| AROUND THE WORLD TODAY |
| AROUND THE WORLD - MARCH 2008
Subject: Around the World Today - Monday 31st March CANADA: Ont., emergency workers put to test in 'dirty bomb' mass casualty exercise Panic and mayhem swept across a Toronto college campus Saturday as about 100 screaming, blood-stained students hobbled in to receive medical care, but it was all part of a training exercise aimed at testing how emergency services might respond to a nuclear incident.The mock disaster centred around a fictional "dirty bomb" explosion and multi-vehicle crash on Highway 401 - Canada's busiest highway - in which a plume of radioactive dust was released into the air.As part of the simulation, the students smeared fake blood on themselves and moved through Centennial College's make-believe hospital.From the decontamination area to the triage centre, the emergency room to the pharmacy, medical, paramedic and nursing students from several nearby colleges and universities - as well as staff from the Rouge Valley Health System - were put to the test. WORLD: Vaccine For Ebola Virus One of the world's deadliest diseases, caused by the Ebola virus, may finally be preventable thanks to US and Canadian researchers, who have successfully tested several Ebola vaccines in primates and are now looking to adapt them for human use. The US team hopes that the findings from their studies will provide important insights that will improve or accelerate the future development of vaccines for other haemorrhagic fever viruses like Marburg virus, and agents such as HIV and avian influenza. THAILAND: Thai temple fights off encroaching tide as world sea levels rise. Crabs scuttle across the wet floor of the near-deserted Khun Samut temple, the only building left in a Thai village that has disappeared beneath the rising and advancing sea. Waging a battle against an encroaching tide that has sent all the villagers fleeing inland, a monk in orange robes and faded tattoos meant to ward off evil spirits stalks the newly-built sea wall, planting mangrove shoots. Somnuek Atipanya points 20 metres (65 feet) out to sea, where electricity pylons poke out of the water, now useful only for resting marine birds. Subject: Around the World Today - Sunday 30th March AUSTRALIA: Marine exercise tests emergency services Rescuers picked up 35 people from the water at Port Botany on Saturday as part of a marine disaster exercise to test the skills of Sydney's emergency services. Exercise Platypus tested the teamwork of many of the state's services including the NSW Police Force Marine Area Command, Sydney Ports Corporation, NSW Maritime, Westpac Lifesaver Helicopter and the Australian Volunteer Coast Guard. "By doing this as an exercise, we're able to analyse the multi-agency response, develop our strengths and identify and rectify any weaknesses," Sergeant John Cox from the Marine Area Command said of the exercise police described as a success ENGLAND: No survivors in Kent plane crash Two pilots and three passengers were killed when a small plane crashed into a housing estate in Farnborough, Kent. No survivors were found after the Cessna Citation 1 jet came down in Romsey Close at about 1430 BST, destroying a house and garage. Their bodies have not yet been recovered, rescue workers said. Nearby residents were evacuated and accident investigators sent to the scene. Subject: Around the World Today - Saturday 29th March NICARAGUA: Ometepe Island, a budding Nicaraguan tourist destination dubbed an "oasis of peace," was anything but during a recent week, when it hosted two dozen members of a British Rapid Deployment Team on an intensive disaster-response training exercise. A shipwreck, a volcano, corrupt officials and more were all part of the week's entertainment at a Nicaraguan "oasis of peace". First, there were the reports that a passenger ferry had sunk in the choppy waters off the island and that hundreds were feared dead, including an unknown number of British tourists. Three days later, as the beleaguered and sleep-deprived response team was still trying to ascertain the identities of the British victims and survivors, the island's volcano erupted, sparking a riotous evacuation scenario in which frantic locals fought with shell-shocked British citizens for spots on the rescue boat. Sandwiched between the two events was a rotating cast of corrupt customs officials, traumatized crash victims, a blood-lusty press corps, unidentified bodies showing up in the morgue, ill-equipped local doctors with a penchant for amputation, grieving family members and looters. More at:http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1725897,00.html TANZANIA: Dozens missing in Tanzania mines About 75 miners are feared dead after rainfall triggered the collapse of mines in Tanzania, the government says. Seven bodies have so far been recovered in the Mererani region, about 40km (25 miles) south-east of Arusha in north-eastern Tanzania. Rescuers say the flooding is hampering their efforts and there is little hope of finding anyone else alive. RUSSIA: Hope for end to Russia cave siege (Georgetown / Waco) Cult leader Pyotr Kuznetsov was brought in to negotiate Fresh talks are under way to persuade 28 doomsday cult members in Russia to end a five-month cave siege after seven sect women came to the surface. The women were allowed to leave with cult leader Pyotr Kuznetsov after he was brought to the scene to negotiate. The True Russian Orthodox Church members barricaded themselves into the cave in the Penza region, about 650km (400 miles) south-east of Moscow. They are waiting for doomsday, which they believe will occur in May. The members entered the cave in October and have refused to come out. They threatened to detonate gas canisters if attempts were made to remove them and this week reportedly shot at police to drive them off. However, there are reports of a split in the cult after a number of cave-ins due to prolonged rainfall. There are fears the cave could collapse completely. ANGOLA: Angolan police station collapses Dozens of detainees at a police station in the Angolan capital, Luanda, have been taken to hospital after the six-storey building collapsed. There are no reports of deaths, but teams of rescue workers have been sifting through the rubble, where the cries of victims can he heard. The Angolan police criminal investigation department building collapsed at dawn. Subject: Around the World Today - Friday 28th March INDIA: Experts are examining the Nayachar chemical hub project with regard to industrial (chemical) disaster management at the site and would give their recommendations soon, said Mr Mortaza Hussain, West Bengal minister for disaster management. Speaking at the National Conference on Industrial (Chemical) Disaster Management and Awareness on National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), he noted that through major economic breakthroughs, India