Category Archives: Flooding

More than 400 people now confirmed dead after flooding in DRC

Posted on by

About 5,500 people still missing after intense floods and landslides with thousands also left homeless

At least 411 people are now known to have died in intense flooding and landslides that hit the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s South Kivu province last week.

Efforts to rescue inhabitants and recover bodies in Kalehe, where the flooding happened, are continuing. Some houses, schools and hospitals have collapsed or become dilapidated or unsafe. Others were entirely swept away.

Continue reading...

At least 115 dead in Rwanda after heavy rains trigger floods and mudslides

Posted on by

State-run broadcaster says flood waters still rising in northern and western provinces and warns death toll may rise

At least 115 people have died as floods and mudslides swept through northern and western Rwanda after torrential rains, according to the state-run broadcaster, which warned that the toll could rise.

“The rain that fell last night caused disaster in the northern and western provinces,” the Rwanda Broadcasting Agency (RBA) said on its website on Wednesday.

Continue reading...

Flooding threat from melting snow prompts Yosemite park closures

Posted on by

While seasonal floods aren’t unusual for the national park, this spring could see a deluge from winter snowpack melt

Most of Yosemite valley – the tourist center of the famed national park – will close this weekend as warming temperatures threaten the region with a surge in snowmelt that’s expected to push the Merced River beyond its banks. Forecasters have warned that runoff from California’s historic snowpack, set high along the peaks of the Sierra Nevada range, could cause widespread flooding.

“Downslope there will be problems,” said the National Weather Service meteorologist David Spector, adding that the area around the Pohono Bridge just east of the park’s central entrance would reach flood stage by Friday. “Only parts of the valley are expected to be impacted for now,” he said. “But it may become worse by Sunday or Monday.”

Continue reading...

California’s ‘big melt’ has begun and could bring perilous flooding with it

Posted on by

The snowpack contains enough water to fill downstream reservoirs ‘multiple times over’, which could mean a rapid runoff

Spring has offered California a welcome reprieve from the record rains and historic snowfall that hammered the state in recent weeks, but a new danger wrought by the warming weather looms large. The state’s enormous snowpack will soon begin to melt – and communities are bracing for waters to rise yet again. Trillions of gallons of water packed within the record level of snow blanketing the Sierra Nevada range are expected to rush into rivers and reservoirs as the weather heats up, heightening flood risks in areas already saturated by the state’s extremely wet winter.

The snowpack, which stands at 233% of the 1 April average, contains enough water to fill downstream reservoirs “multiple times over”, said climate scientist Daniel Swain in an online briefing this week. “That’s a big deal,” he added.

Continue reading...

‘Even in the realms of extreme, it’s extreme’: how UK music festivals are planning for freak weather

Posted on by

Whether waterlogged from flooding or parched and prone to wildfires, festival sites are having to plan for every eventuality – and the costs are substantial

Wellies and sun hats are the traditional first guard against the elements at festivals, but this summer they may not be enough to protect revellers. Flood defences, wildfire response teams and satellite weather-monitoring technology are among the ways UK music festivals are adapting to extreme weather events fuelled by the climate crisis.

Last summer’s record high temperatures in the UK hit during festival season, and the changing climate has become one of the industry’s biggest challenges, increasing the frequency, severity and likelihood of weather such as heatwaves and thunderstorms. With preparations underway for this year’s festival season, event organisers are increasing their contingency plans to secure their events, at a time of higher costs in labour, energy and insurance.

Continue reading...

Drought-ravaged California sees one of the largest snowpacks on record

Posted on by

Experts think snowpack will be either the first or second biggest documented in 70 years after winter of extreme storms

California’s winter of extreme storms has brought the drought-ravaged state one of the largest snowpacks on record, with officials saying on Monday that they expect it could be the greatest documented in 70 years.

As of Monday the state’s snowpack stands at 237% of the annual average, the department of water resources (DWR) announced at a press conference.

Continue reading...

