Editor Brian Harrod Provides Comprehensive up-to-date news coverage, with aggregated news from sources all over the world from the Roundup Newswires Network
Category Archives: Natural disasters and extreme weather
Three people have been killed and there were fears for another seven still missing after uncontrolled bushfires destroyed more than 150 homes over thousands of hectares of eastern Australia.
At a fire in the Kangawalla area, near Glen Innes on the New South Wales north coast, a body was found in a burnt-out car by a volunteer firefighter.
There have been a few questions to the PM, including one about the ferocity of these early fires and links to climate change.
“My only thoughts today are those who lost their lives and their families, the firefighters fighting the fires, the response effort that has to be delivered, and how the the Commonwealth can support those efforts,” he replied.
“We always have to listen carefully to the warnings, and undertake the preparations that are advised in every single season. I think that Australians increasingly understand that and I would be encouraging them to revisit their fire preparation plans. The fire might be on your doorstep today, but as we go into every fire season and every summer season, the risk is ever present, and it’s important that families understand what the evacuation procedures are. What numbers to call. What things to ready themselves with, and how they can best prepare their properties in the event of a firestorm.”
Prime minister Scott Morrison is speaking now – and he’s flagged a “contingency option” of further involvement of the defence forces.
He said the deployment of ADF – beyond the airlifts they’re already doing – hadn’t been requested yet, but he and relevant ministers were discussing having them ready.
Houses in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, were partially submerged by rising flood water after torrential rain hit the north of England and the Midlands on Thursday. Hundreds of homes were evacuated after South Yorkshire experienced a month's worth of rainfall in one day.
There are fears that some people are trapped in their homes in an unprecedented bushfire emergency
Ok, we’re going to leave it there for this evening. Thanks for joining us and we’ll be back in the morning with more reporting on the bushfire situation.
Stranded by the fires today. Disconcerting when you watch dozens of fire trucks laden with firies rush past under lights and sirens. As a journo I know how hard the firefighters work, but on days like today, thank god for the @NSWRFS and @FRNSW#nswfirespic.twitter.com/SCGPfdmtv9
Dozens of people have been trapped in Sheffield’s Meadowhall shopping centre overnight after torrential rain caused flooding throughout the city and transport chaos across large parts of northern England.
Heavy rain across the region on Thursday made roads impassable and forced the cancellation of train services, while 35 homes were evacuated in Mansfield after a mudlside.
Meadowhall in Sheffield says those who wish to stay can, due to ‘extreme conditions’ outside
People trapped by flood water in a shopping mall near Sheffield have been told they can leave but were warned there will be severe delays due to “extreme weather conditions”.
People at the Meadowhall shopping centre had earlier been told to stay put by police and not to attempt to leave the mall after flooding left roads gridlocked.
Underwater volcano sees old island disappear below the waves, replaced by a bigger one nearby
An undersea volcanic eruption in the Tongan archipelago has sunk one island and created another one that is three times larger, according to a report by geologists released on Thursday.
Taaniela Kula, of the Tonga Geological Service, said the new island is estimated to be about 100 metres wide and 400 metres long, and is situated about 120 metres west of its now-submerged predecessor, Lateiki island.
Thousands of firefighters have been battling wildfires across California, after warm temperatures, strong winds and low humidity turned the state into a 'tinderbox'. So is this the new normal?
President slams governor and threatens to cut federal funds
Newsom tweets back: ‘You don’t believe in climate change’
As authorities lifted all evacuation orders imposed by a wildfire that caused thousands to flee their homes north-west of Los Angeles, Donald Trump threatened to cut federal funding for aid during the kind of blazes that have hit California hard this fall.
A new brush fire in Ventura county, north of Los Angeles, has rapidly grown to more than 11 square miles. The latest blaze, called the Maria fire, erupted on Thursday evening as crews in northern and southern California continued to try to put out multiple fires that have burned hundreds of acres and prompted thousands of residents to flee their homes
Southern California remains at extreme risk of fires starting
In wine country, firefighters gained ground against the Kincade fire, the largest burning in the state
New blazes in southern California on Thursday burned homes and forced residents to flee, as strong Santa Ana winds of up to 60mph fueled a ring of wildfires around the Los Angeles area.
In San Bernardino, a city of just over 200,000 people, a new wildfire that broke out in the early hours of Thursday torched several homes and forced evacuations. Less than 20 miles away in Riverside county, evacuations were issued after a fire in the city of Jurupa Valley started shortly after midnight, spreading to 300 acres.
Early reports indicate that a new blaze has broken out in Fullerton in Orange County, one of roughly a dozen new fires that have ignited today alone. Cal Fire hasn’t yet posted details on Fullerton fire, but we’ll bring you new details as they emerge.
A brush fire has started in the Brea Dam area of Fullerton. FULLERTON FIRE, Orange County Fire Authority Air Ops, and Fullerton PD are all on-scene. Updates to follow. AVOID THE AREA. pic.twitter.com/fMuEXVtIDJ
The terror of a wildfire tearing through communities, consuming homes, is likely unimaginable for anyone who hasn’t lived through, or fled from one. And in the wake of a blaze, those stories abound.