was moving towards the rank of a developed nation. As production was increasing, threats of major disasters were also increasing. Hence steps should be taken to prevent them. He said the World Bank was ready to pay Rs 234 crore towards the National Cyclone Risk Management Project. The project, which would continue till 2012, would have contributions from the World Bank and the state government on a 75:25 ratio. He added that the project would focus on flood-prone riverine areas and look forward to develop cyclone centres and roads on islands. CANADA: Transport Canada says exhaust drafting into an open hatch on a lifeboat was the likely cause of an incident that turned a mock disaster exercise in Newfoundland's Bay of Islands last September into a real emergency. The agency has concluded its investigation into the accident aboard a Marine Atlantic lifeboat that cut the exercise Ocean Guardian III short. Full Story at: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080327.waccidentreport0327/BNStory/National/home UKRAINE: Deaths in Ukraine helicopter crash Twelve people aboard a Ukrainian border guard helicopter that crashed in the Black Sea region have been killed, emergency officials say. One person was critically injured in Thursday's incident.According to Ihor Krol, a spokesman for the emergency situations ministry, the Mi-8 helicopter was carrying a crew of three and 10 passengers from the southern city of Odessa when it crashed into shallow waters near Poludenniy Island just before noon. Sergiy Shmorgal, a spokesman for the emergency ministry in the southern port of Odessa, where the helicopter took off, said that the helicopter crashed at around 11.30am local time (0930 GMT).Rescuers found 12 bodies near the site of the crash. The only survivor is in a coma. Crashes of the Mi-8 - a helicopter used widely in civilian aviation and the military - occur frequently in the Ukraine and Russia and are often blamed on poor maintenance. BRAZIL: Brazil battles deadly dengue epidemic in Rio Brazilian authorities are taking emergency measures in Rio de Janeiro to fight a dengue fever outbreak that has killed 54 people and infected more than 43,000 across the state. Health officials said the city of Rio was the worst hit, and children made up more than half the fatalities. Another 60 deaths were being investigated to see whether they resulted from the tropical disease, which is transmitted by Aedes aegypti mosquitos. The toll for the first three months of this year exceeds the total from all of 2007, state officials said. GREECE: A moderate earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale jolted the island of Crete in the first hours of Friday, but no damage was reported. The earthquake was recorded at 2:16 a.m., with its epicentre in the sea area south of Gaidouronissi islet in the Libyan Gulf. The quake was felt throughout Crete, but local authorities said no damage has been reported. TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO: A fire raged through the St Benedict hills in St Augustine yesterday afternoon, consuming a 25- acre forest and spewing a pillar of smoke that could have been seen from Port-of-Spain. Subject: Around the World Today - Thursday 27th March CHINA: China 'fireworks' blast kills 22 Twenty-two people have been killed and 10 injured by an explosion in the north-western Chinese province of Xinjiang, state media have reported. The blast occurred when local officials tried to destroy firecrackers in the desert 7km (4 miles) outside the city of Turpan, the Xinhua news agency said. INDIA: India temple stampede kills eight At least eight people have been killed and 10 others injured in a stampede at a Hindu temple in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, officials say. The incident happened in the remote Karila village, 260km (160 miles) from the state capital Bhopal. The stampede occurred as thousands of devotees were making their way into the temple during an annual fair. FINLAND: Transport links by air, land and sea were seriously disrupted as a snowstorm battered the country. Finland's meteorological service advised drivers to be careful as it forecast up to 30 centimetres (12 inches) of snow to fall across the southern third of the country overnight into Thursday. Subject: Around the World Today - Wednesday 26th March NORWAY: Building collapses in west Norway Five people are missing after a block of flats collapsed in the western Norwegian coastal town of Alesund. Fifteen residents were evacuated from the modern six-storey block, and two are said to be slightly injured. The building is partially built into a steep mountainside and local reports say the collapse may have been caused by a landslide. The search for survivors has been hampered by fire, a gas leak and second rockslide, police say. GREECE: Greek Civil Protection agency declared a state of emergency on the island of Skopelos on Tuesday after a major and uncontrolled wildfire that broke out on Monday ran into its second day. CYPRUS: Cyprus on Monday ordered emergency water rationing and imports from Greece to cope with a growing shortage exacerbated by a fourth year of drought. The east Mediterranean island faces an unprecedented water crisis that has seen reservoirs plunge dangerously low and desalination plants unable to cope with growing demand. On Monday, the island's reservoirs were 10.3 percent full. Rainfall has been minimal since 2003. CHINA: China has had 4,587 forest fires that killed or injured 95 people nationwide, following severe winter weather that created large amounts of flammable debris and damaged fire prevention facilities, a senior forestry official said on Wednesday. The fires were those reported as of Monday. DUBAI: Massive blast at Dubai warehouse At least one person has been injured by a blast at a fireworks warehouse in an industrial zone of Dubai, police say, that sent smoke billowing into the sky. It is unclear what caused the blast at around 0700 (0300 GMT) in the al-Quoz Industrial Area, which is home to hundreds of businesses and factories. Television footage showed a fireball shooting 100m into the sky, followed by a huge plume of smoke and ash. INDIA: Race to free India girl from well Rescuers have been using heavy equipment to reach the child Army and police engineers in northern India are racing against time to rescue a two-year-old girl who fell down a deep well on Tuesday evening. The child, named only as Vandana, was playing outside her house when she fell more than 40ft (12 metres) down a man-made well in Tehra, Uttar Pradesh. The army is digging parallel to the well to try and tunnel through to the child, who has been heard crying. SOUTHERN AFRICA: UN Report released - Floods, cyclones, devastate southern Africa Nearly one million people in southern Africa have been been affected by floods, cyclones and heavy rains in the region, the United Nations said on Tuesday. "In total, local authorities estimate that 987,516 Southern Africans have been affected adversely by rains, floods and cyclones since October last year," the UN said in a statement. "The hardest hit is Madagascar, where several cyclones as well as rains and floods have affected more than 332,000 people." However Mozambique officials suspect some 350,000 people in the country have suffered from the effects of floods and cyclones, according to national disaster management institute director, Joao Ribeiro. "We are prepared for any emergencies and our teams are on maximum alert until the end of April." According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs heavy rains in southern Africa were still expected, including in central Mozambique where rivers are already swollen after two days of intense rainfall last week. Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe have also been affected during the annual wet season, said the statement, adding that although the worst of the weather is over for another year, problems could persist until the end of April. Subject: Around the World Today - Tuesday 25th March CHILE: Earthquake strikes northern Chile A 6.1-magnitude quake has hit northern Chile close to the border with Bolivia, the US Geological Survey reports. The tremor, whose epicentre was 145km (90 miles) east of the coastal city of Iquique, struck at a depth of more than 120km (74 miles), it adds. Chile's national emergency bureau (Onemi) said there had so far been no reports of damage, disruption to the power supply, or casualties. USA: Several die in Alaskan shipwreck despite valiant rescue efforts Coast guards dispatched a cutter to the scene. Four members of a fishing boat crew are confirmed dead after it sank off the Alaskan coast in high seas and a fifth member is missing, US coast guards say. The Alaska Ranger's other 42 crew members were rescued after it began taking on water around 0300 (1100 GMT), 120 miles (190km) west of Dutch Harbor. The survivors were picked up by a coast guard ship and another fishing boat, the Associated Press reports. USA: Salmonella Cases Top 200 in Colorado The number of suspected salmonella cases linked to an outbreak in this southern Colorado town topped 200 Sunday. Of 216 reported cases so far, 68 have been confirmed by lab results, public information officer Jim Shires said. Nine people have been hospitalized, but only one was believed to still be in the hospital, Shires said. Shires is part of a nine-person incident management team from Jefferson County that arrived to help Alamosa officials respond to the outbreak, which health officials said may be caused by the municipal water system. Officials planned to flush the water system with a chlorine solution in stages beginning Tuesday morning. CHINA: China's Yellow River floods town: report Yellow River floodwaters inundated an entire town in northern China on Friday amid frantic efforts to repair breaches to embankments caused by unexpected high water levels, state media reported. At least 10,000 residents of Duguitala in the Inner Mongolia region have been evacuated to a nearby desert area since water began pouring into the town on Wednesday, Xinhua news agency quoted a local official as saying. Embankments began to crumble on Wednesday after soaking in high water, which state television blamed on rapid glacial melt in the Himalayas, the source of the river. Subject: Around the World Today - Sunday 23rd March HONG KONG: Ukrainian sailors missing off HK Rescuers are trying to move the sunken boat to shallower waters Eighteen Ukrainian sailors are missing after their boat sank off the Hong Kong coast in a collision with a Chinese cargo ship overnight on Saturday. Hong Kong officials said the seamen could still be alive if they had found an air pocket inside the vessel. But they added that divers who knocked on the hull of the tug, the Naftogaz 67, did not get a return signal. USA: Central US braced for more floods Missouri was one of the states worst hit by flooding The central US is being threatened with worsening weather conditions, after at least 16 people died and hundreds of homes were evacuated because of floods. Many rivers have burst their banks and water levels are still rising, while the city of Chicago has been hit by a fresh snowstorm. Worst hit are Missouri, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky, where levels should peak at the weekend. Blizzards are expected in Maine, where 1ft (30cm) of snow has already fallen. UKRAINE: Radioactive cargo turned back from Hungary-Ukraine border "Ukrainian border police stopped a wagonload of radioactive materials near Hungary's border with Ukraine on Thursday, local border guards spokesman Vasil Yarmeliuk told MTI. The train was carrying 60.5 tonnes of zirconium from Italy to Russia, but was stopped at Solovka, near the Hungarian border, as a test showed higher-than-acceptable radioactivity levels in its shipment." "The cargo had no legal documents for hazardous materials pertaining to transit through Ukraine, Yarmeliuk said. This has been the second violation of its kind in a month. Subject: Around the World Today - Friday 21st March CHINA: Strong quake hits western China A 7.2-magnitude earthquake has struck in Xinjiang province in the northwest of China. The quake occurred at 0633 local time on Friday (2233GMT on Thursday), according to the US Geological Survey. The epicentre was about 140 miles (225km) southeast of Hotan city, near Yutian county, the US agency said. Early Chinese reports of the incident had no details of casualties or damage. Xinjiang is sparsely populated, with a mainly Muslim population. The US Geological Survey said the quake hit at a depth of 22.9km (14.2 miles) and reported two aftershocks - the first with a magnitude of 5.3 and the second of 5.5. In 2003 a 6.8-magnitude earthquake in western Xinjiang killed more than 260 people and destroyed 10,000 homes. USA: Severe rains in US leave 13 dead People have been forced to abandon homes and businesses. At least 13 people have died and hundreds of homes have been evacuated as a result of rains and floods in the central United States. Three days of heavy rain have prompted the National Weather Service to issue flood and flash flood warnings from Texas to Pennsylvania. Worst hit are Missouri, Arkansas, Illinois, Ohio and Kentucky, with about 30cm (12 inches) of rain in some areas. INDONESIA: Indonesia 'needs bird flu help' Indonesia is the nation worst affected by bird flu. Indonesia needs more help to rein in the bird flu virus, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation has said. The human death toll from bird flu in the country rose to 100 earlier this year - almost half of the total worldwide fatalities. CANADA: Montreal and surrounding areas continue to feel the effects of heavy snow falls that are leading to building collapses and the closer