#disasters

nowisthetime@pod.automat.click

Long term health and enviromental affects from #Turkey's #bombings.

News coverage from NPA:

https://npasyria.com/en/111209/

"Turkish attacks on oil facilities in NE #Syria lead to #oil leakage into two main #river streams. Doctors and experts in Hasakah warn about #health and #agricultural #disasters that may take place due to the leakage."

Oil leakage into rivers threatens NE Syria - North press agency

ramnath@nerdpol.ch

#INDIA is #submerged! #Dam #Destroyed, #Monster #Flash #Flood & #Landslide Washed #Millions of #Houses & #Cars
WIN TV

"The recent #catastrophic #natural #disasters in India has stunned the# world.
Extremely heavy monsoon rains triggered massive flash flooding and landslides, causing tremendous destruction across large parts of the country.
This monster natural disasters washed away millions of homes, businesses, and vehicles.
Sadly, hundreds of lives were also lost in the devastating flash floods and mudslides.
Scientists say climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of many types of natural disasters.
As the planet warms, weather patterns are disrupted, leading to more extreme rainfall capable of causing devastating natural disasters like this one.
India's vulnerability to these natural disasters is increased by its climate, mountainous terrain in many regions, and large population living in flood-prone areas.
This terrible tragedy underscores the urgent need to improve natural disasters preparedness and response.
Climate change is expected to keep worsening natural disasters around the world.
All nations must make resilience to these natural disasters a top priority.
Improved early warning systems, flood control infrastructure, and public education can help mitigate loss of life and destruction when the next inevitable natural disasters strikes.
The world grieves with India as the country works to recover and rebuild from this monster natural disasters.
We can only hope global leaders take the growing threat of climate change-fueled natural disasters seriously.
More must be done to protect people worldwide from the heartbreak and devastation of natural disasters like this one.
Our thoughts are with the victims and rescuers responding to this horrific natural disasters in India.

00:00 - natural disasters
00:28 - sikkim flash flood
02:50 - sikkim flood
04:55 - sikkim floods
07:00 - india flood
10:20 - india storm
13:55 - india news
16:33 - heavy rain
-------------------------"

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=6FpQSC9BMvk

danie10@squeet.me

Disaster alert accounts are preparing for a world after Twitter, due to the API limitations imposed

House with lots of debris surrounding it, with a man in foreground taking a photo on a mobile phone
For years, Twitter has been a go-to for agencies that need to warn people during a rapidly changing crisis. The National Weather Service uses it to share hurricane and tornado alerts. Firefighting agencies tweet updates about where a blaze is headed. It’s supposed to give people a heads-up so that they can take precautions to keep themselves safe.

Recently, though, agencies have started facing the real possibility of losing that resource. Twitter announced in February that it would restrict access to its previously open API, and over the past week, it’s cut off public service accounts for agencies such as the National Weather Service, the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and Bay Area Rapid Transit. The accounts were later reactivated with little explanation. But emergency responders emphasize that Twitter isn’t the only platform to find the latest news in a disaster — and it may be an increasingly unreliable one.

Twitter’s API service, after its changes, lets users post 1,500 tweets per month for free. Beyond that, prices can increase steeply — the hobbyist-oriented Basic tier lets users post 3,000 tweets for $100 a month, and a “low-cost” enterprise plan could reportedly soar as high as $42,000. And for many emergency accounts, the free tier won’t be enough.

Although a network like Mastodon (part of the greater Fediverse) has no such limitations, and is a free and open-source network, there is still a chance of a server being discontinued. It may make sense though for a disaster agency to host their own server, or possibly for a broader government agency to provide such hosting for a number of disaster and other relief agencies.

Broadcast radio is also a good local option, but some countries are still busy transitioning away from analogue FM broadcasting to the newer digital radio, and of course not many have portable radio-wave receivers.

Another good option is cell tower broadcasts which take preference over normal SMS text messages or congestion on towers, they can be directed to specific geographic locations, and will reach all cell phones nearby including any tourists to the area. But this requires a proper arrangement to be in place between a disaster entity and the tower operators.

Yes, there is “always ham radio” but that really only reaches between licensed operators, and not to the broader public at large.

See https://www.theverge.com/2023/4/21/23691784/elon-musk-twitter-disaster-alert-accounts-fire-storm-tsunami-earthquake
#Blog, #alerts, #disasters, #technology, #twitter

danie10@squeet.me

AM Radio is already being phased out of some new vehicles, and that is very bad for Emergency Broadcasts and Disaster Management

Old fashioned looking portable radio receiver with antenna extended, and a solar panel on top
According to Markey, AM radio operates at lower frequencies and longer wavelengths, enabling it to pass through solid objects and travel further than other radio waves — a feature not shared by FM broadcasts. As a result, FEMA’s National Public Warning System — through which FEMA delivers critical safety alerts to the public — operates through broadcast AM radio stations.

“Ford said there were other technologies available, such as internet streaming, HD radio delivered on FM bands, or some apps that provide AM content, that will make up for the absence of AM radio in its vehicles.”

The problem here is car manufacturers (and most listeners) are thinking of the perfect urban world. The reality is we still have regular disasters, and the fact is that cellphone towers, the Internet, etc all only last about 4 to 6 hours on battery backup.

