Tropical Storm Erika has devastated the tiny island of Dominica, triggering landslides that have left at least six people missing and hundreds of people without homes.
The Antiqua Weather Service says the storm dumped 9 inches of rain onto the mountainous island late Wednesday and then 6 more inches on Thursday.
About 80 percent of the island is without electricity. The country’s airport has been closed after flood waters covered cars and at least one small airplane.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) says that the storm is moving west with sustained winds of 50 m.p.h. and is expected to cover Puerto Rico Thursday. The storm continues to be what forecasters call “poorly organized” and is not expected to strengthen over the next two days.
Puerto Rico Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla said that while the storm could cut off power and water service, the storm would also bring much needed rain to the parched nation.
“We’re happy given the dry conditions, but it does highlight the need to be on alert,” he told CBS.
Forecasters say it is still too early to know whether or not the storm will reach Florida with any kind of tropical storm or hurricane strength.
Meanwhile in the Pacific, Tropical Storm Ignacio strengthened into a hurricane. The storm is moving slowly westward, about 1,100 miles east-southeast of Hilo, Hawaii.
Rescuers working in Salgar, Columbia were stunned to find an 11-month-old baby alive after a landslide that left 78 people, including the baby’s mother, dead.
The infant, Jhosep Diaz, was in a padded crib. The water and mud slide picked up the baby’s crib which flowed like a raft and traveled more than half a mile. Doctors who treated the boy say that he was cold but basically unharmed by his adventure.
“He was unconscious and didn’t open his little eyes but was breathing,” Dr Jesus Antonio Guisao told the AP news agency.
The boy’s mother was found dead along with 11 other family members by rescue personnel. The baby will go to the custody of his grandfather, who said that he lost a total of 16 family members in the disaster.
“Amid so much bad news concerning the death of 16 of our relatives, my grandson’s survival is a miracle,” he said.
Officials say the landslide is the worst natural disaster in Columbia since 1999. The landslide struck around 3 a.m. local time and stretches 25 miles along the Liboriana River.
A major eruption in Chile has thousands of people fleeing as heavy smoke fills the air and lava rushes down the slopes.
The Villarrica volcano blew its top at 3 a.m. local time according to the National Emergency Office. A red alert was issued for the region and authorities immediately started forced evacuations of residents from around the bottom of the mountain.
In addition to the lava flow, authorities say mudslides caused by melting snow could destroy entire villages.
“It was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen,” 29-year-old Australian tourist Travis Armstrong told the Associated Press. “I’ve never seen a volcano erupt and it was spewing lava and ash hundreds of meters into the air. Lightning was striking down at the volcano from the ash cloud that formed from the eruption.”
Rivers in the area were rising and residents downriver from the mountain are preparing for flooding issues.
The mountain has been erupting on a regular basis every 10 to 15 years.
A massive storm rolled into northern California on Thursday, knocking out power, flooding highways and toppling trees.
Strong winds contributed to the death of a 40-year-old homeless man who had been sleeping on a trail when a tree fell on him. An elementary school student survived in what local officials called a miracle after an 80-foot tree fell on him. He is listed in good condition at a hospital.
“It’s a big storm, as we expected, and it’s headed south with very powerful winds and heavy rainfall,” National Weather Service meteorologist Will Pi told Fox News.
Parts of Southern California that are prone to mudslides have been evacuating ahead of the storm. At least one apartment complex was entirely evacuated because of previous slides in the area. Lumberjacks in the San Bernardino National Forest were putting concrete weights on lumber stacks to keep them from collapsing from the high winds.
Many stores have been blocking their doors with sandbags in anticipation of flooding.
California officials are concerned about the San Bernardino Mountains because of the wildfires in the last few years that has devastated the vegetation and made the land primed for major mudslides.
The storm is also expected to dump feet of snow in the mountains and ski resort operators say they expect to have over three feet of new snow by the weekend.
Tropical depression Fernand stormed into eastern Mexico killing at least 14 in mudslides and flooding.
Officials say at least 13 people were buried alive when a landslide destroyed homes on a hillside in Veracruz state. One man was confirmed to have been swept away by flood water in neighboring Oaxaca. Hundreds of people have been moved into shelters because of the dangerous conditions. Continue reading →
Chinese state media has raised the death toll from Monday’s dual earthquakes to 94.
Hundreds are injured and the death toll is likely to rise as rescuers reach some of the more remote parts of the Gansu province. The majority of the deaths are reported to be residents of Dingxi city within Gansu. Continue reading →
A river near the city of Petropolis, 40 miles north of Rio de Janeiro, burst its banks and flooded the city center launching mudslides that have killed at least 16 and injured dozens.
Two emergency workers have been confirmed among the dead. Continue reading →
Typhoon Bopha’s death toll is rapidly climbing as Philipino officials start to reach areas of the country cut off by flooding and mudslides.
One small province in the eastern part of the country has reported at least 156 dead. Over 43 died in one village when a mudslide buried a school and village hall that served as a evacuation center.
The province along the coastline where the storm made landfall has reported 50 dead with many small villages still inaccessible to rescue personnel.
Governor Arturo Uy told the BBC that the storm has caused catastrophic damage to the region’s food supplies. In the areas they have been able to access, Uy estimated up to 80% of the crops were destroyed…most of them bananas marked for export. The exports bring the majority of income for the region.
The town of Cateel had more than 95% of their buildings completely destroyed by the storm.
Typhoon Bopha slammed into the Philippines with wind gusts of 130 m.p.h. destroying homes, flooding towns and causing lethal mudslides.
At least 43 are dead and 25 reported injured in the village of Andap according to local news sources. A “torrent of water” rushed down a bordering mountain and swept through the town. The regional governor said some of the dead and wounded are villagers who sheltered in the village hall only to have the facility destroyed by the flood waters. Continue reading →