Page 295 - Disaster Accident
Cyclone 'Pabuk' to hit Andaman Islands, orange alert sounded
An "Orange" alert has been sounded in the Andaman Islands as cyclonic storm 'Pabuk' is expected to hit the archipelago later in the day.The orange warning means people should "be prepared" for the bad or extreme weather.According to the India Meteorological Department, the cyclonic storm is likely to cross the Andaman Islands late on Sunday night with a wind speed of 65-75 kmph gusting to 85 kmph."The cyclonic storm 'PABUK' over Andaman Sea and neighbourhood moved north-northwestwards with a speed of 20 kmph during past six hours. .It is very likely to continue to move north-northwestwards and cross the Andaman Islands by tonight as a cyclonic storm with a wind speed of 65-75 kmph gusting to 85 kmph," IMD said in its bulletin.After hitting Andaman, Pakub is likely to move north-northwestwards and then recurve northeastwards towards Myanmar coast and weaken gradually thereafter.Rainfall is also expected to lash the Andaman Islands. The IMD, in its advisory, issued a warning of damage ..
Foggy weather disrupts 50 flights in Bengaluru
At least 50 flights scheduled between 6 am to 9 am were delayed due to foggy weather in Bengaluru on Sunday, leaving passengers stranded for hours.A Singapore-Bengaluru Indigo flight and a Goa-Bengaluru Air India flight were also diverted to Chennai due to fog at Bengaluru airport.Keeping in view the bad weather conditions, a couple of airlines such as Vistara, Spice Jet, Jet Airways and IndiGo have rolled out travel advisories urging passengers to check their flight status before heading for the aerodrome.Earlier on Friday, owing to the bad weather conditions, as many as 42 flights got delayed at Bengaluru airport, while eight were diverted. Operations were also suspended for an hour at the Kempegowda International Airport because of the poor visibility.
Kolkata Airport was on emergency after fuel leakage from plane
An emergency was declared at Kolkata Airport late on Saturday following fuel leakage from an Air India plane.The flight AI-335 had arrived from Bangkok and was destined to Delhi. However, the fuel of the plane started leaking from the halted aircraft.All passengers are said to be safe.Further details are awaited.
Death toll in Indonesia landslide rises to 38
The death toll in the landslide that hit Indonesia's Java has increased to 38, with one person still missing, government authorities said on Sunday.
'Orange' alert for Andaman due to cyclone 'Pabuk'
The Centre has sounded an "Orange" alert for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which is facing a cyclonic storm, officials said Sunday. Cyclonic storm "Pabuk" is approaching the archipelago and currently hovering over the Andaman sea and the neighbourhood, they added. An "Orange" warning had been issued for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a home ministry official said, quoting from a weather bulletin. An "orange" weather warning means people should "be prepared" and there is an increased likelihood of bad or extreme weather, which may disrupt road and air travel and threaten life and property. "Pabuk" is now over the Andaman sea and its neighbourhood and it has moved north-northwestwards at a speed of 20 kmph in the last six hours. It lays centred near latitude 11.0 North and longitude 95.5 East, about 310 km east-southeast of Port Blair, the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The cyclonic storm is very likely to continue to move north-northwestwards and cross the Andaman ...
Death toll from Philippine storm, landslides climbs to 126
The death toll from a storm that devastated the Philippines shortly after Christmas rose to 126, authorities said Sunday, adding landslides caused by torrential rain were the top cause. The storm hit central and eastern Philippine islands on December 29 and caused massive flooding and landslides. More than 100 people died in the mountainous Bicol region southeast of Manila, regional disaster officials said. While the Bicol region is often hit by deadly typhoons, many people failed to take necessary precautions because the storm was not strong enough to be rated as a typhoon under the government's storm alert system, according to civil defence officials. Officials also said that many residents were reluctant to leave their homes during the Christmas holidays. "In two days alone, Usman poured more than a month's worth of rainfall in the Bicol region," national disaster agency spokesman Edgar Posadas told AFP, using the local name for the storm which had weakened into a low pressure ...
USGS: Magnitude 6.8 quake shakes remote part of west Brazil
A powerful earthquake has shaken western Brazil near its border with Peru, affecting a remote part of the Amazon rainforest. There were no immediate reports of damages. The US Geological Survey said the magnitude-6.8 quake had an epicentre 55 miles (89 kilometers) west of Tarauaca, Brazil, and 204 miles (329 kms) east of Pucallpa, Peru. It hit at 2:25 p.m. local time and had a depth of 575 kilometers. Major damages are unlikely because of its depth and remote location. A powerful 7.1-magnitude quake hit the Peru-Brazil border in August.
