
‘This is the worst that I can remember,' southern Saskatchewan RMs declare drought emergency
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The RMs of Big Stick, Maple Creek, Enterprise and Fox Valley all declared a state of emergency this month.
As Global's Nicole Healey explains, in the video above, the RMs are calling for crop insurance programs to be updated to support farmers who have been losing money for the ninth year in a row.

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Turkey sends firefighting aircraft to Syria as wildfires rage on both sides of the border
Turkey sent two firefighting aircraft Saturday to help battle wildfires in neighboring Syria as Turkish firefighters battled a blaze on their side of the border and one person was reported dead in the country's west. Eleven fire trucks and water support vehicles were also dispatched to help beat back flames in Syria's northwest Latakia region, according to Raed Al Saleh, the Syrian minister of emergency and disaster management. He posted on X, saying 'sudden wildfires in Turkey' delayed their arrival by almost a day. Turkey has been battling wildfires since June 26. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli said Saturday that firefighters successfully controlled 10 major fires in western Turkey, but an injured forestry worker had died, the third in the municipality of Odemis in Izmir province. Authorities said most of the fires in Izmir were caused by faulty power lines. Story continues below advertisement Meanwhile, in Hatay province, which borders Syria, emergency crews continued fighting a blaze that broke out Friday afternoon in the Dortyol district near a residential area and rapidly intensified due to strong winds, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. Some 920 homes had been evacuated as a precaution against the advancing flames, Governor Mustafa Musatli said late Friday. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said 44 suspects had been detained in relation to 65 fires that broke out across the country. Fires that have hit Turkey, Greece and Syria over the past week have been fueled by soaring temperatures, strong winds, and low humidity. In Turkey, they led to the evacuation of tens of thousands of people and damaged some 200 homes. The Syrian Civil Defense expressed concerns over the presence of unexploded ordnance from the country's past conflicts in some of the wildfire areas. Summer fires are common in the eastern Mediterranean region, where experts warn that climate change is intensifying conditions.


Global News
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Flash floods like in Texas are the U.S. top storm-related killer. Here's why
The monstrous, swift-moving flood that swept through the Hill Country of Texas on Friday, killing at least 24 people and leaving more people missing, was a flash flood, the nation's top storm-related killer. Among those missing are more than 20 girls attending a summer camp. Authorities said more than 230 people had been rescued as of late Friday, including more than 160 by helicopter. Flash floods form rapidly According to the National Weather Service, a flash flood is flooding that begins within six hours, and often in as little as three hours, of heavy rainfall. Waters rise so quickly that people are caught off guard, according to the weather service. Many people run into trouble while traveling. If at home or work, the water can rise so quickly people are trapped before they have time to think about escape. Story continues below advertisement That is just what happened to residents along the Guadalupe River in Kerr County and the surrounding area after at least 10 inches (25 centimeters) poured from the sky early Friday morning. Fast-moving waters along the river rose 26 feet (8 meters) in just 45 minutes before dawn Friday, washing away homes and vehicles. The danger was not over as more heavy rains were expected Saturday and flash flood warnings and flood watches remained in effect for parts of central Texas. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy There was some advance notice in Texas On Thursday afternoon, the National Weather Service issued a flood watch, estimating rising water of up to 7 inches (17 centimeters) in spots. A 'watch' means conditions are favorable for a flood and people should be prepared, but hazardous conditions might not develop. But the watch was upgraded to a flood warning overnight, a notice that impacted 30,000 people. A warning is issued when flooding is imminent or occurring, the weather service says. Lt,. Gov. Dan Patrick said the potential for heavy rain and flooding covered a large area and 'everything was done to give them a heads-up that you could have heavy rain.' However, when asked about how people were notified in Kerr County so that they could get to safety, Judge Rob Kelly, the county's chief elected official, said: 'We do not have a warning system.' Story continues below advertisement When reporters pushed on why more precautions weren't taken, Kelly responded: 'Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming.' Last year, 145 people died in flash floods, according to the weather service. On average over the past 30 years, floods have claimed 127 lives annually. Flash floods can happen anywhere Nearly half of all flood-related fatalities involve vehicles. Flood deaths affect all age groups. Many people don't realize that a car becomes difficult to control in just 6 inches (15 centimeters) of water and can be swept away in as little as 18 inches (46 centimeters). So instead of finding a detour, too often people try to drive through water at underpasses or other low-lying areas. It can happen anywhere, according to the weather service, which says that 'the normally tranquil streams and creeks in your neighborhood can become raging torrents if heavy rain falls overhead.' An area can be flooded even without rain — if it's downstream of a torrential rainstorm and a swollen stream heads its way. Hurricanes, tropical storms, non-cyclonic weather systems carrying heavy rain and dam failures are some weather events that can cause flash flooding. They can happen in rural areas or in large cities.


