Latest news with #coastalcommunities
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Powerful 7.3 earthquake rocks Alaska — scientists say more are coming
A powerful 7.3 magnitude earthquake struck offshore of Alaska's Peninsula region on July 16, 2025, at 12:37 PM local time, prompting immediate tsunami warnings and evacuations across multiple coastal communities. Hitting 55 miles south of Sand Point, Alaska, the earthquake was felt across a vast area, extending from the immediate epicenter to major cities like Anchorage and Juneau. The earthquake's effects varied dramatically across Alaska's expansive coastline. In tiny Sand Point, the closest community to the epicenter with about 600 residents, locals reported objects flying from pantries and shelves as the ground shook violently. Homer residents described the motion as "mild rolling" with lamps and plants swaying gently. Despite the significant magnitude, luckily, no major structural damage has been reported in communities nearest to the earthquake's source. Alaska tsunami warning issued — then revoked The human response was swift and coordinated. Within minutes of the earthquake, the National Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning covering a 700-mile stretch of Alaska's southern coast. Communities from Sand Point to Unalaska quickly activated evacuation procedures, with residents moving to higher ground as a precautionary measure. Video footage on social media showed orderly evacuations in Seward, where tourists and locals alike walked uphill to safety zones. (Alaskan residents are pretty good at this by now!) "We have seen other earthquakes in the area that have not generated significant tsunami waves, but we're treating it seriously and going through our procedures," explained Jeremy Zidek, spokesperson for Alaska's emergency management division. The tsunami warning initially covered communities from 40 miles southwest of Homer to Unimak Pass, affecting major population centers including Kodiak (population 5,200), King Cove (870 residents), and Unalaska (4,100 residents). The U.S. Coast Guard evacuated personnel at its Kodiak base to higher ground as a precautionary measure. Fortunately, the Alaska earthquake generated only minimal water level changes and damage reports remained surprisingly minimal. Sand Point Police Chief Benjamin Allen confirmed no damage to critical infrastructure, including the airport and harbor. The most notable damage occurred at the Alaska Commercial general store, where about half of the alcohol aisle crashed to the floor, creating what manager Vickey McDonald described as a "horrendous" smell from broken bottles of barbecue sauce, pickles, and other liquids. This limited damage pattern reflects both Alaska's experience with seismic activity and the earthquake's offshore location, which reduced the intensity of ground shaking in populated areas. The warning system also worked as designed — officials downgraded the tsunami warning to an advisory within an hour, and completely canceled all alerts by 2:45 PM. The advisory system warned people to stay away from beaches and waterways until the all-clear was given. More earthquakes possible — even likely Naturally, travelers and residents should prepare for continued seismic activity in the region. The U.S. Geological Survey's Aftershock Forecast indicates that at least one magnitude 6 or greater earthquake is possible within the next week, with smaller earthquakes highly likely to continue for the foreseeable future. This prediction reflects the nature of major earthquakes, which typically generate extended sequences of aftershocks as surrounding rock formations adjust to their new stress patterns. While most aftershocks will be smaller than the main event, some can still be significant enough to cause additional concern. For travelers planning visits to Alaska's southern coast, it's important to understand that this region remains seismically active. The Alaska Earthquake Center works continuously with communities to provide tsunami hazard information and evacuation procedures. Visitors should familiarize themselves with local emergency procedures and evacuation routes, particularly in coastal areas. Lastly, this Alaska earthquake serves as a reminder of the state's position in one of the world's most seismically active regions. The strongest earthquake ever recorded in North America occurred in this area in March 1964, when a 9.2-magnitude earthquake devastated Anchorage and generated a tsunami that killed more than 250 people. Modern monitoring systems and community preparedness have significantly improved since then, as demonstrated by the coordinated response to yesterday's event. The Alaska Earthquake Center provides ongoing monitoring and community education, helping ensure that future earthquakes can be managed with the same effectiveness demonstrated during this latest event. Hopefully, we can stay lucky into the future.
