Category Archives: Natural Disasters

Houses washed away after storm Fiona as Canada sends in military for cleanup

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Troops to remove trees and restore transport links after Fiona caused severe damage including torn-off roofs and flooding

Canadian troops are being sent to assist the recovery from the devastation of storm Fiona, which swept away houses, stripped off roofs and knocked out power across the country’s Atlantic provinces.

After surging north from the Caribbean as a hurricane, Fiona came ashore before dawn on Saturday as a post-tropical cyclone, battering Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Quebec with hurricane-strength winds, heavy rains and huge waves.

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Storm Fiona ravages Canada’s east coast causing ‘terrifying’ destruction

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Post-tropical cyclone reaches Gulf of St Lawrence after racing through Nova Scotia forcing evacuations

Powerful storm Fiona ripped into eastern Canada on Saturday with hurricane-force winds, forcing evacuations, knocking down trees and powerlines, and reducing many homes on the coast to “just a pile of rubble in the ocean”.

The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said the centre of the storm, downgraded to post-tropical cyclone Fiona, had reached the Gulf of St Lawrence after racing through Nova Scotia.

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Florida prepares for hurricane as tropical storm Ian grows over Caribbean

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Cayman Islands and Jamaica brace while Florida governor declares emergency, with storm headed to state by midweek

Florida residents on Saturday were bracing for a heavy tropical storm system that weather experts warn could become a major hurricane.

Ian – upgraded to a hurricane from a tropical storm Sunday – was poised to intensify steadily after forming on Friday over the southern Caribbean. The storm could cross over into parts of Cuba before heading to Florida by the middle of next week, according to forecasts.

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Post-tropical cyclone Fiona hits eastern Canada with hurricane-force winds

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Storm surges and heavy rainfall expected before weather event gradually weakens this weekend, say meteorologists

A powerful storm has hit eastern Canada with hurricane-force winds nearly a week after devastating parts of the Caribbean.

The US National Hurricane Centre (NHC) said the centre of Fiona, which transformed from a hurricane into a post-tropical cyclone late on Friday was crossing eastern Nova Scotia, bringing high winds and heavy rains.

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California’s week of heat and wildfires foretell a punishing autumn

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The fall season traditionally brings the highest fire risk to the west, but experts are bracing for even more explosive blazes

It was an explosive Labor Day across California, as an intense, days-long heatwave smashed temperature records, spurred the spread of deadly and destructive wildfires, and bathed cities in a stifling heat even long after the sun went down.

The events mark a grueling start of what traditionally make up the highest fire-risk months in the west, with experts bracing for a higher potential of a punishing autumn even after a milder-than-expected summer.

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Flash flood watch under way for 80m in eastern US as heatwaves broil west

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Western Georgia sees ‘one-in-1,000-year rainfall event’ as homes and businesses flood

More than 80 million people in the eastern US were under flash flood watches late on Monday, marking still more extreme weather in a country reeling from record heatwaves in some regions, as the US increasingly feels the effects of the climate crisis.

In Georgia, the threat of torrential downpours became a reality Sunday afternoon, spurring a flash flood emergency in western portions of the state, CNN reported.

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China earthquake kills dozens as tremors shake locked-down Chengdu

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Deadly quake in Sichuan leaves at least 46 dead, and was also felt in provincial capital where millions are confined to their homes

At least 46 people have been killed in a strong earthquake that struck south-western China and was felt by millions of people confined to their homes under a strict Covid lockdown in Chengdu.

The 6.6-magnitude quake hit about 26 miles (43km) south-east of the city of Kangding at a depth of about six miles, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said.

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Pakistan: fears for areas cut off by floods as damage to roads hampers relief effort

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PM vows government will not disappoint flood victims as economic losses estimated at more than $10bn

There are growing fears for people living in communities in Pakistan cut off by devastating flooding caused by unusually strong monsoon rains, as damage to major roads hampers the military-led relief effort.

On a visit to a badly flooded area in the north-western province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Monday, the prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, described the rains as “unprecedented in the last 30 years”. “I have never seen such devastation in my life,” he said, vowing that his government “won’t disappoint” flood victims.

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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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China floods leave at least 12 dead, with thousands evacuated

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Another 12 missing in flash floods in Sichuan and Gansu, as some areas receive double their monthly rain in less than two days

Flash floods in south-west and north-west China have left at least a dozen dead and put thousands of others in harm’s way, state media has reported.

In the south-western province of Sichuan, at least six people have died and another 12 are missing after torrential rain triggered flash floods, state-owned news outlet CGTN reported on Sunday.

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Almost 1,000 firefighters tackle ‘mega-fire’ in southern France

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Authorities say blaze brought under control but likely to take days to extinguish amid drought conditions, heat and strong winds

Nearly 1,000 firefighters backed by water-dropping planes have been deployed to battle a massive blaze in France’s southern Gard region that burned 600 hectares (1,500 acres) and forced the evacuation of residents.

