Page 19 - Natural Disasters

US President declares Hawaii wildfires major a disaster, approves aid

The assistance announced by Biden includes grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help people and business owners

3 dead, 17 missing in massive landslides U'khand's Rudraprayag district

Officials added that two roadside shops and dhabas were washed away in the heavy debris that came down from the mountain

Earthquake of magnitude 5.2 jolts Jammu-Kashmir's Gulmarg, says NCS

An earthquake of magnitude 5.2 on the Richter scale jolted Jammu and Kashmir's Gulmarg on Saturday, the National Center for Seismology (NCS) reported.The quake occured at around 8:36 am with its depth registered at 129 km.According to NCS, its epicentre was found at Latitude: 35.46 and Longitude: 73.32, respectively."Earthquake of Magnitude:5.2, Occurred on 05-08-2023, 08:36:01 IST, Lat: 35.46 & Long: 73.32, Depth: 129 Km, Location: 184 km NNW of Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir," the NCS tweeted.No reports of casualties or material damage were reported.Further details are awaited. An earthquake of magnitude 4.3 on the Richter scale jolted the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the early hours of Thursday.The quake hit the islands at 4:17 am.National Center for Seismology (NCS) said that the earthquake occurred at a depth of 61 km.

Portion of U'khand highway caves in following landslide, traffic diverted

According to officials, a stretch of around 60 meters has caved in and the area is close to an airstrip said to be strategically important

NH 5 closed at Chakki Mod due to landslide in Himachal's Parvati Valley

The Chandiagrh-Shimla Highway (NH 05) has been temporarily closed at Chakki Mod in the Parvati Valley of Himachal Pradesh due to a landslide, informed the Solan Police Department through a tweet. The Solan Police Department has further urged all travellers to adhere to the alternative traffic plan while the authorities work on clearing the debris.The recent landslide has caused a blockage on the highway, making it unsafe for vehicles and commuters.In response to the situation, the concerned authorities have initiated the task of removing the debris and stabilizing the affected area. As soon as the work is completed, the authorities will inform the public about the reopening of the highway, the authorities said.According to the HP disaster management authority data, so far 190 people have died in the monsoon due to various reasons. Of these, 54 people have lost their lives due to landslides and flash floods. 136 people have lost their lives due to road accidents or other reasons. Till .

Earthquake of magnitude 5 jolts Andaman and Nicobar Islands, no casualties

An earthquake of magnitude 5.0 on the Richter scale has jolted Nicobar Islands on Wednesday, the National Centre for Seismology (NCS) reported.The quake occured at around 5:40 am in the morning hours with its depth registered at 10 km.According to NCS, its epicentre was found at Latitude: 9.32 and Longitude: 94.03, rfespectively."Earthquake of Magnitude:5.0, Occurred on 02-08-2023, 05:40:11 IST, Lat: 9.32 & Long: 94.03, Depth: 10 Km ,Location: Nicobar islands," the NCS tweeted.No reports of casualties or material damage are known yet.Further details are awaited.

Earthquake of 5.8 magnitude jolts Andaman and Nicobar Islands, says NCS

An earthquake of magnitude 5.8 jolted the Andaman and Nicobar Islands on Saturday, the National Centre for Seismology (NCS) reported.The quake hit the islands at 12:53 am on Saturday.Further, according to the NCS, the earthquake occurred at a depth of 69 kms."Earthquake of Magnitude:5.8, Occurred on 29-07-2023, 00:53:47 IST, Lat: 10.75 & Long: 93.47, Depth: 69 Km, Location: Andaman Islands," read a post on the official Twitter handle of National Centre for Seismology (NCS).Earlier, on July 9, an earthquake of magnitude 5.3 hit the Southeast of Campbell Bay in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, according to the NCS.The earthquake hit Campbell Bay at 7:39 pm, at a depth of 70 kms."Earthquake of Magnitude:5.3, Occurred on 09-07-2023, 19:39:09 IST, Lat: 5.87 & Long: 94.83, Depth: 70 Km, Location: 162km SE of Campbell Bay, Andaman and Nicobar island, India," the NCS had tweeted on its official handle.

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25 dead in wildfires across Algeria, including soldiers fighting flames

Wildfires raging across Algeria have killed 25 people, including 10 soldiers trying to get the flames under control in the face of high winds and scorching summer temperatures, government ministries said Monday. At least 1,500 people were evacuated, the Interior Ministry said, without providing details. The Interior Ministry announced 15 deaths and 24 injuries. In addition, the Defense Ministry later announced 10 soldiers were killed and 25 injured as they fought fires in the resort area of Beni Ksila east of the capital Algiers. It wasn't immediately clear over what period of time the casualties happened but the fires have been burning for several days. Wildfires, some spread by strong winds, moved across forests and agricultural areas in 16 regions causing 97 blazes in the north African country. The largest and deadliest fires ravaged parts of Bejaia and Jijel in the Kabyle region east of Algiers and Bouira, about 100 kilometres southeast of Algiers, the Interior Ministry ...