of many public building. Subject: Around the World Today - Thursday 20th March USA: Torrential rains chased hundreds of people from their flooded homes and deluged roads in the nation's midsection Tuesday, killing at least two people in Missouri and sweeping a teen down a drainage pipe near Dallas. The storm system also grounded hundreds of flights. One control tower at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport was briefly evacuated when a funnel cloud was spotted. The National Weather Service posted flood and flash flood warnings from Texas to Ohio, with tornado watches in Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas. FRANCE: The cleanup operation following the oil spill on the Loire River on Sunday resulted in the recuperation of about 130 tonnes of solid and liquid waste on Tuesday. The cleanup operation on the river, riverbanks, estuary and at sea involves about 324 people, two trawlers and a national marine ship. No dead animals have been reported but 105 soiled birds are being cared for by a veterinary school in Nantes. ALBANIA: Following the ammunition depot explosion at the weekend, assistance was offered by several countries including Italy, Greece, France, and Austria. Some of the severely injured people were evacuated to Greece and Italy for specialist treatment. PAPUA NEW GUINEA: On 18 March 2008, an activity change occurred in the volcano Garbuna. The volcano is Erupting with SWVRC alert level 2. Subject: Around the World Today - Wednesday 19th March SIERRA LEONE: SLRCS Launches Disaster Management Project The Sierra Leone Red Cross Society on Saturday 15th March 2008 launched the National Disaster Management Capacity Building Pilot Project 2008-2010 at their Howe Street headquarters in Freetown. The ceremony attracted distinguished personalities from various institutions including the Office of the National Security (ONS) and other line partners of the Society. Speaking at the gathering, the Secretary General of SLRCS, Mr. Emmanuel Tommy explained the need for the establishment of such a project given our recent history of conflict and potential dangers posed by economic stagnation, political insecurity and social malaise. He said these factors often result in population displacement and cross border movement of refugees. In addition he said the West African sub-region should always be prepared to tackle certain natural disasters such as flood, landslides, and droughts whenever they occur. He disclosed that three countries, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria have agreed to receive support from the Society's international partners to develop national and possibly regional disaster management structures within the Red Cross Societies of various countries, in addition to initiating cross border disaster management cooperation within the Sub-region. He concluded by stating that when implemented, project will improve national relations and cooperation in disaster management as well as to strengthen comprehensive policy structures and strategies. UKRAINE: EU and Ukraine civil protection chiefs meet proposals for further cooperation Stavros Dimas, Commissioner for Environment met Volodymyr Shandra, the Ukrainian Minister for Emergency Services on March 17 to discuss further cooperation between the EU and Ukraine on disaster response. The European Commission and Ukraine signed an arrangement in 2007 providing for the exchange of information during emergencies. The Commissioner and the Minister were discussing the possibility of broadening this arrangement to include wider cooperation in civil protection in areas such as collaboration on environmental assessment, mutual assistance during emergencies and training opportunities. The arrangement was first tested in November 2007 when assistance was provided to Ukraine through the Community Civil Protection Mechanism. A severe storm in the Kerch Strait resulted in the spillage of 1300 tons of black oil and 6800 tons of industrial sulphur. The European Commission's Civil Protection Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) deployed a number of experts through the Mechanism. This expert team, which also included a UN representative, assisted the Ukrainian authorities in the preparation of an environmental impact assessment. Subject: Around the World Today - Tuesday 18th March NIGERIA & USA: Nigeria: U.S. Agency to Assist NEMA in Disaster Management The Global Dialogue on Emerging Science and Technology (GDEST), an agency in the office of Science and Technology of the Adviser to the United States (US) Secretary of State and Department of State Geographic and Global Issues is to assist the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), in areas of disaster management. A professor of Geography at the University of Kansas and president of the American Geographical Society, Jerome E. Dobson, who led a delegation to Nigeria, made the disclosure while on a courtesy visit to the Director General of NEMA in his office. ISREAL: In the face of a possible escalation with Syria and Iran's efforts to obtain a nuclear weapon, parts of the country will shut down next month in what security officials say will be the largest emergency exercise in Israel's history. The drill, which is being organized by the newly-established National Emergency Authority, will take place over five days starting on Sunday, April 6. But first, on Tuesday, a first-of-its-kind hospital emergency exercise will take place to see how Ashkelon's Barzilai Medical Center would cope with a Grad missile hitting a five-story hospitalization building and an outpatient clinic's laboratory filled with toxic chemicals and a fire breaking out, requiring patients to be lowered from the roof. Around 100 firemen, 10 fire service vehicles and various other equipment, as well as doctors and nurses, will participate in the drill, to be held between 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Preparations for the April exercise are being overseen by Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilna'i. MOZAMBIQUE: The Mozambican government has made an urgent appeal to the UN World Food Programme to help more than 60,000 people left destitute when cyclone Jokwe hit northern and central parts of the country. "The government has made an urgent appeal to the WFP for food to feed people who were affected by cyclone Jokwe," Joao Ribeiro, the deputy national director of Mozambique's government-run national disaster management institute (INGC) told AFP by telephone Monday. He said the INGC was working with non-governmental organizations, local and international, to assess the situation in the cyclone-hit Zambezia and Nampula provinces. So far, at least 60,000 people -- many of them living in areas also affected by flooding earlier in the year -- were thought to be in need of urgent food aid, said Ribeiro. INDIA: Four killed in Mumbai estate