The Guardian
10-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Thursday briefing: Why young people fear ‘there's nothing here for us' in England's coastal towns
Good morning. A few weeks ago, 18-year-old Tamsin Jarman-Smith, born and raised in a small town just outside Blackpool, sat on a battered sofa at House of Wingz, a community youth organisation tucked down an alleyway a few streets from the beach, and explained what it felt like to be a young person growing up in a coastal town. 'I'm lucky because I found this passion for dancing and I come to this place, which has saved me I think, especially my creativity and hope for opportunities for myself, but lots of people my age feel like there is nothing here for them,' she said. 'Everyone just tells you that your town is crap and that the only good things about it is the tourist attractions but they're not even for the locals. There aren't many good jobs, the housing is bad, not many people can afford to leave. Lots of people just feel trapped.' Research shows there are good reasons for them to feel this way. Young people in seaside towns in England and Wales are markedly more likely to face deprivation, poor housing, lower educational attainment and fewer employment opportunities – and, in England, are almost three times as likely to struggle with an undiagnosed mental health illness as their peers inland. This week the Guardian launched Against the Tide, a year-long reporting project aiming to explore why teenagers and young people in coastal towns and communities across the UK are so disproportionately worse off in so many areas of their lives. For today's newsletter I talked to Avril Keating, professor of youth studies at UCL's Institute of Education, about the issues affecting young people in our coastal towns and what needs to change. Europe | Talks over a British and French migration deal remained deadlocked on Wednesday night, as negotiators haggled over how much Britain will pay towards the cost of policing small boat crossings. UK news | Campaigners have decried as 'dangerously naive' the UK government's sweeping deal with Google to provide free technology to the public sector. Europe | Police have raided the headquarters of France's far-right National Rally and seized documents as part of an investigation into alleged illegal campaign financing. UK news | Thames Water has refused to claw back almost £2.5m paid to senior managers from an emergency loan that was meant to keep the failing utilities company afloat. Housing | The Bank of England has rolled out looser mortgage rules that policymakers hope will help 36,000 more first-time buyers on to the housing ladder each year. In recent years the fate of coastal towns has emerged as one of Britain's most pressing social issues, one that successive governments have recognised but failed to address. Formerly thriving towns now consistently dominate UK government deprivation statistics. Some researchers we talked to described a 'salt belt' of deprivation that speaks to a broader lack of resources and social and public infrastructure – conditions that corrode and limit opportunities and aspirations. According to UCL's Avril Keating, young people in these communities – meaning 15- to 25-year-olds – are some of the most affected. 'These are young people who are trying to figure out how to become independent adults in places that tend to have very limited opportunities,' she said. 'They often feel that these towns have nothing to offer them and they have been left behind – and in many ways they are right.' What are some of the biggest challenges for young people in coastal towns? When asked why she thought young people in seaside towns were so markedly worse off than their peers inland, Keating said there was a combination of issues at play: crumbling public services; insufficient local transport infrastructure further isolating young people in 'end-of-the-line' towns; seasonal coastal economies providing temporary employment in the summer months but then nothing for the rest of the year; and generational unemployment and household poverty. One youth policymaker in St Ives told Keating's researchers that the seasonal job opportunities for young people are 'like a glass ceiling – but it's made of ice-cream and chips and pastries. For many young people it's limiting.' The lack of opportunities coupled with the physical decline of their towns and the stigma of being associated with deprived communities – feeling like, as one young person in Blackpool described, 'just this poor person living in a shithole' – leads many to believe that their only option is to leave. 'These are places where local people often feel a strong connection to their town, but what was surprising to see from our research was that so many young people felt that they had to move away to make something of themselves,' she said. The 'brain drain' of young people from coastal communities not only leaches these towns of future entrepreneurs, business owners and skilled workers, but leaves the dilemma of 'what happens to those who want to leave, but can't', said Keating. 