Fire Earth

Earth is fighting to stay alive. Mass dieoffs, triggered by anthropogenic assault and fallout of planetary defense systems offsetting the impact, could begin anytime!

Archive for April 28th, 2010

Gaua Volcano Eruption Intensifies

Posted by feww on April 28, 2010

Volcanic ash, poisonous gases, mudslide plague the tiny island

Vanuatu government officials may finally evacuate residents of Gaua Island

According to VAAC, Gaua produced volcanic ash plumes on  13 to 16 and again on 19 to 21 April, with most of the plumes rising to an altitudes of 3 km (10,000 ft) a.s.l. The advisories on 14-15 April noted that the plumes were mostly steam.

Vanuatu Geohazards Observatory said: “Field observations reported by the Geohazards officer in Gaua confirmed significant change of activity with ticker and higher emissions of ash columns (see photos in page 4). Since last week (end of march/beginning of April 2010) the ash plumes height dwell between 7000 and 10000 feet every day. Field reports also stated that the explosion sounds could be heard from the villages daily. Moreover, starting from the 3rd of April 2010 the volcanic bombes projections from Gaua volcano could be observed from all the coastal villages from the north to the south of the island with reports of the ashfall.”


The thick, steam-rich plume from Guau Volcano blows directly northeast in this natural-color satellite image acquired on April 24, 2010 by ALI aboard NASA’s EO-1 spacecraft. The thick steam is brighter white than the surrounding lower altitude clouds. Vegetation is green, as is Lake Letas. Vegetation to the south and west of the volcano, damaged by ash and acidic volcanic gases, is dark gray-brown. Image and Caption: NASA [edited by FEWW for brevity.]

OMI Image


Click image to enlarge.

Serial No 1,636. Starting April 2010, each entry on this blog has a unique serial number. If any of the numbers are missing, it may mean that the corresponding entry has been blocked by Google/the authorities in your country. Please drop us a line if you detect any anomaly/missing number(s).

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Gulf of Mexico Oil Leak – Update Apr 28

Posted by feww on April 28, 2010

Prepared for another Major Disaster?

BP: Greedy Like Goldman Sachs

Why Should Big Oil Live to Pollute another Day?

If the economy is designed to serve the people [sic,] how is it that the monetary profit goes to a few and the debt to the environment?

If the leaks in the Gulf of Mexico oil well are not sealed, the spill could become one of the worst disasters  in US history: Coast Guard Rear Admiral Mary Landry

“… this could be one of the most significant oil spills in U.S. history,” she said.

BP, Transocean and rest of the gang should have at least had a fail-safe contingency plan to contain oil leaks and prevent damage to the environment. But they didn’t. Why? Because such things are expensive and hurt their bottom line.

Deepwater Summary and who said what:

  • Crude oil is leaking from two  sources about 1,525m (5,000ft ) under the surface, which have been leaking since Deepwater Horizon platform exploded and sank, but were only discovered  on Saturday.
  • The leaks are spewing at least 1,000 barrels of oil into the gulf of Mexico, near the coast of Louisiana.
  • The resulting oil slick now has a circumference of more than 600 (1,000km) 650 miles covering  about 80,000 sq km (31,000 sq miles), “with areas of emulsified crude approximately 36 miles offshore the coast of Louisiana.”
  • Weather conditions on April 27  hampered clean up operation with winds from northwest, and choppy seas with 3 to 4 foot waves.
  • If the oil reached Louisiana coast, it could destroy coastal ecology, the wildlife and nature reserves, as well as the devastating the state’s fisheries, oyster beds and other marine-based livelihoods, according to an environmentalist at Tulane University.
  • Sealing the leaks with remote-control robotic submersibles could take many months, said US Coast Guard Rear Adm Mary Landry, who is in charge of the clean-up operation.
  • The Coast Guard is considering whether to burn off the oil corralled in the boom, “trying to minimize the environmental impact,” aid a Coast Guard spokesman.
  • “The wind will nudge the oil slick more to the north-northwest,” said a  senior meteorologist at AccuWeather. “It might make it onshore over the southeast Louisiana coast first,” and could later pollute beaches in Mississippi, Alabama and Florida, he said.
  • Other meteorologists also believe a shift in wind could drive the spill to Louisiana coast by the weekend.

Click images to enlarge


BP Horizon Response Current State(2). Source. Creative Commons license.

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Serial No 1,635. Starting April 2010, each entry on this blog has a unique serial number. If any of the numbers are missing, it may mean that the corresponding entry has been blocked by Google/the authorities in your country. Please drop us a line if you detect any anomaly/missing number(s).