Officials: No tsunami expected from earthquake near Alaska
Officials say a large earthquake has struck in a remote area of the Aleutian Islands near Alaska, but a tsunami is not expected. The US Tsunami Warning System says the 6.0-magnitude quake struck just before 10 am Saturday about 90 miles (145 kilometers) southwest of the town of Adak on Adak Island. Several hundred people live in the town. Large earthquakes can cause tsunamis that can travel hundreds of miles. The US Tsunami Warning System says its statement on the earthquake is for Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon and California.
7 children, driver killed after school bus falls into gorge in HP
Eight people, including seven children, were killed on Saturday when a private school bus rolled down a gorge in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district, police said. As per the reports received at the state headquarters, the bus of Dadahu Aadarsh Vidya Niketan School, carrying 18 children, skidded off the road near Khadkoli on Dadahu-Sangrah Road at around 8 am. Three students and the bus driver died on the spot and another three children were reported brought dead at Nahan Civil Hospital, officials said. Later in the evening, officials said a girl who was referred to the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh succumbed to her injuries. Sirmaur Superintendent of Police Rohit Malpani said Samir (5), Adarsh (7), Kartik (14) and driver Ram Swaroop (40) died on the spot. "Abhishek, his sister Sanjana and Naitik Chauhan succumbed to their injuries on their way to Nahan Medical College," the SP said. Five seriously injured children were referred to PGIMER, ...
Girl dies after she comes under e-rickshaw
A three-year-old girl was killed after she allegedly came under an e-rickshaw in the Dwarka North area on Saturday, police said. The Dwarka North police station was informed about the accident opposite Adarsh Apartments at around 3 pm. An information was also received from a private hospital regarding admission of the victim who was declared brought dead, they said. The girl has been identified as Ikra, a resident of Dwarka's Adarsh Apartments in sector 16, police said. Investigations revealed that Ikra came out of the colony gate and was walking towards the road when the e-rickshaw approached. The driver applied brakes immediately due to which the rickshaw overturned and the girl came under it, causing fatal injuries to her, Anto Alphonse, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka), said. A case on charges of rash and negligent driving and causing death due to negligence has been registered against the driver and he has been arrested, the officer said. The vehicle has also been ...
Govt ensuring airlines follow highest safety standards: Prabhu
Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu said Saturday that the government is ensuring that all domestic carriers are in "conformity" with the highest safety standards, and the aviation regulator has been directed to carry out their safety audits on a regular basis. Prabhu's assertion came on a day when reports of a Pratt & Whitney engine of an IndiGo A320 neo plane stopping mid-air surfaced. "As far as we are concerned, we are ensuring that all Indian carrier must conform to the highest safety standards. I have directed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation to conduct safety audit of not only all the airlines but also of other organisations on a regular basis," Prabhu said at a media briefing here about the 25th edition of the CII Partnership Summit, to be held in the city from January 13. An IndiGo Airbus A320neo plane suffered a mid-air engine failure with a "loud bang" on January 3, forcing the aviation ministry to take a serious note of the incident. Prabhu ...
IndiGo flight returns to Chennai on 'technical caution'
Budget airline IndiGo on Saturday said its Chennai-Kolkata flight returned to Chennai due to a "technical caution" noted by the crew.
Four die in Spain building fires, baby critical
Four people died Saturday and a baby girl in a critical condition was among the injured, in two separate tower block fires in northeastern Spain, firefighters said. The first blaze started on Saturday morning in a 10-storey block of flats in Badalona, about 10 kilometres (six miles) northeast of Barcelona, said firefighters in the Catalonia region. Three people died, including a 92-year-old woman and two other people not yet identified, the regional government said. Among those injured were a baby girl, who is in a critical condition, and two adults. They were in serious condition, the fire service said on its Twitter feed. Both adults jumped from windows to escape the blaze, the regional government said. In a separate fire 18 kilometres away in La Llagosta, one person died in a fire in a block of flats, firefighters said.
Himachal Pradesh: Death toll rises to 8 in bus mishap
Eight people, including 6 children, have died in a school bus accident that occurred here on Saturday morning.The ill-fated bus had fallen into a gorge earlier today.As many as 10 people were injured in the mishap.The injured students were shifted to a nearby hospital where senior officials from the district also arrived to take the stock of the situation.District Collector Lalit Jain also visited the hospital to meet the injured and said, "A girl named Aarushi had died during the treatment. There are 8 casualties in the accident, including the driver. Those injured in the accident are being provided with medical care."Serious patients were also referred to PGI for treatment.The police is investigating the matter to ascertain the cause of the accident.