'It can create a feeling of being trapped, a sense of hopelessness, and this can lower pride and aspiration.' Research has shown that young people in the most deprived coastal areas are suffering from worse mental health problems than those inland, have higher levels of self-harm and are more likely to die from drug poisoning. What do young people themselves say they need? Over the past few months, Guardian reporters (including myself) have begun to travel to coastal towns to talk to young people about their lives. Older teenagers in Southend-on-Sea talked about how hard it was to live in a town where the seafront was busy with tourists enjoying the beach, while shops on the high street were boarded up and all the youth clubs were closed. 'There is nothing here for us. The only good stuff is for the tourists. It's just not a place I'd want to raise a family,' said one. Cohen, an 18-year-old in Grimsby, said he was happy living there but was struggling to find a way of building a life for himself. 'It's not easy to get jobs here,' he said. 'I've been looking for the past few months but I keep getting turned down. I recently applied for a job at a local holiday park, but was told it had already been filled.' Yet we also met many young people who had found good reasons to stay, often through finding local community groups that allowed them to build their confidence and aspirations. Lisa February, a 25-year-old from Grimsby, decided to stay when she found a local theatre group helping aspiring young artists across north-east Lincolnshire. 'I don't see a version of my life living somewhere else,' she said. 'I feel a responsibility to the place that has given me all these opportunities.' What needs to change? Keating said it was clear from her research that young people in English coastal towns – whether they tourist resorts or former fishing or shipbuilding communities – had 'almost universally been marginalised and ignored in both local and national debates and policies about the factors that shape their own lives'. She said investment and public money was almost always directed to other groups – such as older people or young children – and that the shuttering of youth services and support programmes was a 'real scandal, considering the enormous challenges facing young people and the deprivation that many of them are facing'. Keating said young people overwhelmingly needed to see that their lives were valued and be given something to do and a place to go. This meant urgent investment in youth services and subsidised travel, better education opportunities (her team's recent report cites Camborne as an example of where a new university has supported the retention of young people in the area), and – crucially – listening to young people about the future of their towns. 'We need stop ignoring them',' she said. 'It's a cliche to talk about young people as the future but if you're not investing in young lives in coastal communities you're shoring up bigger problems down the line. How can you expect anything to change for them or their communities?' Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Read more in the year-long series Against the tide here. I was gripped by this interview by Anita Chaudhuri with Joanne Briggs about her father's extraordinary journey (pictured with her above) from being a well-known scientist to a liar and fantasist. Aamna Diplomatic editor Patrick Wintour asks if the bromance between Trump and Putin is over and what this could mean for Ukraine – and the rest of the world. Annie For 100 years the Welsh have been Labour's most loyal voters, but, as Bethan McKernan explores, could Plaid Cymru and Reform finally be breaking their grip? Aamna This is a chilling but important read from Judith Levine looking at the potential transformation of Ice into the largest domestic police force in the US. Annie Britain is still far from being a totalitarian state, Owen Jones argues, but the arrest of an 83-year-old retired vicar for holding a placard in support of Palestine Action signals a troubling drift towards authoritarianism. Aamna Football | It was England 4-0 Netherlands in the women's Euro as Lauren James starred and Jess Carter's move to centre-back worked perfectly. Jess Fishlock scored Wales's first goal at a major tournament but the European debutants were beaten 4-1 by France in Group D. Tennis | Iga Świątek held her nerve to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals for the first time, holding off a bold fightback from Liudmila Samsonova to claim a 6-2, 7-5 victory. Belinda Bencic will face Swiatek in what is also her first Wimbledon semi-final after holding her nerve to beat the 18-year-old sensation Mirra Andreeva 7-6, 7-6. Novak Djokovic was given a fright by the lively young Italian Flavio Cobolli before coming through 6-7 (8), 6-2, 7-5, 6-4; while Jannik Sinner beat Ben Shelton 7-6 (2), 6-4, 6-4 to reach his fourth grand slam semi-final in a row. Formula One: Christian Horner has been dismissed as Red Bull's team principal. Horner, who has led the team since its inception in 2005, will be replaced by Laurent Mekies, the principal of sister team Racing Bulls. 'Anglo-French migration deal hangs in the balance' says the Guardian print edition while the Times predicts a result with '50 migrants a week will be sent to France'. Top of the bulletin in the Financial Times is 'US tech boom propels AI chipmaker Nvidia to become first $4tn company'. 'Geri's F1 husband shunted out' says the Metro because Ginger Spice is more interesting than Christian Horner. 