fire At least four people have been killed and 40 injured in a fire on an industrial estate in the Indian city of Mumbai (Bombay), police say. They say that the blaze broke out in the city's central Byculla district. Firemen are still tackling the blaze. The cause of the fire is unclear. Injured people have been taken off to nearby hospitals, officials say. Mumbai - with a growing population of 19 million people - is India's financial and entertainment centre. Subject: Around the World Today - Monday 17th March ALBANIA: Albanian weapons blast toll rises At least nine people are now known to have been killed by a series of massive explosions at an arms dump near the Albanian capital, Tirana. More than 240 others were injured in the blasts. Some have been transferred to hospitals in Italy and Greece. The government said more than 300 buildings in the area had been completely destroyed. INDIA: Police forces in the country will get a national-level disaster management institute in Maharashtra in a year to train its personnel on how to respond to and manage disaster situations. The training facility will also be available to other paramilitary forces and police organisations including state forces, the official said, adding about 700 personnel will be trained at a time. The institute, first of its kind in the country, will have three core facilities -- medical, flood rescue and relief and nuclear, biological and chemical disasters. USA: Georgia Declares Emergency: Two Killed In Bad Weather Saturday After First Tornado Hits Atlanta Friday Night Two people died and dozens were injured in severe storms in Georgia on Saturday. This was after a tornado struck downtown Atlanta on Friday night. Georgia has declared a state of emergency and the severe weather also spread into South Carolina on Saturday. The National Weather Service has confirmed that the winds that caused so much damage in downtown Atlanta on Friday night was a tornado, the first ever to strike that city, officials say. CANADA: A severe winter storm that rolled over Newfoundland has prompted a state of emergency on Fogo Island. The storm, which continued to batter some regions on Friday, has dumped heavy snow across the island, with central regions receiving up to 50 centimetres. On Fogo Island, travel has been restricted due to the snow and an avalanche barrelled down the side of a mountain on the island earlier today. Fogo Island Regional Council has declared a state of emergency. USA: The head of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that the President yesterday declared an emergency exists in the state of Texas and ordered federal aid to supplement state and local response efforts in the area struck by wildfires beginning on March 14, 2008, and continuing. USA: Rescuers comb NY crane crash site The crane crushed the building that it landed on. Rescuers with sniffer dogs and heat-sensing cameras are searching rubble in New York for survivors and victims of a crane collapse. Four construction workers were killed when the giant crane toppled in Manhattan's affluent East Side. At least 17 were injured in what Mayor Michael Bloomberg called one of the city's worst construction accidents. Subject: Around the World Today - Saturday 15th March ALBANIA: 'Many dead' in Albania explosions (ONGOING AT TIME OF MESSAGE ) - The explosions were heard many miles away Albanian PM Sali Berisha says a "considerable" number of people have been killed in huge explosions at an arms depot near the capital, Tirana. His spokeswoman Juela Mecani said four bodies had been recovered, but more than 60 people - including US citizens - were at the scene at the time. More than 150 people, many of them civilians from the surrounding area, including children, were injured. Military experts were disposing of old shells at the time of the blasts. They were reported to be being assisted by employees of a US company contracted by Nato to help the Albanian army dispose of surplus munitions. USA: Severe wind storm strikes Atlanta A severe wind storm has hit the centre of the US city of Atlanta, causing damage to skyscrapers, hotels and two sports arenas. National Weather Service officials said they were unsure if the 60mph (97km/h) winds in the city, in the state of Georgia, were caused by a tornado. The storm struck during a basketball game at the Georgia Dome, sending fans and players running for cover. At least nine people have been injured as a result of the storm. Georgia Power Co said about 10,000 customers had lost power in the area. ECUADOR: As of 8 March, a total of 22 persons were killed as a result of the floods. Some 3,034 families or 13,871 persons are in 295 shelters. There is a need for health, food, water, sanitation, and fumigation in shelters. Recovery interventions are needed in the agricultural sector. A landslide covered the road from San Gabriel to San Placido, 15km from the town of Portoviejo. MEXICO: A moderate earthquake of magnitude 5.7 shook the hilly southern Mexican state of Chiapas on Thursday. There are no injuries or serious damage reported. The earthquake was centred off Mexico's southern Pacific coast, 100 km west of the city of Tapachula at a depth of 79 km. CHINA: The worst winter weather in five decades damaged 22.7 million hectares, nearly 13 percent of China's forests. The severe damage may lead to frequent floods, and increase the possibility of forest fires. INDONESIA: Some residential areas in the vicinity of the city's largest river, Ciliwung, were under water. Hundreds of residents in Cawang, Cililitan and Kampung Pulo in East Jakarta, as well as South Jakarta's Bukit Duri had left their flooded homes. Torrential rains Wednesday also caused mudslides in the vicinity of Puncak resort, Bogor, which buried a road in the area and a bridge connecting the two villages. No fatalities were reported. 15 houses have been destroyed, and 25 others have been partially damaged in the disaster. Subject: Around the World Today - Friday 14th March THAILAND: Thailand's disaster warning chief resigns Chairman of Thailand's Natural Disaster Warning Center Smith Dharmasarojana announced on Thursday his resignation, citing lack of government's support for his work. Smith called a news conference on Thursday to announce he was about to tender his letter of resignation to the Information Communications and Technology Ministry, according to a report by the Bangkok Post website. He said he decided to quit because of lack of funds and overall government support which has prevented him from making progress in his duty that is to ensure the safety of the public and foreign visitors through the center. "The government did not make it a priority to allocate a budget for us to continue doing our job to a satisfactory level," he was quoted as saying, "We don't have enough people, we don't have any benefits and our performance is often underrated by government