Seismic activity intensified overnight near Grindavík, the fifth eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula in two years
Houses have caught fire in the fishing town of Grindavík in south-west Iceland after a volcano erupted for the second time in less than a month.
Two fissures formed near the town on Sunday after an increase in seismic activity that prompted authorities to evacuate the community the day before.
Continue reading...On recent floods in Victoria and Queensland, Albanese said Australian defence force was a vital asset but that future recovery mitigation may need a re-think
Anthony Albanese and the Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, say a re-think of disaster recovery and flood mitigation may be needed due to climate change, with at least 26 homes inundated in the state’s flooding.
Across Victoria, 61 emergency warnings remained in place on Tuesday afternoon as Mooroopna and Shepparton, in the state’s north, brace for high and moderate flooding in the coming days.
Continue reading...Boy, five, among 126 people dead, after boiling water spilled on him during Monday’s 7.6 magnitude quake
A woman in her 90s has been pulled alive from a collapsed house in western Japan, 124 hours after a major earthquake hit the region, killing at least 126 people, toppling buildings and setting off landslides.
The woman in Suzu city, Ishikawa prefecture, survived for more than five days after the 7.6 magnitude quake on Monday. Nationally broadcast news footage showed helmeted rescue workers covering the view of the area with blue plastic, and the woman was not visible.
Continue reading...Temperatures are as low as -16C in Gansu and Qinghai provinces, where the magnitude-6.2 quake struck on Monday
The death toll from China’s earthquake has risen to 134, with almost 1,000 people injured, as rescuers dig through rubble in below freezing conditions.
The magnitude-6.2 earthquake struck shortly before midnight on Monday, in Jishishan county near the border of Gansu and Qinghai provinces, destroying or damaging more than 150,000 homes, according to state media. The quake, which was followed by several strong aftershocks, caused mud and landslides, and damaged power lines and other local infrastructure “to varying degrees”.
Continue reading...Officials say at least 126 killed and more than 500 injured after 6.2-magnitude quake in Gansu and Qinghai provinces
Cold weather is hampering rescue efforts after an earthquake in China’s Gansu and Qinghai provinces that killed at least 126 people and injured more than 500.
The strong shallow earthquake struck shortly before midnight on Monday, sending residents fleeing outside into below-freezing temperatures. Thousands of houses have been reported damaged, and state media said public infrastructure had been damaged “to varying degrees”.
Continue reading...The portable unit, comprising mini cubes of medical equipment, enables surgeons to be operating within an hour, designers claim
India has designed and built a “flatpack” field hospital that can be flown to a disaster area by helicopter and assembled faster than an Ikea bookcase.
The hospital is contained in 72 small waterproof cubes, each weighing under 15kg and measuring 38cm x 38cm x 38cm (15 x 15 x 15in). They are packed with tents and specially designed medical equipment.
Continue reading...The Heller family was at home when the rockslide buried their home on Friday; neighbor Otto Florschutz was also killed
The deadly landslide in south-east Alaska early this week killed five family members and their neighbor, a commercial fisher who made a longshot bid for the state’s lone seat in the US House last year, authorities said on Friday.
Timothy Heller, 44, and Beth Heller, 36 – plus their children Mara, 16; Derek, 12; and Kara, 11 – were at home on Monday night when the landslide struck near the island community of Wrangell. Search crews found the bodies of the parents and the oldest child late on Monday or early Tuesday; the younger children remain missing, as does neighbor Otto Florschutz, 65, the Alaska public safety department said in a statement that identified the victims of the disaster.
Continue reading...Shopping mall ceiling collapse among reported damage after earthquake of 6.7 magnitude hits Mindanao region
The death toll from a strong earthquake off the southern Philippines rose to five on Saturday as authorities reported more casualties across two provinces.
The 6.7-magnitude quake that struck the Mindanao region mid-afternoon on Friday caused part of a shopping mall ceiling to collapse, triggered power cuts and sent people fleeing into the streets.
Continue reading...Mexico’s Pacific coast was battered by 165mph winds and torrential rain on 25 October. Thousands lost their homes and many now have too little food or water to survive
In the small hours of Wednesday 25 October, Josefina Maldonado, a grandmother of two in her 60s who lives in the Renacimiento district of Acapulco, watched as the corrugated metal roof of her home flew into the sky, ripped off by 165mph (270km/h) winds. The family home and everything and everyone in it, including two terrified small children, were prey to the torrential rain and the horrors of the hurricane. Most of the furniture, including the beds, was swept away.
“It wasn’t that the wind or the water was stronger. Both were working together,” Maldonado says. “We were up all night trying to save what we could, and the children screamed and cried for hours.”
Continue reading...Rural firefighters’ chief says Queensland in ‘survival mode’ amid dry weather, with 53 homes destroyed by fire in the Western Downs
Queensland is in “survival mode” as dozens of bushfires burn across the state and there is no rain on the horizon, the head of the volunteer firefighters association has said.
Firefighters have contained a bushfire at Tara, on the Western Downs four hours west of Brisbane, that destroyed 53 homes and claimed two lives. But fires have flared up to the north and south, with emergency warnings in place on Wednesday for a fire between Warwick and Stanthorpe on the Southern Downs.
