
At least 50 people missing after flash floods in Indian Himalayan town, TV says
Visuals on local TV channels showed flood waters surging down a mountain and crashing into a hamlet at the foothills, sweeping away houses and a road in Uttarkashi town in the Himalayas.
There was likely to be damage because of an increase in water levels in the Harshil area of Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand police said in a post on X, asking residents to stay away from rivers.
Uttarakhand, which is located in the Himalayas, is increasingly prone to flash floods and landslides, which some experts blame on climate change.
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BreakingNews.ie
7 hours ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Parts of Europe burn as millions face record heat
Wildfires burned in parts of Europe on Tuesday as millions of people across the continent struggled to adapt to the new reality: record summer heat. Europe – where temperatures in some areas were soaring past 40C – is warming faster than any other continent, at twice the speed of the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service. Advertisement Last year was the hottest year on record in Europe and globally, the monitoring agency said. A woman uses a fan to cool off in Toulouse, in south-western France (Fred Scheiber/AP) Scientists warn climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making parts of Europe more vulnerable to wildfires. The burning of fuels such as petrol, oil and coal release heat-trapping gasses that are the main driver of climate change. Outside Madrid, firefighters had largely contained a blaze that broke out on Monday night, authorities said. It killed a man who suffered burns on 98% of his body, emergency services said. Advertisement Elsewhere, firefighters and nearly 1,000 soldiers were battling blazes in regions including Castile and Leon, Castile-La Mancha, Andalusia and Galicia. Thousands of people evacuated homes and hotels, including holiday-goers at beaches at the southern tip of Spain. Burning trees during a wildfire in Carcastillo, in northern Spain (Eduardo Sanz/Europa Press via AP) Regional authorities said on Tuesday afternoon that some of those evacuated from beach locations could return to their hotels. In Portugal, more than 700 firefighters were working to control a fire in the municipality of Trancoso, about 217 miles (350km) north-east of Lisbon. Smaller fires were burning further north. Firefighters largely brought a major wildfire in north-west Turkey under control, the forestry minister announced, a day after the blaze prompted hundreds of evacuations and led to the suspension of maritime traffic. Advertisement The blaze broke out on agricultural land in Canakkale province. Fanned by strong winds, it rapidly spread to a forested area, then to a residential one. It forced the evacuation of 2,000 residents — some by sea — and led to 77 being taken to hospital due to smoke exposure, officials said. Firefighters were still battling two other wildfires in Manisa and Izmir provinces in western Turkey, agriculture and forestry minister Ibrahim Yumakli said on social media. A fire broke out on agricultural land in the north-west province of Canakkale, in Turkey (Berkman Ulutin/Dia Photo via AP) The national weather authority placed most of France's southern region on the highest heat warning, with temperatures above 40C expected for the second consecutive day. The heat will spread to the north-east, including the Paris region, Meteo France said. Advertisement Some municipalities offered free or discounted access to public swimming pools. Most regions in central and southern France were monitored for the high risk of forest fires, after a deadly blaze last week in the Aude region. Officials said the fire was under control but would not be fully extinguished for weeks, with hot spots at risk of reigniting. Authorities ordered multiple evacuations due to wildfires on the island of Zakynthos and in nearby areas on the western Greek mainland, as high winds added to the nationwide risk. Temperatures were expected to hit 34C on Tuesday and Wednesday in England (Danny Lawson/PA) Water-dropping planes and helicopters were operating in the Agala area in the south-west of Zakynthos, and evacuations affected a nearby coastal area popular with tourists. Advertisement Zakynthos mayor Giorgos Stasinopoulos appealed to the government to send additional aerial support. Meanwhile, temperatures were expected to hit 34C in England on Tuesday and Wednesday, especially in southern parts of the country, including London. Officials define a heat wave as temperatures exceeding 25C for most of the UK — and 28C in London and its surrounding area — for three consecutive days or more.


The Independent
7 hours ago
- The Independent
Parts of Europe burn as millions are facing record heat
Wildfires burned in parts of Europe on Tuesday as millions of people across the continent struggled to adapt to the new reality: record summer heat. Temperatures in some areas soared past 40 degrees Celsius (109.4 Fahrenheit). Europe is warming faster than any other continent, at twice the speed of the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service. Last year was the hottest year on record in Europe and globally, the monitoring agency said. Scientists warn climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making parts of Europe more vulnerable to wildfires. The burning of fuels like gasoline, oil and coal release heat-trapping gasses that are the main driver of climate change. Spain and Portugal: Numerous wildfires Outside Madrid, firefighters had largely contained a blaze that broke out Monday night, authorities said. It killed a man who suffered burns on 98% of his body, emergency services said. Elsewhere, firefighters and nearly 1,000 soldiers were battling blazes in regions including Castile and Leon, Castile-La Mancha, Andalusia and Galicia. Thousands of people evacuated homes and hotels, including holiday-goers at beaches at the southern tip of Spain. Regional authorities said Tuesday afternoon that some of those evacuated from beach locations could return to their hotels. In Portugal, more than 700 firefighters were working to control a fire in the municipality of Trancoso, about 350 kilometers (217 miles) northeast of Lisbon. Smaller fires were burning further north. Turkey: Thousands evacuated, some on boats Firefighters largely brought a major wildfire in northwest Turkey under control, the forestry minister announced, a day after the blaze prompted hundreds of evacuations and led to the suspension of maritime traffic. The blaze broke out on agricultural land in Canakkale province. Fanned by strong winds, it rapidly spread to a forested area, then to a residential one. It forced the evacuation of 2,000 residents — some by sea — and led to 77 hospitalizations due to smoke exposure, officials said. Firefighters were still battling two other wildfires in Manisa and Izmir provinces in western Turkey, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli said on social media. France: A red alert for heat The national weather authority placed most of France's southern region on the highest heat warning, with temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (109.4 Fahrenheit) expected for the second consecutive day. The heat will spread to the northeast, including the Paris region, Meteo France said. Some municipalities offered free or discounted access to public swimming pools. Most regions in central and southern France were monitored for the high risk of forest fires, after a deadly blaze last week in the Aude region. Officials said the fire was under control but will not be fully extinguished for weeks, with hot spots at risk of reigniting. Greece: Multiple evacuations for fires Authorities ordered multiple evacuations due to wildfires on the island of Zakynthos and in nearby areas on the western Greek mainland, as high winds added to the nationwide risk. Water-dropping planes and helicopters were operating in the Agala area in the southwest of Zakynthos, and evacuations affected a nearby coastal area popular with tourists. Zakynthos Mayor Giorgos Stasinopoulos appealed to the government to send additional aerial support. Britain: Another heatwave Temperatures were expected to hit 34 Celsius (93.2 Fahrenheit) on Tuesday and Wednesday, especially in southern parts of England, including London. Officials define a heatwave as temperatures exceeding 25 Celsius for most of the U.K. — and 28 Celsius in London and its surrounding area — for three consecutive days or more. ___ AP writers Sylvie Corbet in Paris, Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Sylvia Hu in London and Derek Gatopoulos in Athens contributed to this report.


