By Chris Cordt4 June 2013 EL RENO, Oklahoma – The National Weather Service is calling the May 31st El Reno tornado the widest tornado on record at 2.6 miles wide. That breaks the previous record of 2.5 miles held by the F-4 tornado that struck Wilber-Hallam, Nebraska on 22 May 2004. The NWS has upgraded […]
By JOHN TAGLIABUE29 May 2013 GRINDELWALD, Switzerland (The New York Times) – Marco Bomio recalls that bright Sunday morning in June 2006 as if it were yesterday. Mr. Bomio, 59, a school principal and mountain guide, attended a religious service on a high mountain meadow to mark the founding of a local guide group. “Suddenly […]
[A warmer world is a wetter world: record rains on three continents. –Des] 31 May 2013 (Spiegel) – Rain, rain and, yes, more rain. Welcome to Germany! For weeks, rain has been pounding Germany, whose serotonin-sapped residents are straining to hold on to the last vestiges of hope after already having suffered through the darkest […]
BY PETRA LÖW29 May 2013 (WorldWatch Institute) – In 2012, there were 905 natural catastrophes worldwide, 93 percent of which were weather-related disasters. In terms of overall and insured losses (US$170 billion and $70 billion, respectively), 2012 did not follow the records set in 2011 and could be defined as a moderate year on a […]
By Matt Siegel24 May 2013 (National Geographic News) – In early 2012 once-in-a-century floods submerged swaths of Great Britain and Ireland, causing some $1.52 billion in damages. Then in June record-high temperatures in Russia sparked wildfires that consumed 74 million acres of pristine Siberian taiga. Months after that, Hurricane Sandy pummeled seven countries, killing hundreds […]
GENEVA, 13 MAY 2013 (IDMC) – In 2012, the Philippines had its highest level of disaster-induced displacement in five years. Some 3.9 million people were displaced. The Philippines is highly prone to frequent disasters and has recently had high levels of new displacement of at least one million people per annum. These high levels of […]
By Steve Connor, Science Editor 14 May 2013 (The Independent) – There is significant risk of London being hit by a devastating storm surge in the Thames estuary by 2100 that could breach existing flood defences and cause immense damage to the capital, a study of global sea-level rise has found. Melting of polar ice […]
25 May 2013 (CNN) – Flooding has left one person dead and another missing in San Antonio, Texas, authorities said Saturday. The fatality occurred when a woman was swept from her vehicle, fire department spokesman Christian Bove told CNN. Her body was found along a creek, he said. Bove said the department has been involved […]
Contact the UNISDR press office: Denis McClean: +41-79-444-5262 (mobile) Maria Hasan: +1-917-367-72070 or +1-917-856-2014 (mobile) Andrew McElroy: +41-79-217-3023 (mobile) NEW YORK, 15 May 2013 – The United Nations today issued a stark warning to the world’s business community that economic losses linked to disasters are “out of control” and will continue to escalate unless disaster […]
By Jeff Montgomery 24 May 2013 (The News Journal) – In a symbolic blow to state climate change adaption efforts, the Delaware county with most at stake in future sea-level rise forecasts abruptly declined to take any stand on the issue Thursday as a state panel approved dozens of recommendations for dealing with the threat. […]
