NEWS IN RELATION TO NATURAL DISASTERS

[nancyk58]

News on 28 February 2011 in relation to natural disasters

 

News on 28 February 2011 in relation to natural disasters

 

German ZDFtext: DAMAGE AMOUNTING TO AROUND 20 BILLION NEW ZEALAND DOLLAR (or 11 BILLION EURO) AFTER THE DEVASTATING EARTHQUAKE

 

Prime Minister John Key announced emergency aid package of 20 million New Zealand Dollar (or 65,5 million Euro).

 

A part of that amount goes to salaries and wages to 50,000 people who could not go to work due to the devastating earthquake. Large parts of Christchurch have been severely damaged by the magnitude 6.3 earthquake last Tuesday.

 

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12593595

 

28 February 2011 Last updated at 08:11 GMT

 

Christchurch quake: Dead are buried as weather worsens

 

The New Zealand city of Christchurch has begun to bury its dead following last week's devastating earthquake.

 

The first service was for the youngest victim so far - baby Baxtor Gowland, born just after last September's quake.

 

 

The death toll from 22 February is now 148 people;only eight bodies have been released for burial so far.

 

Rescue teams continue to search for survivors but aftershocks have hampered their efforts and a forecast windstorm could add to the hazards they face.

 

No survivors have been rescued since mid-afternoon on Wednesday.

 

The opening of new cracks in a cliff overlooking some outer suburbs and continuing aftershocks have kept residents nervous.

 

People are still trying to leave the city following the magnitude-6.3 earthquake that wrecked the centre of the city.

 

Young Baxter Gowland was one of two infants named as casualties in the quake. He was killed by flying masonry as he slept at home.

 

His family and friends gathered at a chapel for a service at which a slideshow of his short life was shown.

 

It was the first of several services to come; on Tuesday two minutes' silence will be held to commemorate the victims, a week after the earthquake struck.

 

'Blitz'

 

Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark said the country had "suffered a tragedy of monumental proportions".

 

"The building damage I've seen compared with Haiti," she told Radio New Zealand, in a reference to the massive quake that killed at least 220,000 there in January last year.

 

"It's going to require every ounce of recovery in this country to push through from this," she added, after a visit to Christchurch on Sunday.

 

Prime Minister John Key says the cost of the quake is expected to reach NZ$20bn ($15bn, £9.3bn).

 

He has announced an initial NZ$120m PACKAGE of SUBSIDIES that will pay the salaries of those who cannot return to work because of the damage caused by the earthquake.

 

He said there was still a glimmer of hope survivors could be found, but rescuers working for a sixth day found only bodies.

 

Engineers say at least a third of the buildings in the centre of Christchurch will need to be demolished. Hundreds of damaged suburban homes may also have to be pulled down.

 

Mr Key said the disaster "may be New Zealand's single most tragic event", outstripping a 1931 quake in Napier which killed 256.

 

For many residents, it is all too much, and there is an exodus from Christchurch, says the BBC's Phil Mercer in the city.

 

Doctors are reporting a significant increase in mental health problems since the earthquake struck, most notably anxiety and insomnia.

 

There has also been a sharp rise in the number of people suffering heart attacks, our correspondent says.

 

Power has been restored to most of the city but water supply remains a problem, with residents being urged to boil water for drinking or cooking because of contamination fears.

 

The quake struck at a shallow depth of 5km (3.1 miles) last Tuesday lunchtime, when the South Island city was at its busiest.

 

------------------

 

German ZDFtext: 4,000 HOMELESS IN THE CITY OF LA PAZ, BOLIVIA AFTER A MASSIVE LANDSLIDE FOLLOWING ONE MONTH OF HEAVY RAINFALLS.

 

Tons of rocks buried houses, rocks and cars.

 

Bolivia has experienced one month of heavy rain. So far 55 DIED due to FLOODS and LANDSLIDES. 11,000 have become HOMELESS outside of LA PAZ.

 

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-12592408

 

28 February 2011 Last updated at 00:21 GMT

 

Floods and landslides hit Bolivia

 

A landslide caused by intense rains has destroyed more than 300 homes in the Bolivian city of La Paz.

