Category Archives: Extreme weather

New Zealand floods could take years to clean up, with 1,200 people displaced

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A fourth straight day of rain brought by an ‘atmospheric river’ has damaged roads and homes and forced more than 400 households to evacuate

Torrential downpours that have battered New Zealand for four days straight have caused floods that could take years to clean up and displaced at least 1,200 people from their homes in the top of the South Island.

Friday’s rain comes on top of weeks of wet weather and is worsening conditions in New Zealand’s already sodden landscape. Experts have attributed the unseasonably wet weather to a narrow stream of water vapour, or “atmospheric river”, sitting above the country.

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Thunderstorms in Corsica and parts of Italy leave seven dead

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Girl, 13, among dead as violent storms strike after three days of intense rain in region

Violent thunderstorms with winds of up to 139mph (224km/h) have struck the Mediterranean island of Corsica and parts of Italy, killing seven people and leaving at least a dozen more injured.

On Corsica, a 13-year-old girl died after a tree fell on a campsite where she was staying and a 72-year-old woman was killed when the roof of a beach hut was blown off and struck her car. A 46-year-old man also died on the island in a campsite in the town of Calvi.

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At least 38 people killed as ‘tornado of fire’ rages in northern Algeria

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Hundreds forced to flee homes and at least 200 injured as firefighters battle string of blazes in El Tarf province

Algerian firefighters were on Thursday battling a string of blazes, fanned by drought and a blistering heatwave, that have killed at least 38 people and left destruction in their wake.

Deadly forest fires have become an annual scourge in the north African country, where the climate crisis is turning large areas into a tinderbox.

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Pakistan floods kill 580 and bring misery to millions

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Government accused of inaction as downpours leave schools destroyed, homes ruined, crops failing and cholera on the rise

More than 580 people have died and thousands have lost their homes across Pakistan as torrential rains batter the country.

An estimated 1 million have been affected by heavy rainfall, flash floods and landslides since July as Pakistan endured more than 60% of its normal total monsoon rainfall in three weeks.

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Emergency housing rollout across flood-hit NSW north coast a ‘dog’s breakfast’, critics say

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Government defends measures against claims of slow progress, lack of consultation and a decision to put pods in a flood zone

Fewer than 60 emergency housing pods are being occupied in northern New South Wales nearly six months after the March floods. Critics have lambasted the rollout for poor communication, a lack of transparency and one location being built in a flood zone.

Temporary housing measures for flood victims were first announced at the start of March. The NSW government promised in April to provide 2,000 temporary homes including the pods, caravans, motorhomes and accommodation at recreation camps.

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Wildfires in Europe burn area equivalent to one-fifth of Belgium

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Experts say drought and extreme high temperatures likely to make it a record year for destruction by fires

Across Europe, an area equivalent to one-fifth of Belgium has been ravaged by flames as successive searing heatwaves and a historic drought propel the continent towards what experts say is likely to be a record year for wildfire destruction.

According to data from the European Forest Fire Information System (Effis), 659,541 hectares (1.6m acres) of land burned across the continent between January and mid-August, the most at this time of year since records began in 2006.

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Build an ark and ditch the pots: how to save your garden in a drought

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As official drought is declared in parts of England, here are some measures to preserve and future-proof gardens

With British gardens facing record temperatures, drought and hosepipe bans, it’s time for emergency measures. It’s particularly important because during drought, additional mains water is drawn from wild sources, affecting struggling wildlife. Here are some of the things you can do.

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UK weather: extreme heat warning in place for England and Wales as near 500% increase in wildfires reported – as it happened

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This live blog has now closed.

London Fire Brigade has called on people to avoid barbecues during the extreme weather, following a grass fire in Hayes, west London, yesterday.

It tweeted:

Firefighters tackled another grass fire in #Hayes which damaged around 400sqm of grass and shrubland, along with some boundary fencing, a chicken coop & a shed.

Remember - don’t barbecue in parks, dispose of cigarettes properly & clear away rubbish & glass.

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Tropical storm Meari unleashes heavy rains on Japan

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Warnings of floods and mudslides on Honshu island south-west of Tokyo as storm heads towards the capital

Tropical storm Meari unleashed heavy rains on Japan’s main Honshu island as it headed northward towards the capital, Tokyo, according to Japanese weather officials.

The national meteorological agency said Meari made landfall in Shizuoka prefecture south-west of Tokyo on Saturday afternoon, bringing sudden heavy rains and blasting winds to a widespread area and prompting warnings about mudslides and flooding.

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Weather tracker: deadly floods in South Korea and drought in China

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While Seoul experienced torrential downpours, rainfall levels are down in China’s Yangtse River basin

Extreme flooding in South Korea this week submerged streets, cars and buildings, as torrential downpours brought more than a month’s worth of rainfall in the space of a few days. Between Monday and Wednesday a cumulative total of 525mm – a little over 20 inches – was recorded in Seoul.

