Part of the River Thames freezes for first time in several years
Sub-zero temperatures saw water turn to ice along a section of the Thames in Teddington, in the south west of England’s capital city.
An image taken by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in Teddington showed seagulls chilling on the frozen surface of the river.
In a tweet, the RNLI said they might’ve needed to use a smaller lifeboat as an ‘icebraker’ to get out onto the water because it’s “not often the Thames freezes over in Teddington”.
A spokesperson said “It’s quite spectacular. I’ve lived here for 13-years and I’ve not seen this part of the river freeze like this.”
The Thames has completely frozen over in the past, the last time being in January 1963 – the coldest winter for more than 200 years that brought blizzards, snow drifts and temperatures of -20C.
Extremely cold weather this week saw temperatures in London drop to -2C, meanwhile the UK experienced the coldest February night for 25 years – with temperatures of -23C recorded at Braemar weather station in Scotland.
Between 1309 and 1814, the Thames froze at least 23 times and on five occasions the ice was strong enough to hold a fair on the river.
The ice was several feet thick and could support shops, pubs, fairground rides, thousands of people – and even elephants could walk across it!
The first ‘frost fair’ as they were known was recorded in 1608 when the river iced up for six weeks. The last fair took place over 200 years later in 1814.
The frost fairs took place during a period of time known as the Little Ice Age, roughly between 1350-1850 which saw an increase in cold winters in parts of Europe.
Courtesy of BBC Newsround
THAMES BARRIER HAS BEEN ACTIVATED DUE TO A VERY HIGH SURGE ALONG THE RIVER THAMES, LONDON, UK
THAMES BARRIER HAS BEEN ACTIVATED DUE TO A VERY HIGH SURGE ALONG THE RIVER THAMES IN ORDER TO PROTECT COMMUNITIES AROUND TEDDINGTON, LONDON, UK
Heavy rains trigger floods, landslides in E. Visayas, Philippines
Heavy downpour has triggered flooding and landslides in Samar and Southern Leyte provinces over the weekend, the Regional Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) reported on Monday.
Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Regional Director Lord Byron Torrecarion, RDRRMC Eastern Visayas chairperson said there has been widespread rainfall in the region that caused rivers and streams to rise quickly especially in Northern and Eastern Samar provinces.
“So far, there has been no reported casualties or missing persons as of Monday morning, but we have been regularly monitoring the situation since it is still raining in many parts of the region,” Torrecarion said in a phone interview.
In a progress report sent to the Philippine News Agency (PNA), the RDRRMC reported floodings within the highway that links the towns of Gandara and Matuguinao in Samar; two villages in Catarman, a community in Catubig, nine villages in Allen, and three areas in Capul town in Northern Samar.
In Eastern Samar, flooding has affected 24 villages in Oras town; 15 communities in Dolores; two villages each in Sulat, Maslog, San Julian, and Can-avid; and one village each in the towns of Arteche and Jipapad.
Landslides have been reported along the provincial road sections in Catalina village in Jiabong, Samar; Lawaan village in Paranas; and a major highway in Kahupian, Sogod in Southern Leyte province.
At least 627 individuals have been preemptively evacuated in Catarman and Catubig towns in Northern Samar on Sunday.
“Since we expect rains to continue in the next two days, all villages identified as high to very-high susceptibility ratings to flooding and landslide were already advised to conduct preemptive evacuation especially those vulnerable groups,” Torrecarion added.
In an advisory issued early Monday, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said the heavy rains are caused by the tail-end of the frontal system affecting the eastern section of Visayas and intertropical convergence zone affecting Mindanao, and northeast monsoon affecting Luzon.
Courtesy of pna.gov.ph
Red alert flood warning for River Severn issued, UK
River levels in Gloucestershire are rising after heavy rainfall – with more wet weather to come.
The Environment Agency has issued a Flood Warning and Flood Alerts for parts of the Severn and Wye as tidal surges and strong winds combine with rain to cause flooding.
There were reports this afternoon of flooding on the A40 at Highnham, around Two Mile Lane.
This evening, a red Flood Warning was issued for the River Severn at Severn Ham, Tewkesbury.
A Flood Warning has also been issued for the River Wye from Hereford to Ross-on-Wye.
Incident response staff have been deployed along the River Severn in Gloucestershire to check defences as people are urged to avoid using low lying footpaths near watercourses.
