15,000 buildings.
More than 1,500 people worked through the night to find survivors, with around 100 people pulled out of the rubble alive so far.
At 2.02 am on Tuesday a 24-year-old woman was found unharmed underneath a fallen building in the Italian city.
And there was another miracle - tiny Sara Luce (6) sat crying in her mother's arms after the little girl only narrowly missed death as she was pulled out of a collapsed house: “Everything shook. We were eventually were brought out.”
For the full story and photos head to BILD.comRescue workers in L’Aquila are in a desperate race against time as they battle to... more
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Officials say more than 70 people have been killed in an earthquake in central Italy and that 1,500 people have been injured.Officials say more than 70 people have been killed in an earthquake in central Italy... more
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An earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale rocked central Italy on Monday, seriously damaging some houses and causing a few structures to collapse in a mountainous region east of Rome, officials said.An earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale rocked central Italy on Monday,... more
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Eruptions around sunset. Picture every 15 sec playing at 30 pic/min = 450 times acceleration
From 80 miles away Large explosion in middle at 7:25 pmEruptions around sunset. Picture every 15 sec playing at 30 pic/min = 450 times... more
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opit
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added this
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8 months ago
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BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) - An explosion in downtown Bozeman, Mont., has collapsed three buildings and prompted the evacuation of a two-block area.
Authorities say they don't know whether anyone was hurt in Thursday morning's blast. But a spokeswoman for the main medical facility in the city of about 38,000 says no victims of the explosion had been admitted there.
KBZK-TV says a restaurant and bar was destroyed and another bar was heavily damaged.BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) - An explosion in downtown Bozeman, Mont., has collapsed three... more
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gooma2
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added this
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8 months ago
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Such a strange thing for Jindal to say, especially since he hails from the state that was ravaged by Katrina. (Which, ironically, was the subject of its own equally awkward moment). The volcano monitoring program was on a list of Republican talking points at one stage, but virtually none of them ran with it, apparently figuring that there were much better scabs to pick at.
And I know: I'm piling on a little. This was going to be an awfully tough speech to deliver, almost no matter what its content. With the possible exception of Jim Webb in 2007, the minority party reaction speeches have always tended toward extreme lameness.
I just want to know who wrote the speech and who vetted it. Because it was manifestly at odds with the talents of the guy who delivered it.
-- Nate SilverSuch a strange thing for Jindal to say, especially since he hails from the state that... more
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"Dozens of people are feared to have died in a huge landslide in a northern area of Guatemala.
Thousands of tons of earth collapsed onto a road in the Alta Verapaz area, some 200km (124 miles) north of the capital, killing at least 22 people.
But officials say the figure could be much higher as some 140 people were walking by at the time of Sunday's landslide, and many are still missing.
Rescue efforts have been hampered by further rockfalls, officials say.
The accident happened in a hilly, sparsely populated area, blocking a road that runs from San Cristobal Verapaz to Chicaman.
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Some officials said a geological fault triggered the movement of earth, sending huge amounts of mud and rock down a hillside, while other reports suggested road work along the highway could have set off the slide.
Guatemalan media said the landslide was some 1.5km wide.""Dozens of people are feared to have died in a huge landslide in a northern area of... more
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Heavy rainfall has caused deadly landslides and flooding in Panama, resulting in the deaths of at least 10 people, displacing nearly 12,000 into temporary shelters, and affecting more than 23,600.
In response, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) has provided emergency food aid for more than 1,800 individuals currently displaced in shelters in the severely affected provinces of Bocas del Toro, and Chiriqui, in the western region of Panama.Heavy rainfall has caused deadly landslides and flooding in Panama, resulting in the... more
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With winter well on its way, local officials have hit on an unusual plan to shelter the thousands still left homeless by the devastating earthquakes in Sichuan. Old Beijing subway trains that were decommissioned to make way for the new set built for the Beijing Olympics have been shipped to the region and converted into temporary winter shelters. Althogether, the trains are hoped to accommodate around 1,200 people.With winter well on its way, local officials have hit on an unusual plan to shelter... more
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A powerful earthquake has struck off the Indonesian island of Sulawesi but fears of a tsunami receded after the country withdrew an initial warning.