But every once in a while a picture of humanity will emerge from the ashes — a kind of happy ending against a backdrop of destruction. We’ve seen a few of those this week already, as fires ignited up and down the state.
“She had a really gorgeous, beautiful, straightforward birth,” said Bee Lauher, a licensed midwife, who delivered the baby along with Napa Valley Midwives partners Heather Hilton and Kristina Parks, as first reported by the Napa Valley Register....
This isn’t the first time the Napa Valley Midwives have worked in a hotel during a crisis. In 2017, they delivered a baby at the Westin Verasa Napa with the Wine Country fires burning close by.
The equestrian community has consistently come together during fires. Volunteers often find people who need help through word-of-mouth or on social media, especially through a Facebook group called Southern California Equine Emergency Evacuation.
“People come from all over to help out,” Perera said.
This man just showed up to save these alpacas. He’s trying to herd them out and push them across the road #KincadeFire.
Still on Chalk Hill Road. The man, who wouldn’t give his name, lives in a ranch across from these guys. He moved them all over to his place. pic.twitter.com/JDqERpLXpT
Firefighters in California have been battling wildfires across the state as winds are expected to pick up again. The Kincade fire in Sonoma county, in the north of the US state, had destroyed 124 homes and other structures by Tuesday morning and was threatening 90,000 structures. Crews were also working to control a fire near the Getty Museum in Los Angeles that had prompted evacuations on Monday
Blaze around Lake Innes and Lake Cathie in northern NSW has destroyed more than 2,000 hectares and spread smoke haze to Sydney
Hundreds of koalas are feared to have died in an out-of-control bushfire in northern New South Wales which has raged unchecked for days in the heartland of their prime habitat.
The blaze, reportedly caused by a lightning strike near Port Macquarie, has burned more than 2,000 hectares, including an important koala breeding ground.
Kincade fire threatens 90,000 structures as new blackouts planned
‘Extreme red flag warning’ issued in south
Millions of Californians prepared for days of darkness as the United States’ largest utility once again said it was switching off power to prevent powerful winds from damaging its equipment and sparking more fires.
Meanwhile, firefighters were battling wildfires across the state on Tuesday, as winds were expected to pick up again. The Kincade fire in Sonoma county, in the north, had destroyed 124 homes and other structures by Tuesday morning and was threatening 90,000 structures. Crews were also working to control a fierce fire near the Getty Museum in Los Angeles that had prompted evacuations on Monday.
Two million still without power after weekend shutoffs as wine country fire scorches 66,000 acres
California firefighters raced against time on Monday to bring a raging wine country wildfire under control amid a lull in the weather, with warnings that the extreme winds fueling fires across the state could pick up again soon.
Violent winds of up to 100mph helped the Kincade fire, currently the largest burning in the state, to double in size over the weekend. The fire has scorched more than 66,000 acres, destroyed nearly 100 structures, and forced an unprecedented evacuation of more than 185,000 people in the area.
Some coastal cities are reclaiming land as a barrier against rising water – then selling it off. But critics argue that climate change defence should not be a business model
“The island is going to be placed where the British empire’s fleet once was,” says Anne Skovbro, looking out from her office in a 19th-century customs house over Copenhagen’s harbour.
She points out the mooring posts where tall ships once docked, the old masting crane that marked the harbour’s outer edge, and the patch of sea where Horatio Nelson is supposed to have held a telescope to his blind eye as his ships set the city’s medieval centre ablaze.
At least 185,000 evacuated as firefighters battle el diablo winds
Governor calls state emergency as 2 million left without power
Thousands of firefighters in northern California battled to control wildfires fueled by howling el diablo winds, the largest of which forced at least 185,000 people to evacuate their homes.
Meanwhile, more than 2 million people were left without power as the state’s largest utility, Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), shut off power in an attempt to keep wind-toppled electrical wires from sparking additional fires.
That does it for me here today as we shut down the blog on this Friday evening. It’s been a busy day, with firefighters battling blazes from wine country to northern Mexico.
As we head into the weekend, it’s worth noting that the confluence of weather elements, combined with potentially having to evacuate residents in the face of a power outage, could make for a pretty hairy few days. Winds are expected to pick up starting Saturday night, with speeds that some estimate could reach up to 80mph. In short, it’s a weather event that meteorologists are calling unprecedented.
The lights are back on for 99% of the customers who lost power in the latest planned power shutdown, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) reports.
As of 5pm, the only customers who remained in the dark are those living in Sonoma county, where the Kincade fire has been burning since Wednesday night. PG&E says about 178,000 customers were impacted by the shutdown, including the Sierra Foothills, North Bay, San Mateo and Kern counties.
#BREAKING : I just shot this timelapse video showing a huge flareup developing at the #KincadeFire . I was the only reporter allowed this far up Pine Flat Road because I was just returning from the frontlines when the flareup happened. @kron4newspic.twitter.com/eMrcCbPPsy