Magnitude 6.5 earthquake strikes Russia's Kuril Islands, EMSC says
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The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Four dead as Spain hit by worst wildfires on record in 45C heatwave
Four people have been killed in Spain as the country is hit by its worst wildfires on record. Authorities have deployed nearly 2,000 troops to help firefighters tackle blazes that have devastated swathes of the country, as temperatures hit highs of 45C. A severe 16-day-long heatwave has fuelled around 20 wildfires, burning more than 115,000 hectares in the regions of Galicia and Castile and Leon over the past week. Flames have spread to the southern slopes of the Picos de Europa mountain range and the famous Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route. A firefighter died when his truck crashed near the village of Espinoso de Compludo, raising the death toll to four from the recent wave of fires. In neighbouring Portugal, wildfires have burned about 216,200 hectares so far this year, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) - more than four times the 2006-2024 average for this period - and two people have died. Southern Europe is experiencing one of its worst wildfire seasons in two decades, with Spain and Portugal among the hardest-hit countries. So far this year, an estimated 344,400 hectares (851,000 acres) have burned in Spain - an area equivalent to the size of the island of Mallorca - according to the EFFIS. It's the largest area on records that go back to 2006 and more than four times the 2006-2024 average. Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez cut his holiday to the Canary Islands short to visit areas devastated by the wildfires, proposing a 'grand state pact' to prepare the country for climate-related events such as wildfires and hurricanes. 'We need to do a thorough analysis of how we can resize our prevention and response capabilities to the climate emergency,' he said. 'We must leave this issue outside of partisan strife. We are all part of the same state, and we must all work in the same direction.' Defence minister Margarita Robles told radio station Cadena SER that the country hadn't experienced such a fire situation this severe in 20 years: 'The fires have special characteristics as a result of climate change and this huge heatwave.' She said thick smoke was affecting the work of helicopters and aircraft carrying water to extinguish the flames. Spain's Ministry of the Interior says 27 people have been arrested and 92 are under investigation for suspected arson since June. Wildfires in southern Europe have grown so devastating that 155,000 hectares of land have been burnt in Portugal, according to the ICNF forestry protection institute. This is three times the average for this period between 2006 to 2024. About half of that area burned in the past three days. While Portugal is set for cooler weather in the coming days after several woodland fires, the country's resources have been stretched after more than 4,000 firefighters and 1,300 vehicles were deployed on Sunday, as well as 17 aircraft, according to the Civil Protection Agency. Europe has been warming twice as fast as the global average since the 1980s, according to the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service. Scientists say that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness in parts of Europe, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires. Greece, Bulgaria, Montenegro and Albania have also requested help from the EU's firefighting force in recent days to deal with forest fires. Recent wildfires in Turkey have killed 19 people, and on Sunday, six villages in the Canakkale province were evacuated as precautionary measures. Some 1,300 firefighting personnel backed by 30 aircraft were battling the blaze, according to the General Directorate of Forestry. A wildfire on the peninsula to the north of the Dardanelles Strait led to the closure of visitor facilities at Gallipoli, the site's management said. The area is dotted with cemeteries, memorials and other remnants of battles waged between Ottoman and Allied troops in 1915. Turkey has been struck by hundreds of fires since late June, fueled by record-breaking temperatures, dry conditions and strong winds.
