Tropical Storm Wipha makes landfall in Vietnam; heavy rains persist in Philippines
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTHK
20 hours ago
- RTHK
100 missing after flash flood hits Indian town
100 missing after flash flood hits Indian town Flash floods triggered a mudslide that left houses partially buried in Dharali. Photo: Reuters A flash flood driving a torrent of mud smashed into a town in India's Himalayan region on Tuesday, killing at least four people with around 100 others missing. The roaring waters tore down a narrow mountain valley, demolishing buildings as the flood barrelled into the town of Dharali in Uttarakhand state. "It is a serious situation," Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth told the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency. "We have received information about four deaths and around 100 people missing. We pray for their safety." Videos broadcast on Indian media showed a terrifying surge of muddy water sweeping away multi-storey apartment blocks in the tourist region. Several people could be seen running before being engulfed by the dark waves of debris that uprooted entire buildings. Uttarakhand State Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said rescue teams had been deployed "on a war footing". India's army said 150 troops had reached the town, helping rescue around 20 people who had survived the wall of freezing sludge. "A massive mudslide struck Dharali... triggering a sudden flow of debris and water through the settlement," the army said. Images released by the army, taken from the site after the main torrent had passed, showed a river of slow-moving mud. A wide swath of the town was swamped by deep debris. In places, the mud lapped at the rooftops of houses. State Disaster Response Force commander Arpan Yaduvanshi said the mud was 15 metres deep in places, swamping some buildings entirely. "Search and rescue efforts are ongoing, with all available resources being deployed to locate and evacuate any remaining stranded persons," army spokesman Suneel Bartwal said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences in a statement, and said that "no stone is being left unturned in providing assistance". Chief Minister Dhami said the flood was caused by a sudden and intense "cloudburst", calling the destruction "extremely sad and distressing". The India Meteorological Department issued a red alert warning for the area, saying it had recorded "extremely heavy" rainfall of around 21cm in isolated parts of Uttarakhand. Deadly floods and landslides are common during the monsoon season from June to September, but experts say climate change, coupled with urbanisation, is increasing their frequency and severity. The UN's World Meteorological Organization said last year that increasingly intense floods and droughts are a "distress signal" of what is to come as climate change makes the planet's water cycle ever more unpredictable. (AFP)
South China Morning Post
a day ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong deploys 3 robotic ‘water-pumping dragons' to drain 24 floods
Hong Kong authorities have deployed three 'mobile powerful pumping robots' for the first time to drain at least 24 flooded locations on a day when the city's forecaster recorded the heaviest daily rainfall for August since 1884. Advertisement According to the Drainage Services Department, multiple pumping robots, including three known as 'water-pumping dragons' in Chinese, tackled the floods on Tuesday in Pok Fu Lam, Mid-Levels, Admiralty, Kwun Tong, Sha Tin, Sai Kung, Tai Po, Tolo Harbour, Tsuen Wan and Yuen Long. The devices operated either in or near the flooded area. They pumped water through a tube measuring about 30cm (one foot) in diameter, passing through the robot and into the nearest storm drain. Department director Ringo Mok Wing-cheong said on Monday that authorities had recently acquired two more 'water-pumping dragons' after earlier purchasing one in April and being impressed by its capacity. Each can pump 800 cubic metres (28,250 cubic feet) of water an hour. The one bought in April was part of four robots, including three that were not 'water-pumping dragons', that have a combined pumping capacity of 2,500 cubic metres an hour – about the volume of an Olympic-sized swimming pool. They were acquired for a total of about HK$3 million (US$386,844). Advertisement According to the department, the robots are smaller and more mobile than traditional pumping machines. They can be used to drain water from roads, villages and underground facilities.
RTHK
a day ago
- RTHK
Japan swelters through its hottest day ever
Japan swelters through its hottest day ever People in Tokyo try to find relief amid the heatwave. Photo: AFP Japan recorded its highest-ever temperature of 41.8 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, prompting the government to advise residents to stay indoors and promise steps to ease weather-related damage to rice crops. Readings in the eastern city of Isesaki, in Gunma prefecture, surpassed the previous high of 41.2 degrees Celsius last week in the western city of Tamba in Hyogo prefecture, the country's meteorological agency said. So far this summer, more than 53,000 people have been taken to hospital for heat stroke, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency. "Today is murderously hot," said 63-year-old auto worker Takeshi Ishikawa, who was filling his water bottle at a fountain in central Tokyo. "If it gets to 42 degrees, it would be hotter than my bath that I prepare at 40 degrees." Average temperatures across Japan have continued to climb after marking a record high in July for the third year in a row, while the northeastern region along the Sea of Japan has registered critically low levels of rainfall, raising concerns over the rice harvest. High temperatures have caused a proliferation of stink bugs in some rice-growing areas, even as the government is set to officially adopt a new policy on Tuesday of increased rice production to prevent future shortages. "We need to act with speed and a sense of crisis to prevent damage" from high temperatures, Farm Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said at a press conference. The government will offer support for pest control and measures to tackle drought, he said. Extreme heat in 2023 had damaged the quality of rice, causing an acute shortage last year that was exacerbated by the government's misreading of supply and demand. That led to historically high prices of the all-important staple food, causing a national crisis. (Reuters)