 

The authorities managed to evacuate the poor Kupini II area before it was smashed by a collapsing hillside.

 

Elsewhere in La Paz, at least five people drowned when a minibus was swept away by a swollen river.

 

Across Bolivia, weeks of heavy rain have killed at least 40 others and left more than 10,000 homeless.

 

Officials evacuated the Kupini II area on Saturday night after cracks began appearing in roads and bridges.

 

"My neighbours were running around and told me to get out," local resident Maria Elena Siles told the Associated Press.

 

"I looked out the window and there were no more homes to the left or the right of mine".

 

Residents have been trying to recover furniture and other belongings from wrecked houses, while crews with heavy equipment try to stop the landslide from threatening other areas.

 

National emergency

 

Much of La Paz is built on steep mountainsides, and landslides are not uncommon, but officials say this was one of the worst the city has ever seen.

 

Troops have been mobilised to help the evacuation and recovery efforts.

 

So far the only confirmed fatalities in La Paz have been five people killed when a minibus fell into a raging river in the south of the city after a bridge collapsed.

 

The Bolivian government declared a national emergency last Tuesday because of torrential rains across much of the country.

 

The worst flooding has been in the northern Amazon lowlands, where dozens of rural communities have been cut off by rivers that have burst their banks.

 

Bolivian military planes and helicopters have been flying supplies to the worst-hit areas.

 

The government says this year's rainy season has been particularly severe as a result of La Nina, a climatic phenomenon caused by a shift in currents in the Pacific Ocean.

 

In recent months parts of Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Mexico and Central America have also experienced severe flooding.

[nancyk58]

NEWS ON 2 MARCH 2011 IN RELATION TO NATURAL DISASTERS

 

Swedish SVT: MASSIVE SAND STORM SWEEPING CHRISTCHURCH TODAY, WEDNESDAY 2.3.11

 

There were winds of up to 70 km per hour.

 

So far the DEATH TOLL is 155, but it may rise to around 240 persons.

 

 

German ZDFtext: FOREST WILDFIRE DESTROYED 4,000 HECTARES OF NATURAL LAND / FOREST IN FLORIDA, USA

 

The wildfire was detected Monday, and until Tuesday it had destroyed 4,000 hectares of forest.

 

In BREVARD COUNTRY south of ORLANDO, a STATE OF EMERGENCY has been declared.

 

Several schools are closed, and dozens of houses have been evacuated as a precautionary measure. Some highways were blocked due to clouds of smoke.

 

So far no report of injuries (according to German ZDFtext around noon on 2.3.11)

[Cascading Waterfall]

Jason Gunn's wife had an eerie preminition of the earthquake happening.

[nancyk58]

News on 3 March 2011 in relation to natural disasters

 

NEWS ON 3 MARCH 2011 IN RELATION TO NATURAL DISASTERS

 

German ZDFtext: 52 DEAD IN FLOODS AND LANDSLIDES IN BOLIVIA

 

Floods and landslides after 2 months of heavy rainfalls have cost 52 human lives in Bolivia.

 

13,700 people in 9 provinces are affected.

 

1,500 houses have been destroyed in the capital LA PAZ alone.

 

The rainy season might last to the middle of April due to the climate phenomenon "La Nina".

 

Around 100,000 families could suffer from the consequences of La Nina.

 

 

German ZDFtext: RESCUE OPERATION IN CHRISTCHURCH, NEW ZEALAND AFTER THE MAGNITUDE 6.3 EARTHQUAKE THAT STRUCK THE SOUTH ISLAND ON 22.2.11 HAS COME TO AN END

 

The authorities in New Zealand have announced that the rescue operation has come to an end as there is no hope of finding survivors in the rubble in Christchurch.

 

The number of missing people stated as 200 is inclusive of the 161 recovered dead bodies.

[nancyk58]

News in relation to natural disasters on 3.3 and 4.3.11

 

News in relation to natural disasters on 3.3 and 4.3.11

 

 

Danish free paper "URBAN" citing the influential Danish paper "Berlingske Tidende":

 

MASSIVE FAMINE IN NORTH KOREA

 

The winter has destroyed up to 80% of the crops in North Korea. Now the aid agencies warn of massive famine and malnutrition because the population has been forced to eat bark and roots. S

 

 

Danish text-TV: FLOODS IN ITALY AFTER HEAVY RAIN COST 5 HUMAN LIVES THIS WEEK

 

Several hundred people have been evacuated.

 

Region Marche is worst hit. The neighbouring region to the west is Toscana, and to the east you find the coast line of the Adriatic.

 

The victims were surprised by the water - some were walking, some were trapped in their cars.

[nancyk58]

News in relation to natural disasters on 6.3.11

 

News in relation to natural disasters on 6.3.11

 

German ZDFtext: Tornado in LOUISIANA, USA resulted in 1 death and 11 injured

 

A tornado in the US state of Louisiana has cost severe damage. 1 woman died and 11 other people were injured. According to information stated by the authorities, more than 100 houses were damaged, some of them were totally destroyed.

 

The town of RAYNE with 8,500 inhabitants was affected in south-western Louisiana. 1,500 were evacuated to an emergency shelter. Trees and electricity poles came down.

 

 

German ZDFtext: NEW ZEALAND DAMAGE EXPEXTED TO AMOUNT TO BETWEEN 10 AND 15 BILLION NEW ZEALAND DOLLAR (= between 5 and 8 billion Euro) FOR THE STATE

 

One week ago the government expected the damage to amount to a total of 20 billion New Zealand Dollar for New Zealand's economy.

 

The earth quake in February cost at least 166 human lives. Many are still missing.

 

 

One sixth of Christchurch's 390,000 inhabitants have left the city. It has been attempted to persuade those employed by Christchurch city to stay by guaranteeing 6 weeks of salaries.

[nancyk58]

News on 7 March 2011 in relation to natural disasters

 

News on 7 March 2011 in relation to natural disasters

 

POWERFUL EARTHQUAKE IN CHILE

 

North CHILE was shaken by a magnitude 6.2 earthquake Sunday. No reports of injuries. According to the US Geological Surveys the epicentre was in Putre, 60 km from the sea port Arica on the Peruvian border - at a depth of 110 km.

 

Both in the Putre and in Belen - also located in North Chile - houses have been damaged.

[nancyk58]

News on 9 March 2011 in relation to natural disasters

 

News on 9 March 2011 in relation to natural disasters

 

POWERFUL / MAGNITUDE 7.2 EARTHQUAKE SHOOK JAPAN

 

Early Wednesday morning central European time, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake shook the sea off JAPAN. The quake made buildings in Tokyo shake / sway.

 

The quake struck 430 km north-east of TOKYO and 10 km below the sea bed according to Japan's Meteorological Institute. The epicentre was 160 km east of the main island HONSHU.

 

The Meteorological Institute issued a tsunami alert in connection with the quake. 30 minutes later a 60 cm high tsunami hit Honshu's east coast - it was visible in the port in Ofunato.

 

12 minutes after the first quake the area was shaken by another one measured at 5.6 on the Richter scale.

 

No report of casualties or damage.

 

All news media mention the earthquake.

[nancyk58]

NEWS IN RELATION TO NATURAL DISASTERS ON 10 MARCH 2011

 

NEWS IN RELATION TO NATURAL DISASTERS ON 10 MARCH 2011

 

 

AT LEAST 24 DEAD AND MORE THAN 200 INJURED BY MAGNITUDE-5.4 EARTHQUAKE IN CHINA

 

The earthquake - measured at 5.4 on the Richter scale - shook a thinly populated area in the YUNNAN province in the south-western China close to the Burma / Myanmar border.

 

According to US Geological Survey (USGS) the epicenter was 225 km south-west of Dali and occurred in a depth of 34 km according to USGS and in a depth of 10 km according to Chinese seismologists.

