Drone footage shows extent of flooding in New Zealand's South Island. Southland, on the southernmost tip, has become cut off after floodwaters washed away roads. Two thousand people have needed evacuation amid storms that forced the MetService to issue their first ever red weather warning
Continue reading...Category Archives: Flooding
Scotland and north of England to be hit by winds of up to 75mph
Flood warnings in place across south-west England, with damage to properties expected
Winds of up to 75mph (120km/h) are forecast to hit Scotland and the north of England on Tuesday, while south-west England braces for floods.
Coastal communities across the north-east of England and the west of Scotland are most at risk from gales, where exposed areas could see gusts of 70-75mph, according to the Met Office, which issued yellow weather warnings for the two regions.
Continue reading...Death toll rises in Indonesia’s sinking capital as flood defences struggle
Torrential rain has devastated the greater Jakarta region with dozens dead and tens of thousands evacuated from their homes
The death toll from floods caused by torrential rains in the Indonesian capital rose to at least 53 as rescuers found more bodies, disaster officials said on Saturday.
The worst monsoon rains in more than a decade deluged Jakarta this week and rising rivers submerged at least 182 neighbourhoods while landslides on the city’s outskirts buried at least a dozen people.
Continue reading...Thousands flee deadly flash floods in Jakarta – video
Floods in the Indonesian capital have left more than 40 people dead and forced tens of thousands to flee their homes. The worst monsoon rains in more than a decade deluged Jakarta, and rising rivers submerged at least 182 neighbourhoods. Jakarta is the world's fastest-sinking city, caused by rising sea levels and extreme weather – both worsened by the climate emergency
Continue reading...Flooding hits New Zealand tourist hubs of Wanaka and Queenstown
Heavy rain has led to rivers bursting their banks, forcing the closure of shops and restaurants
Streets in the South Island tourist towns of Wanaka and Queenstown were slowly going under water on Friday, after Lake Wanaka and Lake Wakatipu burst their banks earlier in the week, flooding businesses and sewerage systems.
Water and large debris closed the main street of Wanaka, a popular spot with Instagrammers thanks to its famous tree that appears to have grown out of the lake. On Friday businesses were sandbagging as heavy rain continued to fall.
Continue reading...Heavy flooding hits southern France after week of torrential rain – video
Three emergency workers were killed in a helicopter crash near Marseille while on a rescue mission in southern France where floods have left two people dead, officials have said. The Var and the neighbouring Alpes-Maritimes region were on red alert for floods that disrupted train services and cut the A8 motorway for four hours on Sunday evening.
Continue reading...French floods: five dead after three rescue workers killed in helicopter crash
Three emergency workers killed in Marseille while two men died in the French Riviera
Three emergency workers were killed in a helicopter crash near Marseille while on a rescue mission in southern France where floods have left two dead, officials have said.
Their EC145 helicopter lost radio and radar contact while on a rescue and reconnaissance flight in the Var region on Sunday night.
Continue reading...Storms in France, Greece and Italy leave ‘biblical destruction’
Seven people die as weekend of heavy rain brings landslides, floods and collapsed overpass
Seven people have died as violent storms swept through parts of France, Greece and Italy over the weekend, causing flash floods, landslides and the collapse of an overpass.
Greek media described the storms as leaving a trail of “biblical destruction” in some areas of the country while the overpass collapse in northern Italy brought back a chilling reminder of Genoa’s Morandi bridge giving way during a thunderstorm in August 2018, killing 43 people.
Continue reading...People of Venice protest over floods and cruise ships
Demonstrators chant ‘Venice resist’ amid anger over waves caused by ocean liners and flawed flood-proofing project
Thousands of Venetians have taken to the streets to protest over frequent flooding and the impact of giant cruise ships.
In heavy rain between 2,000 and 3,000 people answered the call of environmental groups and a collective opposed to the ships. Critics say the waves cruise ships create are eroding Venice’s foundations.