FM does work well (along with its Traffic Announcement alerts and RDS data display) but it is shorter range. But even FM for emergencies and disasters is at risk by listeners themselves, as many today only have a radio in their vehicle. Even broadcast TVs are often no longer found inside homes, as everything has moved to streaming over the Internet.

Take South Africa with its already up to 4 hour power outage load shedding. There is not enough time typically for batteries to recharge, so at extended Stage 6 and above load shedding, the Internet as well as some cellular coverage gets lost for many hours. This has already even affected emergency services own radio communications via repeaters.

The final fallback, is to broadcast AM and FM radio stations (yes and Amateur Radio, but that is not receivable by all citizens). But as a citizen, you can still ensure that you have at least one radio receiver kept at home. An example is the photo with this post, which costs around $17 (ZAR330) and has solar charging for its rechargeable batteries.

The more we digitise and get smarter, the more dependent we are on vulnerable electrical systems… Plan for the future, keep Retro.

See https://www.theverge.com/23633932/am-radio-discontinue-ford-tesla-markey-fema-fcc
#Blog, #communications, #disasters, #emergencies, #radio, #technology

anonymiss@despora.de

#Hurricanes, cold waves, #tornadoes: #Weather #disasters in #USA dominate natural #disaster losses in 2021

source: https://www.munichre.com/en/company/media-relations/media-information-and-corporate-news/media-information/2022/natural-disaster-losses-2021.html

The images of natural disasters in 2021 are disturbing. Climate research increasingly confirms that extreme weather has become more likely. Societies need to urgently adapt to increasing weather risks and make climate #protection a priority. Insurers meet their responsibilities by covering a portion of the risks and losses. By applying risk-adequate premiums, they put a price on natural hazards, thereby encouraging carefully considered behaviour to limit the losses. At the same time, severe volcanic eruptions and earthquakes in 2021 showed that we should not overlook these categories of natural disasters either.

#climate #crisis #politics #economy #problem #future #earth #nature #hurricane #tornado #flood #warming #volcano

christophs@diaspora.glasswings.com

'Pet prep' could be key to disaster survival

"They suggest that focusing on individual disaster preparedness 'for the sake of your pet' will deliver better engagement for planning for pet evacuation and self-reliance that will, in turn, yield higher human survival rates," said Dr. Gurtner.

That's an interesting thing!
#pets #disasters

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-10-pet-prep-key-disaster-survival.html

dredmorbius@joindiaspora.com

Meanwhile on the Left Coast: Entire city of South Lake Tahoe evacuated as weather drives Caldor Fire

The entire city of South Lake Tahoe and surrounding areas along the west and south shores have been ordered to evacuate due to the raging Caldor Fire, which has been creeping toward the lake for more than two weeks since igniting near Pollock Pines.

The formal exodus comes after South Lake Tahoe’s roughly 22,000 residents were given an evacuation warning late Sunday, told to be ready at a moment’s notice to evacuate. Nearly 30,000 residents had already been evacuated from the eastern half of El Dorado County.

At 10 a.m., fire and sheriff’s officials upgraded the warning to a mandatory order for all but the northeastern corner of the city, near Stateline. Authorities expanded the order at 11 a.m. to include the entire city. ...

Lake Tahoe is on the California-Nevada border, in the Sierra Nevada, where the eastern border of California takes a bend from directly southward to south-southeast. It's about 180 miles (290 km) from San Francisco, and lies on US Highway 50 (to the south) and US Interstate 80 (to the North).. The Caldor Fire is approaching from the west, and is the second fire this season to traverse the entire Sierra crest. This is the first year in modern history in which any fire has done so.

https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/fires/article253849183.html

#Wildfire #Disasters #California #LakeTahoe #SouthLakeTahoe #Evacuations #CaldorFire #ClimateChange

dredmorbius@joindiaspora.com

Residential Building Near Miami Beach Partially Collapses

…Commissioner Sally Heyman of Miami-Dade County said county officials informed her that as of 10 a.m., 51 people who own units in the building had not been accounted for. That did not mean they were missing, she said, just that the authorities had not been able to reach them. She added that not all of the units may have been occupied by full-time residents.

Daniella Levine Cava, the mayor of Miami-Dade County, said that about half of the 136 units in the 12-story tower had collapsed. “We’re going to do everything we can possibly do to identify and rescue those who have been trapped in the rubble,” the mayor said at a news conference Thursday morning. …

Note that “partially collapsed” understates the severity of this failure.

The building is a a 12-storey (some reports say 13) residential condominium. A substantial wing has collapsed, another section is still standing. Roughly half the building is down. This tweet shows the now-collapsed and still-standing sections.

55 of 130 units collapsed.

The building appears to have pancaked straight down.

The collapse occurred at about 2 am local time.

"Partial" in the sense that "the entirety of the building didn't fall", but misleading in that "the half that did is now rubble and dust". By photos, the rubble itself seems slightly below-grade, suggesting both that it's very compressed and has occupied a sub-surface void, whether a basement structure or geological in origin.

Reports are that 35 people have been rescued from the building, two pulled from the rubble. There are two people in hospital in critical condition (unclear if the same two). Search dogs have had few hits, “there’s just not a lot of voids that they’re finding” according to the mayor of Surfside, FL. Two confirmed deaths, numerous unaccounted for.

Large residential structures collapsing in the dead of night is not normal for the US.

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/06/24/us/miami-building-collapse

#miami #florida #MiamiBeach #SurfsideFL #BuildingCollapse #news #risk #disasters