 

600 houses, roads and railways have been destroyed by the quake. Electricity and the water supply is down in a vast area. According to eye witnesses, shops and hotels were destroyed.

 

The number of deaths and injured is expected to rise according to the Chinese authorities. Many are feared trapped in the collapsed building.

 

 

AUSTRALIA: Thursday, massive cloudbursts caused FLOODS in houses and isolated areas in EAST AUSTRALIA where the recovery is going on after cyclone Yasi's ravaging.

 

Northern Queensland has so far got 241 mm of rain according to the news agency AFP.

[nancyk58]

A GIGANTIC MAGNITUDE 8.8 OR 8.9 EARTHQUAKE IN JAPAN on FRIDAY 11 MARCH 2011

 

It struck at 14:46 local time or 6:46 Central European time off the Japanese coast close to the port city of Sendai and was followed by a tsunami. A 10 m high wave - a wall of debris and water - rushed over farmlands carrying ships, cars, trucks and houses.

 

200 to 300 dead bodies were found on a beach in the Sendai region.

 

The authorities say that more than 1,000 people have died.

 

It was the 5th (other sources said 7th) greatest earthquake ever.

 

A tsunami alert was issued for the entire Pacific area for many countries including the Philippines, Taiwan, California in the USA and Chile.

 

In most areas - for instance in the Philippines and Taiwan - the tsunami was much less destructive than feared.

 

In Crescent City, California the waves from the tsunami - one of them 2½m tall - destroyed 35 ships.

 

A thread has been created:

http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?t=75958

[nancyk58]

News on 11.3.11 in relation to natural disasters

 

Danish DR1: 25 KILLED IN A MAGNITUDE 5.6 EARTHQUAKE IN CHINA

 

An earthquake has destroyed 15,000 houses in southern CHINA. 25 were killed by the quake that hit a mountainous area yesterday evening in the YUNNAN province.

 

Almost half of the 300,000 inhabitants in the affected county has/have become homeless due to the earthquake.

 

The houses in CHINA are far from being built as solidly as in Japan. The houses may also have been built in violation of the building regulations according to experts.

 

Earthquakes in CHINA often result in collapsed buildings because they are not built to withstand earthquakes / they are not earthquake-proof.

[nancyk58]

News on 18.3.11 in relation to the Natural disasters in JAPAN

 

For news in relation to the Natural disasters in JAPAN which occurred on 11.3.11 and in the following days, go to the Japan Quake and Tsunami thread

 

 

Thursday 17.3.11 on TV2 News: MAGNITUDE 6.5 EARTHQUAKE HIT PACIFIC ISLAND STATE OF VANUATU WHICH IS LOCATED EAST OF AUSTRALIA

 

No major tsunami warning was issued according to news agency AFP. But the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a minor warning that the earthquake had the potential to generate local tsunamies.

[nancyk58]

News in relation to natural disasters on 22.3.11

 

2 NORWEGIANS ARE MISSING AFTER LANDSLIDE

 

A house slid down a slope at Bale Beach about 100km from Bergen in North-West Norway. A big flood with snow, ice and water swept the house with 2 people in it into a river. Police - using dogs and helicopters - searched IN VAIN for the missing Norwegians on Tuesday evening.

 

 

For news in relation to the Japan quake and tsunami go the relevant thread: http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?p=4745747

 

German ZDFtext: Powerful (magnitude 6.0) aftershock in Japan (the US Geological Surveys measured it at 5.7). Reactor 2 is still critical. The temperature in the pond for used / spent fuel rods close to the boiling point. In 2 reactors the water level by the fuel rods is falling!!

 

Another good source of information: NHK World (English broadcasts from the Japanese national television company) has the latest news with video:

 

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/

[nancyk58]

News on 24.3.11 in relation to natural disasters

 

News on 24.3.11 in relation to natural disasters

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12852237

 

North-east Burma hit by two 7.0 magnitude earthquakes

 

North-east Burma has been rocked by two 7.0 magnitude earthquakes, close to the borders with Laos and Thailand, the US Geological Survey has reported.