UP CM orders to shift stray cattle to shelters
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday ordered that all stray cattle across the state should be shifted to cow shelters by January 10.Last year, farmers in Aligarh had locked up all the stray cattle in schools and hospitals to save their crops from being damaged.As many as 700 cows were locked up inside a government school and primary health centre in Gorai area in Aligarh by farmers on December 24 and 25 to save their crops from being damaged by the cattle.The plight of farmers in Bulandshahr has also been same. They are spending nights in their farms to protect their crops from being destroyed by stray cattle.
Indian student falls from cliff while taking selfie in Ireland; dies
An Indian student died after falling from the edge of a famous cliff in Ireland while clicking a 'selfie', media reports said. The man in his 20s, whose identity was not immediately known, is said to be an Indian national studying in Dublin, The Irish Sun reported. He was visiting the popular tourist attraction on Friday afternoon when the incident happened south of the main viewing areas near the visitor centre. There were hundreds of people when the man lost his footing and fell from the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare, a famous tourist attraction in the west of Ireland. Search and rescue officials were mobilised as soon as an alarm was raised. His body was recovered with the help of a helicopter. He was pronounced dead at around 5.35 PM (local time), the report said. Officials interviewed a number of eye-witnesses and confirmed that at this stage, they are treating the incident as a tragic accident. "There is nothing to suggest at this stage that this was anything other than a ...
Meghalaya: Efforts continue to rescue trapped miners
Thanks to ongoing efforts to rescue 15 trapped miners, the water level has receded another 1.5 feet from the old shaft after two pumps were used for the purpose.Now, the water will be pumped out from the main shaft. It is expected that the water level in the shaft will soon be determined by the Navy divers. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team is also on its toes helping other agencies, engaged in the rescue operations.However, the Fire Service report doubts that the water level may rise again due to seepage. The report states that the water in the old shaft may rise to six inches on Sunday. The water level in the main shaft remains the same.On Friday, the water had been pumped out of the old shaft and the water level had receded by 3.5 feet. As many as 15 miners have been trapped in a 370-feet deep illegal mine in Lumthari village since December 13 last year when the water from the nearby river Lytein flooded the mine.
Six of family killed in accident on Pune-Bengaluru highway
Six members of a family from Kolhapur in Maharashtra were killed in an accident near Tavandi on Pune-Bengaluru highway Saturday evening, police said. The victims hailed from Murgud in Kagal tehsil of Kolhapur district and were heading for Belgaum in Karnataka in a car, an official of Nipani police station said. Around 5 pm, a truck, going in the same direction, swerved around after its tyre burst and hit the victims' car, the official said. Dilavar Bapusaheb Jamadar (64), his wife Rehana (58), son Junaid (29), one Mohasin, daughter-in-law Aafrin and grandson Ayan (7) were killed on the spot, he said The truck driver was also seriously injured and undergoing treatment, the official added.
6 children, driver killed after school bus falls into gorge in HP
Seven people, including six children, were killed on Saturday when a private school bus rolled down a gorge in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district, police said. As per the reports received at the state headquarters, the bus of Dadahu Aadarsh Vidya Niketan School, carrying 18 children, skidded off the road near Khadkoli on Dadahu-Sangrah Road at around 8 am. Three students and the bus driver died on the spot, another three children were reported brought dead at Nahan Civil Hospital, officials said. Superintendent of Police, Sirmaur, Rohit Malpani said Samir (5), Adarsh (7), Kartik (14) and driver Ram Swaroop (40) died on the spot. "Abhishek, his sister Sanjana and Naitik Chauhan succumbed to their injuries on their way to Nahan Medical College," the SP said. Five seriously injured children have been referred to PGIMER, Chandigarh whereas seven are getting treatment at Nahan Hospital. Ten of the 12 injured schoolchildren were identified as Sandhaya, Rakshita, Anjali, Rajiv, Aayush, ...
Water pumping starts in main shaft of Meghalaya's coal mine
The operations to rescue 15 miners trapped in a flooded coal mine in Meghalayas East Jaintia Hills district for the past 24 days got a shot in the arm Saturday when two high powered pumps started dewatering the main shaft. The pumps were operational 10 days after the Kirloskar Brothers Ltd offered to help and assist the state government in the rescue operations, officials said. But, since the pumps functioned only for one hour, the Navy divers did not go down to gauge the water level inside the shaft so that they could resume the search for the diggers. At about 3:30 pm today, a team from Kirloskar Brothers Ltd was able to start their pumps in the main shaft (where the miners are trapped)," operation spokesperson R Susngi said. He, however, said that since the pumps were operational for only one hour, the Navy divers did not go down to determine the water level inside the main shaft. The rescuers stop work at 5 pm daily with descend of the night darkness. The pump has to