authorities." Smith, a veteran meteorologist and earthquake expert, was brought out of retirement to head the Disaster Warning Center after the Dec. 26, 2004 tsunami hit Thailand's southern coast on the Andaman Sea, killing over 7,000 people, including some 4,000 foreign tourists. He has pushed through the establishment of a tsunami warning system in southern Thailand. BURKINO FASO: Toll in Burkina meningitis epidemic rises to 441 A meningitis epidemic has killed 441 people out of more than 4,000 cases reported in Burkina Faso since the start of January, the health ministry said Friday. The outbreak is centred along the border with Ivory Coast, where 44 deaths had been reported by February 20, a day before the two countries announced a joint health programme to tackle the epidemic. "Between January 1 and March 9, 2008, we have a total of 4,061 suspect cases of meningitis, including 441 deaths, a mortality rate of 10.85 percent," Ousmane Badolo, the ministry official in charge of epidemic disease surveillance told AFP. KENYA: Hundreds of people near the Kenyan port of Mombasa have become ill after a consignment of leaking chemical containers was dumped nearby. The containers are reported to have traces of nitric acid. Tonnes of sand and other agents were used to neutralise the spill. The chemicals are extremely toxic and more than 1,500 villagers have been treated for various illnesses caused by the chemicals. MOZAMBIQUE: Cyclone 'Jokwe' is moving South and Southwards, and has retained intensity. It has been downgraded to a category 2 'intense tropical storm', but its high winds are still likely to cause more destruction. The Costal areas of the Provinces of Nampula, Zambézia and Sofala are currently out of risk. However, the cyclone is expected to move back westward toward Mozambique during the next 2-3 days. At least seven people died and more than 10,000 houses have been totally or partly destroyed. At least 55,000 people are currently homeless and a total of 165,000 people have been affected so far. A yellow alert is also in place in the coastal cities of Vilanculos and Govuro. KAZAKHSTAN: In the result of the sudden increase in air temperature and heavy rains in the South of Kazakhstan, 48 settlements of the Sary-Agash, Ordabasyn, Aryss and Shardarya districts were flooded, leading to the death of one person and the displacement of more than 13,000 people. There is still a possibility of further floods along the Syr-Darya river basin in South Kazakhstan and Kzylorda provinces which might affect over 250,000 people. GREECE: Greek tourist ship runs aground The Giorgis took on large amounts of water after running aground Greek authorities have evacuated a ship carrying 313 people, mostly foreign tourists, which ran aground near the island of Poros, south of Athens. Helicopters, a military transport plane and coastguard vessels were involved in rescuing those on board the Giorgis, which hit a reef in the Saronic Gulf. This incident will bring back painful memories of the Jupiter incident. CAYMAN ISLANDS: A magnitude 4.6 earthquake occurred 37 km east of George Town. The earthquake occurred at a depth of 4.8 km. Source: Caycompass Subject: Around the World Today - Wednesday 12th March WORLD: Disasters killed 20,000 in 2007: study Natural and man-made disasters killed 20,000 people in 2007 and cost the world economy more than 70 billion dollars (45 billion euros), reinsurer Swiss Re said Tuesday. The world was hit by 142 natural catastrophes and 192 man-made disasters in 2007, the company said in a report, with most deaths in Bangladesh, India, China and Pakistan as a result of heavy flooding and cyclones, the report said. MORE AT: http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Disasters_killed_20000_in_2007_study_999.html EUROPE: Western Europe warned fresh storms on the way Seven European countries issued severe weather warnings Tuesday as the World Meteorological Organisation warned about storms that have already battered Britain and France. Britain, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, France and Germany all issued "orange" warnings as winds of up to 125 kilometres (78 miles) per hour are expected to cause severe disruption \ later Tuesday and into Wednesday, the WMO said in a statement. Spain meanwhile issued a "red" warning, with waves reaching a height of nine metres (29.5 feet) in the northwestern Coruna regions due to strong winds. Britain has already been badly hit by the storms, which have caused massive travel disruption and left thousands of homes without power. A spokesman for airports operator BAA said that 115 flights from London's Heathrow Airport had been cancelled by Monday evening. The British Met Office forecast another swathe of severe westerly gales to affect parts of the country on Tuesday night and the first half of Wednesday, and advised the public to take care amid the risk of flash floods. In France, the northern regions of Normandy, Picardy and Nord-Pas-de-Calais could see winds up to 133 kilometres per hour, the WMO warned. ENGLAND: Southern England mops up, as storm alert eases Parts of southern England mopped up Tuesday after a major storm triggered travel chaos and flash floods, as conditions eased, albeit with more high winds forecast further north. Some 2,400 homes remained without electricity along the south coast, which took the brunt of gale-force winds and driving rain which swept in from the Atlantic on Monday, also hitting northern France. MORE AT: http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Southern_England_mops_up_as_storm_alert_eases_999.html USA: Climate Change Will Have A Significant Impact On Transport While every mode of transportation in the U.S. will be affected as the climate changes, potentially the greatest impact on transportation systems will be flooding of roads, railways, transit systems, and airport runways in coastal areas because of rising sea levels and surges brought on by more intense storms, says a new report from the National Research Council. In the future, climate changes in some areas may necessitate permanent alterations. For example, roads, rail lines, and airport runways in low-lying coastal areas may become casualties of sea-level rise, requiring relocations or expensive protective measures, such as sea walls and levees. FULL REPORT AT: http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Climate_Change_Will_Have_A_Significant_Impact_On_Transport_999.html CHINA: Flu fears over Hong Kong deaths A school has been closed in Hong Kong amid fears of a return of a mysterious flu epidemic. More than 30 students have flu-like symptoms and one of them died on Tuesday. Two other young children have died in separate cases from flu-like illnesses in recent weeks. An expert team is to assess whether the cases are linked to either bird flu or to Sars, the severe acute respiratory syndrome that hit Hong Kong in 