'Benefits pay more than being in work' – that's actually a comparison between the minimum wage (not the average wage) and 'full handouts' (unemployment and sickness benefits) in the Telegraph, so 'Benefits CAN pay …' would seem more accurate. But that doesn't stop the Daily Mail: 'Proof work DOESN'T pay under Labour'. The i paper has 'Labour will target rich but won't call it a wealth tax, says minister'. The Express vents 'Fury at junior doctors' strike'. The Mirror features the 'Astonishing bravery of Southport children' as retold at the public inquiry into the stabbings. Is it time for a wealth tax on the super-rich? After changes to the welfare reform bill failed to save money, the millionaire Dale Vince thinks it's time for people like him to contribute more to the public finances. Arun Advani considers how a wealth tax could work and if it's time for Labour to introduce one. A bit of good news to remind you that the world's not all bad The Bayeux tapestry will return to the UK for the first time in more than 900 years, as part of a landmark loan agreement between Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron. The tapestry, which comprises 58 scenes, is widely believed to have been created in England during the 11th century, and was likely commissioned by Bishop Odo of Bayeux. This 70-metre embroidered cloth vividly depicts the 1066 Norman invasion and the Battle of Hastings, in which William the Conqueror claimed the English throne from Harold Godwinson, becoming the first Norman king of England. The tapestry will be displayed at the British Museum starting in September next year, in exchange for key Anglo-Saxon artefacts, including the treasures from the Sutton Hoo ship burial, the Lewis chessmen and other invaluable relics. Sign up here for a weekly roundup of The Upside, sent to you every Sunday And finally, the Guardian's puzzles are here to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. Quick crossword Cryptic crossword Wordiply
The Guardian
09-07-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
The Guardian view on young people in coastal towns: time to invest in their future
Wish you were here? In recent years the fate of coastal towns has emerged as one of Britain's most pressing social issues. Both the fishing and domestic tourism industries have been in decline for decades. Seaside communities routinely find themselves at the wrong end of national league tables when it comes to deprivation, job opportunities, educational attainment and mental and physical health. As the Guardian's new reporting project on young people in coastal towns makes clear, the result for many 16- to 25-year-olds is acute frustration combined with the pressure of unwanted dilemmas. Most remain fiercely loyal to places whose geographic isolation tends to generate a strong sense of belonging. But getting out to get on is, too often, perceived as the only option. The steady stream of departures in turn takes away skills and youthful dynamism, further diminishing the prospects of those left behind. Those growing up amid the natural beauty and social challenges of Britain's coastal communities deserve better. But as one recent study points out, the failure of past regeneration strategies suggests that a political rethink is necessary. Successful urban transformation projects, such as the re-imagining of Liverpool's post-industrial waterfront, will not map on to smaller places unable to tap global investment possibilities. Similarly, the scale of the culture-led revival of Margate – sparked by the opening of the Turner Contemporary gallery in 2011 – is out of reach for most towns, particularly those further away from London. Over the course of the next year, the Guardian will continue to canvass young people on what can be done to build better futures in Britain's post-industrial port towns and hard-pressed seaside resorts. But one early conclusion can already be drawn: unleashing the energy, imagination and local pride of the young can be a vital catalyst for positive change. In Blackpool, for example, where 28% of the population were classed as economically inactive last year, a small-scale dance club founded in 2006 has evolved into a multi-purpose arts hub, offering direction and myriad activities to hundreds of teenagers. Its co-founder told the Guardian: 'The optics are all wrong. You need to show young people that there are people in town doing creative, inspiring things.' Writ large, that approach would mean sustained, gamechanging investment in social capital as well as physical infrastructure. The benefits of the offshore wind revolution have yet to make a significant impact to the economic prospects of towns such as Great Yarmouth or Newhaven. Much more needs to be done to ensure that young people have access to the skills that will allow them to take advantage of the shift to renewable energy. In seaside resorts, where the interests of free-spending tourists are prioritised and work dries up out of season, the closure of local youth clubs and cuts to other leisure facilities have deepened a sense of neglect and abandonment. For too long, the struggles of communities with rich histories and a powerful sense of identity have languished near the bottom of Westminster priorities. 'Growing up, I was always told to get out of Grimsby,' one young respondent told our reporters. With the right mix of long-term investment and empowerment in our coastal towns, it doesn't need to be that way.
