Page 660 - Disaster Accident
Thai cave rescue hero emerges to family tragedy
An Australian doctor who looked after a young Thai football team during their harrowing cave ordeal emerged from the flooded underground complex to the sad news that his own father had died. Richard Harris, a world-renowned medic and diver whose presence in the dramatic rescue of the Wild Boars squad was specially requested by experts, was reportedly the last person to leave the water-logged cavern yesterday. "Harry", as he is known in the global caving community, cancelled a planned holiday and jetted in to northern Thailand as part of the international team trying to get the youngsters out of the Tham Luang cave. Australian media said he put his own life at risk to venture four kilometres into the flooded cave to medically assess the 12 boys and their coach. Broadcaster ABC said it was Harris who decided in what order they should leave, in an operation that culminated in joy on Tuesday when Thailand's Navy SEALs declared the whole team was safely out, 18 days after the ordeal ...
Kids lost weight but 'took care of themselves' in Thai cave
A Thai health official says the soccer teammates rescued from a flooded cave lost weight during their two-week ordeal but had water while they were trapped and are in good health. Thongchai Lertwilairatanapong, a public health inspector, said Wednesday the 12 boys and coach rescued over the three previous days "took care of themselves well in the cave." Thongchai said one member of the final group of four boys and the coach who arrived at a hospital Tuesday evening had a slight lung infection. Two of the first group had a lung infection as well, and Thongchai said they would need medicine for seven days. Divers extracted the team in a high-risk mission inside the flooded passageways. The group entered the cave June 23 but flooding cut off the exit.
Baby killed, dozens hurt when tornado hits North Dakota city
A newborn baby was killed and more than two dozen people were injured when a tornado whipped through a North Dakota oil patch city overnight, overturning recreational vehicles and demolishing more than 100 structures, officials have said. The storm moved through Watford City, in the northwestern part of the state, shortly after midnight, hitting an RV park the hardest, according to sheriff's officials. About 20 of the reported 28 injured were staying at the Prairie View RV Park where high winds overturned some campers and damaged mobile homes. McKenzie County Sheriff Gary Schwartzenberger told The Bismarck Tribune late yesterday that a one-week-old boy died from injuries sustained when the family's trailer home flipped in the storm. The child has not yet been identified. National Weather Service meteorologist John Paul Martin classified the tornado as an EF2, which is defined by winds speeds between 111 and 135 mph. He said wind speeds reached 127 mph in Watford City. Clifford Bowden,
Report: Bus crash in western Iran kills at least 11 people
Authorities say an overnight bus crash in western Iran has killed at least 11 people. State television reported today that a tanker carrying tar crashed into the passenger bus in Sanandaj, a city in Iran's Kurdistan province some 400 kilometers west of Tehran. Authorities say the tanker ran into the bus just after it left a bus terminal in the city. Both vehicles burst into flames. Police say the tanker's brakes failed, causing it to slam into the bus. Official say at least nine people were injured in the crash. Kurdistan province has declared three days of public mourning over the crash. UNICEF says Iran's rate of traffic crashes is 20 times the world's average, as the country suffers from poor roads and lax traffic enforcement.
Explosion follows gas main strike in Wisconsin town
An explosion rocked the downtown area of a suburb of Madison after a contractor struck a natural gas main, sending an unknown number of people to hospitals, authorities said. No deaths were immediately reported. Sun Prairie, a community of about 30,000, was shaken by a blast about 7:15 p.m. that sent a large plume of smoke and flames rising from the downtown area. WE Energies spokeswoman Cathy Schulze said a contractor hit a gas main ahead of "a possible explosion." She said the utility's first responders were in the area working to shut off the flow of gas and make the area safe. Dane County Sheriff's Office operations manager Paul Logan said some people were taken to hospitals, but that no deaths had been reported. Logan said the sheriff's office evacuated its communications center. He had no other details. Firefighters from Sun Prairie and surrounding communities responded to the scene. Police blocked off downtown streets from traffic and onlookers. The area has several businesses .
Japan PM to meet stranded evacuees in flood disaster zone
Japan's prime minister Shinzo Abe headed today to one of the areas worst-hit by record rains as the death toll rose to 179 and thousands of evacuees remained stranded in shelters. Abe, who cancelled a four-stop foreign trip planned for this week as the disaster worsened, was due to visit the flood-ravaged Okayama area to see the scale of the damage first-hand. With dozens reportedly still missing, the toll from the worst weather-related disaster in Japan in over three decades is expected to rise further. Rescue workers were still digging through the aftermath of flash floods and landslides that swallowed whole neighbourhoods, but hopes were fading that any new survivors could be found. Abe was scheduled to fly over the Mabi district to view the damage, and meet with evacuees and local officials to discuss their needs. Over 10,000 people were still in shelters across large parts of central and western Japan, local media said, including at a school in the town of Kurashiki in Okayama ...