2003. FULL STORY AT: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7291169.stm Subject: Around the World Today - Monday 10th March ENGLAND: Rain and high winds battering UK Parts of the UK are being battered by rain and fierce winds, as weather forecasters warn worse may be to come. Winds of up to 82mph (130km/h) have brought down trees in south-west England, blocking roads, and some 11,000 homes are without electricity. There are seven severe flood warnings on the south-west coast, where it is feared water could spill over sea walls when high tides peak around midday. INTEREST: Tsunami that devastated the ancient world could return "The sea was driven back, and its waters flowed away to such an extent that the deep sea bed was laid bare and many kinds of sea creatures could be seen," wrote Roman historian Ammianus Marcellus, awed at a tsunami that struck the then-thriving port of Alexandria in 365 AD. FULL ARTICLE: http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Tsunami_that_devastated_the_ancient_world_could_return_999.html BOGOTA: 78 Wounded in Colombia Soccer Brawl. A stadium brawl at a soccer rivalry game left about 80 people wounded in the Colombian city of Cali late Saturday, 18 of them with stab wounds, emergency officials said. Clashes broke out among America de Cali's "Red Baron" fan club in the 82nd minute of the match with Deportivo de Cali and spread onto the field and around the Pascual Guerrero stadium. Police fired tear gas as the brawlers lit firecrackers and tried to tear down fencing separating the stands from the field. CANADA: Holland Marsh faces disaster with quick thaw, experts say Conservation authorities are monitoring water levels in Lake Simcoe as one heavy rainfall or a quick thaw in the next few weeks could mean disaster for the Holland Marsh. The warnings have brought back memories of 1954, when Hurricane Hazel flooded the marsh and washed away crops and homes. "Let's put it this way. We're at a 40-year high on the lake, and the reason we're so high is that situation that we had in January where the extreme thaw put all the water into the basin," said John McCallum, an executive of the Holland Marsh Joint Municipal Service Board Drainage Committee. MOZAMBIQUE: Deadly cyclone ravages Mozambique At least seven people have been killed and thousands have fled their homes as Cyclone Jokwe continues to hit northern Mozambique, state radio reports. Some 500 buildings including schools and hospitals, have been destroyed and electricity pylons downed. The cyclone is expected to move south on Monday and people have been warned to stay out of the sea, as wind speeds reach 200km/h (125mph). ARGENTINA: Many dead in Argentina bus crash The bus was packed with holidaymakers At least 18 people have been killed and 47 injured after a passenger train crashed into a bus in the town of Dolores in eastern Argentina. Witnesses said the bus had been driving over a level crossing on which the barriers had been lowered when the crash occurred before dawn on Sunday. GREECE: Many injured in Greek train crash A train has derailed in central Greece, leaving at least 23 people injured, according to police. The train, reportedly heading to the north-eastern town of Alexandroupolis from Athens, is said to have come off the tracks near the town of Larissa. Subject: Around the World Today - Friday 7th March ECUADOR: La Nina heavy rains are expected to continue until April. 21,500 of people have been evacuated, 315,000 affected. 30% of crops have been damaged. The European Commission received from Ecuador a request for assistance be assessment and coordination experts. EQUITORIAL GUINEA: Belgium Survey Vessel seized A survey ship working for a Belgium minerals company was seized by the EG Navy for entering EG waters. Crew of Nigerians and Russians are being held. 15 member Survey Team from UK receiving Consulate assistance. Believe EG is requesting payment of $1Million for release of vessel and crew. INDONESIA: An earthquake with magnitude of 6.4 jolted North Maluku province, the moderately populated region in eastern parts of Indonesia on Thursday morning. There are no initial reports of damages or casualties. The quake's epicentre was at 216 km northeast Ternate of the province and at 105 km under ocean floor. CHILE: A forest fire occurred in the coastal town of Placilla, 115 km northwest of Santiago. More than 2500 ha of land have been burned due to multiple fires near Valparaiso city. There are no reports of deaths or injuries. PHILIPPINES: Heavy rains caused massive floods in two towns in the eastern province of Albay, prompting evacuation of 3,500 families. Eighteen people are missing. The rains came less than twelve hours after a 6.9 magnitude earthquake shook parts of the eastern central region but caused no damage or injuries. There is a risk of landslides. INDONESIA: A change occurred in the eruption status of Volcano Lokon Empung in the very highly populated region of Sulawesi. The population in this area is 151 people per square kilometer. The eruption may occur at any time. EUROPE: EU to strengthen disaster response preparedness The European Commission has adopted a communication on reinforcing the European Union's disaster response capacity. In order to rise to the changing challenges posed by natural and man-made disasters, the communication proposes that the European Union strengthens its abilities at home and abroad to provide civil protection and humanitarian assistance. As a first step, the Commission has undertaken a screening exercise of all its existing resources and has developed an action plan of specific measures to be implemented before the end of 2008. Subject: Around the World Today - Wednesday 5th March NAMIBIA: Namibia declares flood emergency The Namibian president has declared a state of emergency after 42 people were killed and thousands displaced by floods in central and northern regions. President Hifikepunye Pohamba appealed for immediate international assistance to assist those affected. The floods have been caused by heavy rains in neighbouring Angola. GREECE: An earthquake of 4.3 in the Richer scale appeared in the southern Greece. The depth of the quake was 2 km. The tremor was located around 200 km of Patrai city. ECUADOR: Devastating flooding will likely continue until April. Roughly 13,500 people are currently housed in temporary shelters while another 100,000 victims need immediate aid in terms of food, shelter and access to potable water. Thirteen of Ecuador's 22 provinces are currently under water from flooding that has caused 19 deaths to date and affected up to 300,000 people. ZAMBIA: 5,796 households have been displaced, and 3,418 houses have collapsed in the results of the floods. Additional dam gates are likely to open next month. Extensive crop loss combined with an increase in diarrhoea cases is likely to precipitate a nutritional crisis over the