MAGNITUDE 5.2 CENTRAL MID ATLANTIC RIDGE

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000tab8#summary

Subject To Change

Depth: 10 km

Distances: 1071km (665mi) NW of Georgetown, Saint Helena
1301km (808mi) SW of Freetown, Sierra Leone
1308km (813mi) SW of Waterloo, Sierra Leone
1309km (813mi) SW of Freetown, Sierra Leone
1325km (823mi) SW of Robertsport, Liberia  

MAGNITUDE 5.2 FIJI REGION

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=415149

Subject To Change

Depth: 612 km

Distances: 229 km E of Suva, Fiji / pop: 77,366 / local time: 07:53:46.7 2014-12-28
215 km SE of Lambasa, Fiji / pop: 24,187 / local time: 07:53:46.7 2014-12-28

Popocatepetl volcano explosions spews steam, gas and ashes about 2.1 miles into the air in Mexico

Authorities say the Popocatepetl volcano located just southeast of Mexico City has registered an explosion that spewed a mix of steam, gas and ashes about 3.5 kilometers (2.1 miles) into the air.

 

Mexico’s National Center for Disaster Prevention says that the flare up occurred on Friday afternoon and that the amount of ash mix released was “moderate.”

 

Popocatepetl is an active volcano, and the second tallest volcano in the country. It is located 72 kilometers (nearly 45 miles) from the capital, and close to Morelos, Puebla and Mexico states.

Courtesy of Yahoo News

http://tinyurl.com/lfp3v9u

Apocalyptic flooding with the threat of landslides strikes Malaysia and Thailand

Even by Malaysian standards, this flooding is epic.

 

Neighborhoods turned into islands surrounded by a sea of murky brown water. Streets doubled as rivers. Cars were swept away and toppled over.

 

The flooding has forced more than 132,000 people to evacuate, Malaysia’s official Bernama news agency said.

 

Strong currents and interrupted power supply are adding to the chaos, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak told reporters.

 

“Clean water supply too cannot be delivered, and flood victims at the temporary relief centers had to endure darkness without electric supply,” he said, according to Bernama.

 

The flooding ravaging Malaysia started more than a week ago. While the region is accustomed to monsoons, the “northeast monsoon” that has gripped Malaysia, Indonesia and southern Thailand is particularly harsh.

Here’s how it works, CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam said Saturday:

Strong high pressure develops over Eastern Europe and China and strengthens northeasterly winds from the South China Sea, bringing heavier rainfall over Malaysia, Indonesia and southern Thailand.

 

And it’s going to get worse. Another 100 millimeters (4 inches) of rain could fall over the next two days near the Malaysia-Thailand border, he said.

 

“That leaves open all kinds of possibilities — more flooding, and the possibility of landslides and mudslides,” Van Dam said.

 

Across the Bay of Bengal, Sri Lanka has been hit hard, too.

 

Kandy, in the center of the island nation, received more than twice the average monthly rainfall in just the past eight days, Van Dam said.

Courtesy of CNN

http://tinyurl.com/lawmfdl

Severe hailstorm causes pile-up in Cornwall, UK

Four people were hurt when a sudden hailstorm caused a multiple vehicle pile-up on the A30 in Cornwall, police say.

The collision, on the westbound carriageway near Camborne, involved about eight vehicles, Devon and Cornwall Police said.

 

One vehicle went up a bank on the side of the road, which was closed for about an hour.

 

There were no reports of any serious injuries.

Courtesy of The BBC

http://tinyurl.com/n8dgkxm

MAGNITUDE 5.3 PACIFIC ANTARCTIC RIDGE

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000ta7j#summary

Subject To Change

Depth: 10 km

Distances: 1914km (1189mi) ENE of Scott Island Bank, Antarctica
2924km (1817mi) SE of Dunedin, New Zealand
2952km (1834mi) SE of Oamaru, New Zealand
2966km (1843mi) SE of Christchurch, New Zealand
3017km (1875mi) SE of Wellington, New Zealand  

Two volcanoes spews out ash causing flight warnings in Guatemala

Ash clouds from two active volcanoes in Guatemala prompted local air travel warnings yesterday.

 

The country’s National Institute of Seismology, Vulcanology, Meteorology and Hydrology warned of columns of ash from the Fuego volcano in the south of the country rising up to 4,500m above sea level.

 

The Santa Maria volcano in southwestern Santiaguito ejected ash about 500m above the crater, the institute said.

 

The organisation cautioned air craft from flying in the vicinity of the ash-spewing volcanoes. 

 

Fuego and Santa Maria are two of several active volcanoes in the country.

 

Activity from the Fuego volcano in 2012 prompted authorities to evacuate thousands of people from its slopes.

Courtesy of The Malay Mail

http://tinyurl.com/q2v82wy

YELLOWSTONE REGION MAGNITUDE 2.7 8 MILES SE OF URSINE, NV

http://www.seis.utah.edu/req2webdir/recenteqs/Quakes/nn00473841.html

Subject To Change

Depth: 5.5 km

Distances: Ursine, NV – 13 km (8 miles) SE (129 degrees)
Joseco, NV – 47 km (29 miles) NNE (14 degrees)
Caliente, NV – 49 km (31 miles) NE (48 degrees)
Enterprise, UT – 50 km (31 miles) NW (319 degrees)
Pony Springs, NV – 63 km (39 miles) SE (135 degrees)

MAGNITUDE 4.6 EASTERN GREENLAND

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=415096

Subject To Change

Depth: 25 km

Distances: 1654 km N of Reykjavík, Iceland / pop: 113,906 / local time: 11:21:03.9 2014-12-27
1938 km N of Nuuk, Greenland / pop: 14,798 / local time: 08:21:03.9 2014-12-27
1941 km N of Tórshavn, Faroe Islands / pop: 13,200 / local time: 11:21:03.9 2014-12-27

MAGNITUDE 3.2 COLORADO, USA

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=415067

Subject To Change

Depth: 1 km

Distances: 604 km N of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico / pop: 1,512,354 / local time: 01:23:24.8 2014-12-27
175 km NE of Santa Fe, United States / pop: 67,947 / local time: 01:23:24.8 2014-12-27
37 km SW of Trinidad, United States / pop: 9,096 / local time: 01:23:24.8 2014-12-27