Greece evacuates 19,000 people as wildfire blazes on the island of Rhodes

Some 19,000 people have been evacuated from the Greek island of Rhodes as wildfires burned for a sixth day on three fronts, Greek authorities said on Sunday. The Ministry of Climate Change and Civil Protection said it was the largest evacuation from a wildfire in the country. Local police said 16,000 people were evacuated by land and 3,000 by sea from 12 villages and several hotels. Six people were briefly treated at a hospital for respiratory problems. A person who fell and broke a leg during a hotel evacuation and a pregnant woman remained hospitalized, the latter in good condition, authorities said. Package holiday companies TUI and Jet2 canceled flights to Rhodes. Jet2 said it was canceling five regularly scheduled passenger flights to the island on Sunday but would fly the planes to Rhodes empty to retrieve customers. TUI said it was canceling all its flights to the island until at least Tuesday. British tourist Kevin Evans was evacuated twice on Saturday with his wife and th

BJP to appoint 50,000 rugna sevaks in Maharashtra to serve patients

Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Friday said the party will appoint 50,000 rugna sevaks' to serve patients and people needing medical assistance. This initiative will be flagged off on Saturday on occasion of Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis' birthday, Bawankule told reporters here. A rugna sevak will be appointed at each of the 28,000 gram panchayats in Maharashtra and also in civic body wards in the state, he said. All of them will begin service of the people within a year, he added. Referring to the loss of lives in the landlside at a village in Raigad district, Bawankule said BJP workers and supporters should refrsin from putting up banners, posters, hoardings and firework display on Fadnavis' birthday. Bawankule asked BJP workers to celebrate the birthday as seva din'.

1,000 evacuated as heavy rains create flood-like situation in Maha's Nanded

Nearly 1,000 people from Biloli tehsil in Maharashtra's Nanded district have been shifted to safer places as heavy rains created a flood-like situation in 12 villages, officials said on Friday. Rescue teams comprising revenue department personnel and others carried out the rescue operation from Thursday evening that continued till late night, a district administration official said. "Nearly 1,000 residents of 12 villages, including Harnali, Machnur, Biloli, Golegaon, Aarali, Kasarali, Belkoni, Kundalwadi and Ganjgaon, were moved to safety. There was a sudden increase in water level in these villages following rains, which created a flood-like situation," he said. People were shifted as water entered settlements and farms in these villages, he added. The rescued people were given temporary shelter in nearby Zilla Parishad-run schools or houses located in high-lying areas, the official said. Several local people also contributed to the rescue operation, he said.

3 earthquakes jolt Jaipur in span of half an hour, no casualties, damage

Three earthquakes were felt in Jaipur in the early hours of Friday in a span of half an hour.The latest earthquake of magnitude 3.4 occurred at around 4.25 am, the National Center for Seismology (NCS) reported. According to the NCS, it occurred at a depth of 10 kilometres."Earthquake of Magnitude:3.4, Occurred on 21-07-2023, 04:25:33 IST, Lat: 26.87 & Long: 75.69, Depth: 10 Km ,Location: Jaipur, Rajasthan, India," the National Center for Seismology (NCS) tweeted.Earlier the earth quake of magnitude 3.1 was felt at 4.22 am at a depth of 5 kilometres."Earthquake of Magnitude:3.1, Occurred on 21-07-2023, 04:22:57 IST, Lat: 26.67 & Long: 75.70, Depth: 5 Km ,Location: Jaipur, Rajasthan, India," the NCS tweeted.Prior to this, the first quake was felt at 4.09 am at a depth of 10 kilometres.The NCS had tweeted, "Earthquake of Magnitude:4.4, Occurred on 21-07-2023, 04:09:38 IST, Lat: 26.88 & Long: 75.70, Depth: 10 Km ,Location: Jaipur, Rajasthan, India."No reports of ...