The Guardian
07-07-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
Young people in England's coastal towns three times more likely to have a mental health condition
Young people living in the most deprived stretches of England's coastline are three times more likely to be living with an undiagnosed mental health condition than their peers inland, according to new research. This 'coastal mental health gap' means that young people in these towns, which include areas of Tendring on the east coast and Blackpool and Liverpool to the west, are suffering disproportionately, often alone and with no help, said the researchers who conducted the study. Over the next year, the Against the Tide project from the Guardian's Seascape team will be reporting on the lives of young people in coastal communities across England and Wales. Young people in many of England's coastal towns are disproportionately likely to face poverty, poor housing, lower educational attainment and employment opportunities than their peers in equivalent inland areas. In the most deprived coastal towns they can be left to struggle with crumbling and stripped back public services and transport systems that limit their life choices. For the next 12 months, accompanied by documentary photographer Polly Braden, we will travel up and down the country to port towns, seaside resorts and former fishing villages to ask 16- to 25-year-olds to tell us about their lives and how they feel about the places they live. By putting their voices at the front and centre of our reporting, we want to examine what kind of changes they need to build the futures they want for themselves. 'We don't yet know why these young people are being left out but one reason might be that they are not demanding the help in the way the older generation is, or if they are, they are not having their voices heard,' said Emily Murray, director of Essex University's centre for coastal communities. The study found that the opposite is true for older people living in the same communities, who were a third less likely to have undiagnosed mental health problems than people the same age living inland in similar areas of deprivation. The Essex researchers, led by Claire Wicks, studied data from 28,000 adults across the UK to see how different generations experience life in Britain. They looked at the responses from adults living in coastal communities and inland in England between 2018 and 2023 who scored highly against a widely accepted measure of mental distress but where they had not had a diagnosis. Deprivation was determined using the official indices from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Four years ago, a report by England's chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, found that diagnosed mental health problems were disproportionately higher among young people in coastal areas. Separate work by the University of Essex and University College London (UCL), also seen by the Guardian, found a range of factors at play. These included higher levels of poverty but also lower rates of progression to higher education and higher crime levels in the places they live. The primary explanation for the disproportionate levels of mental health is the economic and social challenges that people face who live in these communities, said Murray. Household incomes and private renting are key factors. 'Young people on the coast are more likely to be living in areas where incomes are lower and more families are renting from private landlords,' she said. 'On top of that they often live in areas that are geographically isolated, making it harder to reach places where there are more economic and healthcare opportunities.' Ceilidh Bardsley, 21, who lives in Weston-super-Mare, described living in a town where it feels as if tourists are given priority. 'A lot of emphasis is put into the main seafront for things to look nice' she said. 'But then you look around the estates, and there are potholes everywhere, shop fronts are falling down and there's mould in many of the houses.' Twenty-year-old Levi, who has lived in Southend all his life, said that it was an 'amazing' place. 'But growing up, seeing how many places have closed down, it feels like Southend is getting worse, not better. I couldn't imagine wanting to bring up children here.' Separately, the UCL researchers went round the country talking to dozens of policymakers and local practitioners about what could drive change in coastal areas. Many said that what was needed was to champion young people's voices and focus on what local people need and want. 'I think letting people make decisions is massive, is so important in our town,' said one practitioner in Barrow, in the north-west. 'Don't bring consultants in to tell our communities what they need. Come and talk to us.' Others talked about the need for long-term, sustainable public-sector funding to run youth services and community projects, and to train and retain staff, as well as for money to be targeted specifically towards young people in coastal places. Prof Sheena Asthana, co-director of the Centre for Coastal Communities at the University of Plymouth, said: 'The Essex research confirms our own analysis that signals of poor mental health among young people, such as hospital admissions for self-harm, are disproportionately higher on the coast. 'The very high rates of undiagnosed mental health in deprived coastal areas suggest that the government might want to explore whether long waiting times for children and young people's mental health services are to blame.'
