Latest news with #meteorologicalagency
New York Times
4 days ago
- Climate
- New York Times
Typhoon Wipha Pounds Hong Kong and Macau with Rain and High Winds
Typhoon Wipha was battering the Chinese territories of Hong Kong and Macau with rain and high winds on Sunday, as the storm neared mainland China with a force equivalent to that of a Category 2 Atlantic hurricane. The typhoon brought heavy showers, sea swells and sustained winds of about 106 miles per hour as it skirted the southern edge of Hong Kong, according to the Hong Kong Observatory, the territory's weather agency. Wipha was forecast to grow in intensity, barreling west toward the casino hub of Macau before making landfall somewhere between the nearby southern Chinese coastal cities of Shenzhen and Zhanjiang in Guangdong Province late on Sunday, China's meteorological agency said. Guangdong's meteorological service said Wipha was expected to come ashore with Category 2-force winds. Hong Kong issued a No. 10 hurricane signal, the highest on a 10-tier scale, for the first time since 2023 as the storm approached. Macau raised an equivalent signal. The authorities warned residents to stay indoors and stay away from windows because of the possibility of flying objects. At Hong Kong International Airport, more than 400 flights were rescheduled, the territory's public broadcaster reported. At Macau International Airport, nearly 200 flights were canceled, the airport said. The authorities in some southern Chinese cities closed some workplaces and ports, suspended some trains and canceled some flights. In Zhuhai, a city of about 2.5 million people that lies in the typhoon's forecasted path, the authorities closed construction sites, parks, ferries, piers and outdoor playgrounds on Sunday. In Zhanjiang, schools and some workplaces also closed. After making landfall, Wipha is expected to keep moving across southern China before moving offshore again and making landfall in Vietnam, China's meteorological agency said. This is a developing story. Joyce Lau contributed reporting from Hong Kong.
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Yahoo
'High' alert, wildfire threats after Iceland's Sundhnukur volcano erupts
July 16 (UPI) -- Icelandic authorities now say threats of wildfires have officials on "high" alert and that eruption fissures were bigger than scientists initially thought after Wednesday's eruption of the once-dormant Sundhnukur volcano. "Seismic activity has decreased significantly and only a few small earthquakes are now measured per hour," according to Iceland's meteorological agency in a translated afternoon update. The volcano alert level, it added, remained at its "highest level" as a possibility of wildfires remains. But it said ongoing threats of polluted air from the toxic substances was minimally detected and "not reflected in current pollution forecasts." There have been no reports of injuries. For its 12th time in four years, Sundhnukur in the Reykjanes Peninsula on the west southern tip of Iceland spewed smoke and volcanic lava in the air Wednesday morning in its latest activity after centuries of silence until 2021. Tourists, families, hotel guests and the public in nearby resort towns were evacuated as a precaution in Grindavík, Blue Lagoon resort and other areas. However, despite this, no flight disruptions were reported at nearby Keflavík airport. Initial reports indicated that liquid hot magma created a fissure in the Earth's crust around 2,296 feet and 3,280 feet long after an "intense earthquake swarm." The GPS and deformation data originally suggested a minor eruption by comparison. A smaller crater also opened west of Fagradalsfjall, estimated to be roughly 1,640 feet long. However, the afternoon update noted the eruption fissure "lengthened and extends further north than previous eruption fissures" since December 2003. The agency said at the time that lava flow was concentrated and did "not threaten any infrastructure at this time." High levels of gas pollution were reported by authorities in the municipality of Reykjanesbær after wind carried it but later decreased in toxicity. In its afternoon update, lava was reported flowing northeast from its source covering a large area on Kálffellsheiði and towards Svartsengi. Since 2020, the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwestern Iceland has produced multiple volcanic eruptions and was active all last year in January through to November after earthquakes activated systems. The town of Grindavík once housed around 4,000 Icelanders but was evacuated late last year and has reportedly largely remained a ghost town over safety due to ongoing volcanic risk as Icelandic authorities warned tourists to stay away from the area. Iceland's Sundhnukur volcano was active as recently as early February and May of last year.