Earthquake of magnitude 6.4 jolts El Salvador's San Salvador: Officials

An earthquake of magnitude 6.4 jolted Southeast of San Salvador, El Salvador on Wednesday early morning, the National Center for Seismology (NCS) said. According to NCS, the earthquake occurred at 05:52 am IST on July 19. The quake was recorded at a depth of 88 kilometers."Earthquake of Magnitude:6.4, Occurred on 19-07-2023, 05:52:10 IST, Lat: 12.74 & Long: -88.02, Depth: 88 Km, Location: 167 km SE of San Salvador, El Salvador," the NCS said in a tweet. No reports of casualties or damages have been reported. Earlier on Tuesday, an earthquake of magnitude 4.2 jolted 79 kilometres Southeast of Afghanistan's Fayzabad. According to NCS, the earthquake occurred at 1:28 pm on Tuesday. The quake was recorded at a depth of 110 Kilometers.This was the second quake to have taken place within a week.On July 15, an earthquake of magnitude 4.3 jolted 185 kilometres South-Southeast of Afghanistan's Fayzabad. According to NCS, the earthquake occurred at 12:49 am IST. The quake was recorded at .

Higher losses during disasters due to abysmally low insurance cover of 8%

Calling for out-of-the-box solutions to address the rising cases of natural disasters, which have since 2001 killed almost 85,000 people and thousands of crores in losses, a report has said the higher losses are due to the abysmally low insurance cover of just about 8 per cent. India has been ranked third, after the US and China, in recording the highest number of natural disasters since 1900. The country had 764 natural disasters, such as landslides, storms, earthquakes, floods, droughts etc since 1900, with 402 events occurring during 1900-2000 and 361 during 2001-22, indicating the preponderance of tail events at an alarming frequency and each such event setting new records of economic stress, SBI Research said in a report Monday. By disaster type, the country is marred mostly by floods. Almost 41 per cent of disasters that occurred were floods, followed by storms. Since 2001, as many as 100 crore people have been impacted, and almost 85,000 people lost their lives. And the coun

Centre approves release of Rs 7,352 crore disaster relief fund to 22 states

The fund is the primary fund available with state governments for responses to notified disasters

Earthquake of 4.1 magnitude, 150 km depth jolts Afghanistan, no casualties

An earthquake of magnitude 4.1 struck the Fayzabad region in Afghanistan on Thursday, reported National Centre for Seismology (NCS).The depth of the quake was reported at 150 km.According to NCS, it took place at 17:05:05 (IST) and the epicentre of the earthquake was found to be at Latitude- 36.85 and Longitude- 71.18, respectively."Earthquake of Magnitude:4.1, Occurred on 29-06-2023, 17:05:05 IST, Lat: 36.85 & Long: 71.18, Depth: 150 Km, Location: 62km ESE of Fayzabad, Afghanistan," the NCS stated in a tweet.Further details are awaited, and no reports of material damage or casualties are known as of yet.This is the second earthquake incident in Afghanistan's Fayzabad region in one week.On June 26, an earthquake of magnitude 4.2 struck the southeastern region of Fayzabad.

Flood situation deteriorates in Assam, nearly 120,000 people affected

The administration has been operating 14 relief camps in five districts, where 2,091 persons have taken shelter, and running 17 relief distribution centres in five districts

5 earthquakes hit Jammu region in a day, educational institutes shut

Five earthquakes jolted the Jammu region on Wednesday and triggered panic among residents, a day after a 5.4 magnitude quake hit the Doda district of the Union Territory. The fresh earthquakes have prompted the administration to shut down educational institutes in twin mountainous districts of Doda and Kishtwar. Officials said the earthquakes that occurred in the Jammu region on Wednesday causes some damage to property but there were no reports so far of any casualties. In Kishtwar, a 3.3 magnitude quake was recorded at 8.29 am. Its epicentre was at a depth of five kilometers, according to the National Centre for Seismology (NCS). Prior to that, tremors of magnitude 3.5 were recorded in Doda at 7.56 am and the epicenter was at a depth of 10 kilometers, data from the NCS showed. Two more earthquakes were recorded in the early hours of the day as well. At 2.20 am, a 4.3 magnitude quake was recorded in the Doda district at a depth of 10 kilometers, according to the data. The other

Mild tremor of 3.5 magnitude recorded in Gujarat's Kutch district

A tremor of 3.5 magnitude was recorded in Gujarat's Kutch district on Wednesday evening at a time when cyclone 'Biparjoy' is approaching the coast in the region, officials said. No damage to property or life was reported. The tremor was recorded at 5:05 PM at a distance of 5 km West South West (WSW) of Bhachau in Kutch district, the Institute of Seismological Research at Gandhinagar said in its update. The powerful cyclone is very likely to cross Saurashtra and Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts and make landfall near Jakhau Port in Kutch by June 15 evening, according to Met department. Kutch district is located in a "very high risk" seismic zone, and earthquakes of lower intensity occur regularly there. The 2001 earthquake was the third largest and second most destructive in India over the last two centuries. A large number of towns and villages in Kutch district suffered extensive damage, killing thousands of people and leaving 1.67 lakh injured.