Local authorities said on Friday the wildfire had been brought under control but would take days to extinguish.

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Federal government pledges $1,000 disaster payment for NSW flood victims as threat moves north

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Deluge moves to Hunter and mid-north coast as Anthony Albanese announces one-off payment to people in 23 areas

The federal government will provide one-off $1,000 payments for people in 23 flood-affected areas across New South Wales, the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, announced on Wednesday, as the flood threat moved north.

Rain eased in areas of Sydney hit by flooding but concern remained for the state’s Hunter and mid-north coast regions, with flooding expected to continue into Wednesday evening.

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Efforts to move cargo ship stranded off Sydney suspended after tow lines snap in wild weather

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MV Portland Bay anchored in a sheltered position after wind and torrential rain prevented towing the ship to safety

Efforts to tow the stricken cargo ship MV Portland Bay to deeper waters were suspended overnight after lines being used to pull the vessel broke in extreme weather.

As wild winds and torrential rains continued to lash Sydney’s coast, it could be Wednesday before it was safe to tow the 170-metre ship into port.

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NSW floods: Sydney braces for two more days of flooding as state smashed by rain and wind

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SES perform 252 flood rescues overnight and thousands urged to evacuate as threat of inundation remains in Hawkesbury and Nepean

The New South Wales State Emergency Service reported more than 5,300 requests for assistance on Monday night, including 252 flood rescues, mainly of drivers stuck in cars and residents needing to be relocated.

The wild weather continued in NSW through the night, with heavy rain and strong winds lashing the state.

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Sydney flooding: communities evacuated and residents rescued as torrential rain batters region

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NSW State Emergency Service issues emergency alert text messages as severe weather threatens low-lying areas

Thousands of people in low-lying areas around Sydney are being asked to evacuate as residents and holiday-makers face “dangers on multiple fronts” in the region’s third major flooding event since March.

Emergency services minister Steph Cooke warned affected communities between Newcastle and Batemans Bay needed to be prepared to evacuate “at short notice” and should reconsider travel plans as an east coast low set in.

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Cyclone numbers have fallen since start of 20th century, study suggests

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Scientists warn that while total number of cyclones may be decreasing, global heating will see a higher proportion of more damaging storms

Global heating has coincided with fewer tropical cyclones forming each year around the globe compared with the second half of the 19th century, according to a new study.

The average annual number of cyclones fell by 13% across the 20th century, with steeper declines seen after 1950.

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‘Too much suffering’: survivors talk of quake’s deadly toll in Afghanistan

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5.9-magnitude earthquake leaves children buried under rubble and villages destroyed in already impoverished country

Sitting on a hill overlooking the remote Gayan district, Abdullah Abed pointed towards several freshly dug graves. “They screamed for help,” he said of his son Farhadullah, 10, and daughter Basrina, 18. “We tried to save them but by the time we pulled them out of the rubble, their voices had gone quiet.”

Today they lie buried beside 10 other family members lost in the 5.9-magnitude earthquake that struck eastern Afghanistan in the early hours of Wednesday. An estimated 250 people have died in the hard-hit district, many of them now buried next to Abed’s children, among the more than 1,150 people feared dead and 1,500 injured across Afghanistan’s eastern Paktika and Khost provinces. It was Afghanistan’s deadliest quake in two decades.

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Fears grow for Afghanistan earthquake survivors left without shelter

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First shipments of international aid arrive in country as officials say death toll has risen to 1,150

There are growing fears for the health and wellbeing of survivors of Wednesday’s earthquake in Afghanistan, as the death toll rose to 1,150 and the first shipments of international aid arrived in the impoverished country.

“There are no blankets, tents, there’s no shelter. Our entire water distribution system is destroyed. There is literally nothing to eat,” Zaitullah Ghurziwal, 21, told an AFP team that reached his village in Paktika province.

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Marseille, Alexandria and Istanbul prepare for Mediterranean tsunami

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Risk of significant tsunami within next 30 years is nearly 100%, Unesco says, as it urges coastal cities to become ‘tsunami-ready’

A tsunami could soon hit major cities on or near the Mediterranean Sea including Marseille, Alexandria and Istanbul, with a nearly 100% chance of a wave reaching more than a metre high in the next 30 years, according to Unesco.

The risk of a tsunami in Mediterranean coastal communities is predicted to soar as sea levels rise. While communities in the Pacific and Indian Ocean, where most tsunamis occur, were often aware of the dangers, it was underestimated in other coastal regions, including the Mediterranean, Unesco said.

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Afghan quake: at least 1,000 people killed after 5.9 magnitude tremor

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Toll expected to rise after deadliest quake in two decades strikes during night near Khost, 95 miles south of Kabul

A powerful earthquake in a remote area of Afghanistan’s Paktika province has killed at least 1,000 people and injured at least 1,500, with the toll expected to rise in the impoverished country.

According to Taliban officials, hundreds more were injured in what appears to have been the deadliest quake in two decades, striking during the night with heavy rain hampering rescue efforts.

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