Toll in Japan flood disaster rises to 179: government
The toll in record rains that have devastated parts of Japan has risen to 179, the government's top spokesman said today. Search-and-rescue operations are continuing after floods and landslides caused by the rains, and local media said several dozen people were still missing in Japan's deadliest weather-related disaster in over three decades.
Gujarat locals risk lives, cross canal through collapsed bridge
Risking their lives, locals in Gujarat's Kheda town commute every day through a bridge that has been in a collapsed state since two months.Children, too, cross the bridge by risking their lives on their way to school.For the past two months, locals have been petitioning the authorities to construct a bridge that will connect Naika and Bherai villages.Narrating their plight, a local told ANI, "If we don't use this bridge, we will have to travel a distance of 10 km instead of 1 km."Meanwhile, Kheda collector IK Patel assured that the construction work will be resumed soon."The construction work will be resumed immediately. Only due to rain the work of the bridge has not begun," he added.
Dozens injured as tornado hits North Dakota
As many as 28 people were hurt, including three critically injured after a tornado hit a North Dakota oil patch city overnight.The storm which moved through Watford City, hit an RV park the hardest, wounding about 20 people here alone.The strong winds overturned campers and damaged homes.As reported by Fox News, National Weather Service meteorologist John Paul Martin classified the tornado as an EF2, which is defined by winds speeds between 111 and 135 mph.McKenzie County Sheriff's Department said that almost 122 structures in the park were completely destroyed, reported Fox News.The park will be shut down and cleanup operations will resume Wednesday morning.
Eleven hoisted from Alaska plane crash
A plane carrying 11 people crashed today on a mountainside in Alaska, officials and rescuers said, but there were no deaths. "It was reported that 11 people from the plane crash are alive, but have injuries," the US Coast Guard said in a statement following the incident near the southeasternmost city of Ketchikan. The De Havilland DHC-3T Turbo Otter floatplane was carrying 10 passengers and a pilot, according to CBS-affiliated TV station KTVA, citing rescuers. The channel said 10 people were injured as it hit the side of Mount Jumbo at a height of around 2,000 feet (600 metres), and were all in a stable condition. Authorities say the pilot radioed shortly before 9:00 am and the Coast Guard dispatched two helicopter crews to the area, around 65 km southwest of Ketchikan. All 11 people rescued were hoisted from the crash site and taken to a staging area to be moved to the city for medical treatment.
Rescue from Thai cave: Indian firm experts pitch in with tech support
Experts from a Pune-headquartered firm gave technical support in the operations to rescue a football team trapped inside a cave system in Thailand, the company said here today. After the Indian Embassy recommended to the Thai authorities that they could use Kirlosker Brothers' Limited's (KBL) expertise in "dewatering", the company sent teams from its offices in India, Thailand and the United Kingdom to the site, it said. Its experts were on site at the cave in Tham Luang since July 5 and offered "technical know-how and advice on dewatering and pumps involved in the rescue operation," said a KBL release. The KBL had also offered to provide four specialised high capacity Autoprime dewatering pumps, which were kept ready at Kirloskarvadi plant in Maharashtra to be airlifted to Thailand, it said. The final five members of the young football team were rescued from the flooded Thai cave today after spending 18 harrowing days trapped deep inside. A total of 12 children, aged from 11 to 16, ..
Mumbai rains: NDRF rescues 1500 stranded passengers
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team on Tuesday rescued 1500 stranded passengers from Vadodara Express stationed at Nala Sopara due to water-logging. Railway tracks at Nallasopara station got submerged after water level rose to 260 mm.Meanwhile, 120 people were rescued from Palghar's Bhoidapada.Earlier in the day the, Bombay High Court also pulled up the railways for failing to maintain smooth functioning of operations.The Court observed that "Central & Western Railway have not done anything. Even after so many years, suburban railway tracks are submerged in rains.""Why can't you raise the height of tracks to avoid flooding?" the Court asked."Due to heavy rains, Up and Down through line at Nala Sopara is halted. However, local trains on Western Suburbs are running late by 10 to 15 minutes between Virar to Churchgate," said Divisional Railway Manager, Western railway, on Tuesday morning.2000 packets of food were also sent for the stranded passengers."A special food ...
Evacuations as Taiwan braces for Typhoon Maria
Taiwan began evacuating residents in mountainous areas while offices and schools were closed and flights were cancelled today as Typhoon Maria churned towards the island bringing torrential rains and powerful winds. Maria was 310 kilometres east of the northeastern coastal town of Yilan packing gusts of up to 173 kilometres an hour as of 5:00 pm (0900 GMT), the weather bureau said. Its impact was expected to be strongest from late today to early tomorrow although it has weakened slightly in the past few hours, with up to 500 millimetres of rainfall forecast for some areas, the bureau added. Authorities said nearly 700 people had been evacuated as of this evening. Local television showed soldiers going door to door in a mountainside village in Yilan to help evacuate residents. Officials have warned of possible floods and mudslides. "I have ordered the troops to stand by for relevant disaster prevention and relief ... I also want to urge the public again to make typhoon preparations as .