 

They struck seconds apart at 1355 GMT and were centred about 70 miles (110 km) from the northern Thai city of Chiang Rai, the agency said.

 

The first quake was shallow, at a depth of 6.2 miles (10km), while the second was much deeper at 142.5 miles (230km).

 

Tremors could be felt as far away as Bangkok and Hanoi.

 

The area where the quakes struck is sparsely populated and remote.

 

The BBC's Rachel Harvey in Bangkok said it could be a while before the extent of the damage is known.

 

 

German ZDFtext: The epicentre is in Myanmar / Burma 590 km north-east of the port city Rangun and 90km north of Chiang Rai in the northern Thailand.

[nancyk58]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12852237

 

25 March 2011 Last updated at 11:51 GMT

 

Burma earthquake: At least 75 people killed

 

The magnitude-6.8 quake struck near the Lao and Thai borders.

 

Burma is ill prepared to deal with natural disasters: Communication systems and infrastructure are poor.

 

In neighbouring Laos, no casualties have been reported.

 

Earlier reports suggested there had been two strong earthquakes moments apart in the same area, but the USGS later clarified that there had been just one quake.

[nancyk58]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12903505

 

30 March 2011 Last updated at 05:20 GMT

 

Thailand tourist islands flood in deadly rains

 

Flooding across the south of Thailand has killed at least 11 people and stranded thousands of tourists.

 

Police told the BBC that landslides in Krabi have killed two people and left at least 20 people missing.

 

The airport on the tourist island of Samui has been closed. Koh Tao has also become inaccessible due to heavy seas.

 

The Thai navy has sent its only aircraft carrier to the area to help rescue people stranded by the unseasonal cold and rain.

 

Unusual weather in what should be a hot season has seen rainstorms drenching the towns in most of 14 southern provinces.

 

The provinces of Chumphon, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Surat Thani, Trang, Krabi and Phatthalung have been the hardest hit. Rising floodwaters have hampered relief efforts.

 

Officials in Krabi said they are checking reports that landslides have buried several villages.

 

Tourists stuck

 

Air travel, road and rail links have been flooded and electricity cut to many areas.

 

"There are roughly one million people affected in many provinces. At first we thought the flood would last a day or two, but now it has already been one week," deputy prime minister Suthep Thaugsuban told reporters.

 

With the closure of the Koh Samui airport, Bangkok Airways said about 2,000 mostly foreign tourists were stranded on the island.

 

Another 800 stuck in Bangkok had been hoping to go to the island for a holiday, before 50 flights were grounded this week.

 

One tourist, Lucy Pennington from London, said on Twitter that Railay Beach, in Krabi province, was inundated with water.

 

"Holiday turning into nightmare. Escaped Railay today, everywhere flooding and I don't know how to get to Bangkok," she said.

 

Most of the deaths so far have occurred in Nakhon Si Thammarat province. A total of 80 districts of eight provinces have been declared disaster areas.

 

Floods late last year in the south of Thailand left more than 200 people dead.

[Cyan Kat]

Just heard about this :sad:

[nancyk58]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12913487

 

30 March 2011 Last updated at 16:00 GMT

 

Namibia's President Pohamba declares floods emergency

 

 

Namibia's President Hifikepunye Pohamba has declared a state of emergency following serious flooding in the north of the southern African country.

 

More than 20 people are reported to have drowned and some 10,000 displaced, many from the town of Oshakati.

 

The BBC's Frauke Jensen in the capital Windhoek says livestock have been lost, crops destroyed and roads washed away.

 

There has been heavy rainfall since January, causing water levels to rise in the Zambezi and Okavango rivers.

 

Two years ago, more than 90 people were killed by floods in Namibia.

[nancyk58]

Text-TV from Denmark, Sweden and Germany: TOURISTS EVACUATED FROM THAI ISLANDS

 

THAI military is participating in rescue operations.

 

More than 21 killed in cloudbursts.

 

More than 500 stranded tourists have been moved from the the flooded islands Koh Tao and Koh Phangan.

 

Flights, trains and boats have been cancelled in several regions.

 

Almost 1 million are affected.

