Snow resorts ready for school holiday surge
But as the alps prepare for a massive influx of tourists, coastal communities are in recovery after record rainfall and flooding hit large stretches of the coast.
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News.com.au
a day ago
- News.com.au
Texas floods kill at least 13, with 20 or more children still missing from a Christian summer camp
At least 13 people are dead, and at least 20 children are missing, after torrential rain in the American state Texas caused massive flooding. The flooding occurred today across much of central Texas, most devastatingly at a Christian summer camp for girls, Camp Mystic, which is located next to the Guadalupe River. The camp, which hosts up to 750 girls, was brutally affected by the floodwaters, which at one point saw the river swell by eight metres in just 45 minutes. The bodies of both adults and children have been retrieved by emergency responders. 'Within 45 minutes, the Guadalupe River rose 26 feet and it was a destructive flood, taking property and sadly lives,' Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, filling in for the holidaying Governor Greg Abbott, said during a news conference. He said the area had copped about 12 inches (300 millimetres) of rain per hour. There are more than 700 emergency responders on the ground, and in the air, searching for survivors and those in need of aid. They're being helped by 14 helicopters and 12 drones. 'That does not mean they've been lost,' Mr Patrick said of the missing girls, saying everyone was 'praying for them to be found alive'. 'They could be in a tree, they could be out of communication.' Camp Mystic says it has informed the parents of all the missing children. The Kerr County Sheriff's Office said the death toll was 13, and was expected to rise. 'It's going to be a massive casualty event,' said Director of the Texas Department of Public Safety Freeman Martin. During the media conference, Mr Patrick made a promise to the parents of the missing children from Camp Mystic. 'If they are alive and safe, we will find them and bring them home to you,' he said. 'We will do everything humanly possible 24/7, looking in every tree turning over every rock.' The camp is currently without power or internet. A statement from its administrators, read out by the Lieutenant-Governor, stressed that the level of flooding was 'catastrophic'. 'The highway has washed away, so we are struggling to get more help,' the camp said. The communications problems are being exacerbated by the camp's rule of imposing a ban on technology for the children staying there. 'Technology is actually not allowed there,' said NewsNation reporter Tracy Walder, whose daughter is friends with some of the missing kids. 'That's why communication and information is kind of a bit difficult to come by.' Mr Abbott, in a written statement, said Texas was 'providing all necessary resources to Kerrville, Ingram, Hunt and the entire Texas Hill Country dealing with these devastating floods'. 'The state of Texas today has mobilised additional resources in addition to the resources sent in preparation for the storms. I urge Texans to heed guidance from state and local officials and monitor local forecasts to avoid driving into flooded areas.' One of Texas's senators, Ted Cruz, asked his followers on social media to 'pray right now' for all involved, 'especially Camp Mystic'. He said President Donald Trump, who has not commented publicly on the flooding, had privately 'committed anything Texas needs'. And Mr Patrick said the President had been in touch more than once, offering to assist. Meanwhile, officials are warning residents of the area to continue being vigilant. 'The rain has let up, but we know there's another wave coming,' Mr Martin said, adding that more rain would be hitting areas around the cities San Antonio and Austin. Forecasters issued a flood warning for one county, urging those living near the Guadalupe River to 'move to higher ground'. Flash floods, which occur when the ground is unable to absorb torrential rainfall, are not unusual in the region.
ABC News
2 days ago
- ABC News
Snow resorts ready for school holiday surge
School holidays have started across most of the country and it's also turning out to be a bumper snow season with a lot of ski resorts saying it's easily the best start to the season in many years. But as the alps prepare for a massive influx of tourists, coastal communities are in recovery after record rainfall and flooding hit large stretches of the coast.
ABC News
2 days ago
- ABC News
Disaster prediction in manga comic book The Future I Saw blamed for fall in tourists to Japan
Japan has seen record numbers of visitors this year. But viral rumours of impending disaster stemming from a comic book prediction have reportedly taken the sheen off the tourism boom, with some airlines cancelling flights. April saw an all-time monthly high of 3.9 million tourists but that dipped in May. Arrivals from Hong Kong — the superstitious Chinese-controlled city where the rumours have circulated widely — were down 11 per cent year-on-year, according to the latest data. Some believe the manga (Japanese comic book) The Future I Saw, predicted the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan's north-eastern coast killing thousands and triggering a nuclear disaster. The cover of the first edition published in 1999 included the words "a great disaster will happen in March 2011". The manga's reprint in 2021 revived the debate, and some have interpreted the latest edition as predicting a catastrophic event would occur specifically on July 5, 2025. Ryo Tatsuki, the artist behind the manga has tried to dampen the speculation, saying in a statement issued by her publisher that she was "not a prophet". Akira Hasegawa, the deputy manager of Village Vanguard Bookshop in Tokyo, says that the manga went viral online. "A lot of buyers [of The Future I Saw], the customers who visit our shop, are young people, so of course as July approached, the information about it spread on social media, mainly on TikTok," he said. An American tourist in Japan told Reuters that he had heard the rumours and second-guessed travelling to Japan in July. "I first heard about it [the rumours] from my wife, and then I watched some YouTube videos and did some research," said US tourist Joey Peng. "She was trying to talk me out of coming to Japan, like, as we talked about earlier, right now is the best time for me to travel for my job." Steve Huen, of Hong Kong-based travel agency EGL Tours, said the rumours had had a "significant impact" and his firm had seen its Japan-related business halve. Discounts and the introduction of earthquake insurance had "prevented Japan-bound travel from dropping to zero", he added. Hong Kong resident Branden Choi, 28, said he was a frequent traveller to Japan but was hesitant to visit the country during July and August due to the manga prediction. "If possible, I might delay my trip and go after September," he said. Situated within the Pacific Ocean's "Ring of Fire", Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world. In recent days there have been more than 900 earthquakes, most of them small tremors, on islands off the southern tip of Kyushu. But Robert Geller, a professor at the University of Tokyo who has studied seismology since 1971, said even scientifically-based earthquake prediction was "impossible". "None of the predictions I've experienced in my scientific career have come close at all," he said. Nevertheless, low-cost carrier Greater Bay Airlines became the latest Hong Kong airline on Wednesday to cancel flights to Japan due to low demand. They told Reuters that it would indefinitely suspend its service to Tokushima in western Japan from September. ABC/wires