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While speaking to ABC RN, Chris Bowen was asked if he is concerned about ongoing social cohesion within his electorate amid the Israel-Hamas war. (Bowen is the MP for McMahon, located in Sydney’s outer western suburbs, which has a high percentage of Australians with Muslim ancestry.)
Bowen responded:
It’s important, in this very difficult time in the Middle East, to know that you can believe in the legitimate aspirations and rights of the Palestinian people without exonerating in any sense the heinous acts of Hamas.
You can also believe in the right of Israel to exist and to defend itself [while] expressing concern about the loss of innocent life of Palestinians who do not support Hamas and had nothing to do with Hamas.
I have been concerned by the politicisation of this issue … demanding stronger statements and stronger actions when really, I think the prime minister, the foreign minister and the government have set a very important and considered tone and I think it’s vital that the community hears that tone.
And of course … there is absolutely no place in modern Australia for antisemitism or Islamophobia. Both should be equally condemned. And in an environment like this, it’s particularly important to do so.
Continue reading...Magnitude-6.3 earthquake struck near Herat on Saturday, with hundreds of houses reported destroyed
The death toll from a series of earthquakes in western Afghanistan has risen sharply to more than 2,000 people, according to a Taliban spokesperson, as rescuers searched for survivors among the ruins of razed villages.
“More than 2,060 people are dead and over 10,000 are injured,” he told the Guardian. “Many more people are still under the rubble.”
Continue reading...Hundreds of traumatised children are thought to have lost their families in disaster
People in western Libya have rallied round to provide care and breastmilk for young children orphaned by the devastating floods that hit the coastal city of Derna on 10 September.
Hundreds of traumatised babies and young children are thought to have lost their parents in Derna, where whole neighbourhoods were wiped out after two dams broke.
Continue reading...Khalifa Haftar and Libyan National Army militia said to be overseeing humanitarian relief arriving in city of Derna
As search and rescue teams continue to hunt for bodies trapped underneath the mud and rubble of their homes in the Libyan coastal city of Derna, observers say the warlord Khalifa Haftar and his sons are using the disaster response as a way to exert control rather than ensure vital humanitarian relief reaches civilians.
At least 11,300 people have died and more than 10,000 are missing, according to the Libyan Red Crescent, after two dams burst during a powerful storm last week.
Continue reading...The aftermath of an earthquake in Morocco and flooding in Libya has shown up the state of the two nations
Not one but two disasters have struck in recent days – the earthquake in Morocco and devastating flooding in Libya.
At least 2,900 people are known to have died in the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck in Morocco’s High Atlas mountains a week ago, and the authorities say the death toll will rise.
Continue reading...Relatives grieve and search in desperation as Derna’s mayor fears death toll from floods may exceed 20,000
Omar al-Rifadi has been searching for his missing 20-year-old daughter ever since disaster struck the Libyan city of Derna on Sunday, when she disappeared, lost in the darkness amid a catastrophic flood that claimed the lives of thousands and swept many into the sea.
“I walked on foot to look for her. I went to all the hospitals and schools. But luck was not on my side,” the 52-year-old said, tears streaming down his face.
Continue reading...Minister says it is a matter of life and death for residents near city of Kelowna, as drone operators warned against ‘irresponsible’ activity in fire areas
Officials in the Canadian province of British Columbia have implored tens of thousands of residents to heed warnings and evacuate from areas threatened by “severe and fast-changing” wildfires, and urged “irresponsible” wildfire tourists to stop flying drones in the area.
“We cannot stress strongly enough how critical it is to follow evacuation orders when they are issued,” Bowinn Ma, the province’s minister of emergency management, said on Saturday. “They are a matter of life and death not only for the people in those properties, but also for the first responders who will often go back to try to implore people to leave.”
Continue reading...Search for victims continues as more than 2,200 structures damaged or destroyed and more than 2,100 acres scorched
As search and rescue crews continue to uncover the scale of the massive and devastating toll in the historic town of Lahaina, anger is building among residents over various aspects of the government response, from warnings during the inferno to aid distribution afterwards. Residents have asked why emergency sirens didn’t warn Lahaina residents in time to evacuate.
Officials have said there wasn’t time to adequately alert the city before the wind-driven firestorm tore through homes and businesses. Along with the lack of warnings, residents are questioning why plans weren’t in place to ensure a quick and effective response for victims still grappling with the ongoing issues caused by the fire, including contaminated water, widespread power outages, and a lack of response programming and infrastructure that could help streamline aid brought in from the outside.
Continue reading...Officials say 900 homes in Xi’an were left without power in disaster that struck after unusually high rainfall and typhoons
A mudslide in China’s north-western city of Xi’an has killed 21 people, with six still missing, officials said on Sunday.
The city’s emergency management authority released an update on the number of casualties from Friday’s disaster as China grappled with unusually high summer rainfall.
Continue reading...At least 1,000 people reported missing following fires, as a new fire burns in Kaanapali in West Maui
Hawaii resident Ella Tacderan spoke to the Guardian about her experience of the devastation in Maui where her family home once stood.
“A nightmare” scene, Tacderan said:
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