 

Thousands of tourists are stranded.

[nancyk58]

News on 1 April 2011 in relation to Natural Disasters

 

News on 1 April 2011 in relation to Natural Disasters

 

Swedish SVT text-tv: Magnitude 5.6 earthquake in the island of Crete, Greece 120 km off the coast outside the town of Iraklio. The quake could not be felt in Athens, but it was felt in Cairo, Egypt. No reports of damage.

 

German ZDFtext: 3 Germans died in avalanche accident in the Swiss Alps. The avalanche buried 7 Germans, but 4 of them were saved. 2 members of their group of 9 alarmed the rescue team. A warning of avalanches was issued Friday.

[nancyk58]

Text-TV from Swedish TV Channel SVT and from German ZDF:

 

FLOODS AND LANDSLIDES HAVE COST SO FAR AT LEAST 35 HUMAN LIVES IN SOUTH THAILAND

 

This info is based on info given by the authorities in Thailand.

 

People were swept away by the water masses or buried in mud after heavy cloudbursts.

 

Households are under water, and bridges were swept away. Thousands were evacuated from their homes. The army was involved in evacuations.

 

More than 100 districts in South Thailand have been declared DISASTER ZONES.

 

At least 2 million people - including many tourists - have been affgected by the heavy rains that caused the floods and landslides during the last 1½ weeks.

 

Earlier this week many tourists were stranded as trains, ferries and flights were cancelled.

[nancyk58]

Swedish SVT: DEATH TOLL IN FLOODS IN SOUTH THAILAND RISEN TO 53

 

So the Thai authorities reported on Tuesday.

 

Several areas along both the west and east coast have been severely flooded as a result of the cloudbursts that started 2 weeks ago - according to news agency AFP.

 

More than 40,000 have been evacuated. Mudslides and water masses have hit around 2 million inhabitants when roads, houses and bridges were washed away.

 

Heavy rain is unusual in Thailand around this time of the year.

[nancyk58]

News in relation to natural disasters on 8 April 2011

 

News in relation to natural disasters on 8 April 2011

 

10 KILLED IN ROSTOCK, GERMANY WHEN MULTIPLE CARS COLLIDED IN SANDSTORM

 

In ROSTOCK, Germany a motorhighway was hit by an intense SANDSTORM resulting in around 40 cars being involved in multiple collisions. At least 10 were killed and 100 injured.

 

 

EDIT on 9.4.11: The death toll in Rostock in connection with the car collisions on the motorhighway has been reduced to 8 and around 80 were injured (the figures a bit lower than what was first reported on text-TV).

 

 

 

 

 

JAPAN AFTERSHOCK OCCURRED ON THURSDAY 7.4.11 KILLING 3 AND INJURING SCORES

 

3 were killed and scores injured in JAPAN in connection with yesterday's powerful aftershock - measured at magnitude 7.1. Buildings collapsed, and several buildings in TOKYO 240 km away were swaying during the aftershock. A new power plant had problems - namely ONUGAWA in north-east Japan. Some low-radioactive water leaked out of open basins with spent fuel. Measurements were made, but no increased radioactivity had been recorded at the power plant.

 

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-13005110

 

8 April 2011 Last updated at 11:01 GMT

 

Japan: Powerful aftershock leaves three dead

 

Three people have been killed and scores injured after a powerful aftershock struck north-east Japan. Several buildings were destroyed and power was cut to 3.6 million homes.

It was the most powerful tremor since the 9.0-magnitude quake that triggered a devastating tsunami four weeks ago.

At the crippled Fukushima nuclear power station workers briefly retreated to a quake-proof shelter. The plant's operator later said there was no sign problems there were any worse.

The latest earthquake struck just before midnight on Thursday, at a depth of 49km (32 miles), close to the epicentre of the 11 March quake.

First reports said it had a magnitude of 7.4 but that was later revised to 7.1, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

A tsunami warning was lifted after about 90 minutes.

 

Last month's quake struck at 32km deep. More than 12,700 people are known to have died in the disaster and nearly 15,000 people remain unaccounted for. Hundreds of thousands have been made homeless.