New York Times
10-07-2025
- Climate
- New York Times
Southern China and Hong Kong Brace for Floods and Fierce Winds from Danas
Officials in southern China and Hong Kong warned on Thursday that heavy rain could bring flash flooding as the remnants of Typhoon Danas move across the region. The typhoon hit Taiwan's populous west coast on Monday, killing two people and leaving 600,000 households without power. It crossed the Taiwan Strait and made a second landfall in China the following day. It was downgraded to a tropical depression on Wednesday morning as it continued moving inland across China's southeast, dropping as much as 17.2 inches of rain through early Thursday. The storm is forecast to drop as much as three inches of rain per hour through Friday as it moves to the south and southeast, including over Guangdong province, which has a population of about 127 million people, China's meteorological agency said. Flash flooding, landslides and other disasters are possible, Guangdong's meteorological center said. Thunderstorms and wind gusts of up to 73 miles per hour, nearly as strong as a Category 1 hurricane, are possible, the agency said. In Hong Kong, the typhoon's remnants combined with monsoon rains further south will bring torrential rains and thunderstorms, the territory's weather agency said. The authorities there suspended schools for Friday and issued a red rain warning, the second highest, which signals more than 1.9 inches falling per hour. Gusts of 43 miles per hour were recorded on Sha Chau Island, near the city's airport, Hong Kong's meteorological agency said on Tuesday afternoon. 'Violent gusts may affect Hong Kong,' the agency said, and urged people to stay indoors. Torrential rain and thunderstorms are forecast to last until Friday, the agency said.
Arab News
20-05-2025
- Climate
- Arab News
Heatwave forces early school closures in Pakistan's largest province
LAHORE: Rising temperatures in Pakistan's most populous province have forced the provincial government to close all private and public schools for summer vacations early, officials said on Tuesday. Punjab province's education minister Rana Sikander Hayat said summer vacations will now start from May 28 instead of June 1. Class times have also been changed, with all educational institutes instructed to close two hours early at 11:30am 'due to a constant heatwave,' a notification issued by the education department said. Pakistan, one of the countries most vulnerable to the effects of global warming, has been experiencing unusually high temperatures after a particularly dry winter. Temperatures soared to near-record highs for the month of April, reaching as high as 46.5 degrees Celsius (115.7 degrees Fahrenheit) in parts of Punjab. An alert issued on Monday by the national meteorological agency forecast that northern parts of the province, currently in the grip of a heatwave, will see daytime temperatures rise '5 to 7C above normal.' An Education Department representative told AFP the early closures were announced because of the weather. 'We had to move up the summer vacation schedule because of these heatwaves,' the representative said. Schools in the province that serve tens of millions of children also closed for a week in May last year because of excessive heat, and for several weeks in November because of high levels of toxic smog that blanketed several cities.
Khaleej Times
20-05-2025
- Climate
- Khaleej Times
Heatwave forces early school closures in Pakistan's largest province
Rising temperatures in Pakistan's most populous province have forced the provincial government to close all private and public schools for summer vacations early, officials said on Tuesday. Punjab province's education minister Rana Sikander Hayat said summer vacations will now start from May 28 instead of June 1. Class times have also been changed, with all educational institutes instructed to close two hours early at 11:30 am "due to a constant heatwave", a notification issued by the education department said. Pakistan, one of the countries most vulnerable to the effects of global warming, has been experiencing unusually high temperatures after a particularly dry winter. Temperatures soared to near-record highs for the month of April, reaching as high as 46.5 degrees Celsius (115.7 degrees Fahrenheit) in parts of Punjab. An alert issued on Monday by the national meteorological agency forecast that northern parts of the province, currently in the grip of a heatwave, will see daytime temperatures rise "5 to 7C above normal". An Education Department representative told AFP the early closures were announced because of the weather. "We had to move up the summer vacation schedule because of these heatwaves," the representative said. Schools in the province that serve tens of millions of children also closed for a week in May last year because of excessive heat, and for several weeks in November because of high levels of toxic smog that blanketed several cities.