On the Severn Estuary, from Gloucester down to Sharpness, the tidal surge with high spring tides and strong winds is expected to overtop sea defences.
Just across the Herefordshire border in Ross-on-Wye, heavy rainfall has seen river levels on Wye rise and flooding of roads and farmland is expected to continue.
The Met Office has put severe weather warnings on parts of the South West and Wales, although none of the warning zones cover Gloucestershire at present.
Courtesy of gloucestershirelive.co.uk
Typhoon Vicky leaves 9 dead in Visayas and Mindanao, Philippines
TROPICAL Depression “Vicky” left nine people dead and affected thousands in the Visayas and Mindanao as it slowly moved away from the country.
Mark Timbal, deputy spokesman for the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), confirmed on Sunday that three persons died during the storm’s rage in Mahaplag, Leyte as reported by local authorities.
Agusan del Sur Gov. Santiago Cane, meanwhile, reported three fatalities and one missing from the town of San Francisco with some areas still flooded.
Cane said the local government units of Agusan del Sur have been preparing for natural calamities, especially typhoons and other types of weather disturbances.
But the typhoon’s heavy rainfall reached the red warning, causing rivers to overflow.
Cane identified one of the fatalities as an employee of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. The victim tried to cross the highway with his wife on a motorcycle, but floodwaters dragged them to their death.
The two other victims crossed rivers separately, with one of them drunk at the time. The two were swept away by the strong waves.
Surigao del Sur Gov. Alexander Pimentel, meanwhile, said three people also died in his province.
In its situational report, the NDRRMC said it monitored a total of 26 incidents in Caraga Region during Vicky’s onslaught, with 25 incidents of flooding and one landslide recorded.
The NDRRMC said 1,590 families or 6,702 persons across the regions of Davao and Caraga were affected by the weather disturbance.
Damage to infrastructure has reached P105.4 million in Caraga alone. Agricultural damage is still being assessed, the NDRRMC said.
“Our operations are continuous and our local government units have been on-alert even before [the tropical depression] entered. Everyone coordinated through the regional disaster councils in the Visayas and Mindanao,” Timbal said in a separate interview over TeleRadyo.
Courtesy of manilatimes.net
Heavy rains cause flooding, landslide in Northern Luzon, Philippines
Heavy rains from the tail-end of a frontal system caused flooding and a landslide in Northern Luzon, according to a report on 24 Oras News Alert on Saturday.
In San Mateo, Isabela, 50 families had their houses flooded after the irrigation canal nearby overflowed its banks.
Meanwhile, a rescue van from Cagayan got stranded in mud and was hit by rocks after a landslide occurred in Mt. Province.
Authorities have already conducted clearing operations in the area.
About 40 families on Saturday were evacuated from a barangay in Tuguegarao after the city in Cagayan experienced flooding anew resulting from incessant rains brought by the tail-end of a cold front.
PAGASA said the tail-end of a frontal system will bring rains over the eastern side of Northern Luzon on Saturday.
The National Irrigation Administration-Magat River Integrated Irrigation System (NIA-MRIIS) on Saturday morning warned residents in Northern Luzon of possible flooding as it announced it is discharging almost 800 cubic meters per second (cms) of water.
Residents of upper, middle and lower Cagayan were warned of possible flooding due to the release of water from Magat Dam.
Courtesy of gmanetwork.com
Storm Vamco hits Vietnam
STORM Vamco barrelled into Vietnam, damaging buildings and injuring at least 19 people, as the death toll in the Philippines climbed to at least 67.
The storm made landfall on Sunday morning with reported winds of up to 90 kph, uprooting trees and blowing the roofs off houses and schools.
According to the latest report from Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, at least 19 people suffered injuries.
Vamco is the latest in a series of storms that have pummelled Vietnam over the past six weeks, causing flooding and landslides that have killed at least 159 people and left 70 others missing.
Vamco has weakened since hitting the Philippines as a typhoon with winds of up to 155 kph, but state media said it had still caused significant damage.
Pictures showed restaurants in the tourist hotspot of Hoi An – a Unesco world heritage site – ripped apart by the storm, and huge trees uprooted in the old imperial city of Hue.
