Category Archives: Extreme weather

Indian navy rescues more than 800 people from train stranded in floodwaters

Posted on by

Mahalaxmi Express stuck for about 12 hours near Mumbai when river burst its banks after torrential rain

Indian navy helicopters and emergency service boats came to the rescue of more than 800 people stranded on a train in floods near Mumbai on Saturday. Some reports have the number of people affected at over 1,000.

The Mahalaxmi Express left Mumbai late on Friday for Kolhapur but travelled only 60 kilometres (37 miles) before it became stranded after a river burst its banks in torrential rain, covering the tracks.

Continue reading...

All-time temperature records tumble again as heatwave sears Europe

Posted on by

Highs in Germany, Netherlands and Belgium exceeded for second time in 24 hours

Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium have recorded all-time national temperature highs for the second day running and Paris has had its hottest day ever as the second dangerous heatwave of the summer sears western Europe.

The extreme temperatures follow a similar heatwave last month that made it the hottest June on record. Scientists say the climate crisis is making summer heatwaves five times more likely and significantly more intense.

Continue reading...

Netherlands and Belgium record highest ever temperatures

Posted on by

All-time records in Germany and Luxembourg could also fall in continent-wide heatwave

The Netherlands and Belgium have recorded their highest ever temperatures as the second extreme heatwave in consecutive months to be linked by scientists to the climate emergency advances across the continent.

The Dutch meteorological service, KNMI, said the temperature reached 39.1C (102F) at Gilze-Rijen airbase near the southern city of Tilburg on Wednesday afternoon, exceeding the previous high of 38.6C set in August 1944.

Continue reading...

Paris authorities scotch rumours of radioactive tap water as ‘fake news’

Posted on by

Viral message claims water has harmful tritium levels as country faces heatwave

As France faces a scorching new heatwave this week, Paris authorities have urged residents to keep calm and carry on drinking tap water after rumours spread that the capital’s water supplies had been contaminated with harmful levels of the radioactive isotope tritium.

The Paris region prefecture insisted the city’s tap water did not present any risk for public health and said rumours circulating on social media were “fake news”.

Continue reading...

Hurricane Barry: storm strengthens as officials warn of heavy rain to come

Posted on by
  • New Orleans residents told to seek shelter as 50,000 lose power
  • NHC director details ‘amazing amount of moisture’

Tropical Storm Barry strengthened into a category one hurricane on Saturday as it neared the Louisiana coast, threatening millions with heavy rains and storm surge. The storm was expected to weaken after it moved inland but forecasters encouraged residents in New Orleans to be patient and stay vigilant.

More than 12 hours after city officials anticipating crippling and potentially historic flooding told residents to “shelter in place”, a few rays of sun peeked through the clouds on Saturday morning, adding a glint to the mostly dry city streets.

Continue reading...

Greece: 20-minute storm kills six tourists in Halkidiki – video report

Posted on by

Six people have been killed and dozens more injured in fierce storms in northern Greece. Strong winds and hail hit the popular Halkidiki region near the city of Thessaloniki late on Wednesday. Television footage showed overturned cars, fallen trees, torn roofs and mudslides. The freak storm lasted about 20 minutes, according to witnesses interviewed by the state broadcaster ERT

Continue reading...

‘Biggest compliment yet’: Greta Thunberg welcomes oil chief’s ‘greatest threat’ label

Posted on by

Activists say comments by Opec head prove world opinion is turning against fossil fuels

Greta Thunberg and other climate activists have said it is a badge of honour that the head of the world’s most powerful oil cartel believes their campaign may be the “greatest threat” to the fossil fuel industry.

The criticism of striking students by the trillion-dollar Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) highlights the growing reputational concerns of oil companies as public protests intensify along with extreme weather.

Continue reading...

Climate change made European heatwave at least five times likelier

Posted on by

Searing heat shows crisis is ‘here and now’, say scientists, and worse than predicted

The record-breaking heatwave that struck France and other European nations in June was made at least five – and possibly 100 – times more likely by the climate crisis, scientists have calculated.

Such heatwaves are also about 4C hotter than a century ago, the researchers said. Furthermore, the heatwaves hitting Europe are more frequent and more severe than climate models have predicted, they said.

Continue reading...

Firefighters battle forest blaze in central Spain

Posted on by

With 38C forecast, emergency services work to contain fire in Castilla-La Mancha and Madrid region

Firefighters in central Spain are battling strong winds and high temperatures as they struggle to control a fire that has already destroyed over 5,000 acres in the provinces of Castilla-La Mancha and Madrid.

