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Why 2013 will be a year of crisis

Wed, 2012-09-05 20:07 — Maeryn Obley

Prediction: 2013 will be a year of serious global crisis. That crisis is predictable, and in fact has already begun. It will inescapably confront the next president of the United States. Yet this emerging crisis got not a mention at the Republican National Convention in Tampa.

Image: Rotting corn was damaged by severe drought on a farm near Bruceville, Indiana.

submitted by Samuel Bendett

cnn.com - September 3rd, 2012 - David Frum

Prediction: 2013 will be a year of serious global crisis. That crisis is predictable, and in fact has already begun. It will inescapably confront the next president of the United States. Yet this emerging crisis got not a mention at the Republican National Convention in Tampa.

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Climate change the cause of summer's extreme weather, Congress told

Mon, 2012-08-06 23:04 — Maeryn Obley

guardian.co.uk - Suzanne Goldenburg - August 1st, 2012

Drought, wildfires, hurricanes and heatwaves are becoming normal in America because of climate change, Congress was told on Wednesday in the first hearing on climate science in more than two years.

In a predictably contentious hearing, the Senate's environment and public works committee heard from a lead scientist for the UN's climate body, the IPCC, on the growing evidence linking extreme weather and climate change.

"It is critical to understand that the link between climate change and the kinds of extremes that lead to disaster is clear," Christopher Field, a lead author of the IPCC report and director of global ecology at the Carnegie Institute for Science, said in testimony.

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Russia: Warnings Did Not Reach People Before Flood

Mon, 2012-07-09 17:05 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Samuel Bendett

      

A priest conducts a funeral ceremony, while acquaintances of Pyotr Ostapenko, 35, a flood victim, stand nearby, at the central cemetery in Krymsk in theKrasnodar region, southern Russia, July 9, 2012. Russia began a day of mourning on Monday for the 171 people killed in floods that drove thousands from their homes, with the causes of the disaster posing hard questions for the authorities, including President Vladimir Putin.
Photo By EDUARD KORNIYENKO/REUTERS

yahoo.com - Associated Press - by Nataliya Vasilyeva and Sergey Ponomarev - July 9, 2012

KRYMSK, Russia (AP) — Authorities failed to properly warn residents in the Black Sea region of floods that killed at least 171 people and left others scrambling for safety, Russia's emergencies minister acknowledged Monday, adding to public outrage fueled by widespread mistrust of the government.

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Australians Told Sweeping Economic, Societal Changes Needed to Cope with Severe Weather

Fri, 2012-04-27 22:55 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Samuel Bendett

Homeland Security News Wire - April 27, 2012

The Australian government’s Productivity Commission has just released its much-anticipated report, titled Barriers to Effective Climate Change Adaptation (a 305 page .PDF report). The report calls for sweeping changes across the Australian economy, including ditching property taxes which discourage people from moving out of areas prone to extreme weather events.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that the commission, accepting that some degree of climate change is now inevitable, says that Australia will need to adapt. This means removing obstacles in the areas of taxation, local government, disaster relief, planning and building rules, and emergency management.

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2010 Russian Heat Wave Caused by Both Manmade, Natural Causes

Thu, 2012-02-23 17:04 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Samuel Bendett

Homeland Security News Wire - February 23, 2012

The heat wave that struck western Russia in summer 2010 killed 55,000 people and caused $15 billion in damage; a new study concludes that soaring temperatures were within the natural range for a Russian summer, but that due to human-induced climate change, the chance of such an extreme heat wave has tripled over the past several decades

The heat wave that struck western Russia in summer 2010, killing 55,000 people, broke July temperatures records and caused $15 billion in damage. Searching for a culprit for the soaring temperatures, research teams have identified either natural or manmade causes. A new study concludes, however, that the devastating heat wave had both. Soaring temperatures were within the natural range for a Russian summer, the researchers found, but due to human-induced climate change, the chance of such an extreme heat wave has tripled over the past several decades.

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Storm Leaves Huge Humanitarian Needs in Philippines, U.N. Says

Tue, 2011-12-20 21:00 — Kathy Gilbeaux

December 21, 2011

(CNN) -- The devastation in the southern Philippines left by Tropical Storm Washi has created "huge" humanitarian needs in the area, the United Nations said Wednesday, estimating that nearly a half-million people are in need of assistance.

"The first priority is to help those who are displaced as a result of the floods," Valerie Amos, the U.N. emergency relief coordinator, said in comments published on the organization's website. "People urgently need shelter and clean drinking water, as well as bedding, food and basic household items."

Amos called on other countries and international organizations to increase relief efforts for the stricken region. A number of U.N. agencies, including the World Food Program and the World Health Organization, have stepped up humanitarian measures in the past few days, she said.

The storm, known locally as Sendong, plowed across the southern Philippines over the weekend, leaving tens of thousands of people homeless and aid agencies struggling to deal with the aftermath.

The United Nations estimated that about 285,000 people had been displaced, with many of them are finding shelter with relatives or in makeshift structures.

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Philippines Flood Toll Rises Past 400

Sat, 2011-12-17 17:03 — Kathy Gilbeaux

CBS News - December 17, 2011

      

Rescuers paddle their rubber boat to search for survivors following a flash flood that inundated Cagayan de Oro city, Philippines, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011. (AP Photo/Froilan Gallardo)

(AP) 

Last Updated 2:37 p.m. ET

MANILA, Philippines - Flash floods devastated a southern Philippines region unaccustomed to serious storms, killing more than 400 people while they slept, rousting hundreds of others to their rooftops and turning two coastal cities into muddy, debris-filled waterways that were strewn Saturday with overturned vehicles and toppled trees.

Most of the victims were asleep Friday night when raging floodwaters cascaded from the mountains after 12 hours of rain from a late-season tropical storm in the southern Mindanao region. The region is unaccustomed to the typhoons that are common elsewhere in the nation of islands.

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