Toronto's reclaimed Port Lands built to withstand another Hurricane Hazel
To reclaim the Port Lands, Toronto partnered with the U.S.-based landscape architecture firm Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, which has worked on the Brooklyn Bridge Park and the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago.
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Laura Solano, the lead designer, said the project was 'duty bound to address catastrophic flooding,' but stressed it offered 'much more.'
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Because the area has been reformed to cope with flood waters, parts have been declared safe for new housing — an urgent need in the expensive metropolis. There is also a new park, trails and people can canoe or kayak through the rehabilitated Don.
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Solano stressed Toronto's initial decision to alter the area was consistent with the times, when North American cities moved to 'industrialize their waters … to raise their economic position.'
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But now, 'every city is looking to reclaim their waters,' she told AFP.
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The Port Lands 'shows the world that it's possible to fix the past and turn deficit and remnant industrial lands into living and breathing infrastructure.'
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'It's all planned so that it can flood, the water level can rise, the river can get about three, maybe four times wider than it is now, absorb all of that volume of water,' he said.
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'When the storm event subsides, it will shrink back down to this.'
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It's a planning approach that recognizes 'we're seeing more and more of these events.'
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'Like in Texas, you see very tragic outcomes when you haven't really tried to plan for nature,' he told AFP, referring to flash floods in early July that killed at least 135 people.
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He urged planners to 'reposition' their relationship to nature and ditch the mindset that 'humans (can) control everything.'
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'Let's acknowledge the river is going to flood. Let's build the space for it.'
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Toronto Sun
4 hours ago
- Toronto Sun
Turkmenistan's methane-spewing 'Gateway to Hell' loses its anger
Published Aug 07, 2025 • Last updated 12 minutes ago • 3 minute read The "Gateway to Hell'"was once a pit of blazing red flames and glowing red embers in the middle of the Turkmen desert Photo by STRINGER / AFP Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. DARVAZA, Turkmenistan — People go to the 'Gateway to Hell' gas crater in the middle of the Turkmenistan desert expecting an angry cauldron but are now coming away unimpressed. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Once a giant uncontrollable pit of red flames and glowing red embers, the 70-metre (230 feet) wide hole is now just a charred cauldron with only a few pockets of small fires. After letting it burn for 50 years, authorities in the reclusive Central Asian state have finally moved to put out the fire, which spews huge quantities of methane into the atmosphere. 'I'm a little disappointed,' said Irina, 35, who travelled five hours north from the capital Ashgabat to get to see what she thought would be an inferno in the Karakum desert. 'On the internet we saw impressive pictures of burning flames. Now we realise they were old photos and videos. The reality is different,' she told AFP. Reducing the fire is an important step for Turkmenistan's climate ambitions. Plan your next getaway with Travel Time, featuring travel deals, destinations and gear. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The world's biggest methane emitter through gas leaks, according to the International Energy Agency, it has committed to cutting greenhouse gas emissions. But putting out the fire means killing off the Darvaza gas crater as the country's top tourist attraction. Several nearby wells have been drilled to reduce the flow of gas. 'Whereas before a huge glow from the blaze was visible from several kilometres away, hence the name 'Gateway to Hell', today only a faint source of combustion remains,' Irina Luryeva, a director at state-owned energy company Turkmengaz, told a conference in June. 'Risking your life' The road from Ashgabat to the crater is covered with cracks and potholes, making the journey for would-be tourists treacherous. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'You have to swerve round the potholes and sand dunes, risking your life,' driver Aman, 28, told AFP at a gas station on the way. The desert covers some 80 percent of the country and sees temperatures soar to more than 50C in summer and plunge to minus 20C in the winter. It is also home to vast natural resources, with Turkmenistan estimated to have the world's fourth largest gas reserves. 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Toronto Sun
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Published Aug 07, 2025 • 2 minute read This photograph shows firefighter vehicles in a burning forest area during a wildfire in Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, southern France on Aug. 7, 2025. Photo by IDRISS BIGOU-GILLES / AFP via Getty Images VILLEROUGE LA CREMADE, France — France's largest wildfire in decades continued to burn and spread Thursday, though at a slower pace, after having already ravaged more than 160 square kilometres in the south of the country and claiming one life, local authorities said. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account The blaze, which started Tuesday and tore through the Corbieres massif in the Aude region, has remained uncontained despite the deployment of over 2,100 firefighters and several water bomber aircraft. The fire's rapid spread was fueled by weeks of hot, dry weather, though cooler temperatures and calmer winds overnight helped slightly ease the situation. 'The battle continues, we have a fire that is not yet under control,' region administrator Christian Pouget told broadcaster BFMTV. The fire has swept through 15 communes in the Corbieres massif, destroying or damaging at least 36 homes, with a full damage assessment still underway. One person died in their home, and at least 13 others were injured, including 11 firefighters, according to local authorities. Three people were reported missing, the Aude prefecture added. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. An investigation is ongoing to determine the cause of the fire, which has left a blackened landscape of skeletal trees and ash. 'It's very sad to think about the image we're going to give of our Corbieres region, with its devastated landscapes and desperate women and men, not just today or tomorrow, but for weeks and months to come. It will take years to rebuild,' said Xavier de Volontat, the mayor of Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, speaking to BFMTV. Meanwhile, residents and tourists in nearby areas have been asked to remain in their homes unless told to evacuate. Those who had already fled the flames were sheltered overnight in temporary accommodation centres in 17 municipalities. The fire, which began in the village of Ribaute, is the most significant France has faced since 1949, according to Agnes Pannier-Runacher, France's minister for ecological transition. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'The night was cooler, so the fire is spreading more slowly, but it remains the most significant fire France has seen since 1949,' she told France Info radio. 'It is a fire that is clearly a consequence of climate change and drought in this region.' This week's fire was the biggest since the creation of a national fire database in 2006, according to the national emergency service. Southern Europe has seen multiple large fires this summer. Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires. Last month, a wildfire that reached the southern port of Marseille, France's second-largest city, left around 300 people injured. Europe is the world's fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing at twice the speed of the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service. — Petrequin reported from Paris. Sunshine Girls Sunshine Girls World World Canada
Winnipeg Free Press
3 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
A 5.7 quake strikes near the Dominican Republic hours after a smaller quake strikes Haiti
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A 5.7 magnitude earthquake struck off the southeast coast of the Dominican Republic early Tuesday, jolting residents awake in the Caribbean country and in neighboring Puerto Rico. The quake occurred 24 miles (38 kilometers) southeast of Boca de Yuma at a depth of 104 miles (168 kilometers), according to the U.S. Geological Survey. No damage was reported. Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic are located in a high seismic activity zone, given that the North American Plate and the northeast corner of the Caribbean Plate meet in that area. A 4.1 magnitude earthquake also struck near Haiti's capital late Monday at a depth of three miles (five kilometers), according to the country's civil protection agency. The quake was widely felt in Port-au-Prince and beyond. Officials said no damage was reported. Haiti, which shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic, sits on the intersection of the North American plate and the Caribbean plate. In August 2021, a 7.2 quake struck Haiti, killing hundreds of people. It occurred along the same fault zone that unleashed a catastrophic 7.0 earthquake in January 2010 that killed hundreds of thousands of people.