19 injured in S.Africa vintage plane crash: emergency services
Nineteen people were injured when a vintage plane crashed today after it took off on a test flight from a small airport in the South African capital Pretoria, emergency services said. The Convair plane -- built in 1954 -- was due to soon be flown to the Aviodrome air museum, near the central Dutch city of Lelystad, after reportedly being renovated at the small Wonderboom airport in Pretoria. Images from the site showed the plane broken into several pieces as paramedics helped survivors out of the aircraft and treated patients at the scene as firefighters tackled the smoking wreckage. "Medics from ER24 and other services are at the scene of a plane crash at Wonderboom in Pretoria," Russell Meiring, spokesman for the ER24 medical service, said. "We have 19 injured casualties ranging from minor to critical injuries at this stage and no confirmed fatalities." The Aviodrome aerospace theme park in the Netherlands said on its Facebook page that it was "hugely shocked" by the crash. The ...
Fire breaks out in wagon of goods train
A fire broke out in the wagon of a coal laden goods train near Malda railway station today, police said. The Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel noticed smoke billowing out of a wagon of the goods train near the rail yard of Malda railway station, they said. The RPF immediately informed the railway control room and the Fire Brigade. The fire brigade personnel rushed to the spot and doused the fire, they said adding only one wagon was damaged in the fire. The goods train was on its way to Kolkata from Siliguri, they added.
Workshop on tsunami warning centre operations held
An international workshop on 'Tsunami Warning Centre Operations' and other concerned subjects was inaugurated here today. Delivering the inaugural address, secretary to Union Ministry of Earth Sciences Dr Madhavan Rajeevan explained how the Indian Tsunami Warning Centre at Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services, Hyderabad,has made progress as a tsunami warning service provider recognised by UNESCO. The Ministry of Earth Sciences would provide support to the imminent updating of the INCOIS Tsunami Communication System, a press release said. The workshop was on 'Tsunami Warning Centre Operations and Standard Operating Procedures for Tsunami Warning and Emergency Response. International dignitaries in the field of tsunami warning systems were present.
62 killed in rain-related incidents in Maha since June: Patil
Maharashtra minister Chandrakant Patil today informed the state Legislative Assembly that 62 people have died so far in rain-related incidents in the state from June 1. He said 63 animals also lost their lives in different parts of the state in rain-related incidents. Patil, who is the state Revenue Minister, said the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted very heavy rains in Mumbai and neighbouring Thane and Palghar districts in the next few days and the administration is fully prepared to tackle any eventuality. "The Mantralaya control-room and all the district-level machinery have been activated to monitor the rain situation. The State Disaster Relief Force, National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF), Coast Guard, Army, the disaster management machinery of all civic bodies are vigilant," he said. The NDRF rescued the passengers of Vadodara express and Shatabdi Express, which were stranded between Virarand Nallasopara due to water logging on tracks, he ...
Three districts in Assam remain submerged, death toll rises to 34
Three districts of Assam remained under water today, affecting nearly 20,000 people as the flood situation continued to be grim and one more death was reported, taking the toll to 34. Dhemaji and Lakhimpur districts continued to be flooded even as the waters receded in Biswanath district and Jorhat was hit by the deluge, a report of the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) said. The number of people affected in the floods in 24 villages came down from 22,618 yesterday to 19,179 today, it said. Lakhimpur district continued to be the worst-hit with over 18,416 affected people, followed by 625 in Jorhat and 129 in Dhemaji, it said. The body of a person who was missing since July 8 in Biswanath district was recovered from Halem revenue circle, the report added. According to the ASDMA, of the 34 people killed, three lost their lives in landslides. The report added that 205 acres of crop area remained submerged in four revenue circles of the three affected districts. The ...
2 Indian-origin children killed in car crash in Australia
Two Indian-origin children were killed while their parents suffered serious injuries when their car met with an accident in this Australian city, according to a media report. The accident happened on Sunday when a vehicle attempting to overtake another car collided with their car on Hopkins Road in Truganina in Melbourne, The Age newspaper reported. The victims, who hailed from Kerala, were returning home from a birthday celebration. Ruana, 10, was killed at the scene while her brother Immanuel died at the Royal Children's Hospital last night, the report said. The parents have been admitted to the hospital with the health of the mother, Manju Varughese, being critical, it said. The vicar of St Mary's Indian Orthodox Cathedral in Melbourne, Reverend Father Pradeep Ponnachan, said that the victims were well-known members of the church. "They were a devoted, pious family," he said. "The church community is terribly disturbed, there is no words to explain.
Medic, divers who stayed with boys leave cave
The official who led the Thai cave rescue says the medic and three Thai navy SEAL divers who stayed with the trapped boys after they were found have left the flooded cave. He says they are all in strong condition. A daring rescue mission in the treacherous confines of the flooded cave in northern Thailand saved all 12 boys and their soccer coach who were trapped deep inside, ending an 18-day ordeal today. The leader of the operation, Chiang Rai acting Gov. Narongsak Osatanakorn, said, "We did something nobody thought possible.