Albanese meets with UK PM ahead of submarine deal unveiling – As it happened

Posted on by

Severe flooding continued in Queensland; PM to meet Joe Biden and Rishi Sunak to announce Aukus terms. This blog is now closed

Circling back to the interview with Tammy Tyrrell. Tyrrell wants to see the government invest at least 4% of its multibillion-dollar social housing plan in Tasmania. She says it’s only fair, as a government survey shows 4.6% of people most in need of housing support are in Tasmania.

Tyrrell says she will be meeting next week with the housing minister, Julie Collins, about the request.

They haven’t shut me down. They haven’t said no, but they haven’t said yes.

It’s absolutely fundamental to everything that I do. My job is to represent the people of Indi in the federal parliament and in doing that, I try my darnedest to connect policy to the people to the policy, every single time.

So I go to them when I have to make a decision about a piece of legislation I may not be clear on. And I go to them and explain why I’ve made the decision I have once that legislation is through the parliament.

Continue reading...

Queensland floods: Burketown residents warned of crocodile-infested waters ahead of expected peak

Posted on by

Authorities say community still in town could be isolated for up to two weeks with water levels continuing to rise

About 70 people are holding out in the stranded Queensland town of Burketown, as the swollen Albert River to the town’s east continues to rise, and authorities warn that flood waters are likely infested with crocodiles.

Ahead of the expected peak of flood waters, the ranger in charge of the Carpentaria Land Council Aboriginal Corporation, Zachariah Sowden, said there had already been reported sightings of crocodiles swimming in flood waters.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Australia news live: more rain across flooded Queensland region brings ‘extended peak’

Posted on by

Major flood warning issued in north-west Queensland after Burketown residents evacuated overnight. Follow the day’s news live

Control of submarines will remain with Australia: Courtney

Courtney appears confident that control of the submarines will remain with Australia, saying “no one wants to be in a situation where there is any conflict of who is in charge or who is giving orders or who is taking orders”.

We understand that that is precious for every nation, to be able to control and make their own decisions.

We have such a carve-out for Canada today. Again, the defence sectors are much more free-flowing and seamless because of the fact that we made that adjustment, and that is going to be a focus.

No one will be foisting off clunkers on good friends and allies.

We need to train up the Australian sailors and officers in terms of nuclear propulsion which is all we’re talking about here, not nuclear weapons. And when the time comes for the deeds, the title to be handed to the government of Australia of a vessel, that again is going to be totally with the full understanding that it is going to be under Australian control.

Continue reading...

Record-breaking floods in north-west Queensland cause partial evacuation of outback town

Posted on by

Gulf of Carpentaria town’s elderly residents airlifted and supplies flown to nearby Indigenous community as rivers reach peak levels

Vulnerable people will be evacuated from an outback town by air amid widespread record-breaking floods across Queensland’s vast north-west.

Small helicopters and planes will be used to airlift elderly people from Burketown near the Gulf of Carpentaria to Mount Isa, about 400km to the south, on Friday.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Brazil floods: death toll rises to 48 as landslides and looters prevent aid reaching survivors

Posted on by

Dozens missing in south-eastern São Paulo state as rescue crews search for bodies in the rubble of homes

Search and rescue teams raced to find dozens of people that remained missing after heavy rains devastated coastal areas of Brazil’s south-eastern São Paulo state, as the official death toll rose to 48.

“We are currently working with a tally of at least 38 missing people,” the São Paulo governor, Tarcísio de Freitas, told reporters on Wednesday, as weather forecasters cautioned more rain was on its way.

Continue reading...

Thousands of carp dead in Menindee weir amid fears for water quality

Posted on by

Deaths the result of deoxygenation caused by carp population boom at NSW weir, primary industries department says

Thousands of carp have died in the Menindee Main Weir in far west New South Wales, triggering a mass fish kill that ecologists worry could affect native species as water quality declines.

The NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) told Guardian Australia it had received reports of a fish death event in the Lower Darling-Baaka in Menindee.

Continue reading...

Brazil: flooding and landslides kill dozens in São Paulo state

Posted on by

Cities cancel carnival festivities as rescue workers search for victims and clear roads

At least 36 people have died and dozens are missing after torrential rain brought flooding and landslides to coastal areas of south-east Brazil over the weekend as the country geared up for its annual carnival celebrations.

