Youth camp confirms 27 dead as Texas flood toll nears 90
Rescuers in Texas searched on Monday for bodies swept away by flash floods that killed almost 90 people, including 27 girls and counsellors at a summer camp that was destroyed by torrents of water.
The country was shocked at the disaster over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, and forecasters
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RNZ News
5 days ago
- RNZ News
Rivers in southwest China breach warning levels, with thousands evacuated
Rescue workers conduct drainage operations in a store in Chongqing, China. Photo: Chen Shichuan / CFOTO via AFP Twenty-five rivers in southwestern China exceeded safe levels on Thursday, state media said, after more than 10,000 people were evacuated as the remnants of former typhoon Danas converged with East Asian monsoon rains. Extreme rainfall and severe flooding, which meteorologists link to climate change, increasingly pose major challenges as they threaten to overwhelm ageing flood defences, displace millions and wreak havoc on a $2.8-trillion agricultural sector. Heavy rains also hit the capital, Beijing, with one area in the sprawling Chaoyang district receiving 68.2 mm (2.7 inches) of rain in a single hour on Thursday morning (local time), the state-run Beijing Daily said. Ten southwestern rivers, including the Longyan, which flows through the densely populated region of Chongqing, could burst their embankments and levees at any time, broadcaster CCTV warned, citing the water resources ministry. The remaining 15 had exceeded levels at which they could burst their banks, but posed less of a risk, it added. More than 24 hours of torrential rain took levels in the Chishui River of Guizhou province to their highest since records began in 1953, the broadcaster said, while the Xiaocao River in Sichuan province stood at its highest in 29 years. More than 10,000 people were evacuated on Wednesday (local time) from cities in the provinces of Sichuan and Yunnan, state media said, as the East Asian monsoon rains pushed north from India. One county in Yunnan recorded 227.8 mm (9 inches) of rainfall in 24 hours, for its highest total in a single day since records began in 1958 while two people died as torrential rain hit Yunnan's Zhaotong city, Xinhua said on Thursday (local time). Beijing health authorities warned that the combination of frequent downpours, high temperatures and humidity increased the risk of water and food contamination. - Reuters
NZ Herald
5 days ago
- NZ Herald
Texas floods leave 110 dead, 170 still missing as search intensifies
There are fears that the death toll of 110 in the Texas floods could still surge as hopes fade of finding survivors among the many reported still missing several days after the disaster. More than 170 people remain unaccounted for after the flash flooding on the Fourth of July holiday,
RNZ News
7 days ago
- RNZ News
Wildfire threatens Marseille, shuts down airport in southern France
People look on near the Plage des Corbieres, in Marseille, southern France on July 8, 2025, as a smoke from a wildfire rages in the background. Photo: AFP / Clement Mahoudeau A fast-moving wildfire reached the outskirts of Marseille, France's second-largest city, on Tuesday (local time), leading its airport to be shut down, with residents told to stay indoors and shut all openings to be safe from the smoke. The blaze, fanned by winds of up to 70 kilometres per hour, could be smelled in the centre of Marseille, residents said, as thick clouds of smoke hovered over the city. "It's very striking - apocalyptic even," said Monique Baillard, a resident of Les Pennes-Mirabeau, a town north of Marseille where the fire, which has now burned across around 350 hectares, started. A police officer tries to put off the fire in a car during a wildfire, in L'Estaque district of Marseille, southern France on July 8, 2025. Photo: AFP / Clement Mahoudeau Wildfires, which have become more destructive in Mediterranean countries in recent years due to climate change, were also raging in northeastern Spain, where large parts of the country were on high alert for fires. Last week there were fires on the Greek island of Crete and in Athens, as much of Europe sweltered in an early summer heatwave. As the fire was spreading, residents of Marseille's 16th borough, which borders Les Pennes-Mirabeau, were also instructed by the prefecture to stay home, close doors and shutters and put damp cloths on any openings. "The fire that started in Pennes-Mirabeau is now at the gates of Marseille," mayor Benoit Payan said on X. One bank worker reached by phone said: "The sky is grey with ash, and the smell of fire is very strong in the centre of Marseille." Residents were told not to evacuate unless ordered to, to leave roads free for rescue services. "At this stage, populations must remain confined," the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur prefecture posted on X. "Close shutters, doors, keep your property clear for emergency services, and do not travel on the roads." The local fire service said on X that 168 firefighters had been deployed to fight the blaze. Fire engines and helicopters were also being used. A spokesperson for Marseille airport, France's fourth-busiest, said planes had not been taking off or landing since around midday and some flights had been diverted to Nice, Nimes and other regional airports. It was unclear when the airport would reopen. Train lines heading north and west from Marseille were suspended due to a fire near the tracks, the SNCF train operator said. Meanwhile, a wildfire that started near Narbonne, in southwestern France, was still active on Monday, fanned by winds of 60km/h. Some 2000 hectares have burnt, the local prefecture said. -Reuters