Global News
7 hours ago
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Desperate search for two dozen missing girls from summer camp after Texas floods kill at least 24
Crews searched through the dark early Saturday for two dozen children from a girls camp and many others still missing after a wall of water rushed down a river in the Texas Hill Country during a powerful storm that killed at least 24 people. The destructive fast-moving waters along the Guadalupe River rose 26 feet (8 meters) in just 45 minutes before dawn Friday, washing away homes and vehicles. The danger was not over as more heavy rains were expected Saturday and flash flood warnings and flood watches remained in effect for parts of central Texas. Searchers used helicopters and drones to look for victims and rescue people stranded. The total number of missing was not known but one sheriff said about 24 of them were girls who had been attending Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along the river. Frantic parents and families posted photos of missing loved ones and pleas for information. Story continues below advertisement 'The camp was completely destroyed,' said Elinor Lester, 13, one of hundreds of campers at Camp Mystic. 'A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.' A raging storm woke up her cabin just after midnight Friday, and when rescuers arrived, they tied a rope for the girls to hold as they walked across a bridge with floodwaters whipping around their legs, she said. At a news conference late Friday, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said 24 people were confirmed dead. Authorities said about 240 people had been rescued. The flooding in the middle of the night on the Fourth of July holiday caught many residents, campers and officials by surprise. Officials defended their preparations for severe weather and their response but said they had not expected such an intense downpour that was, in effect, the equivalent of months' worth of rain for the area. One National Weather Service forecast this week had called for only between three and six inches (76 to 152 millimeters) of rain, said Nim Kidd, the chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'It did not predict the amount of rain that we saw,' he said. Helicopters, drones used in frantic search for missing One river gauge near Camp Mystic recorded a 22 foot rise (6.7 meters) in about two hours, said Bob Fogarty, meteorologist with the National Weather Service's Austin/San Antonio office. The gauge failed after recording a level of 29 and a half feet (9 meters). Story continues below advertisement 'The water's moving so fast, you're not going to recognize how bad it is until it's on top of you,' Fogarty said. On the Kerr County sheriff's office Facebook page, people posted pictures of loved ones and begged for help finding them. At least 400 people were on the ground helping in the response, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said. Rescue teams, helicopters and drones were being used, with some people being rescued from trees. 'Pitch black wall of death' In Ingram, Erin Burgess woke to thunder and rain in the middle of the night Friday. Just 20 minutes later, water was pouring into her home directly across from the river, she said. She described an agonizing hour clinging to a tree and waiting for the water to recede enough to walk up the hill to a neighbor's home. 'My son and I floated to a tree where we hung onto it, and my boyfriend and my dog floated away. He was lost for a while, but we found them,' she said. Of her 19-year-old son, Burgess said: 'Thankfully he's over 6 feet tall. That's the only thing that saved me, was hanging on to him.' Matthew Stone, 44, of Kerrville, said police came knocking on doors but that he had received no warning on his phone. Story continues below advertisement 'We got no emergency alert. There was nothing,' Stone said. Then 'a pitch black wall of death.' 'I was scared to death' At a reunification center set up in Ingram, families cried and cheered as loved ones got off vehicles loaded with evacuees. Two soldiers carried an older woman who could not get down a ladder. Behind her, a woman clutched a small white dog. Later, a girl in a white 'Camp Mystic' T-shirt and white socks stood in a puddle, sobbing in her mother's arms. Barry Adelman, 54, said water pushed everyone in his three-story house into the attic, including his 94-year-old grandmother and 9-year-old grandson. The water started coming through the attic floor before finally receding. 'I was horrified,' he said. 'I was having to look at my grandson in the face and tell him everything was going to be OK, but inside I was scared to death.' 'No one knew this kind of flood was coming' The forecast had called for rain, with a flood watch upgraded to a warning overnight for at least 30,000 people. The lieutenant governor noted that the potential for heavy rain and flooding covered a large area. Story continues below advertisement 'Everything was done to give them a heads up that you could have heavy rain, and we're not exactly sure where it's going to land,' Patrick said. 'Obviously as it got dark last night, we got into the wee morning of the hours, that's when the storm started to zero in.' Asked about how people were notified in Kerr County so that they could get to safety, Judge Rob Kelly, the county's chief elected official, said: 'We do not have a warning system.' When reporters pushed on why more precautions weren't taken, Kelly said: 'Rest assured, no one knew this kind of flood was coming.' A new flashflood warning was sent out early morning Saturday following the initial disaster, urging residents to seek higher ground. The National Weather Service in Austin/San Antonio issued a Flash Flood Warning for Burnet County in south central Texas, Northwestern Travis County in south central Texas and Northwestern Williamson County in south central Texas. The alert warned residents of dangerous conditions from 5am until 10am CDT. 'The expected rainfall rate is 3 to 6 inches in 1 hour. Additional rainfall amounts of 2 to 5 inches are possible in the warned area. Flash flooding is ongoing or expected to begin shortly,' stated the issued alert. – With files from Prisha Dev