Archive | October 4, 2015
MAGNITUDE 5.6 NEAR COAST OF SOUTHERN PERU
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10003k7q#general_summary
Subject To Change
Depth: 71 km
Distances: 34km (21mi) SW of Lluta, Peru
66km (41mi) NE of Camana, Peru
75km (47mi) WNW of Arequipa, Peru
88km (55mi) NNW of Mollendo, Peru
436km (271mi) W of La Paz, Bolivia
Hailstorm unleashes Golf ball-Size hail in Las Cruces, USA
Photo: Amy Beck
A storm rained down large chunks of ice across the Mesilla Valley on Saturday afternoon, leaving in its wake shattered windshields, broken skylights and bruised bodies.
The storm, carrying with it golf ball-sized hail, battered various areas of town in about five-minute intervals between 1:30 and 2 p.m.
“Everybody in Las Cruces got a taste of it,” said Greg Lundeen, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Santa Teresa.
Many took to social media to share photos and stories of what they had witnessed.
“Sounded like a train or a plane planning to land on my roof. Went to bring a plant in and got hit on my head dong, clunk..ouch” Gloria Alderette posted on the Las Cruces Sun-News facebook page.
Juli Rivera Durrett, who lives near Roadrunner Parkway and Frontier Drive, reported damage to her house. “Broke every skylight in the house. Hail on the bathroom floors,” she wrote.
“Gave my son a huge welt on his arm,” wrote Ari Brown, who also lives off of Roadrunner.
Tori Bracamonte, 20, said she has lived in Las Cruces all of her life and has never witnessed a hailstorm like this one.
“I had heard of golf ball-sized hail, but I never thought it existed,” she said. “This was like something out of the movies.”
Lundeen said Las Cruces isn’t immune to violent hailstorms. In June of 1996, the town recorded golf ball-sized hail, he said. A hailstorm in 2004 brought tennis ball-sized hail to southern Doña Ana County, he said.
The degree of Saturday’s hailstorm was rather unexpected, however.
“We knew there’d be some thunderstorms, and possibly some small hail,” he said. “But all of the ingredients came together for severe development that wasn’t obvious early on.”
All of areas of Las Cruces, including near Mayfield High School, were pelted by hail. (Photo: Janelle Becker-Mottley/Courtesy photo)
Bracamonte, who lives near the baseball and softball fields in the Hadley Complex, said she and her family were watching The Whole Enchilada Fiesta Softball Tournament from their back yard, when the storm began. They sought shelter inside. Outside, the hail was busting through the windshield of her dad’s pickup and leaving dents in her car.
But, Bracamonte said, she was concerned about the players competing in tournament.
“I went outside to see if they were OK. They were all hiding in the dugouts and the fields were covered in hail,” she said.
Many were also in attendance at the Southern New Mexico State Fair & Rodeo west of town when the hailstorm struck,
“It hit me in the face, but it did not dampen my spirits,” said fair-goer Camila Garcia.
Las Cruces Police Department Sgt. Roberto Gutierrez said he wasn’t aware of any major damage or injuries due to the storm.
Lundeen said the Las Cruces International Airport, the weather service’s official reporting station, recorded 0.37 inches of rain as of 6 p.m. Saturday, but “some areas (of Las Cruces) probably got more.”
Low-pressure systems in California and the Gulf of Mexico are pushing the stormy weather into Las Cruces. Lundeen said residents can expect more rain, and more thunderstorms, through Wednesday.
Courtesy of lcsun-news.com
CHEMICAL EXPLOSION INJURES 4 AT SUN EDISON PLANT IN PASADENA, TEXAS, USA
Four workers were hospitalized after being injured in an explosion and fire at the SunEdison in Pasadena Friday morning. Three of those injured were released from the hospital by the afternoon, the company says.
The blast happened just before 8am at the facility in the 2500 block of N South Street. The cause of the explosion and fire is not known at this time.
The chemical released during the explosion is “silane,” which authorities say poses no threat to the public. According to the CDC, contact with it can cause coughing, nausea, sore throat, hives or frostbite.
Two of the four injured workers were taken to Memorial Hermann Hospital. One, a 42-year-old male, was taken by Life Flight with chemical burns to his face and chest. Two others were taken to Bayshore Medical Center. We’re told none of the injuries are life-threatening.
“SunEdison is cooperating completely with the local authorities and we’re gathering information on the accident.” Said Lynette Schulte with SunEdison. “Right now, our focus is on the safety of our employees.”
We’re told everyone was evacuated just after the explosion happened.
SunEdison released a statement, saying, “We’re continuing to focus on the safety of our employees and of the community. Initial findings indicate that the 4 employees who were injured do not face life-threatening injuries. Our thoughts and prayers are with them. As well, while there was a fire at the facility, it has been safely extinguished. We will share more information when we’re able to. We are continuing to cooperate with authorities in their investigation into the incident.”