At least nine people are confirmed to have died from the floods and many more are reported injured or missing. High rainfall rates and flooding during the monsoon season in South Korea is common, with average rainfall of up to 10mm a day and 250mm in the month of August. However, this week rainfall accumulations far exceeded these typical conditions.

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National Trust tells of bats in distress and water features drying up in heat

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Charity says extreme conditions a ‘watershed moment’ and it is planning for long-term hot weather

The National Trust has reported significant effects across its estate from the recent extreme heat including bats in distress, heather struggling to flower and historic water features drying up.

At Wallington in Northumberland, bats were found disoriented and dehydrated in the daylight during the hottest days this summer, while in Cambridgeshire, a waterwheel that powers a flour mill has had to stop turning due to low river levels.

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Canadian province declares emergency amid worst wildfires in over 50 years

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Blazes have consumed vast tracts of forest in Newfoundland and Labrador and remain out of control

Officials in Canada’s easternmost province have issued a state of emergency as crews battle the worst wildfires the region has experienced in more than half a century.

Sprawling blazes have consumed thousands of hectares of forest in Newfoundland and Labrador over the last two weeks and remain out of control.

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Three dead and one critically hurt after lightning strike near White House

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Victims included a husband and wife from Wisconsin after the lightning strike in Lafayette Park

Three people have died and one remains critically injured after being struck by lightning near the White House on Thursday night, including a husband and wife from Wisconsin celebrating more than five decades of marriage.

Dramatic images showed bolts streaking through the air on Thursday as a severe thunderstorm swept through the US capital. Scientists say that the climate crisis is increasing the likelihood of lightning strikes across the country.

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Weather tracker: regions across world still reeling from an extreme July

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From US floods to drought in France, communities around globe are still feeling effects of July’s extreme weather

Central US states are still reeling from a week of extreme flooding events in the final days of July. Initially, the extreme rainfall into St Louis gave a quarter of the normal annual rainfall in just 12 hours, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). A few days later, in eastern Kentucky, at least 10-12 inches (about 25-30cm) fell in the space of a few days, causing devastating flooding in the Appalachian region of the state.

The complex, numerous and steep valleys in the region enabled rainwater to quickly run down valley sides and build up on the limited and often built-up floodplains. Deforestation and historic mining activity in the region have also been mentioned as potential contributors. Both flooding events have been classified as one in 1,000-year events by the NWS.

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Crowdfunder saves corner shop after melted chocolate calamity

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Scunthorpe neighbourhood rallies to replace £1,000 of chocolate liquified in July’s heatwave

An online appeal has raised funds for the owners of a corner shop whose entire stock of chocolate worth nearly £1,000 melted after its air conditioning failed to cope during the recent heatwave.

More than £630 has been raised to replace the lost sweets after a GoFundMe page was set up by Claire York, the daughter of the store’s owners, Stephen and Linda Ellis.

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At least 24 people dead as flash flooding hits eastern Uganda

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More than 5,600 displaced and 400,000 left without clean water after heavy rain causes two rivers to burst banks

At least 24 people have died and more than 5,600 people have been displaced by flash flooding in eastern Uganda.

Two rivers burst their banks after heavy rainfall swept through the city of Mbale over the weekend, submerging homes, shops and roads, and uprooting water pipes. About 400,000 people have been left without clean water, and more than 2,000 hectares (5,000 acres) of crops have been destroyed.

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Catastrophic flash flooding kills 25 in Kentucky and at least a dozen missing

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Kentucky governor says he expects death toll to rise and warns officials still cannot reach certain areas

Catastrophic flash flooding in eastern Kentucky has now claimed 25 lives, with at least a dozen more people reported missing, as officials in the Appalachian region attempt to calculate the cost of the worst natural disaster there in decades.

The Kentucky governor, Andy Beshear, said he expected the death toll to continue to rise in the state and warned officials still could not reach certain areas.

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At least 16 people dead after flash flooding in Kentucky

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Governor Andy Beshear says he expects death toll to ‘more than double’ after record floods wipe out entire towns in state’s east

Kentucky’s governor said it could take weeks to find all the victims of flash flooding that killed at least 16 people when heavy rains turned streams into torrents that swamped towns across Appalachia.

More rainstorms were forecast to roll through in coming days, keeping the region on edge as rescue crews struggled to get into hard-hit areas that include some of the poorest places in America.

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Flooding in southern Iran kills at least 22 people

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Vehicles carried away by rising waters after heavy rainfall in the largely arid country

Flooding in southern Iran has killed at least 22 people and left one person missing after heavy rainfall in the largely arid country, a local official has said.

Videos posted on local and social media on Saturday showed vehicles being carried away by the rising waters of the Roodball river in the southern province of Fars. One video showed adults pulling a child from a car as it began to shift downstream.

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China braces for ‘big heat’ day with temperatures set to soar

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Readings above 40C expected on Saturday with some cities at highest alert level and warnings of dam failures due to melting glaciers

China is set for the return of more heatwaves over the next 10 days, with temperatures set to start spiking in parts of the country on Saturday.

Some coastal cities are already on their highest alert level and inland regions warning of dam failure risks because of melting glaciers.

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