With glowing red lava now flowing regularly down its sides and seismic activity ‘dramatically increased,’ an eruption of the Mayon Volcano in the Philippines is now considered imminent. Activity on the mountain has steadily increased over the past week and prompted the evacuation of nearly 45,000 area residents.
Today the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) raised the alert level for the volcano to level four which means an eruption is possible within days. A level four alert is second to only level five which would involve an actual eruption taking place.
In its latest alert, the service said “seismic activity dramatically increased in number and size” noting that nearly 2,000 volcanic quakes had been detected. Glowing, red hot lava was easily seen flowing down the slopes of the mountain at night and booms and rumbling were heard. The lava flow now extends more than three miles down the mountain and sulfur dioxide (SO2) is being emitted at a rate of more than 6,000 tons per day.
Emphasizing the danger, PHIVOLCS said in its warning that “a hazardous explosive eruption is possible within days.” With the heightened alert level, it is expected that the evacuation radius will be extended out to five miles from the mountain possibly impacting thousands of more people.
The number of natural disasters in 2009 reached the lowest point in the decade. According to preliminary numbers from the United Nations, there were 245 disasters which is far below any of the past 10 years.
Natural disasters, no matter how many there are, due have a toll in human life and economic impact. The UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) said that 8,919 people lost their lives from the events and they affected 58 million. The cost of the damage was put at $19 billion.
Weather-related disasters which exclude geological events like earthquakes and volcanoes were responsible for the lion’s share of the losses. Approximately 7,000 lives our of the total of 8,919 were lost due to weather-related events. Similarly, $15 billion of the $19 billion in damages were weather-related.
Margareta Wahlström, the United Nations Special Representative for UNISDR said, “Statistics this year show lower figures compared to previous years, which is good news for people and countries, however extreme weather disasters remain top of the list and will continue to affect more people in the future as more than half of the world’s population highly exposed is living in coastal regions.”
Tornadoes can and do strike at night and during winter months. Are you prepared?
Tornadoes are one of nature’s most violent storms. Able to strike without warning, they bring death and destruction with frightening frequency. Twisters can be scary enough to just think about and when you consider one striking at night when you can’t see it and aren’t expecting it, the odds of survival diminish.
Over the last three years, there has been an average of 1297 tornadoes per year and on average 91 tornado-related deaths per year. While not as common during the winter months, tornadoes can and do occur every month of the year and they do strike at night.
Seeking to draw attention to the dangers nighttime tornadoes present, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and its National Weather Service announced an effort to increase awareness. In a press release today, the services said that with the El Niño conditions we are experiencing, Florida and the Gulf Coast region stand a greater risk of tornadoes.
NOAA reminded all residents of the United States that a NOAA All Hazards Radio is the first line in defense against not only tornadoes, but all natural disasters. Also announced were new severe weather outlooks that will be issued when conditions are favorable for such storms.
The early forecast for the 2010 hurricane season in the Atlantic basin calls for above normal levels of activity. (NOAA)
The hurricane forecasting team at Colorado State University (CSU) has issued its preliminary forecast for the Atlantic hurricane basin for next year. Generated by Dr. Phil Klotzbach and Dr. Bill Gray, the forecast calls for above normal levels of tropical cyclone activity.
For the 2010 season, Klotzbach and Gray expect an “above-average Atlantic basin tropical cyclone season in 2010 and anticipate an above-average probability of U.S. and Caribbean major hurricane landfall.” In terms of numbers, they forecast 11 – 16 named storms, 6 – 8 hurricanes, and 3 – 5 major hurricanes (Category 3 or stronger).
For the first time, the CSU team is issuing a range for the number of forecast storms instead of a specific number. This is more in line with the forecasts that the National Hurricane Center issues.
In terms of landfall probability for a major hurricane, the team also expects an increased chance. They peg the chance of a Category 3 or greater storm striking the U.S. coastline at 64% which is well above the average of 52%. The U.S. East Coast has a 40% chance of sustaining a hit (versus a 31% average) and the Gulf Coast has a 40% chance as well (versus a 30% average).
A massive winter storm covering nearly 1,700 miles has brought Arctic cold, record snowfall and blizzard conditions to a large swatch of the nation. From southwestern Utah, across the Rocky Mountains and Great Plains to northeastern Michigan winter weather warnings have been issued as Old Man Winter arrives two weeks early.