The 7.5 quake struck hit the coastal town of Gorontalo at a depth of 10km (6.2 miles), and was followed by a magnitude 5.8 aftershock.
There were no immediate reports of casualties, damage or disruption in the area of the tremor.
The Indonesian tsunami alert was lifted shortly after being issued.
US monitors were warning the quake could create a destructive tsunami within 1,000km (620 miles) of the epicentre.
Reporting Sunday's quake, the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center called for authorities in the region to "take immediate action to evacuate coastal areas".
A 2004 tsunami killed nearly a quarter of a million people, most of them in Indonesia's Aceh region.
That disaster led to pressure for better tidal warning systems in the region and Indonesia launched a new hi-tech system on Tuesday aimed at detecting tidal waves and providing faster alerts.A powerful earthquake has struck off the Indonesian island of Sulawesi but fears of a... more
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Xinhua reports on devastating floods that have hit China's Southern Guangxi region. The flood has also affected parts of Northern Vietnam, including Hanoi, killing 120.
The vid shows the situation in Nanning, capital of the Guangxi.Xinhua reports on devastating floods that have hit China's Southern Guangxi region.... more
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Three trends bode ill for our future: the increase in weather disasters, the black market in organs and the growing demand for drinking water.
This chart at the link above illustrates a staggering fact: The last 30 years have yielded four times as many weather-related disasters as the first three quarters of the 20th century combined. Tornadoes, hurricanes, wildfires, floods. You might say that the earth is throwing ominous tantrums.
Unfortunately, our reaction to such natural outbursts – as well as to the problems of skewed data on CO2 emissions, resource annihilation, and latent toxicity in our land and water – hasn’t spiked nearly as dramatically. Instead, we seem content to simply refine our existing patterns of consumption. If a mass-produced plastic label promises that a product is “green”, we’ll likely buy it and feel satisfied for having done our part.
We may owe our collective lack of environmental consciousness to the convenience of invisibility. We dispose of our waste in neat receptacles, rarely bearing witness to its grim deterioration. We marvel at the efficiency of the industrialized world yet seldom glimpse the colossal infrastructures that make such modern efficiencies possible.
But the taxing effects of the Western lifestyle are becoming more globally conspicuous than ever. And yet still, we’re largely unable to admit to the problem. Perhaps the world is experiencing a complex state of collective denial? Three trends bode ill for our future: the increase in weather disasters, the black... more
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jubal
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added this
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1 year ago
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An earthquake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale jolted parts of southwestern Baluchistan Province early Wednesday, causing widespread destruction, officials said. At least 175 people were killed and hundreds were injured, according to initial reports.
The earthquake struck Quetta, the provincial capital, and several districts of the province between 4:30 a.m. and 5:10 a.m., the state-run news agency reported.
The epicenter of Wednesday’s quake was 70 miles north of Quetta. Army troops and medics were moved by helicopter from Quetta to two villages, Warchoom and Kawas, in Ziarat district, one of the hardest hit areas, a military spokesperson said.
Rescue teams scrambled to help residents and hospitals were placed on emergency alert.
Local television showed footage of residents sitting in the open, shivering in the cold. Women huddled in groups with their panicked children.
People were filmed searching through the rubble for survivors and belongings.
On Oct. 8, 2005, an earthquake registering 7.8 on the Richter scale killed more than 75,000 people in northern Pakistan and the part of the disputed Kashmir region that it administers, and an estimated 3.5 million people were left homeless. In 1935, Quetta was destroyed by an earthquake that killed 30,000 people.
An earthquake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale jolted parts of southwestern... more
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