The fire broke out in Almorox near Toledo on Friday just as the one in Tarragona province in north-east Spain was brought under control, having reduced some 15,000 acres of woodland to ashes.

Continue reading...

France records all-time highest temperature of 45.9C

Posted on by

Record for mainland France falls in southern commune of Gallargues-le-Montueux as Europe swelters in heatwave

France recorded temperatures nearly two degrees higher than its previous record and firefighters continued to battle historic wildfires in Spain as much of western Europe remained in the grip of an extreme early-summer heatwave on Friday.

The French state weather forecaster, Météo-France, said the temperature in Gallargues-le-Montueux in the Gard département hit 45.9C at 4.20pm on Friday.

Continue reading...

‘Hell is coming’: week-long heatwave begins across Europe

Posted on by

Temperatures could hit 40C from Spain to Switzerland, with authorities urging children and older people to stay indoors

Authorities have urged children and older people to stay indoors and issued severe warnings against dehydration and heatstroke as an unprecedented week-long heatwave begins its advance across continental Europe.

Meteorologists said temperatures would reach or even exceed 40C from Spain to Switzerland as hot air was sucked up from the Sahara by the combination of a storm stalling over the Atlantic and high pressure over central Europe.

Continue reading...

Continental Europe braced for ‘potentially dangerous’ heatwave

Posted on by

High pressure pulling hot air northward from Africa will send temperatures soaring

A potentially record-breaking heatwave is forecast to grip much of continental Europe next week, with temperatures in cities from Spain to Germany expected to exceed 32C and climb to more than 38C or even 40C in the hottest areas.

The combination of a storm stalled over the Atlantic and high pressure over central Europe would pull very hot air from Africa northward, leading to a “potentially dangerous heatwave over a large portion of western and central Europe”, forecaster AccuWeather said.

Continue reading...

Chennai in crisis as authorities blamed for dire water shortage

Posted on by

Four reservoirs supplying India’s sixth largest city dry up as state accused of inaction

Authorities in Chennai have been criticised for failing to deal with a crippling water shortage that has brought the Indian city to crisis point, leaving taps dry in homes and forcing schools, offices and restaurants to close as temperatures soar.

The four reservoirs supplying the bulk of the city’s drinking water have completely dried up, leading the Chennai Metro Water to cut the water it provides by about 40%.

Continue reading...

Climate crisis seriously damaging human health, report finds

Posted on by

National academies say effects include spread of diseases and worse mental health

A report by experts from 27 national science academies has set out the widespread damage global heating is already causing to people’s health and the increasingly serious impacts expected in future.

Scorching heatwaves and floods will claim more victims as extreme weather increases but there are serious indirect effects too, from spreading mosquito-borne diseases to worsening mental health.

Continue reading...

The downside of cleaner air? Longer and hotter heatwaves

Posted on by

Tackling air pollution could make bouts of extreme temperatures more likely, according to a study

Air pollution is a killer. But cleaning it up could have deadly consequences. A study shows that by the end of the century, cleaner air may bring stronger heatwaves.

It has long been known air pollution has been helping to prevent even greater global heating. Sulphate particles reflect heat back into space and other pollutants encourage cloud formation. But until now, it has not been clear where and when warming will occur if we clean up our skies.

Continue reading...

‘We stood in shock’: what happens to a city after a hurricane? A cartoon

Posted on by

After Maria is a graphic novella by Dr Gemma Sou and John Cei Douglas about a family’s recovery from Hurricane Maria, which devastated Puerto Rico in 2017

On 20 September 2017, Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico, a US territory that is home to 3.3 million people. Maria devastated the Caribbean island, causing more than $30bn in damage, and an initial death toll of 64 grew to an estimated figure of between 2,975 and 4,645. Many of the deaths happened during the aftermath from treatable chronic illnesses, because power outages prevented people from receiving routine medical care – but most of the media had left by November.

Dr Gemma Sou of the University of Manchester visited Puerto Rico five times during the first year after Maria to talk to families about their recovery. One of the results is After Maria, extracted here, a graphic novella about a fictional family in the neighbourhood of Ingenio that is based on common experiences Sou heard from Puerto Ricans across the island.

Continue reading...

Cyclone Trevor lashes Northern Territory coast with destructive winds

Posted on by

Residents of Port Hedland and Karratha in Western Australia prepare for Cyclone Veronica, due to hit on Sunday morning

Cyclone Trevor has struck the Northern Territory as a category four system, hammering remote communities with destructive 250 km/h winds and torrential rain.

It was one of two monster storm fronts bearing down on northern Australia this weekend – cyclone Veronica was hurtling towards the Pilbara region in Western Australia.

Continue reading...