 

In the latest earthquake, a 63-year-old woman died when the tremor knocked out power in Yamagata prefecture, shutting off her respirator.

 

In Miyagi Prefecture, two men, aged 79 and 85, died at a hospital. Fire officials say the quake may have brought on heart attacks.

 

Japan's nuclear safety agency said facilities along the north-east coast were under control. Back-up diesel generators kicked in at several plants after external power was lost.

 

Operations have been suspended at all nuclear power plants from Aomori to Ibaraki prefectures since the 11 March quake, but electricity is still crucial to keep the cooling systems operating.

 

Workers at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station were safe, a spokesman for plant operator, Tepco, told a news conference in Tokyo.

 

No new irregularities were detected in radiation readings or at the facilities, the firm said.

 

Workers are trying to keep the damaged reactors cool to stop further releases of radioactive material.

 

Work to discharge low-level radioactive water into the sea from a storage facility would continue on Friday, Tepco said.

 

The work is designed to make room for highly radioactive water that leaked into the basement of the turbine building next to the plant's No 2 reactor and an adjoining tunnel.

 

The company said it would also continue work to inject nitrogen into the containment vessel of the No 1 reactor to prevent a possible hydrogen explosion.

 

China has urged Japan to observe international law and adopt effective measures to protect the marine environment, amid concern over the discharge of contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean.

 

The foreign ministry also asked Japan for swift, comprehensive and accurate reports on the crisis.

 

Fish exports from Japan have been hit by the radiation leaks.

 

 

At the scene

 

Roland Buerk BBC News, Iwate prefecture

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Up here, close to the epicentre, there was pretty violent shaking, both side-to-side and up and down, enough to have people leaping from their hotel rooms into the corridor and scrambling to get outside.

 

The tsunami warning has now been lifted for the north-east coast. Waves of a metre in height were recorded in Miyagi prefecture, next door to where I am now.

 

At the moment, this prefecture is still black: the electricity has failed. There are also reports that water pipes have been damaged in some places, and roads have been closed too.

 

The aftershock was felt in the capital Tokyo, several hundred kilometres away, and it was felt on the coast in those evacuation centres where tens of thousands are still living after the earthquake.

 

It was a real jolt, a reminder of what happened as we approach the [one-month] anniversary of the earthquake of 11 March. There have been many aftershocks since then, but this one was the biggest.

[nancyk58]

NEWS ON 15 APRIL 2011 IN RELATION TO NATURAL DISASTERS

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-13089833

 

14 April 2011 Last updated at 23:24 GMT

 

Colombia mudslide engulfs bus after heavy rain

 

A mudslide caused by heavy rain has engulfed a bus in Colombia, killing at least 14 people, officials say.

 

The bus was leaving the central city of the city of Manizales when it was hit by a collapsing hillside and swept into a ravine.

 

Rescuers have been searching for six others missing after the accident.

 

Over the past year Colombia has suffered widespread floods that have killed more than 300 people and forced 2 million from their homes.

 

Emergency workers have been recovering bodies from the bus, which was completely buried by mud and rock.

 

Some parts of Manizales have been evacuated because of the risk of further landslides.

 

The 2010-11 rainy season in Colombia has been been the worst in Colombia's recent history, flooding huge areas and causing damage that will cost billions of dollars to repair.

 

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13099230

 

15 April 2011 Last updated at 17:30 GMT

 

Arkansas and Oklahoma storms kill nine

 

Severe storms have left at least nine people dead and destroyed school buildings and dozens of homes in the US states of Arkansas and Oklahoma.

 

A tornado swept through the small town of Tushka, Oklahoma, killing two elderly sisters and injuring at least 25 people, officials said.

 

In Garland County, Arkansas, lightning knocked a tree into a house, killing a man and his baby daughter.

 

And a six-year-old boy was killed by a falling tree in Bald Knob, Arkansas.

 

Tushka Public School Principal Matt Simpson said the tornado had destroyed five school buildings, the Associated Press news agency reported.