Starting in California, parts of the Sierra Nevada saw up to four feet of snow. In Arizona the storm brought high winds to the Phoenix area which downed power lines leaving 250,000 people without power. Flagstaff, Arizona and Reno, Nevada were covered in blankets of snow.
In Colorado, the entire state was feeling the effects of the storm. The southwestern part of the state was experiencing blizzard conditions while the Denver area, spared significant snowfall, suffered through single digit temperatures and wind chills dipping to 10 degrees below zero.
As if often the case, winter storm can turn deadly and this system has not been an exception. Two people were killed in New Mexico due to traffic accidents on dangerously slick roads and the state’s road crews were struggling to keep up with falling snow.
Hurricane Bill was the most powerful hurricane of the 2009 Atlantic hurricane season but it never struck the United States. (NASA)
Yesterday marked the end of the 2009 hurricane season and with it comes to a close one of the quietest seasons in recent history. The season featured nine named storms, the fewest since 1997, and for the first time since 2006 no hurricanes made landfall in the United States.
Only two named the storms – Tropical Storm Claudette and Tropical Storm Ida – made landfall in the nation. Those two storms both struck along the central Gulf Coast and brought heavy rain and some flooding but no widespread destruction.
Of the nine named storms, three became hurricanes. Two of those became major hurricanes of Category 3 strength of higher – Hurricane Bill and Hurricane Fred. Bill flirted with the United States East Coast as its waves claimed two lives but turned to the northeast and made landfall in Newfoundland after having weakened considerably. Hurricane Fred rapidly intensified off the west coast of Africa but quickly fell victim to wind shear.
Of the nine named storms, three became hurricanes. Two of those became major hurricanes of Category 3 strength of higher – Hurricane Bill and Hurricane Fred. Bill flirted with the United States East Coast as its waves claimed two lives but turned to the northeast and made landfall in Newfoundland after having weakened considerably. Hurricane Fred rapidly intensified off the west coast of Africa but quickly fell victim to wind shear.
NASA's Terra satellite captured this image of a smoke plume coming from the Bezymianny volcano on the the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia. (NASA)
The Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia is a relatively active area for volcanic activity, like much of the rest of the Pacific Ring of Fire. The Bezymianny volcano in the east-central part of the peninsula is the smaller of three neighboring volcanoes.
Bezymianny was thought to be extinct until it erupted from 1955 to 1956. Prior to that, it had experienced a period of 1,000 of dormancy. The 1956 eruption was comparable in size to the Mount Saint Helens eruption in 1980 and resulted in a horseshoe shaped crater that has since been filled by other, smaller eruptions and pyroclastic flows.
On Wednesday, Novebmer 25, 2009, NASA’s Terrra spacecraft captured an image of a smoke plume emanating from the volcano. Using the craft’s Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER), the plume is clearly seen as is its shadow.
The normally picturesque view of England’s Lake District saw itself become the scene of a rescue operation as helicopters and lifeboats plucked hundreds residents and brought them to safety. The area recorded the most rainfall ever recorded in the nation and the weather was responsible for the death of a local constable.
Widespread heavy rain across England and Ireland caused flooding that brought floods as deep as eight feet and engorged rivers that brought down bridges. England set a national rainfall record when 12.3 inches of rain fell in just 24 hours last week at Seathwaite Farm according to Britain’s Met Office.
In the town of Cockermouth, officials estimate 1,000 homes were flooded and more than 200 people were rescued. Local emergency responders and British soldiers conducted house to house searches to extract those struck by the floods. The town, 300 miles northwest of London, is at the confluence of the Cocker and Derwent rivers and is the birthplaces of poet William Woodsworth.
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The Natural Disasters Examiner provides news, information and education on disasters across the globe.
Following on our announcement of our writing the Climate Change Examiner, we are pleased to announce that we are now also writing the Natural Disasters Examiner. From earthquakes to tsunamis and hurricanes to tornadoes the Natural Disaster Examiner covers natures events that affect all of our lives.
We cover these type of events on a local scale here on ThorntonWeather.com and in our Denver Weather Examiner pages. However, the Natural Disasters Examiner expands that scope to include the globe.
We will examine all natural disaster type events no matter where they occur and we will provide more than just the news. On the Natural Disasters Examiner’s site we will provide education on the science behind these disasters and practical information on how you can protect yourself and your family.
Secondly, quite frankly we do get paid for writing for Examiner.com and that money directly supports and helps to pay for ThorntonWeather.com. The 