Courtesy of abc13.com
Chemical spill at Heritage Industrial Complex in Cairo, Georgia, USA
Cairo firefighters spent hours Friday working to contain a chemical spill at a company in Heritage Industrial Complex.
A safety officer at Big Bend Agri Services said a small amount of vinegar overflowed from a new tank that had been recently installed. The company blamed the problem on a faulty sensor.
The Cairo Fire Department tells a bit of a different story. They said they got a call around 8:30 a.m. from staff at Cairo High School concerned about a strong smell. Once firefighters determined it was coming from Big Bend, near the school, they evacuated the school and nearby homes. It was a student holiday, so no students were there.
Hazardous materials technicians went into the facility. They determined 75 to 100 gallons of liquid organic peroxide spilled. Crews used 5,000 gallons of water to flush the chemical out of the warehouse.
Workers with the city utilities department built a berm to contain the chemical, and crews used around two dozen bags of soda ash to neutralize it and make it safe for the cleanup to proceed.
The evacuation was lifted around 1:00 p.m., and fire crews left the scene about 1:45.
Company officials said there were no injuries and insist there was never any danger to the public.
Courtesy of wtoc.com
CHEMICAL STORE FIRE AT VESTAS, NEWPORT – ISLE OF WIGHT, UK
Three appliances from the Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service are attending a large fire at Vestas on the outskirts of Newport this afternoon (Saturday).
Crews were called to the scene on Stag Lane at around 15:00. The chemical store at the wind turbine factory is alight.
Billowing black smoke can be seen across the River Medina.
Courtesy of islandecho.co.uk
Chemical explosion injures 2 in highlands, Hudson valley, USA
A fire destroyed a chemical recovery warehouse early Friday night, injuring two people and bringing out multiple fire departments.
The blaze broke out at 171 Chapel Hill Road at about 5:30 p.m., causing explosions, heavy flames and thick smoke.
Two people who suffered injuries at the scene were taken to MidHudson Regional Hospital and later transported to Westchester Medical Center, according to Highland Fire Department Chief Pete Miller. The extent of their injuries was not immediately known.
Miller described the building as a recovery center for oil and other vehicle fluids. He said the cause of the blaze was unknown and being investigated.
With the help of various departments, the two-alarm fire was contained in about an hour. A haz-mat team from Kingston as well as a crew from the Department of Environmental Conservation were at the scene to contain the run-off fluids, Miller said.
Area residents reported hearing multiple explosions during the initial stages of the fire.
Nearby roads were closed while firefighters battled the blaze.
Courtesy of hudsonvalleynewsnetwork.com
Deadly Flash Floods Kills At Least 16 In France
Up to 16 people have been killed in flash floods on the French Riviera, with the region receiving two months’ rainfall in just two hours.
France’s Alpes-Maritimes region, which lies on the Mediterranean coast bordering Italy, was hit by torrential rain on Saturday evening.
French President Francois Hollande said people were found dead in the towns of Cannes, Biot, Golfe-Juan and Mandelieu-la-Napoule near the border with Italy.
The flooding has affected France’s Mediterranean coast
Mr Hollande promised aid for residents hit by the flooding and urged people to remain cautious, with many roads still impassable.
He appealed for the “solidarity of the nation” and has visited the town of Biot with Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve to see the damage for himself.
Flood Waters Rip Through Cannes
Mr Cazeneuve said there was “little hope” in finding alive at least six people who are missing.
Pope Francis also offered prayers for the victims during his blessing from ST Peter’s Square, saying: “We express our nearness to the hard-hit populations, including with concrete forms of solidarity.”
It is understood three victims were killed at a Biot retirement home after the nearby River Brague burst its banks.
Others drowned in their cars after becoming stuck inside a tunnel, a woman in her 60s died on the street in Cannes and another victim died at a campsite in Antibes, where rescue helicopters airlifted others to safety from the rooftops of their caravans.
John Canavan was in Cannes as the flood hit and said: “It was slow in the beginning and, in an instant, it was ten times worse.
“Before we knew it, within 20 minutes, you couldn’t see the sidewalks even. There were rapids.”
French officials say the flooding closed the A8 motorway and Cannes railway station, while in Nice, a football game in the country’s first division was abandoned halfway through due to the rain.
Around 27,000 homes were left without electricity and, according to France 24, up to 500 tourists – mostly British and Danish nationals – were stuck overnight at Nice airport. Hundreds more were stranded for the night at a concert venue after attending a show by rocker Johnny Hallyday.
According to local radio station France Bleu-Azur, more than 17cm of rain fell on the Cannes region in two hours – the same amount the region would usually expect over two months.
Some of the affected areas are still inaccessible, raising concerns there may be more casualties and further damage.
Courtesy of Sky News
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