 

In rural St Francis County, strong storm winds flipped over a mobile home, killing a woman inside it and injuring her husband.

 

A mother and her eight-year-old son were killed in Little Rock, Arkansas when a tree fell on a home, and outside the city in Pulaski County a tree fell on a vehicle, killing a man inside, a police official said.

 

The National Weather Service said at least 10 tornados struck the central and southern plains regions of the US on Thursday, and warned of tornados and powerful thunderstorms over the southern US states on Friday.

[nancyk58]

NEWS ON 16.4.11 IN RELATION TO NATURAL DISASTERS

 

NEWS ON 16.4.11 IN RELATION TO NATURAL DISASTERS

 

Swedish text-TV from TV channel SVT: Workers at the crippled nuclear power plant in Fukushima have been exposed to high levels of radiation - more than 100 millisievert - in connection with the rescue operation after the quake and ensuing tsunami. Japan authorities reported this to the International Atomic Energy Agency aka. IAEA. The average radiation that a worker at a nuclear power plant is exposed to is 50 millisievert over a period of 5 years. Last month, 2 workers were hospitalized after being exposed to more than 170 / 180 millisievert!!

 

 

Text-TV from Danish TV Channel DR1 + TV2 News plus German TV Channel 2 ZDF (ZDFtext):

 

JAPAN HIT BY NEW POWERFUL EARTHQUAKE - MAGNITUDE 5.9

 

Central parts of Japan were hit by a magnitude 5.9 earthquake that shook the Ibaraki province plus neighbouring regions Saturday before noon local time. No tsunami warning was issued. The epicentre of today's quake was 70 km below the surface of the earth in Tochigi in central Japan. Buildings swayed in Tokyo during today's quake.

 

 

Text from German TV channel 2 - ZDFtext:

 

EARTHQUAKES SHOOK AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND AND TAIWAN

 

2 magnitude 5.2 earthquakes shook north-eastern AUSTRALIA and CHRISTCHURCH in NEW ZEALAND. So far there is no report of material damage or casualties. There were temporary power failures in some parts of Christchurch.

 

In February 2011, a magnitude 6.3 quake destroyed the central part of Christchurch.

 

A magnitude 5.7 earthquake was measured off the north-eastern coast of TAIWAN. No reports of casualties or material damage.

 

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13099230

 

US storms: Alabama deaths raise death toll

 

Severe spring storms including tornados have left 16 people dead and destroyed school buildings and homes in southern states of the US.

 

The storm did most damage in ARKANSAS, OKLAHOMA and ALABAMA.

 

Among those killed were two elderly sisters in the Oklahoma town of Tushka, where at least 25 people were injured.

 

In Alabama seven people died, including a mother and her two children. The other seven deaths were in rural areas of Arkansas.

 

The storms ripped up trees and power lines, tore roofs off houses, and scattered tractor-trailers across roads.

 

On Saturday local officials confirmed seven people had died in Alabama, adding to the earlier deaths in Oklahoma and Arkansas.

 

The dead included:

 

A man and his baby daughter, killed after lightning felled a tree in Garland County, Arkansas

 

A six-year-old boy killed by a falling tree in Bald Knob, Arkansas

 

A woman killed when strong storm winds flipped over a mobile home in rural St Francis County, Arkansas

 

A mother and her eight-year-old son were killed in Little Rock when a tree fell on a home and, outside the city, a tree fell on a vehicle, killing a man inside

 

As the storm howled through Crystal Springs, Arkansas, Eden Davis woke up, grabbed her young child and sat on the edge of the bed waiting to pull a mattress over both of them to shield the pair from flying debris, AP reported.

 

"I've never been so nervous about a storm," she said.

 

"I was asleep, but my fiance called me and told me to wake up and that I needed to watch the news because the weather was getting real bad."

 

While several tornados were reported, much of the damage in the south was attributed to straight-line winds - sudden, violent downbursts that struck with hurricane force in the middle of the night.

 

Meanwhile in Texas, a firefighter was killed while battling wildfires fanned by the strong winds.