Derna, Libya (AFP) Sept 19, 2023 Communications were severed Tuesday to the flood-hit Libyan city of Derna and journalists were asked to leave, a day after hundreds protested against authorities they blamed for the thousands of deaths. A tsunami-sized flash flood broke through two ageing river dams upstream from the city on the night of September 10 and razed entire neighbourhoods, sweeping untold thousands into … Continue reading Communications cut to flood-hit Libya city after protests

Beijing (AFP) Sept 20, 2023 A tornado in eastern China killed 10 people and seriously injured several others, state media said Wednesday, the latest in a string of extreme weather events to strike the country. “Yesterday afternoon, a strong tornado occurred in Suqian, Jiangsu Province… causing casualties and property loss in certain areas,” state broadcaster CCTV said. The tornado affected more than 5,500 people,http://dlvr.it/SwSFFj Continue reading Tornado in eastern China kills 10, hundreds relocated

Tehran (AFP) Sept 19, 2023 Flash floods have injured 20 people in northern Iran, after what officials described as the region’s heaviest rains in a century, Iranian media reported. The rains have battered the cities of Astara and Talesh, on the Caspian Sea coast near the border with Azerbaijan since Sunday, the reports said. “Heavy rains … have fallen over Astara which have not been … Continue reading Heaviest rains in century bring floods to Caspian Sea coast

Tunis (AFP) Sept 19, 2023 A devastating flood in war-torn Libya’s east has fomented popular discontent, which is however unlikely to threaten the status quo in the country split between two rival administrations, analysts say. In the hard-hit Mediterranean coastal city of Derna, where most of the more than 3,300 deaths have been recorded since Storm Daniel hit on September 10, hundreds of people took … Continue reading Libya flood feeds unrest but political system unchallenged: analysts

Grenoble, France (AFP) Sept 18, 2023 French conservation groups on Monday withdrew from government consultations about managing the wolf population, describing as “unacceptable” ministers’ new proposals for checking the growing numbers of the once endangered predator. “We have announced our definitive withdrawal from the National Wolf Group,” said Jean-David Abel of France Nature Environnement (FNE), speaking on behalf of six ehttp://dlvr.it/SwQC0x Continue reading Howl of disapproval: French activists quit wolf talks

Bangkok (AFP) Sept 20, 2023 Most species of the famously large Rafflesia flower, which has long captured the imagination with its enormous speckled red petals, are now at risk of extinction, new research warned Wednesday. Rafflesia is actually a parasite, and lives on tropical vines across parts of Southeast Asia, producing blooms that are among the largest in the world. It is something of an … Continue reading Most species of ‘world’s largest flower’ risk extinction: study

Harare (AFP) Sept 18, 2023 Large numbers of elephants from Zimbabwe’s biggest national park are moving to neighbouring Botswana in a search for water, a spokesman said Monday. “Many animals have and are moving from Hwange National Park into Botswana” Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority spokesman Tinashe Farawo told AFP. Hwange National Park covers an area of more than 14,600 square kilometres (5,60http://dlvr.it/SwQBzW Continue reading Water shortage drives elephant migration from Zimbabwe

Washington (AFP) Sept 19, 2023 Humans are driving the loss of entire branches of the “Tree of Life,” according to a new study published on Monday which warns of the threat of a sixth mass extinction. “The extinction crisis is as bad as the climate change crisis. It is not recognized,” said Gerardo Ceballos, professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, and co-author of … Continue reading Scientists warn entire branches of the ‘Tree of Life’ are going extinct

Sydney (AFP) Sept 19, 2023 Australia’s weather bureau declared on Tuesday the formation of an El Nino weather pattern, bringing hot and dry conditions likely to increase the severity of bushfires and drought. Government forecaster Karl Braganza said an El Nino pattern had settled over the Pacific Ocean, coinciding with an unusual spring heatwave currently baking eastern Australia. Braganza said the El Nino patterhttp://dlvr.it/SwMgBw Continue reading Australia declares formation of El Nino weather pattern

Paris (ESA) Sep 19, 2023 This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image features swirls of vivid, emerald green algal blooms in the Gulf of Finland. Zoom in to explore this image at its full 10 m resolution or click on the circles to learn more. The Gulf of Finland is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. The area pictured shows the western part of the Gulf. Helsinki, … Continue reading Earth from Space: Blooms in the Gulf of Finland