Reuters
8 hours ago
- Reuters
'Cooked alive': Europe's wildfires hit tourism spots and forests
MADRID/LISBON, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Firefighters across Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkey and the Balkans were battling wildfires on Tuesday with another heatwave pushing temperatures over 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) across parts of Europe. Global warming is giving the Mediterranean region hotter, drier summers, scientists say, with wildfires surging each year and sometimes whipping up into "whirls". "We are being cooked alive, this cannot continue," said a mayor in Portugal, Alexandre Favaios, as three fires burned. On the outskirts of the Spanish capital Madrid, a fire killed a man working at a horse stable and reached some houses and farms but was contained by Tuesday, regional authorities said. To the south in Tarifa, on Spain's coast close to Morocco, beachgoers and celebrity chef Jose Andres filmed flames and black smoke on the hills above elegant whitewashed villas. More than 2,000 people were evacuated from Tarifa as the fire - believed to have started in eucalyptus and pine forests - spread, officials said. Helicopters doused the blaze with seawater. In Albania and Montenegro, authorities issued a heatwave warning as temperatures reached 100F (38-39C). Germany issued heat warnings for much of the country on Monday, with temperatures above 86F (30C) expected until Friday. In Italy, red heat alerts were issued for 16 cities while in France, authorities declared red or orange weather alerts for much of the country. In Spain, temperatures were set to reach 111.2F (44C) in some regions, according to meteorology service AEMET. Minimal rainfall and windy conditions were expected to exacerbate the risk. Spain's Interior Ministry declared a "pre-emergency", putting national services on standby to support firefighting. Almost 1,000 members of the armed forces are already helping. Spain's largest region, Castile and Leon, had 32 wildfires raging on Tuesday with more than 1,200 firefighters involved. Five of the fires were categorised as a direct threat to nearby populations. In Leon province, around 3,780 residents were evacuated, while over 600 residents of seven towns in Zamora were also ordered to leave their homes. In north Portugal, more than 1,300 firefighters backed by 14 aircraft were battling three large fires. One of them, in the Vila Real area, has been burning for 10 days. Local mayor Favaios pleaded for more government help. "It's been 10 days of extremely hard fight against the flames, 10 days that our population is in panic, without knowing when the fire will knock on their door," he told broadcaster RTP. With two Portuguese waterbombing planes in need of repair, authorities on Monday requested help from Morocco, which sent two replacement planes. A heatwave that brought temperatures of around 40C to north Portugal in the past week showed signs of abating on Tuesday, with rain and thunderstorms expected, according to the weather service IPMA. Across the region in Albania, swathes of forest and farmland have been burnt by wildfires in the past week. Helicopters from the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the United Arab Emirates assisted the Balkan state to contain 19 separate wildfires stoked by strong winds on Tuesday. In neighbouring Montenegro, authorities backed by helicopters from Serbia and Croatia contained a wildfire near the capital Podgorica on Tuesday, with the city covered by smoke. Resident Dragana Vukovic told Reuters against the backdrop of her home's smouldering rafters: "Everything that can be paid for and bought will be compensated, but the memories that burned in these four rooms and the attic cannot be compensated." In Greece at Europe's southernmost tip, wildfires in some cases fanned by gale-force winds forced the evacuation of several villages and a hotel on the tourist islands of Zakynthos and Cephalonia in the Ionian Sea along with four other parts of the mainland. "Winds are strong and the wildfire is out of control," Zakynthos mayor Yiorgos Stasinopoulos told Greek public broadcaster ERT. Another 85 firefighters and 10 aircraft fought to stop a fire reaching houses near the western Greek town of Vonitsa. The picture was similar in Turkey where a large blaze in the northwestern province of Canakkale burned for a second day after hundreds of residents were evacuated in precaution. Wildfires in Canakkale's Ezine and Ayvacik districts, which saw Canakkale airport and the Dardanelles Strait closed on Monday, were largely brought under control by Tuesday. But blazes in the city centre in the southern part of the strait were still burning, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli said in a post on X.