coming months. Approximately 80% of the assessed districts reported poor quality drinking water, mostly attributed to unprotected wells and contaminated rivers and streams. UNITED STATES: The stormy weather is expected to move to the coast and out of Georgia. There were reports of damage to homes and timber and scattered power outages. Numerous tornado warnings were issued as the storms advanced with violent thunderstorms, damaging winds and heavy rain. Flash flood warnings also were issued in parts of Mississippi State. Subject: Around the World Today - Tuesday 4th March ENGLAND: H5N1 in Canada Goose 11th case in wild bird Defra has today confirmed that a Canada goose collected on 25 February in the Wild Bird Monitoring Area in Dorset as part of wild bird surveillance has tested positive for highly pathogenic H5N1 Avian Influenza. The bird was found less than a kilometre from where the previous positive cases in swans were collected. This is the 11th wild bird with highly pathogenic H5N1 in the area. The previous ten cases were in wild mute swans, with the last case being confirmed on 4 February. DEFRA SITE: http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/2008/080229c.htm NORTHERN IRELAND: Seven rescued as boat hits rocks Seven men have been rescued after a fishing boat ran into difficulties off the County Donegal coast. Their boat, the Horizon, hit rocks at Saldana Point in Lough Swilly at about 0330 GMT on Tuesday. Two Lough Swilly lifeboats, the Irish Coastguard helicopter and Mulroy Coastguard Cliff and Rescue Team took part in the rescue. MADAGASCAR: Ivan the Terrible It is estimated 322,000 people affected by Cyclone Ivan, which slammed into the east coast of Madagascar on the 17 February, with winds of 230km/h (142mph). It was of a similar intensity to Hurricane Katrina, which brought havoc to New Orleans in 2005. So far more than 80 have died, more than 170 are missing and at least 187,000 are homeless. The consequences of Typhoon Ivans impact on Madagascar can be found at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7275425.stm SRI LANKA: Sri Lanka finds boat migrants dead People regularly attempt to leave Burma by boat. Twenty migrants from Bangladesh and Burma have been found dead from starvation and dehydration on a wooden trawler adrift in the Bay of Bengal. Sri Lanka's navy, which found them, said 71 survivors were rescued from the crowded boat, which had been drifting for two weeks after its engine broke. Subject: Around the World Today - Monday 3rd March CHINA: Dust storm hits East Asia The dust picks up toxins as it passes over Chinese factories A huge cloud of choking dust is passing over South Korea as the first sand storm of the year blows in from China. South Korea has ordered schools to close and drivers in south-west Japan have been warned about low visibility from the dust clouds. Every spring brings "yellow dust" storms which blow sand from China's Gobi Desert over the Koreas and Japan NEPAL: UN helicopter crashes in E Nepal A helicopter carrying United Nations officials has crashed in Eastern Nepal, killing at least 10 people. The UN workers were returning from a visit to a camp for former Maoist rebels, officials have said. Witnesses reported seeing the helicopter on fire before it crashed into a hillside, though the cause of the crash remains unclear, police said. NEPAL: The UN says a fire in Nepal which destroyed most of a camp housing refugees from Bhutan is a disaster. Officials say 10,000 refugees are now homeless. The cause is unknown. The refugees are ethnic Nepalese forced out of Bhutan in the 1990s by the government, which was concerned over a Hindu minority in a Buddhist country. Bhutan and Nepal are at loggerheads over how to solve the problem, although some have been presented with the option of resettlement abroad. The camp is one of seven which since 1990 have been home to more than 100,000 ethnic Nepalese people from Bhutan. Subject: Around the World Today - Saturday 1st March USA: Colo. Town of Leadville Threatened by Water Buildup Emergency sirens and loudspeakers have been tested and sensors installed. Bulldozers have cut an escape route. Townspeople have been warned to assemble "grab-it-and-go" kits with first aid supplies, water, flashlights and blankets. A concealed threat is hanging over this old Wild West mining town: A billion gallons of toxic water is trapped in a collapsed drainage tunnel in the hills overlooking Leadville and could blow at any moment with devastating effect, sweeping away mobile homes in the town of 2,600. GUATEMALA: Bus crash kills dozens At least 45 people have been killed in a bus crash in southern Guatemala. The bus was travelling to the neighbouring country of El Salvador when it crashed on a dangerous corner near the city of Jutiapa. Officials said at least 20 people were also hurt and more bodies may be trapped in the wreckage. USA: Ricin found in Vegas motel room Ricin can be made from the waste from castor beans. A man is in critical condition after staying in a Las Vegas motel room where the deadly toxin ricin was found, police say. Seven other people were taken to hospital but later released, after several vials of ricin were found at the Extended Stay America Motel. Authorities say they do not believe the incident is related to terrorism. ECUADOR: Landslide hits Ecuador pipeline The floods have made thousands of people homeless. A landslide has cut off Ecuador's main export oil pipeline but the state oil firm Petroecuador says it will try to use other routes. The Sote pipeline, which can move 400,000 barrels of oil per day from the Amazon jungle to the Pacific Ocean, stopped pumping on Thursday afternoon. It pumps almost all oil extracted by Petroecuador in the jungle. ARGENTINA: Floods hit thousands in Argentina Streets have been flooded in Buenos Aires. Heavy rain and floods in Argentina have forced thousands of people from their homes, caused power cuts and brought transport chaos. About 2,000 people are reported to have been evacuated in the province of Buenos Aires. The capital is still on alert as more rain is expected. BULGARIA: Deadly fire sweeps Bulgaria train A fire swept through an overnight train in Bulgaria leaving at least three people dead and another nine injured. More than 60 people were in the two coaches hit by the blaze on board the nine-car service from the capital Sofia to the north-eastern town of Kardam INDIA: Indian train hits crowd on tracks At least 16 people have been killed in western India after a high-speed train ran into them, railway officials say. The victims were hit by the train as they walked in the dark on the tracks near Surat in Gujarat state. Their bodies were spotted by the driver of another train, police said. Several women and children were among the dead, who were reported to be labourers. Arthur Rabjohn CEM |
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