Rescue efforts continued in São Paulo state on Monday as more than 500 workers searched for victims, cleared roads and tried to reconnect isolated communities.

Continue reading...

Flooding hampers rescue efforts as North Island residents told power could be out for weeks – as it happened

Posted on by

This blog is now closed

New Zealand’s national power grid operator has declared a “grid emergency” and warned that power might not be restored to some for “for days to weeks, rather than hours”.

The widespread power cuts in Hawkes Bay and Bay of Plenty happened after a substation flooded during severe rain from Cyclone Gabrielle.

Continue reading...

Auckland at a standstill as storm leaves thousands in North Island without power – as it happened

Posted on by

Damaging storm causes wind gusts up to 160km/h. This blog is now closed

Rain and wind expected to intensify

The approach of Cyclone Gabrielle is bringing particularly strong winds, heavy rain and huge swells to Auckland and nearby regions.

The impact of Gabrielle is still in its early stages and further serious and severe weather is still expected for Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland) later today into Tuesday morning.

Now is not the time for complacency.

Continue reading...

Somerset estate offers rare peek into life of beavers with launch of online tour

Posted on by

National Trust project shows family home of ‘nature’s engineers’ and how they have improved the environment for other wildlife

They can be seen chugging around their watery domain like small furry tugboats, gnawing away at saplings or nuzzling up to each other. The sound of babbling water and birdsong provides a pleasing soundtrack.

A new online tour is being launched on Thursday of an enclosure on the Holnicote estate in Somerset that is home to a family of five beavers. In what is billed as the first of its kind, the tour allows viewers to navigate through the 2.7-acre Exmoor enclosure where two adult beavers and their three offspring live and work.

Continue reading...

Activists call for immediate halt to duck and kangaroo hunting after Murray Darling floods

Posted on by

Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia have increased kangaroo harvest quotas for 2023 but impact from floods yet to be assessed

Animal welfare advocates are calling for a moratorium on commercial and recreational shooting of wildlife affected by the devastating Murray-Darling floods.

Wildlife Victoria has called for the “immediate cessation” of the Victorian government’s kangaroo harvesting program and a moratorium on the annual duck hunting season, which usually begins in March.

Continue reading...

Australia news live updates: Queensland flood waters rising; tributes roll after death of Jim Molan

Posted on by

Rising flood waters have cut north Queensland’s main transport corridor, the Bruce Highway, with more rain on the way. Follow the day’s news live

Dreyfus opens discussion about judicial watchdog

Today the attorney-general, Mark Dreyfus, will open consultation for the creation of a federal judicial commission, to police what he described as the “relatively rare” instances of “problematic conduct by judges”.

The three diseases that we’re focusing on on this trip – malaria, HIV and tuberculosis – three diseases that Australia has a good control over or good management over.

HIV cases are on the rise for a range of different reasons. Tuberculosis is just devastating and any young child with tuberculosis is an extremely confronting and devastating thing to see it’s a horrible disease. And malaria is an ongoing killer.

Continue reading...

UK weather: warnings of snow and ice as temperatures plummet

Posted on by

Thermometers forecast to fall to -2C in London, -1C in Cardiff and -3C in Edinburgh and Belfast

People across large parts of the UK have been told to watch out for ice as they make their way to work and school on Monday, after temperatures plunged overnight.

Thermometers were forecast to fall to -2C in London, -1C in Cardiff and -3C in Edinburgh and Belfast. Temperatures in Highland areas of Scotland could be as low as -10C.

Continue reading...

Soaked California prepares for more flooding as thousands remain without power

Posted on by

Officials urge residents to remain on guard for further damage, with 6,000 under evacuation orders

With rain-soaked California expected to see several more rounds of stormy weather over the weekend and into next week, state and federal officials pleaded with residents on Friday to stay alert to the possibility of more flooding and damage.

A series of storms has walloped the state since late December, leaving at least 19 people dead. On Friday, 6,000 people were under evacuation orders and another 20,000 households were without power, said Nancy Ward, the director of the California governor’s office of emergency services.

Continue reading...