The Guardian
07-07-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
Young people in England's coastal towns three times more likely to have a mental health condition
Young people living in the most deprived stretches of England's coastline are three times more likely to be living with an undiagnosed mental health condition than their peers inland, according to new research. This 'coastal mental health gap' means that young people in these towns, which include areas of Tendring on the east coast and Blackpool and Liverpool to the west, are suffering disproportionately, often alone and with no help, said the researchers who conducted the study. Over the next year, the Against the Tide project from the Guardian's Seascape team will be reporting on the lives of young people in coastal communities across England and Wales. Young people in many of England's coastal towns are disproportionately likely to face poverty, poor housing, lower educational attainment and employment opportunities than their peers in equivalent inland areas. In the most deprived coastal towns they can be left to struggle with crumbling and stripped back public services and transport systems that limit their life choices. For the next 12 months, accompanied by documentary photographer Polly Braden, we will travel up and down the country to port towns, seaside resorts and former fishing villages to ask 16- to 25-year-olds to tell us about their lives and how they feel about the places they live. By putting their voices at the front and centre of our reporting, we want to examine what kind of changes they need to build the futures they want for themselves. 'We don't yet know why these young people are being left out but one reason might be that they are not demanding the help in the way the older generation is, or if they are, they are not having their voices heard,' said Emily Murray, director of Essex University's centre for coastal communities. The study found that the opposite is true for older people living in the same communities, who were a third less likely to have undiagnosed mental health problems than people the same age living inland in similar areas of deprivation. The Essex researchers, led by Claire Wicks, studied data from 28,000 adults across the UK to see how different generations experience life in Britain. They looked at the responses from adults living in coastal communities and inland in England between 2018 and 2023 who scored highly against a widely accepted measure of mental distress but where they had not had a diagnosis. Deprivation was determined using the official indices from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Four years ago, a report by England's chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, found that diagnosed mental health problems were disproportionately higher among young people in coastal areas. Separate work by the University of Essex and University College London (UCL), also seen by the Guardian, found a range of factors at play. These included higher levels of poverty but also lower rates of progression to higher education and higher crime levels in the places they live. The primary explanation for the disproportionate levels of mental health is the economic and social challenges that people face who live in these communities, said Murray. Household incomes and private renting are key factors. 'Young people on the coast are more likely to be living in areas where incomes are lower and more families are renting from private landlords,' she said. 'On top of that they often live in areas that are geographically isolated, making it harder to reach places where there are more economic and healthcare opportunities.' Ceilidh Bardsley, 21, who lives in Weston-super-Mare, described living in a town where it feels as if tourists are given priority. 'A lot of emphasis is put into the main seafront for things to look nice' she said. 'But then you look around the estates, and there are potholes everywhere, shop fronts are falling down and there's mould in many of the houses.' Twenty-year-old Levi, who has lived in Southend all his life, said that it was an 'amazing' place. 'But growing up, seeing how many places have closed down, it feels like Southend is getting worse, not better. I couldn't imagine wanting to bring up children here.' Separately, the UCL researchers went round the country talking to dozens of policymakers and local practitioners about what could drive change in coastal areas. Many said that what was needed was to champion young people's voices and focus on what local people need and want. 'I think letting people make decisions is massive, is so important in our town,' said one practitioner in Barrow, in the north-west. 'Don't bring consultants in to tell our communities what they need. Come and talk to us.' Others talked about the need for long-term, sustainable public-sector funding to run youth services and community projects, and to train and retain staff, as well as for money to be targeted specifically towards young people in coastal places. Prof Sheena Asthana, co-director of the Centre for Coastal Communities at the University of Plymouth, said: 'The Essex research confirms our own analysis that signals of poor mental health among young people, such as hospital admissions for self-harm, are disproportionately higher on the coast. 'The very high rates of undiagnosed mental health in deprived coastal areas suggest that the government might want to explore whether long waiting times for children and young people's mental health services are to blame.'