Continue reading...‘We have nothing’: Somalia floods raise spectre of famine
Communities already hit by war and drought face fresh disaster as 370,000 are forced from homes
Ciraa Farah Ali was asleep when she heard the flood. It was dark, and the 45-year-old mother of seven was alone with her children in her small home in Beledweyne, central Somalia.
Related: Global heating supercharging Indian Ocean climate system
Continue reading...Venice closes St Mark’s Square as floods hit for third time in week
Italian city suffers worst series of high tides since 1872, with an estimated cost of €1bn
Venice has closed St Mark’s Square as the city suffered a third major flooding in less than a week, while rain lashed the rest of Italy and warnings were issued in Florence and Pisa.
Venice was hit with an “acqua alta”, or high water, of 150cm (5ft) on Sunday, lower than Tuesday’s 187cm – the highest level in half a century – but still dangerous.
Continue reading...UK floods: warnings in place across Britain after further rainfall
Environment Agency posts 147 flood warnings in England and Wales after heavy downpours
Almost 150 flood warnings remain in place across Britain after more heavy rain fell overnight.
While the Met Office is forecasting the rains to finally ease off on Friday, heavy downpours on Thursday night have increased the number of flood warnings in effect.
Continue reading...Boris Johnson heckled over floods but does not apologise for ‘slow response’
Government working ‘round the clock’ to help deluged regions, prime minister says
Boris Johnson declined to apologise over his government’s slow response to the flooding across parts of the north of England, insisting that a huge amount of work was going on to help and compensate victims.
The prime minister faced difficult questions over whether enough had been spent on flood defences in deluged regions of Yorkshire, the east Midlands and Lincolnshire, after giving a speech on how he would give billions of pounds to research and development.
Continue reading...‘An apocalypse happened’: Venice counts cost of devastating floods
Businesses and residents say they feel helpless as they brace for next high tides
As tourists posed for selfies at St Mark’s Square on Wednesday evening, shop owners mopped the floors of their premises and cleared debris while assessing the cost of the damage caused by record high tides.
“An apocalypse happened,” said Antonella Rossi, who owns a handmade jewellery shop under the portico that surrounds the square.
Continue reading...‘We had to buy blankets’: floods force shoppers to spend night in Meadowhall
Sheffield shopping centre cut off by rising waters as torrential rain deluges large areas and Met Office warns of more to come
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.
Continue reading...North of England floods: trapped shoppers allowed to leave mall
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.
Continue reading...Could cities profit from protecting themselves against rising seas?
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.
Continue reading...The aftermath of Typhoon Hagibis – in pictures
Japan’s Typhoon Hagibis made landfall south of Tokyo on Saturday evening with heavy rain, which flooded the city and surrounding areas. The death toll has reached 36 and many people are still missing. Emergency workers swung into action, with helicopters plucking people from flooded buildings and police swimming through waters looking for missing people
Continue reading...India floods: hospital and homes submerged as more than 100 die during heavy rains – video
Videos shared on social media show submerged roads and heavy flooding at one of the big hospitals in Patna, the state capital of Bihar, where patients lie on beds barely above dirty water. More than 100 people have died in flooding in eastern India, where vast areas have been inundated by delayed monsoon rains. In Uttar Pradesh, 93 people have died as the rains cause homes to collapse and lead to an increase in snake bites. Dozens of people have also died in Bihar, where boats have been deployed to rescue stranded residents
Continue reading...‘Big Tex’: largest captive alligator in US found after escaping in Imelda flooding
Alligator found near a pond on the Gator Country property. A number of his smaller friends, however, are still missing
Residents of Beaumont, Texas, who saw this summer’s alligator horror movie Crawl might have suffered more sleepless nights this week, after the largest gator ever captured in the US was reported missing amid flooding caused by Tropical Storm Imelda.
Related: Trump jumps shark with retweets attacking Fox News host
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