Reuters
2 hours ago
- Reuters
Pakistani villagers scared to go back to deluged homes after floods kill over 340
BUNER, Pakistan, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Residents of a northwestern Pakistani district where devastating floods have killed more than 200 people said on Monday they were too scared to go back to their deluged homes as authorities warned of more rains to come. "Everybody is scared. Children are scared. They cannot sleep," said Sahil Khan, a 24-year-old university student. He was speaking to a Reuters team from a rooftop in the district of Buner, where he and 15 other villagers had climbed to escape any more flooding amid a fresh spell of rain on Monday. "It was like a doomsday scenario," he said of the flash floods caused by heavy rains and cloudbursts that, according to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority, have killed at least 341 people in the northwest since Friday - more than 200 of them in Buner. The fatalities include 28 women and 21 children, it said. The intense rain has claimed lives and spread destruction in several northern districts, with most people killed in flash floods, according to the National Disaster Management Authority. In hilly areas, the floods washed away houses, buildings, vehicles and belongings. Buner district was the worst hit in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Khan and other residents in Buner's Bayshonai Kalay village fled to higher ground when a water channel that had earlier overflowed and caused major devastation started swelling with more rain on Monday, according to Reuters witnesses. He and several other residents said most of the villagers were staying with relatives or in makeshift camps set up by local authorities on higher ground. Rescuers were finding it difficult to get heavy machinery into narrow streets. In Buner's main markets and streets, shops and houses were buried in up to five feet of mud, which locals were clearing with shovels. Elsewhere, cars and other belongings were strewn in the rubble of ruined buildings. "People are out of their homes. They are fearful," said Dayar Khan, 26, a shopkeeper in Buner. "They have climbed up in the mountains." Rescue and relief efforts resumed in the flood-hit areas several hours after heavy rain forced rescuers to halt work on Monday, a regional government officer, Abid Wazir, told Reuters. "Our priority is now to clear the roads, set up bridges and bring relief to the affected people," he said. Heavy rains and flash floods also hit more areas in the northwestern province on Monday, including the district Swabi, where 11 people were killed, according to the provincial disaster management authority. Local TV footage showed flood water raging through Swabi's streets, washing away cars and motorcycles, as residents ran in panic for safer ground. Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik, the National Disaster Management Authority's chairman, warned of two more spells of rain between August 21 and September 10. "It can intensify," he said, and there could be more cloudbursts. Syed Muhammad Tayyab Shah, who leads risk assessment at the authority, said global warming had changed the pattern of the annual monsoon, pushing it around 100 km west of its normal path. Relief supplies, including food, medicine, blankets, tents, an electric generator and pumps have been sent to the affected areas, the authority said. Officials said Buner was hit by a cloudburst, a rare phenomenon where more than 100 mm (4 inches) of rain falls within an hour in a small area. In Buner, there was more than 150 mm of rain within an hour on Friday morning. "The current weather system is active over the Pakistan region and may cause heavy to very heavy rainfall during the next 24 hours," the disaster authority said on Sunday. Torrential rains and flooding this monsoon season have killed 657 people across Pakistan since late June, it said.
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
UK on track for one of hottest summers on record, says Met Office
The UK is on track for one of its hottest summers on record, the Met Office said. The summer has been marked by persistent warm temperatures even outside the four heatwaves which have hit the country, with June and July both seeing well above-average conditions. With two weeks to go until the end of the meteorological summer, conditions could still shift, but the season's overall warmth and consistently above-average temperatures mean it could rank among the UK's warmest in records dating back to 1884. Provisional figures from the Met Office show that the UK's average temperature from June 1 to August 17 stands at 16.2C, some 1.6C above the average temperature. Met Office scientist Emily Carlisle said: 'It's looking like this summer is on track to be one of the warmest, if not 'the' warmest, since the series began in 1884. 'What's striking is the consistency of the warmth. June and July were both well above average and even outside of heatwaves, temperatures have remained on the warmer side. 'This persistent warmth is driven by a combination of factors including dry ground from spring, high-pressure systems, and unusually warm seas around the UK. 'These conditions have created an environment where heat builds quickly and lingers.' She said: 'While we haven't seen record-breaking highs – 35.8C is the peak so far this year – the overall trend in consistently above-average temperatures is what matters.' The Met Office said climate change is also playing a role in pushing up summer temperatures, with the UK warming by around 0.25C per decade. The UK's warmest summer on record is 2018, followed by 2006, 2003, 2022 and 1976. The Met Office said both June and July delivered consistently above-average temperatures, with England experiencing its hottest June on record. There have been four heatwaves so far this summer, and the Met Office said while that was unusual, each has been short-lived and interspersed with near average conditions and the hottest day of the year, at 35.8C in Faversham, Kent, is well below the all-time high for the UK of 40.3C in 2022. Rainfall is tracking below average, with 72% of the whole summer's long term average recorded so far, when 85% would be expected at this point in the season – but it is variable, with northern Scotland already receiving 98% of its summer rainfall and the Midlands just 58%. The below-average rainfall in summer comes after England's driest spring in more than 100 years and the driest January to July since 1929, the Met Office said. It has also been a sunnier than average summer so far, although the meteorological experts said it was too early to suggest where 2025 might end up in terms of sunshine records.