Authorities evacuated nearly 650,000 people from seven coastal provinces to higher and safer ground before the storm hit, but on Sunday warned of the danger of landslides triggered by the heavy rains.
The storm also damaged embankments and caused landslides along them at many rivers and beaches, including 13.3km in Quang Tri province.
Ministries, sectors and localities were asked to continue keeping a close watch and to stand ready to respond to natural disasters, especially flooding and landslides.
The storm had also destroyed electrical wires and poles, causing power outages in 177,000 households in Quang Binh.
More than 110ha of perennial trees in Bo Trach district were also destroyed.
Households who were relocated to avoid the storm had also returned home and those in the area at risk of landslides had been relocated to temporary houses.
The National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting warned that the northern and central region would continue seeing heavy rain.
Courtesy of thestar.com.my
More than 30 flood alerts issued as Storm Aiden hammers Wales
Severe flooding has already been seen and there’s worse to come.
More than 30 flood alerts are in place across Wales today (October 31) as Storm Aiden continues to bring torrential rain and wind to the UK.
Named by the Met Eireann, the storm was predicted to unleash around 20-30mm of rain on Saturday, with 40-60mm across higher ground and as much as 80mm in the wettest places.
Already the storm has caused severe flooding in North Wales, after the River Conwy burst its banks on Friday.
Travel disruption was reported in areas of Gwynedd and Conwy after a number of roads were closed or badly flooded, including the A498 in Beddgelert and the A4086 in both directions from Pont Pen-y-benglog to Llanberis.
Despite a weather warning for rain ending at 2pm on Saturday, another is due to come into force in Wales on Sunday as the remanants of ex-Hurricane Zeta sweeps the UK.
The warning is due to begin at 6pm on Sunday and last into the early hours of Monday.
As the weekend continues, the Met Office is warning that homes and businesses could become flooded, causing damage to some buildings.
Fast flowing or deep floodwater is is also possible, “causing a danger to life”, they said.
People should prepare for delays or cancellations to train and bus services. Spray and flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures.
In the meantime, a yellow weather warning for strong winds continues on Saturday.
According to the Met Office: “A belt of very strong and possibly squally southerly winds will develop on Saturday morning with gusts of 60-65 mph, perhaps 70 mph on exposed coasts and hills.”
The strong winds are likely to cause leaves to fall from trees, increasing drainage problems and exacerbating flooding in some areas.
As of Saturday afternoon, 34 flood alerts were in place across Wales.
According to the forecast from Natural Resources Wales, local flooding from rivers and surface water is probable across Wales and the Upper River Severn on Saturday.
Courtesy of walesonline.co.uk
Flash floods, landslides displace 2,000 residents in Cagayan, Philippines
MORE than 2,000 residents have been evacuated in 30 barangay (villages) in three northern Cagayan towns, with a 60-year-old male farmer missing and believed to have drowned during widespread flooding brought about by heavy downpours Maj. Stanley Banan, Sanchez Mira town police chief, said teams conducted rescue operations in flooded areas and for Artemio Bumiltac, who reportedly was trying to save his carabao from his rice field when he was swept by a flash flood on Saturday around 5 p.m. in Barangay Santiago.
Banan added that Bumiltac’s carabao had been rescued but its owner has not yet been seen by Santiago residents where more than 100 of them were also evacuated to higher grounds and brought to five evacuation areas in Sanchez Mira.
He said the rescue teams transferred more residents from 14 villages and low-lying areas in the town where houses were already submerged by floodwaters.
Cagayan Gov. Manuel Mamba said the towns of Claveria, Pamplona and Santa Praxedes had been affected by flash floods and landslides, making roads and bridges not passable.
Most of the more the 2,000 evacuees were from 30 villages in Claveria with 1,400 individuals, followed by Santa Praxedes with 850 and the rest from Sanchez Mira and Pamlona towns.
The provincial Task Force Lingkod Cagayan (TFLC) reported that a bridge in Santa Praxedes had been damaged by floodwaters, which submerged parts of the national highway in Claveria, Pamplona and Sanchez Mira.
The task force said Daang Maharlika (national road) in Calvaria going to Santa Praxedes remained not passable as of Monday.
Mamba said the TFLC had teamed up with the Philippine National Police and the Philippine Marine Battalion Landing Team-10 in the rescue operations of residents and livestock in the province.
Courtesy of manilatimes.net
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