Massive snowstorm kills two in Australia

This series of massive early season snow storms, that dropped over 6 feet of snow in Australia, caused the death of two people at Australian ski resorts.

The first death was a male staff member at Perisher ski resort. The man was snowboarding at the time of his death but details are still unknown.

The second death was a 7-year old boy was buried by snow that slid off a roof at Mt. Buller ski resort. The boy did not survive the burial.

http://tinyurl.com/mlg4gx3

MAGNITUDE 5.7 NEAR EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000rqix#summary

Subject To Change

Depth: 44 km

Distances: 8km (5mi) ENE of Miyako, Japan
24km (15mi) NNE of Yamada, Japan
36km (22mi) NNE of Otsuchi, Japan
47km (29mi) NNE of Kamaishi, Japan
488km (303mi) NNE of Tokyo, Japan

Monsoon sparks fires, knocks out power to Valley, Arizona, USA

The first monsoon of 2014 rolled through the Phoenix metro area Thursday, sparking two fires and knocking out power to thousands.

 

Both fires, one first-alarm and one second-alarm, were ignited near 43rd Avenue and Indian School Road just before 10 p.m. They fires may have been caused by lightning or a downed power line.

 

Phoenix Police Officer James Holmes said burned materials discovered Friday may be hazardous. As a result, the area between 40th and 39th avenues and Indian School and Clarendon was closed as a precaution.

 

Power was out for about 25,000 customers between Salt River Project and Arizona Public Service.

 

“From Queen Creek where they (the storms) kind of started all the way up through mesa, South Phoenix and up through West Phoenix,” said Jeff Lane with SRP.

 

Lane said both companies had crews on standby to get power back after the storm. As of Friday morning, about 300 people were still without power but it was expected to be repaired by noon.

 

The National Weather Service said more blowing dust and rain is possible Friday.

http://tinyurl.com/nmgfkb7

Plane makes an emergency landing in Pensacola, Florida, USA

American Airlines officials say a plane made an emergency landing at Pensacola International Airport due to “a strong odor” in the cabin Thursday, July 3.

 

American Airlines Flight 386  was en route from Jacksonville International Airport to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport when the incident occurred.

 

As a precaution, the MD-80 was diverted to Pensacola International Airport. The aircraft landed without incident and all 115 passengers and 5 crewsmembers are safe, according to American Airlines spokesperson Paul Flanigan.  He said another jet was available to bring the passengers to Dallas with an expected arrival at 11:25 p.m.

http://tinyurl.com/nzmc2kh

Plane crash at Las Vegas Municipal Airport in northeastern New Mexico, USA

Four family members were injured when a plane crashed Wednesday night while landing at the Las Vegas Municipal Airport in northeastern New Mexico, the Federal Aviation Administration said.

Emergency responders airlifted the plane’s owner and pilot, James Fretham, 50, of Chanhassen, Minn., to Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center in Santa Fe, where FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford said he was in critical condition late Wednesday.

Elizabeth Fretham, 49, Caitrin Fretham, 21, and a 15-year-old girl suffered minor injuries and were released from the hospital Wednesday night.

The plane, which had flown from Ames, Iowa, crashed at about 6:30 p.m., Lunsford said.

Christian Montaño, the Las Vegas, N.M., police chief, said officials haven’t determined what caused the crash. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board arrived at the scene Thursday morning to begin an investigation, Lunsford said.

“It usually takes months to determine a cause,” Lunsford said. “Aviation accidents are analyzed very methodically,” and the investigation “involves understanding multiple aspects, including the pilot’s actions, possible wind or weather effects, and the mechanical state of the plane.”

The National Weather Service said that at about 6 p.m. Wednesday, winds were blowing southeast at 14 mph, and it was mostly cloudy in Las Vegas. No rain was reported there between 6 and 7 p.m., the National Weather Service said.

http://tinyurl.com/ndjeyln

YELLOWSTONE REGION MAGNITUDE 2.6 UTAH

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=389167

Subject To Change

Depth: 5 km

Distances: 474 km N of Phoenix, United States / pop: 1,445,632 / local time: 14:30:38.2 2014-07-04
356 km S of Salt Lake City, United States / pop: 186,440 / local time: 15:30:38.2 2014-07-04
22 km S of Parowan, United States / pop: 2,790 / local time: 15:30:38.2 2014-07-04
13 km E of Cedar City, United States / pop: 28,857 / local time: 15:30:38.2 2014-07-04

Plane crash at Inverell Airport, Australia

Emergency services are on the scene at Inverell Airport where a plane has crashed.

 

Three people were on board the small plane which crashed into the Clive State Forest after having experiencing difficulty on take-off shortly after 1pm.

 

All three passengers are reported to be injured – two of them critical.

 

Police media said the two critically injured were a male and female in their 50s, who suffered serious burns, and the third passenger was a teenager.

 

They were transferred to Inverell District Hospital.

 

No commercial flights have operated at the airport since March 2009 when airline Aeropelican stopped its flight service between Sydney and Inverell.

http://tinyurl.com/o97o5dw

Jet2 plane to Crete makes emergency landing at Manchester Airport, UK

A Jet.com plane flying from East Midlands Airport to Heraklion in Crete has made an emergency landing at Manchester Airport.

The jet took off at 5.40pm but was then recorded as circling over the Peak District before landing just before 7pm at Manchester.

A fault with the aircraft is believed to be behind the decision to divert the flight to the region’s airport.

The flight was reported as having landed safely.

http://tinyurl.com/ldxnhzm

Major power outage at Perth’s airport causes dozens of delays, Australia

The blackout affected the car park and domestic terminals One and Two for several hours, leaving passengers in darkness.

 

Flights out of terminal two, which services Virgin Australia and other carriers, were delayed by up to an hour and a half this morning.

 

The delays affected hundreds of FIFO workers who were waiting on early flights to minesites in the north of the state.

 

When power returned just after 6am loud cheers went up around the terminal.

 

Power was also knocked out to some inner east suburbs including Mt Lawley. Western Power are investigating and have been working to restore services.

 

Perth Airport has warned that delays could continue as they work through the backlog throughout the morning.

http://tinyurl.com/okbysty

MAGNITUDE 5.2 AZORES ISLANDS REGION

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000rqih#summary

Subject To Change

Depth: 10 km

Distances: 587km (365mi) SW of Santa Cruz das Flores, Portugal
789km (490mi) WSW of Angra do Heroismo, Portugal
877km (545mi) WSW of Ponta Delgada, Portugal
1679km (1043mi) WNW of Camara de Lobos, Portugal
2024km (1258mi) SE of St. John’s, Canada