More weird weather: tornadoes, floods, now snow in Siberia

Residents of Krasnoyark take to boats to go to work, while an unusual July snowstorm hits Yakutia.

 

Recently we showed two tornadoes on the same day in different regions of Siberia. Such a phenomenon is rare here, but so too are other examples of extreme weather this summer. 

 

For example, there is a stereotype that it is always cold in Siberia but in fact summers are hot, depending on the region. 

Snow is rare indeed in July in the Kobyaisky district of Yakutia, also known as the Sakha Republic, yet it arrived this week. This district is on a similar latitude to Trongheim in Norway or the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik.

 

The city of Krasnoyarsk was paralysed by a deluge of rain, with floods in the ground floors of apartment blocks and many people late for work. 

 

Local blogger and journalist Stanislav Kazachenko told newspaper Prospekt Mira: ‘When I saw how much water is in the street after the rain, there was a decision exactly how I’m going to get to work.

‘I took my two-seat boat and sailed along Zheleznodorozhnikov Street. Ordinary people helped me, encouraged, advised, how to row.’

 

The situation aggravated when a lightning hit an electrical substation in the city centre, plunging houses, shops and offices into gloom.

 

Others used a wakeboard to cross the submerged street. A bus laden with passengers got waterlogged and needed to be rescued by firefighters.

 

City official Igor Titenkov told: ‘Today nature has given us a test that we must endure. We do not relax – pumps are still working in the city.

 

‘All services work in an emergency mode…. it is not disaster, but we are working at full swing.’ 

 

Krasnoyarsk mayor Edkham Akbulatov stated: ‘Sadly we do not have enough ‘storm drains’. It is a problem for our city and it cannot be solved quickly.’

The freak flooding was all the more surprising since forecasts had warned of slight rain and thunderstorms, but nothing on the scale of the weather that hit Krasnoyarsk. 

 

Social media reports show locals blame climate change and global warming for the extreme weather.

Courtesy of siberiantimes.com

http://tinyurl.com/jljbcbm

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Major power outage disrupts subway’s on blackout anniversary in New York, USA

New Yorkers trying to ride the subway experienced long delays, as the system’s central control faltered due to a power outage. The mishap comes on the anniversary of the notorious 1977 blackout.

 

The problem was first reported around 1:30 p.m. local time (17:30 GMT), with the Metro Transit Authority (MTA) warning passengers of “extensive” delays and long wait times.

 

The MTA’s Rail Control Center in Manhattan lost power for unspecified reasons, and had to activate a backup system, the Gothamist reported. As a result, trains throughout the subway network had to be dispatched locally, instead of remotely, resulting in cascading delays.

 

Every single line was affected by the outage, with residual delays continuing well into rush hour.

 

Wednesday was the anniversary of the 1977 blackout, when most of New York City was without power on for two days due to a lightning strike at a Con Edison power substation. Widespread looting and vandalism devastated 31 neighborhoods, with the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Crown Heights and Bushwick among the worst affected.

 

The New York subway is one of the world’s oldest, with the first stretch of track opening in 1904. It is the seventh busiest subway transit system in the world, with 469 stations and a total of 846 miles (1,362 km) of track, used by more than 5.6 million people every weekday.

Courtesy of rt.com

http://tinyurl.com/hxbdpwh

MAGNITUDE 4.3 CYPRUS REGION

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=518095

Subject To Change

Depth: 45 km

Distances: 219 km NW of Nicosia, Cyprus / pop: 200,452 / local time: 21:36:07.2 2016-07-13
116 km S of Antalya, Turkey / pop: 758,188 / local time: 21:36:07.2 2016-07-13
98 km SE of Finike, Turkey / pop: 9,250 / local time: 21:36:07.2 2016-07-13
84 km SE of Tekirova, Turkey / pop: 20,000 / local time: 21:36:07.2 2016-07-13

MAGNITUDE 5.0 KERMADEC ISLANDS REGION

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=518072

Subject To Change

Depth: 10 km

Distances: 784 km S of Nuku‘alofa, Tonga / pop: 22,400 / local time: 02:16:40.6 2016-07-14
1219 km SE of Suva, Fiji / pop: 77,366 / local time: 01:16:40.6 2016-07-14
1645 km S of Pago Pago, American Samoa / pop: 11,500 / local time: 02:16:40.6 2016-07-13

MAGNITUDE 5.8 KERMADEC ISLANDS REGION

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=518063

Subject To Change

Depth: 10 km

Distances: 768 km S of Nuku‘alofa, Tonga / pop: 22,400 / local time: 02:04:25.4 2016-07-14
1206 km SE of Suva, Fiji / pop: 77,366 / local time: 01:04:25.4 2016-07-14
1630 km S of Pago Pago, American Samoa / pop: 11,500 / local time: 02:04:25.4 2016-07-13

MAGNITUDE 5.1 KERMADEC ISLANDS REGION

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=518067

Subject To Change

Depth: 10 km

Distances: 777 km S of Nuku‘alofa, Tonga / pop: 22,400 / local time: 01:58:07.5 2016-07-14
1231 km SE of Suva, Fiji / pop: 77,366 / local time: 00:58:07.5 2016-07-14
1631 km S of Pago Pago, American Samoa / pop: 11,500 / local time: 01:58:07.5 2016-07-13

MAGNITUDE 5.7 KERMADEC ISLANDS REGION

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us1000638n#general

Subject To Change

Depth: 10 km

Distances: 181.0 km (112.5 mi) NE of Raoul Island, New Zealand
788.0 km (489.6 mi) S of Nuku`alofa, Tonga
1203.0 km (747.5 mi) NE of Whangarei, New Zealand
1220.0 km (758.1 mi) SSE of Suva, Fiji
1243.0 km (772.4 mi) NNE of Whakatane, New Zealand

MAGNITUDE 6.3 KERMADEC ISLANDS REGION

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=518049

Subject To Change

Depth: 15 km

Distances: 781 km S of Nuku‘alofa, Tonga / pop: 22,400 / local time: 01:11:13.4 2016-07-14
1222 km SE of Suva, Fiji / pop: 77,366 / local time: 00:11:13.4 2016-07-14
1641 km S of Pago Pago, American Samoa / pop: 11,500 / local time: 01:11:13.4 2016-07-13

MAGNITUDE 6.0 KERMADEC ISLANDS REGION

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=518044

Subject To Change

Depth: 15 km

Distances: 809 km S of Nuku‘alofa, Tonga / pop: 22,400 / local time: 00:56:58.5 2016-07-14
1247 km SE of Suva, Fiji / pop: 77,366 / local time: 23:56:58.5 2016-07-13
1644 km NE of Wellington, New Zealand / pop: 381,900 / local time: 23:56:58.5 2016-07-13

MAGNITUDE 4.6 SOUTHERN XINJIANG, CHINA

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=518056

Subject To Change

Depth: 33 km

Distances: 579 km SE of Urunchi, China / pop: 1,508,225 / local time: 17:18:19.8 2016-07-13
443 km S of Turpan, China / pop: 254,900 / local time: 17:18:19.8 2016-07-13