At least Six dead as cyclone lashes Madagascar

Tropical Cyclone Bansi off Madagascar, described as an extremely intense class two cyclone, January 18, 2015. — AFP pic

At least six people perished in a tropical storm that battered Madagascar over the past two days, affecting almost 80,000 residents, according to an official toll published today.

 

Local radio said as many as 13 people may have died, including two in Antananarivo, capital of the Indian Ocean island.

 

Tropical storm Chedza swept through Madagascar on Friday and yesterday, adding to the country’s woes after the government resigned last week in the face of violent protests over recurring power blackouts.

 

A meteorological report warned that there was still a danger of flooding in certain areas around Antananarivo.

 

Two people died earlier this month when angry residents took to the streets to protest rolling power blackouts.

 

A new prime minister was appointed last week after the resignation of the government which had come under fire for its handling of the repeated electricity failures.

Courtesy of The Malay Mail Online

http://tinyurl.com/nrtqf68

Mount Soputan erupts and spews ash; Indonesia

Mount Soputan, in Indonesia’s North Sulawesi province, erupted Sunday, spewing volcanic ash up to 4 kilometres into the sky.

The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) said the volcano erupted at 11:38 am (0338 GMT) and raised its status to standby.

 

“Villagers are banned to enter areas within (a) 6.5-kilometre radius from the crater,” BNPB spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said. There was no minor eruption following the 11:38 am activity, but the volcano has been showing signs of increased volcanic activity since Wednesday. Spewed ash was being blown to the south-west Mount Soputan erupted twice on January 6 and has been showing increased activity since then. There were no reports of casualties.

Courtesy of Nation Multimedia

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Landslide Traps 200, Rescue Ongoing In Eastern Philippines

Rescue operations are now ongoing for 200 people trapped in a landslide in Manito, Albay on Sunday morning. No casualties have been reported. Before the landslide occurred, the local government of Albay had ordered a preemptive evacuation ahead of the onslaught of tropical storm Amang.

Courtesy of UBALERT

http://tinyurl.com/opx47hp

Severe storm unleashes giant hailstones and uproots trees in parts of South Africa

Gale-force winds of 74km/h pummelled large parts of KwaZulu-Natal on Friday evening, toppling trees, ripping homes and damaging cars

The storm – which was accompanied by heavy rain and, in parts of the Midlands, golf-ball-size hailstones – started in central and southern coastal parts of the province before hitting Durban and moving north.

 

The rain also interrupted the international cricket match between South Africa and the West Indies in Durban on Friday night, with viewers able to see the storm approaching from the game’s television visuals.

 

Rishaad Hoossain and his two passengers were lucky to escape when a large jacaranda tree, uprooted by the gale-force winds, crashed onto his Toyota Avanza as they were driving towards Florida Road, Durban’s popular restaurant hub.

 

A vehicle just in front of theirs was also hit, but was not as badly damaged.

 

Hoossain’s father, Haroon, said the entire tree had “completely covered” the car. “They managed to get out and stood on the side of the road in disbelief. All the branches had to be cut off to remove the tree from the car. They were lucky to be alive,” he said.

 

 

KZN Emergency Medical Rescue Services spokesman Robert McKenzie said that, at about 11pm, paramedics were called out to Nkandla after 10 houses were damaged. There were no reports of damage to the presidential compound. Two people were also taken to hospital after a lightning strike.

 

At Margate, on the south coast, three people were injured when thatched beachfront stalls collapsed in heavy winds. McKenzie said the three sustained minor injuries.

 

In Pietermaritzburg, hailstones damaged vehicles and smashed windows. Several trees, including one on the provincial capital’s main Langalibalele Street, were also blown over.

 

Yachts lost their moorings at the Tuzi Gazi waterfront in Richards Bay and at the Durban Yacht Mole. There was no major damage and the yachts were put into other moorings, said Craig Lambinon, spokesman for the National Sea Rescue Institute.

 

South African Weather Service meteorologist Stacy Colborne said the greater Durban area received 20mm of rain, less than the 50mm that is considered heavy rainfall. She attributed the inclement weather to an approaching cold front.

 

“It was not the rain but rather the wind that caused the damage. We had issued a warning for gale-force winds in the morning,” she said.

 

Colborne said winds had reached between 46km/h and 65km/h, with gusts as strong as 74km/h.

 

McKenzie said the disaster management teams and government agencies were on standby yesterday and would be doing full assessments to determine which areas needed assistance.

Jaimie White, 10 looks at the golf ball sized hail she collected in her garden in Scottsville , Pietermaritzburg after the storm on Friday evening

Courtesy of Times Live

http://tinyurl.com/q5dtmbs

MetO were right after all for the UK’s SE

MetO were right after all for the UK’s SE. GFS resolution for snow was incorrect which is so unusual for them. Damp and cold is the theme. Clutching straws now; there’s a ppn system in the North making it’s way South approaching Leeds. If this system carries on it’s projected path and stays strong, we could be in with a chance of something wintry. Just a long shot at the moment.

This week will be very cold and snow is on the cards at some point.

Even the long range forecast is on the cold side going into February.

MAGNITUDE 5.2 SOUTHERN MID-ATLANTIC RIDGE

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000tgxf#summary

Subject To Change

Depth: 10 km

Distances: 885km (550mi) W of Jamestown, Saint Helena
2400km (1491mi) SSW of Harper, Liberia
2417km (1502mi) SSW of Tabou, Ivory Coast
2431km (1511mi) SSW of Greenville, Liberia
2536km (1576mi) S of Monrovia, Liberia

MAGNITUDE 5.0 BURYATIYA, RUSSIA

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000tgwz#summary

Subject To Change

Depth: 10 km

Distances: 11km (7mi) SE of Severomuysk, Russia
86km (53mi) WSW of Taksimo, Russia
200km (124mi) SSW of Bodaybo, Russia
269km (167mi) ENE of Severobaykal’sk, Russia
1017km (632mi) NNE of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia  

MAGNITUDE 5.8 RAT ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000tgw6#summary

Subject To Change

Depth: 105 km

Distances: 5km (3mi) SSW of Semisopochnoi Island, Alaska
1421km (883mi) E of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, Russia
1435km (892mi) S of Anadyr’, Russia
1439km (894mi) E of Yelizovo, Russia
2906km (1806mi) W of Whitehorse, Canada  

MAGNITUDE 5.0 BONIN ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000tgw5#summary

Subject To Change

Depth: 8 km

Distances: 167km (104mi) N of Chichi-shima, Japan
753km (468mi) SSE of Tateyama, Japan
754km (469mi) SSE of Shimoda, Japan
756km (470mi) SSE of Katsuura, Japan
832km (517mi) SSE of Tokyo, Japan  

MAGNITUDE 5.0 OFFSHORE VALPARAISO, CHILE

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000tgw0#summary

Subject To Change

Depth: 23 km

Distances: 42km (26mi) NNW of Valparaiso, Chile
43km (27mi) NNW of Vina del Mar, Chile
49km (30mi) NW of Quilpue, Chile
50km (31mi) WNW of Quillota, Chile
134km (83mi) NW of Santiago, Chile