By Armen Grigoryan Nov 26 2018 (IPS) – Thirty years ago, a powerful earthquake ripped through my home country of Armenia, leaving 25,000 dead, 500,000 homeless and annihilating an estimated 40 percent of the national economy.
Category: Disasters
Local tragedy global catastrophe: Worldwatch Institute
In the aftermath of a record-breaking wildfire that destroyed 150,000 acres of forest, destroyed over 14,000 homes and killed at least 85 people in Northern California, President Trump said: “Nobody would have ever thought this could happen.” But in truth,…
Bd shrimp farmers of Satkhira suffer for virus attack
A viral attack has devastated the shrimp enclosures in the district, leaving the sector in limbo as the farmers are counting huge losses due to the widespread death of shrimp and its falling price.
Dust storm blankets cities in south-east Australia
A giant dust storm has blanketed communities across south-east Australia, turning skies orange and raising concerns about air quality. Authorities issued a public health alert for Sydney on Thursday as the 500km-wide (310 miles) dust band began to reach the…
11 years after Cyclone Sidr, a missing fisherman returns
Shahidul Molla, who had gone missing during Sidr, returned home at Amragacchia village in Sharankhola upazila on November 12, 11 years after the devastating cyclone.
Trump visits California’s deadliest wildfire sites
US President Donald Trump has arrived in California to survey the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in the state’s history. The Camp Fire, in northern California, has killed at least 76 people. More than 1,200 people have been reported missing,…
Golden Globes group gives $300000 to wildfire victims
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association is giving $300,000 to help the victims of California’s deadly wildfires.
Number of California wildfires missing leaps to 631
The number of people missing in northern California’s devastating wildfire has leapt to more than 600, and seven more bodies have been found, according to local authorities. The Camp Fire, the state’s deadliest and most destructive blaze, has killed at…
11 years after Cyclone Sidr: Victims still recall disaster
Eleven years after the devastating Cyclone Sidr, the survivors of Sharankhola upazila, the worst affected area of the district, are still recalling the nightmare of the cyclone that claimed hundreds lives as well as destroyed cattle, crops and dwelling houses.
3 passengers’ bodies found as speedboat capsizes in Padma
The bodies of three passengers, including a minor girl, who went missing after a speedboat capsized in the Padma river in Shibchar upazila on Sunday afternoon, were recovered on Monday morning.
California fire death toll rises to 23
The death toll from destructive fires hitting California rose to 23 Saturday as rescue workers recovered more bodies of people killed by the late-season infernos.
California wildfires death toll rises to 25
The death toll in the wildfires raging through California has risen to 25, according to officials. This comes after 14 more bodies were discovered in or near the decimated town of Paradise in the state’s north, bringing the number of…
Chart plan to protect from impending global disasters: Yunus
Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus here on Tuesday called upon the academics around the world to chart out a new plan to protect human beings from the impending disasters on earth saying that the time is running out.
A radically realistic climate vision
By Barbara Unmüßig Berlin – According to the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the world’s main scientific authority on global warming, keeping global temperatures from rising more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels is a feasible goal.…
At least 9 dead as violent storms buffet Italy
At least nine people have been killed over two days in Italy as heavy rains and high winds buffet much of the country.
Lion Air plane crashes in sea off Jakarta with 188 on board
Jakarta, Oct 29 (AP/UNB) — Indonesia’s disaster agency says a Lion Air passenger jet crashed into the sea shortly after takeoff from Jakarta and was carrying 188 passengers and crew.
Libya in chaos seven years after NATO’s ‘liberation’
By Neil Clark – RT Libya remains a lawless land, with rival militias fighting battles in the streets of Tripoli and over 1 million people in need of aid. But the West’s ‘liberal interventionists’ aren’t interested in the catastrophe they…
Climate caused sea levels to force 200000 in BD migrate
Dhaka, Oct 23 – Increased soil salinity, due to climate change-induced rises in sea-levels, is likely to force nearly 200,000 coastal residents to migrate to inland areas within Bangladesh to find alternative livelihoods, according to a landmark study by researchers…
Caribbean nations pay for climate change caused by others
Although their contribution to global warming is negligible, Caribbean nations are bearing the brunt of its impact. Climate phenomena are so devastating that countries are beginning to prepare not so much to adapt to the new reality, but to get…
EU brings relief to riverbank collapse victims in Bangladesh
Dhaka, 15 October 2018 – In response to the collapse of the Padma River embankment in the central Bangladeshi district of Shariatpur, the European Union is providing EUR 80 000 (BDT 7.84 million) in humanitarian aid funding to address the…
Rain induced mudslides kill four in Chittagong
At least four people including two women and a minor girl were killed in two separate incidents of hill slides in the port city early Sunday following continuous rainfall for last several days due to the influence of Cyclone Titli.
The Caribbean reiterates 1.5 Degrees Celsius to stay alive
If there is one lesson that Dominican Reginald Austrie has learnt from the devastation Hurricane Maria brought to his country last September, it is the need for “resilience, resilience, resilience”.
Hurricane victims in US getting IRS tax filing relief
Panama City, Oct 13 (AP/UNB) — The Internal Revenue Service says victims of Hurricane Michael will get a grace period before having to file some tax returns and payments. The IRS said Friday it’s offering the relief in parts of…
Hurricane Michael leaves ‘unimaginable destruction’
Hurricane Michael left “unimaginable destruction” as it ploughed into coastal areas of Florida, the state’s governor, Rick Scott says. “So many lives have been changed forever,” he said. “So many families have lost everything.” The worst hit areas of Florida’s…
9 dead after severe cyclone Titli hits eastern Indian coast
Gopalpur, Oct 12 (AP/UNB) — Severe cyclone Titli damaged homes and blew down trees and power poles in eastern India, where nine people were killed and about 300,000 forced to move to higher ground.
‘Changed Forever’: Florida Panhandle devastated by Michael
Panama City, Oct 12 (AP/UNB) — The devastation inflicted by Hurricane Michael came into focus Thursday with rows upon rows of homes found smashed to pieces, and rescue crews struggling to enter stricken areas in hopes of accounting for hundreds…
Record-breaking ‘hell’ storm Hurricane Michael mauls US
The third-strongest storm in recorded history to hit the mainland US has battered north-west Florida, flooding beach towns and snapping trees.
Cyclone ‘Titli’ hits eastern India coast with hurricane wind
Dhaka, Oct 11 – The severe cyclonic storm ‘Titli’ hit India’s Odisha-Andhra coast at Gopalpur with a hurricane wind speed of 126 Kph around 6:15 am (local time) on Thursday.
Hurricane Michael set to hit Florida
Powerful Hurricane Michael is set to make landfall in Florida later on Wednesday, forcing mass evacuations in the southern US state. A category three storm with winds near 125mph (201km/h), Michael is expected to strengthen further when it hits the…
Cyclone ‘Titli’ forms in Bay: Cautionary signal No 4 for ports
Dhaka, Oct 10 – The maritime ports of Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar, Mongla and Payra have been advised to keep hoisted distant cautionary signal No 4 as the cyclonic storm, ‘Titli’, over the West-central Bay and adjoining area moved north-northwestwards over…