Posted in Deepwater Horizon, gulf of mexico, Gulf of Mexico oil Spill, Macondo well | Tagged: , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Landslide News

Posted by feww on April 28, 2010

Sinkhole opening up on Hunza Valley’s Attabad landslide dam

A massive landslide which killed 19 people in Attabad, northern Pakistan early this year, also formed a natural dam blocking the fast flowing Hunza River, and creating a lake that is drowning upstream villages as it expand. See original entry. Collapse of the dam would result in a major catastrophe for thousands of people living in downstream villages.


People wait for boats at a lake created after a massive landslide block the Hunza River in Attabad, northern Pakistan. The river has now turned into a lake that is consuming upstream as it expands. If dam breaks, a flash flood could threaten downstream villages. Photo dated  Thursday March 11, 2010. (AP Photo/Shabbir Ahmed Mir). Image may be subject to copyright. Click image to enlarge.


The lake level is rising at a rate of about 40cm per day. Photo Source: The Express Tribune. Image may be subject to copyright. For more information click here.


On March 16, 2010, ALI on NASA’s EO-1 satellite captured this true-color image of the lake created by the landslide of January 4. (Note that north is on the right.) Dark rock covers the river in the upper left corner of the image, and the turquoise V-shaped lake stretches out behind the slide. Near the temporary lake, the Karakoram Highway is a faint meandering line of pale brown. A bridge across the Hunza River has been submerged by the rising waters. The bridge connects the settlements of Shaskat (or Shiskit) and Gulmit on the region’s only route to and from China. Image and Caption: NASA. Download large image (3 MB, JPEG)

Azerbaijan

A landslide  in the Tovuz region of Azerbaijan buried a house  killing four members of a family. The landslide occurred in the Garibli village in the Tovuz region about 420 kilometers from the capital Baku at 6:00am local time on April 27, The Azerbaijani Emergency Situations Ministry reported.


Photo: Trend. Image may be subject to copyright.

Vietnam

A landslide caused by heavy rains killed three children, aged between 2 and 10,  in their bed  in the northern province of Ha Giang, Vietnam, an official was quoted as saying.

A search is ongoing for the mother and another nine-year-old boy, local district official Nguyen Thi Duoc said, adding that the family was from the Hmong ethnic minority.

The monsoon usually hits the country between July and November, but strong rains at other times of the year also sometimes cause landslides, particularly in remote mountainous areas.

UK: Large part of Cornwall coastal footpath collapses

A large section of the cliff-face collapsed on to the seashore below. No-one was on the pathway when landslide occurred.


Government geologist Richard Hocking said that the area had had a problem “for a while. …  “The actual fault plane wasn’t obvious when I inspected it a couple of weeks ago, so it’s caught us out a little bit.” Photo: BBC. Image may be subject to copyright.

Taiwan Freeway Landslide Update


KEELUNG REEWAY, TAIWAN – Dozens of excavators dig in massive landslide searching for missing people on the Taiwan Freeway outside the northeastern port of Keelung. At least three cars are believed to be buried underneath thousands of tons of rocks and earth. Photo released by  National Airborne Service Corps. Click image to enlarge.

As of Wednesday morning (UTC+8 hrs), four bodies had been dug out of the massive landslide that had buried the No. 3 National Freeway in northern Taiwan, the Keelung City Fire Bureau was quoted as saying.

Landslide in Kakheti Region, Georgia,  after a week of torrential rain
The heavy rain caused a landslide in the Telavi district`s village of Shalaubani. In addition, the flood has damaged the reservoir of the drinking water in the same village, leaving locals without the water supply.”

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Serial No 1,634. Starting April 2010, each entry on this blog has a unique serial number. If any of the numbers are missing, it may mean that the corresponding entry has been blocked by Google/the authorities in your country. Please drop us a line if you detect any anomaly/missing number(s).

Posted in Cornwall, Hunza Valley, Landslide, mudslide | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Landslide and sinkhole close part of U.S. 64

Posted by feww on April 28, 2010

Images of the day:

Landslide and Sinkhole Destroy Part of U.S. Route 64

A landslide and sinkhole, probably caused by recent heavy rains, close part of U.S. Route 64 the main east-west route along the southern border of Tennessee


The section that was destroyed by the earth movement lies in Wayne County between Savannah and Waynesboro about 140 miles east of Memphis, Tennessee. Photo source: TDOT. Click image to enlarge.

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Other Landslide News:

Serial No 1,633. Starting April 2010, each entry on this blog has a unique serial number. If any of the numbers are missing, it may mean that the corresponding entry has been blocked by Google/the authorities in your country. Please drop us a line if you detect any anomaly/missing number(s).

Posted in landfall, Landslide, Recent Landslide, sinkhole | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »