2011 Disaster Calendar – November

On May 15, 2011 symbolic countdown to the ‘worst day’ in human history began: Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016

2011 – 2012: A Time for Mega Disasters

U.S., the world, stake the future on high-energy strategies. Energy models’ simulations show all such strategies ending in collapse. EDRO

FIRE-EARTH Forecast: 2011 SIX TIMES MORE DISASTROUS THAN 2010

Nearly all of the anthropogenic and human-enhanced disasters that will occur on the planet in the 2011-2012 period would have been preventable.

Humans continued to devour energy at a rate of 17.3terrawatt in 2011, when maximum ‘safe’ limit was less than 1.9terrawatt.

2011 Disaster Calendar

January 2011 | February 2011 | March 2011 | April 2011 | May 2011 | June 2011 | July 2011 | August 2011 | September 2011 | October 2011 | November 2011 | December 2011|

WARNING:

MAJOR GEOLOGICAL EPISODES COULD IMPACT THE ENTIRE WESTERN UNITED STATES, BEGINNING IN THE NEXT 18 MONTHS  [PROBABILITY ≥ 0.8]

 Many parts of the United States could be devastated by extreme climatic, geophysical and geological episodes over the next 18 months: FIRE-EARTH Forecast

[November 1, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,597 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Connecticut, USA. The early nor’easter which dumped heavy snow from the mid-Atlantic to New England most of the weekend, dropped up to 22 inches of snow in parts of Connecticut, knocking down trees,  snapping power lines, and leaving about 825,000 homes and businesses without power as of Sunday evening.
• The state of Connecticut was the worst hit area with about 300 roads fully or partially closed, Governor Malloy said.
• The snowstorm claimed at least 18 lives, as of posting.
• Up to 2 million customers in the region were still without power Monday morning.
• More disasters have hit the United States during Obama’s thousand plus days in office than at any other comparable period in history.

Other Global Disasters

•  Van, Turkey. The death toll in Turkish earthquake has climbed to at least 601, with more than 4,100 injured, Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Admin said.
• Turkey’s Kandilli Observatory estimates the final death toll could exceed 1,000.
• The 7.2Mw quake that struck eastern Turkey on October 23, also destroyed/severely damaged about 4,000 buildings in cities of Van, Ercis and the surrounding areas, leaving thousands of people homeless.

[November 2, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,596 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Massachusetts, USA. The White House has declared an emergency exists in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts following the emergency conditions resulting from a severe pre-Halloween snowstorm that barreled  through New England October 29-30, 2011.
• The worst hit counties in Massachusetts are Berkshire, Essex, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, Middlesex, Norfolk, and Worcester.
• “The President’s action authorizes the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), to coordinate all disaster relief efforts which have the purpose of alleviating the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the local population, and to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures, authorized under Title V of the Stafford Act, to save lives and to protect property and public health and safety, and to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe …” according to the Emergency Declaration released by the White House.
• The Disaster President has already declared the state of Connecticut a disaster area [the “first stage” federal emergency declaration.]
• The storm claimed at least 21 lives (20 in five states and one in Canada) , and blanketed communities and towns across New England, reports said.
• The western Massachusetts town of Peru received 32 inches of snow, a record for October,  NWS said.
• About 350,000 homes and businesses in the commonwealth were still without power, as of posting.
• Some 2 million customers in the storm-hit areas are still without power.

Other Disasters

Drought, excessive heat and high winds

• Kansas, USA. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 25 counties in Kansas as  Natural Disaster Areas because of losses caused by drought, excessive heat and high winds that began April 1, 2011, and continue.
• TABLE 1: The above 9 counties in Kansas were declared as Primary Natural Disaster Areas. Source: USDA

• Table 2 :  The above 16 counties in Kansas were declared as Contiguous Natural Disaster Areas. Source: USDA

• Missouri, USA. The following  3 counties in the state of Missouri were also declared natural disaster areas because they are contiguous: Bates, Cass and Jackson.

Excessive rain, high winds and lightening

• Kansas, USA. USDA has designated nine other counties in Kansas as natural disaster areas because of losses caused by excessive rain, high winds and lightening that occurred Aug. 8-10, 2011.
• The 2 counties declared as natural disaster areas are Cheyenne and Rice.
• The 7 counties declared as contiguous disaster areas are Barton, McPherson, Reno, Stafford,
  Ellsworth, Rawlins and Sherman, USDA reported.

• Colorado and Nebraska. The following bordering counties in Colorado and Nebraska are included in the above disaster designation because they are contiguous:
• Colorado: Kit, Carson and Yuma counties.
• Nebraska: Dundy County.

• Northeastern United States. A deadly disease known as white-nose syndrome has decimated the population of hibernating bats in NE United States.  The counts have declined by about 80 percent.
• Insect-eating bats provide valuable ecological services worth billions of dollars to the agricultural industry.
• “U.S. bat populations have been declining at an alarming rate since the 2006 discovery of white-nose syndrome in New York State. The disease has been found in 16 states and 4 Canadian provinces. The Northeast, where declines have exceeded 80 percent, is the most severely affected region in the United States.”
• PHOTO and caption.

[November 3, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,595 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• New Hampshire, USA. The White House has declared an emergency exists in the State of New Hampshire following the emergency conditions resulting from a severe pre-Halloween snowstorm that barreled through New England October 29-30, 2011.
• The declaration covers all 10 counties in New Hampshire.
• “As of Wednesday evening, there have been eight storm-related deaths in the state, including that of a West Hartford woman who died in a fire at her home on Tuesday night.” Said a report.
• The storm caused power outages to at least 300,000 New Hampshire households.
• “This was a historic storm that resulted in record levels of snowfall in some areas of the state, resulting widespread power outages and a tremendous amount of debris,” Gov. Lynch said. “The utilities are reporting power outages could last a week in some areas and an emergency disaster declaration will help ensure we have sufficient sheltering supplies and can recover from this storm as soon as possible.”
• “As of this morning, more than 100 local roads remain closed due to downed power lines and debris.  Some 162 elementary and secondary schools are closed statewide.  Over 220,000 utility customers remain without power.  Utilities have been unable to provide definitive restoration estimates, only complicating the work of public safety and emergency management officials.  The state’s largest utility reports it may take a week to restore power to customers, which will likely increase the need for sheltering services as the week progresses.  Seven regional shelters were established that served over 270 persons last night.” Gov Lynch wrote in a letter to the Disaster President.
• Storm caused third largest power outage in state history. 

Other Disasters

• Illinois, USA. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has declared 77 countes in the state of Illinois as agricultural disaster areas because of losses caused by drought and excessive heat that began on July 1st and continued until September. The Agricultural Disaster Declaration includes 44 counties that have been designated as primary disaster areas and 33 others as contiguous disaster areas.
• “After an extremely wet spring, Illinois recorded significantly below-average rainfall totals across the middle third of the state from July to September – key months for crop development. The drought was most severe in west-central Illinois, which received just 4.46 inches of rain, or nearly seven inches less than normal. Rainfall deficits of two to four inches were common in other parts of central Illinois, according to the Illinois State Water Survey.”
• The 44 counties that are designated as primary disaster areas are Adams, Brown, Champaign, Christian, Clark, Clay, Clinton, Crawford, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Edwards, Effingham, Fayette, Ford, Franklin, Fulton, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Iroquois, Jasper, Jefferson, Johnson, Knox, Lawrence, Macon, Marion, Massac, McDonough, McLean, Morgan, Piatt, Pope, Richland, Rock Island, Saline, Shelby, Vermilion, Wabash, Wayne and Williamson counties.
• The 33 counties that are designated as contiguous disaster areas are Bond, Bureau, Cass, Coles, DeWitt, Greene, Henderson, Jackson, Kankakee, Livingston, Logan, Macoupin, Madison, Mason, Mercer, Montgomery, Moultrie, Peoria, Perry, Pike, Pulaski, Sangamon, Schuyler, Scott, St. Clair, Stark, Tazewell, Union, Warren, Washington, White, Whiteside and Woodford.
• Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky and Missouri. The fllowing counties in the neighboring states of Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky and Missouri have also been included in the disaster declaration because the are contiguous.
• Indiana disaster areas: List of Indiana counties that were declared as contiguous disaster areas. Source: USDA
• Iowa disaster areas: Clinton, Lee, Louisa, Muscatine and Scott counties.
• Kentucky disaster areas: Crittenden, Livingston,  McCracken and Union counties.
• Missouri disaster areas: Clark, Lewis and Marionn counties.

[November 4, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,594 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Texas, USA. Persisting red tide (algal bloom) has killed millions of fish along the coast of Texas since last month. Staff of Padre Island National Seashore continue to find sick or dead coyotes, probably from ingesting fish killed by the brevetoxin, Texas Parks and Wildlife department (TPWD) said.
• Various concentrations levels of Karenia brevis have been found among oysters, clams and mussels leases along the coast.
  
• Karenia brevis is a single-celled, photosynthetic organism that blooms and produces lethal neurotoxins called brevetoxins.
• Common in Gulf of Mexico, K. brevis is responsible for red tide along the coastal waters of Texas and Florida.
• An estimated 4.2million fish were killed by the lethal brevetoxin between September 15 and October  30, TPWD reported.
• Red tide is particularly intense this year because of the Texas drought and recent excessive heat, which help the algae thrive.
• Red tide can cause respiratory irritation, skin rashes and burning in humans.
• “The red tides caused by the dinoflagellate Gonyaulax are serious because this organism produces saxitonin & gonyautoxins which accumulate in shellfish and if ingested may lead to paralytic shellfish poisoning and can lead to death,” a report said.
• Karenia brevis toxic aerosol is blown onshore by wind.

Other Disasters

• British Columbia, Canada. The highly contagious Infectious Salmon Anaemia (ISA), has been found on B.C.’s central coast, according to researchers at Simon Fraser University.
• The highly contagious marine influenza virus has been found in Chinook, coho and chum species.
• The virus was also found in sockeye smolts collected in B.C.’s Central Coast.
• “We looked at 60 fish, and we got it in two different generations, 600 kilometres apart, four different species. That’s a huge red flag.” Said a researcher at SFU.
• Chile’s wild fish stocks have been decimated by ISA since 2007, costing the country about $2 billion in losses.
• ISA threatens both wild salmon and herring, biologists at Simon Fraser University said.

[November 5, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,593 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Genoa. Italy. At least a dozen people were killed or reported as missing when the Italian port city of Genoa was hit by flash floods following torrential rainfall caused by the remnants of pre-Halloween nor’easter that killed more than 22 people across New England and knocked out power to 4 million homes and businesses on October 29-30.
• The system brought in heavy rains to much of northern Italy, flooding several areas including Venice.
• Last week storms buffeted portions of Italy’s NW coastal regions of Liguria and Tuscany, causing severe flash floods and mudslides, destroying at least two of the five Cinque Terre villages, leaving more than a dozen people  dead or missing and prompting the authorities to declare a state of emergency.
• Oman. Death toll from a tropical storm that swept across Oman has climbed to at least 16, reports said.
• Somerset, England. A pile-up involving about 30 vehicles on England’s M5 highway has left about a dozen people dead and up to 40 others injured, some critically.
• “It looked like two lorries had jack-knifed at the front. In all, there must have been eight or nine lorries and 15 cars behind them. There was smoke and flames everywhere.” Said an eyewitness.
• Surface flooding and fog contributed to the deadly pile-up, reports said.

[November 6, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,592 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Uttar Pradesh, India. Deadly encephalitis epidemic has killed hundreds including more than 500 children in two months, reports said.
• At least 2,400 patients have been hospitalized in Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, since January.
• The deadly disease has killed more than 10,000 people including 6,500 children since the outbreak first began 3 decades ago.
• Japanese encephalitis is a mosquito-borne disease.
• Children between the age of six months to 15 years are most at risk of encephalitis in India.
• Most of the victims are from rural areas.
• About 70 million children nationwide are at risk of encephalitis, according to India’s health experts.

[November 7, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,591 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Colombia. Deadly mudslides bury western Colombia leaving at least 32 people dead, many more injured or missing. States of Emergency have been declared in 27 of Colombia’s 32 departments after extreme rains triggered about 400 separate incidents of flooding and mudslides.

• Manizales, about 160 kilometers (100 miles) northwest of the capital, Bogota is the worst affected area.
• States of Emergency have been declared in 27 of Colombia’s 32 departments after extreme rains triggered about 400 separate incidents of flooding and mudslides.
• Yet another one of Colombia’s worst rainy seasons in memory has forced up to half a million people to flee their homes.
• Weather forecasters say this year’s rainy season could extend until March 2012, with up to 300 percent of the average rainfall expected throughout November and December.
• Colombia’s two rainy seasons normally occur from April to June and  from September to December.
• Torrential rains and related incidents have left at least 100 people dead, injured or missing since the beginning of rainy season on September 1.
• Torrential rains have also damaged or destroyed about 50,000 homes.

• Alpes-Maritimes, France. The authorities have evacuated  at least 1,000 people from Alpes-Maritimes department (district) after extensive flooding inundated parts of southern France.
• Hundreds of others have also been evacuated from Hérault and Var department where flooding caused extensive damage, leaving at least 5 people dead.
• Italy. Storms and torrential rain continue to wreak havoc across Italy.
• Turin. The government has told thousands of residents to evacuate the city of Turin, as River Po, Italy’s longest river, rose more than 4m (13 feet) threatening to inundate low-lying areas in and around the city (pop: 1 million).
• Naples. The authorities have issued multiple flood warnings across the city of Naples amid widespread flooding caused by torrential rain.
• Milan. The authorities have ordered schools in Milan, Naples and Turin to close down because of the flooding.
• See also
• Deadly Flooding in Italy Caused by Pre-Halloween Nor’easter Remnants
• State of Emergency Declared in Cinque Terre, Italy

• Bangkok, Thailand. Floodwater has surrounded two industrial parks east of Bangkok, threatening to inundate more than 250 factories, as two new low pressure systems approach the region.
• Meantime, the reported death toll from flooding since late July has now reached 506, with 25 of the country’s 77 provinces  currently affected, authorities said.
• See also: Bangkok Primed for Collapse

[November 8, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,590 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Vietnam. About 100 people have been killed or reported as missing in Vietnam’s worst flooding this century.
• About 70 of the victims are said to be children under the age of 16, according to the UN.
• Large areas in Central Quang Nam province as well as the Mekong Delta remain submerged.
• About 150,000 homes have been inundated.
• At least 10,000 of Quang Nam residents have been evacuated.
• Tamil Nadu, India.
• Extreme rain events have claimed at least 40 lives in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, displacing more than 6,500 others.

Other Global Disasters

• South Korea. About 41 S. Koreans are committing suicides every day. The rise in suicide rates is said to be caused by increasing prevalence of mental health problems within the population.
• Virginia, USA. The White House has declared a major disaster exists in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the area affected by an earthquake (Louisa County) during the period of August 23 to October 25, 2011.
• Connecticut, USA. Connecticut’s death toll has climbed to 10  from the early nor’easter that struck New England on October 29.
• At least 50,000 people are still without power nine days after the storm.
• Cambodia, Myanmar and Thailand.  For details of flooding in these countries see below links.

[November 9, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,589 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

Global Disasters:

• Chytridiomycosis, a deadly infectious disease of amphibians caused by Chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) has wiped out several species of frogs.
• The disease is a major cause of a global decline in amphibian populations, which has affected at least a third of the global amphibian species.
• The fungus is capable of causing up to 100% mortality in amphibian populations.
• “Chytrid is one of the most devastating wildlife diseases with the largest host range of any, and responsible for dozens of species extinctions and many more extirpations of local populations,” said a researcher in the UK.

• New England, USA.  The large number of seal deaths that have occurred along the New England coast since September 1, have been declared an Unusual Mortality Event (UME), NOAA reported.
• At least 146 deadly seals strandings in Maine, New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts were reported between between Sept. 1 to Nov. 3, 2011, which is more than three times the annual average.
• Most of the animals were harbor seals less than a year old.
• “Preliminary pathology, biotoxin and virology analysis has been conducted on samples from five seals examined by the New England Aquarium.  Samples from the five seals has tested positive for the Influenza A virus, while test results for six other viral pathogens and biotoxins were negative.” NOAA reported.
• “Even though preliminary results have been received, they are only indicative of those five cases.”
• Montana, USA. An outbreak of epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) is decimating the white-tailed deer population in central and eastern Montana.
• The EHD virus is transmited by the Culicoides biting gnats.
• “This year we have heard reports of lots of dead deer in regions four, five, six and seven,” said Ray Mulé, a wildlife manager for Montana, Fish, Wildlife & Parks in Billings. “I would say we have seen die-offs in some areas that are at 50 percent or higher. When we start seeing those kinds of numbers, it is a severe outbreak.”
• Vermont, USA. The White Houses has declared a major disaster exists in the State of Vermont in the area affected by severe storms and flooding on May 20, 2011.
• The worst hit counties were Franklin, Washington, and Windham.
• District of Columbia, USA. The White House has declared a major disaster exists in the District of Columbia in the area affected by an earthquake during the period of August 23-28, 2011.

[November 10, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,588 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Oklahoma, USA.  Oklahoma Gov. Fallin has declared a state of emergency for 20 counties following damage caused by earthquakes, severe storms, tornadoes and  torrential rains that have battered the state this week.
• The counties included in the declaration are: Caddo, Carter, Cleveland, Comanche, Greer, Harmon, Jackson, Johnston, Kiowa, LeFlore, Lincoln, McCurtain, Murray, Okfuskee, Oklahoma, Pottawatomie, Pushmataha, Sequoyah, Tillman, and Washita.
• FIRE-EARTH Forecast:
  

  WARNING: Many parts of the United States could become ‘unrecognizable’ due to extreme climatic, geophysical and geological episodes over the next 18 months: FIRE-EARTH Forecast

Other Global Disasters

• Turkey. A significant aftershock measuring 5.6Mw struck about 16 km (9 miles) south of Van, Turkey toppling at least 2 dozen buildings, killing 12 people and leaving about 100 others unaccounted for.
• The aftershock struck SE of Van, about 35km from a powerful 7.2Mw shock which occurred on October 23, killing more than 600, injuring at least two thousand, destroying scores of homes and leaving tens of thousands of people homeless.
• FIRE-EARTH Forecast: A major earthquake could yet strike Turkey in 2011/2012 with a certainty of 0.7 (P= 66%).
• Alaska, USA. “Storm of epic proportions” pummeled the western coast of Alaska forcing the authorities to issue evacuation orders in dozens of communities.
• The storm was compared to a category 3 hurricane, according to NWS.
• The storm caused coastal surges of more than 3m (10 feet).
•  ”Forty years ago, a big storm like this would come through and the sea ice would act as sort of a buffer,” said the director of the Snow and Ice Data Center.
• “The Bering Sea has and always will have these strong storms. What is different now is their potential destructiveness as you lose the sea ice cover.”
• Bangkok, Thailand. Reported death toll in Thailand flooding has climbed to 533 with at least two people reported missing.
• Flooding currently persists in 24 of the country’s 77 provinces, affecting about 3 million residents.
• “The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration today declared parts of three districts flood evacuation areas,” a report said.
• Since late July the floods have destroyed or damaged about 3.3 million homes affecting about 12 million people over 85 percent of the country.
• Australia. Wild storms have buffeted the state of  Victoria in southern Australia, damaging homes, toppling trees knocking down power lines and triggering flash flooding.”
• The storms were described as “dangerous” by the state emergency services (SES) because of the intensity of rainfall.
• “Similar to what we saw in March 2009 where we had hundreds of millions, perhaps even a billion dollars of damage to property and vehicles over that period,” SES officials said.
• Sydney. Meanwhile, Sydney, Australia’s most populated city, experienced its hottest November night on record as the mercury soared to 28.4ºC and stayed above 26.5ºC, or 10 degrees above the average minimum temperature for November.

[November 11, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,587 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Iowa, USA. Six north Iowa counties have been designated agricultural disaster areas by USDA because of the damage caused by high winds on September 2.
• Mitchell County was designated as the primary disaster area, with 5 other counties, Cerro Gordo, Chickasaw, Floyd, Howard and Worth, included in the declaration because they’re contiguous.
• The designation is granted when disaster yield falls at least 30 percent below the normal production yield of the crop.
• Minnesota. Mower County in Minnesota has been added top the above designation because it’s contiguous.

Other Disasters

• Pretoria, South Africa. The country’s Water Affairs Department has declared the Apies River a disaster area following significant water pollution, which has killed large number of fish.
• The river flows through Pretoria (pop: 2.4 million), passing near the Rooiwal sewage works,  located north of the city, where leaks from the sewerage system contaminate the water.
• Texas, USA. Gov perry has renewed Texas Disaster Declaration.
• Perry originally issued an Emergency Disaster Proclamation on December 21, 2010, as extreme fire hazard posed a threat of imminent disaster in specified counties in Texas.
• The extreme fire hazard continues to create a threat of disaster for the people, and record high temperatures, preceded by significantly low rainfall, have resulted in declining reservoir and aquifer levels, threatening water supplies and delivery systems in many parts of the state, Perry said in the extension to the Proclamation.
• The exceptional drought conditions have reached historic levels, posing an imminent threat to public health, property and the economy, he added.
• The state of disaster includes all 254 counties in the State of Texas.

[November 12, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,586 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• United States/ Global Disaster. Human trafficking for sex or labor is world’s second largest organized crime, behind drug trafficking.  
• There are about 800,000 child prostitutes in the United States, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
• Globally, there are more sex and labor slaves today than in any other period in history.
• Most slaves are female,  many of them being children.
• “Human trafficking is a $32 billion global industry driven by trafficking profit. It’s the fastest growing and second largest criminal activity in the world, tied with arms and after drug dealing,” said Rob McKenna, president of the National Association of Attorneys General. “Yet for many this heinous crime lurks in the shadows. It’s time to bring it out into the light, to bring hope and resources to victims and to bring justice to traffickers and those who buy victims from them.”
• Children as young as 9 are sold for sex.
• Sexual slavery is almost always related to poverty.
• The cover-up in the Penn State child-sex scandal is probably the tip of the iceberg of a US elite child-sex ring.
• It’s inconceivable that so many famed individuals would turn a blind eye to protect one pedophile.
• The worst aftershock of the diabolical episode was the subsequent rioting by a large number of Penn State students in support of Coach Paterno.

[November 13, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,585 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Yunnan province. Thirty-eight miners are now confirmed dead and five others are missing after Thursday’s massive explosion in a coalmine in southwest China’s Yunnan province.
• The explosion was china’s second deadly incident in less than a week.
• A  “rock burst” at Qianqiu coalmine in the city of Sanmenxia, central China’s Henan province, which occurred shortly after a magnitude 2.9 earthquake struck the area, left at least 10 miners dead on November 3.
• About 100 people were killed in mining incidents across China last month.
• China’s official death toll from mining accidents was 2,433 last year.

Other Global Disasters

• Van, Turkey. Death toll from Turkey’s deadly aftershock has climbed to at least 39, Anatolia news agency reported.
• The combined death toll from the two deadly quakes since October 23 has exceeded at least 645, with about 2,000 people injured.
• Tens of thousands of people have been made homeless.
• New Zealand. A measles epidemic is rapidly spreading across New Zealand.
• “New Zealand is in the midst of an epidemic, with 387 cases this year (at November 4) – the most since 1997 – in a population of just over 4 million. The US, with about 313 million people, had recorded about 200 cases this year.”
• Somalia. A dramatic rise in the number of rape cases for women at internally displaced camps has occurred, according to the UN officials.
• “Attacks on women have gone up dramatically in the last two months and the severity of the attacks has become worse,” said a specialist on gender-based violence at the U.N. Population Fund.

[November 14, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,584 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

DRC is still struggling to overcome the effects of wars that raged between 1996 and 2003, compounded by continuing violence in the east of the country and decades of corruption and poor governance.

• Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). About seven million children across DER (pop: 71,712,867; 18th largest) are out of schools.
• DRC is the second largest country in Africa (area: 2,345,409 km²) and 11th largest in the world.
• The country has not yet overcome the impact of two devastating wars, also known as “African World War,” that raged between 1996 and 2003 and involved seven foreign militaries.
• The effect of the wars have been compounded by ongoing violence in the east of the country and chronic corruption.
• Congo’s second war is the world’s deadliest since WWII, claiming 5.4 million lives, most of whom died from diseases and malnutrition.
• The prevalence of rape and other sexual violence in eastern Congo is the worst in the world.
• Poverty and weak governance are two of the major contributing factors.
• Another factor that compounds the problem is the use of school land by private developers, especially in urban areas, IRIN reported.
• “Many of the public schools in existence are in deplorable conditions; no blackboards in many of them; in some, children sit on the floor due to lack of desks, and the most worrying concern is encroachment on school land by individuals, many of whom are connected politically,” according to SOS Kinshasa, an NGO based in the capital.
• “One can find a pharmacy, restaurant or even bar right in the middle of a school compound—it looks like all open spaces in schools are up for grabs.”
• UK. The levels of nitrogen dioxide pollution in 40 of 43 “assessment zones” set up across the UK exceed the EU limits, a report said.
• Air pollution in the UK takes up to eight months off Britons’ life expectancy.
• “But for the 200,000 people most directly affected, the shortfall is two years.”
• Bad air quality is also costing the country up to $32 bn (UKP20bn) per year via poor health.
• “It is estimated that around 4,000 people died as a result of the Great Smog of London [aka, ‘pea-souper’] in 1952.”
• “In 2008, 4,000 people died in London from air pollution and 30,000 died across the whole of the UK.” The report said.
• Vehicle exhausts, tires and brakes emissions are the major sources of airborne particles.

[November 15, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,583 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Colombia. Extreme rain, storms, flooding and landslides across Colombia have killed at least 120 and affected about a thirs of a million people since July 1,  OCHA reported, citing SNAPD figures.
• Armed conflict is also causing mass displacements in several areas, especially in southern Córdoba.
• “Civilian population caught between armed confrontations in Cauca. Military operations registered over the past several weeks, which are likely to continue, have had serious consequences for the civilian population trapped by hostilities. Armed confrontations triggered mass displacements and restrictions on mobility and access to vital goods among civilians.
• “Mass displacements in southern Córdoba. During the reporting period, Acción Social reported a new displacement in the department. According to information collected by OCHA, 20 displacements have taken place in Córdoba, through 2011. The figure indicates an increase by 185% in comparison to 2010, with seven mass displacements registered.” OCHA reported.

[November 16, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,582 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Pennsylvania, USA. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated Erie County in Pennsylvania as a Primary Natural Disaster Area because of excessive rain that occurred May 1 – June 28, 2011.
• The following counties in Pennsylvania were also  added to the disaster declaration because they are contiguous: Crawford and Warren.
• The following 2 counties in New York and Ohio were also added to  natural disaster declaration  because they are contiguous:
•  New York: Chautauqua County.
• Ohio: Ashtabula County.
• Oklahoma.  USDA has designates a total of 15 counties in Oklahoma as Natural Disaster Areas because of losses caused by drought and excessive heat that began May 1, 2011, and continues.
• Oklahoma’s Primary Disaster Areas: Craig, Mayes, Ottawa, Tulsa, Delaware, Nowata, Rogers and Washington counties.
• Oklahoma’s Contiguous Disaster Areas: Adair, Creek, Osage, Wagoner, Cherokee, Okmulgee and Pawnee counties.
• Also declared as Natural Disaster Areas were the following 7 bordering counties in Arkansas, Kansas and Missouri.
• Arkansas: Benton County.
• Kansas: Chautauqua, Cherokee, Labette and Montgomery counties.
• Missouri: McDonald and Newton counties.

• Pennsylvania. USDA has declared 14 Counties in Pennsylvania as Natural Disaster Areas due to excessive rain, flooding and flash flooding associated with Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee that occurred Aug. 26 – Sept. 12, 2011.
• Pennsylvania’s Primary Disaster Areas: Bradford, Lebanon and York counties.
• Pennsylvania’s Contiguous Disaster Areas: Adams, Cumberland, Lancaster, Schuylkill, Berks, Dauphin, Lycoming, Sullivan, Wyoming, Tioga and Susquehanna counties.
• The following 5 counties in Maryland and New York were also designated as disaster areas because they are  contiguous.
• Maryland: Baltimore, Carroll and Harford counties.
• New York: Chemung and Tioga counties.

• Nebraska. USDA has designates 15 Counties in Nebraska as Agricultural Disaster Areas due to crop losses caused by severe storms with excessive rain, flash flooding, hail and high winds that occurred May 23-Aug. 11, 2011.
• The following 3 counties in Colorado and Kansas were also added to the disaster declaration because they are contiguous.
• Colorado: Phillips and Sedgwick counties.
• Kansas: Rawlins County.
• Pennsylvania. USDA has declared 47 Counties in Pennsylvania as Agricultural Disaster Areas due to drought and excessive heat that occurred between June 1 and August 30, 2011.
• List of 13 Pennsylvania counties declared as Primary Disaster Areas. Source: USDA
• List of 34 Pennsylvania counties declared as Contiguous Disaster Areas. Source: USDA

• The following 10 counties in Maryland and New Jersey were also added to the disaster declaration because they are contiguous.
• Maryland: Allegany, Carroll, Harford, Baltimore, Frederick, and Washington counties.
• New Jersey: Burlington, Hunterdon, Mercer and Warren counties.
• New Hampshire. USDA has designated 10 Counties in New Hampshire as Agricultural Disaster Areas due to losses caused by the combined effects of excessive rain, flooding, flash flooding, high winds, hail, Tropical Storm Irene, Tropical Storm Lee that began May 1, 2011, and continues.
• The counties declared as Primary Disaster Areas are:  Belknap, Coos, Hillsborough, Strafford, Carroll, Grafton,  Rockingham and Sullivan.
• NH counties declared as Contiguous Disaster Areas are: Cheshire and Merrimack
• The following 10 counties in Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont were also added to the disaster declaration because they are contiguous.
• Maine: Oxford and York counties.
• Massachusetts: Essex, Middlesex and Worcester counties.
• Vermont: Caledonia, Essex, Orange, Windham and Windsor counties.

At least 4,104 counties were declared agricultural disaster areas between January 1 and November 16, 2011.
(Note: The total includes multiple counts for some of the counties because different disasters occurred during the period).

[November 17, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,581 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

At least 16 tornado reports were reported to SPC, as of posting.

• North Carolina. At least one person died when tornadoes touched down in NC, Gov. Bev Perdue said.
• “We have reports that tornadoes touched down in Randolph and Davidson counties [Wednesday] evening, causing a fatality in Davidson,” she said.
• About a dozen people were injured and at least 3 dozen structures were damaged in the area.
• Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Several EF 2 tornadoes reportedly touched down injuring 15 people across several counties, with Jones County being the worst-hit.
• South Carolina. At least 3 people were killed and up to a dozen others  injured when a tornado swept through a rural community about 20 miles south of Charlotte, N.C.
• Georgia. At least one person was killed when a tree fell on a sport utility vehicle, a report said.
• Alabama. “In eastern Alabama, a suspected twister splintered trees and demolished mobile homes at a pair of housing parks near the Auburn University campus,” the report said.
• Tens of thousands of customers were left without power in Montgomery, the state capital.
• Louisiana. A suspected tornado swept through Houma, southern Louisiana damaging several homes.
• Pittsylvania, Virginia. Strong winds caused extensive roof damage to several building including the building housing the Unique Industries, according to reports received by SPC.
• Dozens of trees were uprooted or splintered.
• Numerous tractor trailers were  blown over.
• Water tanks were tossed about.

[November 18, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,580 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Afghanistan. A severe drought has wiped out 80 percent of wheat crops in western, northern and northeastern Afghanistan, leaving about 3 million people without food stock, and unprepared for the extreme winter.
• “Time is running out to be able to provide communities with the help they most desperately need before a harsh winter makes many areas inaccessible.” Oxfam’s country director for Afghanistan said.
• “Snow is already falling and many mountainous areas are likely to be cut off within weeks.
• “Villagers who are used to hardship are telling us that this year the drought has destroyed everything. Their food stocks are already low and they are worried about how they will get through the coming months.”
• “Families are facing being cut off for winter without enough food and clean water,” said Save the Children’s Afghanistan country director.
• “We know children are going hungry, and with malnutrition levels already high in Afghanistan, unless aid efforts are ramped up, children could die because they do not get enough to eat.”

Other Global Disasters

• United States. More than 46.2 million Americans lived below poverty line in 2010, compared with 43.6 million in 2009 and 39.8 million in 2008.
• According to the 2010 Census survey, 32.3 percent of children (under the age of 15?) across the country were poor, compared to 30.8 percent in 2009.
• About 1 in 3 US children live in poverty.
• Between 2009 and 2010, the poverty rate increased for children under age 18 (from 20.7 percent to 22.0 percent) and people aged 18 to 64 (from 12.9 percent to 13.7 percent), but was not statistically different for people aged 65 and older (9.0 percent).
• In 2010, both the number and percentage of children in poverty rose in 27 states, with Utah reporting the highest rate increase of 11.7 percent.
• Mississippi reported  the highest percentage of child poverty across the nation, with Washington, D.C., and New Mexico following closely.
• National poverty rate climbed for a fourth consecutive year to (15.1?) 15.3 percent in 2010.
• The number of poor Americans in 2010 rose to its highest level since 1958 when the Census Bureau began publishing poverty estimates.
• “The number of people living in poverty has reached an all-time high in the United States, despite the country’s position as one of the wealthiest in the world. Its gross domestic product per capita of $47,184 was 3,095 percent more than India’s $1,477 in 2010.” The report said.
• The national poverty rate currently stands at 15.3 percent with the unemployment rate persisting at 9 percent.
• Detroit and San Bernardino are the 1st and 2nd poorest large cities in US, with 37.6 percent and 34.6 percent of people living in poverty respectively.
• Cleveland, Ohio, Rochester, N.Y., and  Miami, Fla., are the 3rd, 4th and 5th most impoverished large cities in the county, according to the Census Bureau.
• “America’s wealth flows to a select few. It is no wonder the Occupy Wall Street movement keeps growing in protest over the expanding wealth disparity and malignant joblessness. The American Human Development Index reported that ‘by the end of the 2007-2009 recession, unemployment among the bottom 10th of U.S. households — those with incomes below $12,500 — was 31 percent, a rate higher than unemployment in the worst year of the Great Depression.’” Said a report.
• “But for households with incomes of $150,000 and more, unemployment was just above 3 percent, which is considered full employment. In the last 25 years, the richest American households doubled their wealth from $9.2 million to $18.5 million in 2007 while two in five households lost ground, falling from $5,600 to $2,200, the index reported.”
• The child poverty rate increased by 6 percent between 2009 and 2010 and by 36 percent
  since 2000.

[November 19, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,579 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Nevada, USA. A fast-moving massive blaze has destroyed at least 20 Reno homes, forcing 10,000 people to evacuate.
• At least one person was reported dead as a result of a heart attack, and dozens were injured, mostly from smoke inhalation, respiratory or cardiac conditions.
• “‘The whole mountain was on fire,’ said a Mountain Springs Road resident who escaped with his wife first to a shopping center and later to Reno High School after waking to the smell of intense smoke about 1:30 a.m.” AP reported.
• The authorities ordered 90 schools to close.

Fire Report Summary by InciWeb:

The Caughlin fire is currently burning near homes on the southwest side of Reno, NV. The fire is scattered throughout a 2,000 acre area burning in a south to southwesterly direction.

Evacuation areas are from southwest of McCarran and S. Virginia Street and the entire area between Skyline Blvd, S. McCarran and Plumas.

Other Global Disasters

• Virginia, USA. The Disaster President has declared a major disaster exists in the Commonwealth of Virginia because of the damage caused by the Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee during the period of September 8-9, 2011
• The worst affected counties are Caroline, Essex, Fairfax, King and Queen, King George, Prince William, and Westmoreland and the independent City of Alexandria.
• Connecticut, USA. The Disaster President has declared a major disaster exists in the State of Connecticut  in the area affected by the deadly pre-Halloween storm during the period of October 29-30, 2011.
• The worst affected areas are in Fairfield, Hartford, Litchfield, Middlesex, New Haven, Tolland, and Windham Counties. Also affected were tribal lands of the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan Tribal Nations.

• Southeast Asia. At least 20 million people in SEA have been affected by flooding since June 2011. The worst affected countries are Thailand, Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.
• See Disaster Calendar 2011 and earlier blog entries for specific details of flooding damage in each country.

• Massachusetts, USA.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 7 counties in Massachusetts as agricultural disaster areas due to losses caused by excessive rain and high winds associated with Tropical Storm Irene that occurred Aug. 28-31, 2011.
• The counties declared as Primary disaster areas are Barnstable, Dukes, Nantucket and Plymouth.
• The counties declared as Contiguous disaster areas are Bristol, Norfolk and Suffolk.
• Maryland, USA. USDA has designated 22 counties in Maryland as agricultural disaster areas due to losses caused by the combined effects of drought, excessive heat and damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee that occurred April 1 – Oct. 31, 2011.
• List of Maryland counties designated as Primary Disaster Areas. Source: USDA
• List of Maryland counties designated as Contiguous Disaster Areas. Source: USDA

• The District of Columbia and following counties in Delaware, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia were also added to the disaster declaration because the areas are contiguous.
• Delaware: Kent, New Castle and Sussex counties.
• District of Columbia.
• Pennsylvania: Adams, Chester, Franklin, Fulton and Lancaster counties.
• Virginia: Accomack, Arlington, Fairfax and Loudoun counties.
• West Virginia: Berkeley, Jefferson and Morgan counties.

[November 20, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,578 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

‘Suckers’ Democracy’: Military Takeover Disguised as Arab Spring

• Cairo, Egypt. Deadly clashes between Egyptian protesters and riot police backed by the army have left at least a dozen protestors dead, up to a thousand wounded and hundreds more arrested.
• A reporter was told by a doctor at a Cairo hospital that “protesters have injuries from rubber bullets… many have been hit in the eyes.”
• Demonstrators are demanding the resignation of Egypt’s military government.
• Violent clashes have also erupted in Alexandria Suez and Ismailia.
• Nine months after the fall of Mubarak, Egyptians are angry that the army remains in charge and police violence against demonstrators has not abated.
• The military government seems unwilling to give up power and is seeking exemption from civilian oversight.

The following is a quote from Charlie Wilson’s War:

Gust Avrakotos: There’s a little boy and on his 14th birthday he gets a horse… and everybody in the village says, “how wonderful. The boy got a horse” And the Zen master says, “we’ll see.” Two years later, the boy falls off the horse, breaks his leg, and everyone in the village says, “How terrible.” And the Zen master says, “We’ll see.” Then, a war breaks out and all the young men have to go off and fight… except the boy can’t cause his legs all messed up. and everybody in the village says, “How wonderful.”
Charlie Wilson: Now the Zen master says, “We’ll see.”

Other Global Disasters

• North Carolina, USA. NC Gov. Perdue has declared  Davidson and Randolph counties as disaster areas because of the damage caused buy tornadoes.
• At least two people were killed and dozens of homes damaged in North Carolina when tornadoes swept southeastern United States.
• Massachusetts, USA. The town of Monson (population 9,000) located in Hampden County, Massachusetts, has been declared a disaster area for a third time in the last 5 months after it was hit by tornadoes again.
• the town was struck by an EF-3 tornado on June 1, 2011, which caused extensive damage.  In October 29, 2011, a rare pre-Halloween snowstorm buried the town.

Psycho police officer brutally pepper sprays seated UC Davis students at close range. The students were peacefully participating in Occupy Movement, showing solidarity with protesters at the University of California in Berkeley, who were beaten with batons by police on November 9. Eleven protesters received medical treatment for exposure to pepper spray; two were hospitalized. The police acted on orders from Linda Katehi, the chancellor of the University of California, Davis. See video.

[November 21, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,577 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Global Mega Disasters. The concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere reached record high in 2010, according to WMO. The atmospheric GHG rose faster in 2010 than the decadal average.
• Carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration has risen by 39 percent to 389 parts per million (ppm) since 1750.
• Methane (CH4) concentration has climbed by 158 percent since 1750 to a record high of 1,808 parts per billion(ppb), and up by 5 ppb since 2009.
• Nitrous oxide (N2O) levels were 20 percent higher at 323.2ppb   than the pre-industrial era.
• According to the latest Greenhouse Gas Bulletin, the seventh in the series that began in 2004, there has been a 29 percent rise in radiative forcing from greenhouse gases between 1990 and 2010.
• The atmospheric CO2 rose by 2.3ppm in 2010 compared to 2.0ppm in the previous year and the annual average of 1.5 ppm in the 1990s.
• “The atmospheric burden of greenhouse gases due to human activities has yet again reached record levels since pre-industrial time,” said WMO Secretary-General.
• “Even if we managed to halt our greenhouse gas emissions today, and this is far from the case, they would continue to linger in the atmosphere for decades to come and so continue to affect the delicate balance of our living planet and our climate,” he added.
• Recent monthly mean carbon dioxide globally averaged over marine surface sites. Source: NOAA

Weekly average CO₂ at Mauna Loa

• Week of November 13, 2011:     390.32 ppm
• Weekly value from 1 year ago:     388.40 ppm
• Weekly value from 10 years ago:     369.79 ppm

[November 22, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,576 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• New York, USA. Disaster Declaration No 1: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 35 counties in New York as agricultural disaster areas due to the damage caused by Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee that occurred Aug. 27 – Sept. 15, 2011.

• List of 20 NY counties designated as Primary Disaster Areas. Source: USDA
• List of 15 NY counties designated as Contiguous Disaster Areas. Source: USDA

The following counties in the bordering states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Vermont were also added to the disaster declaration because they are contiguous.

• Connecticut: Fairfield and Litchfield counties.
• Massachusetts: Berkshire County.
• Pennsylvania: Pike, Susquehanna and Wayne counties.
• Vermont: Addison, Bennington, Chittenden, Grand Isle and Rutland counties.

• New York, USA. Disaster Declaration No 2: USDA has designated 34 counties in New York as agricultural disaster areas due to the combined effects of excessive rain, flooding, flash flooding, hail, high winds, below normal temperatures and tornadoes that occurred April 1 – Aug. 30, 2011.

• List of 10 NY counties designated as Primary Disaster Areas. Source: USDA
• List of 24 NY counties designated as Contiguous Disaster Areas. Source: USDA

The following counties in the bordering states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania were also declared disaster areas because they’re contiguous.

• New Jersey: Bergen, Passaic and Sussex counties.
• Pennsylvania: Pike County.

• New York, USA. Disaster Declaration No 3:  Six New York counties have been designated as a Agricultural Natural Disaster Areas by USDA due to excessive heat and rain that occurred July 10 – Aug. 25, 2011.
• PDA Disaster areas: Orange County.
• Contiguous Disaster areas:  Dutchess, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan and Ulster counties.

The following counties in the bordering states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania were also declared as disaster areas because they are contiguous.

• New Jersey: Passaic and Sussex counties.
• Pennsylvania: Pike County.

• New York, USA. Disaster Declaration No 4: USDA has declared 12  counties in New York as agricultural disaster areas due to losses caused by drought and excessive heat that occurred July 1 – Aug. 31, 2011.
• Six counties designated as primary disaster areas are Ontario, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben,Wayne and Yates.
• The other six counties declared as contiguous disaster areas are Allegany, Cayuga, Chemung, Livingston, Monroe and Tompkins.

The following counties in the bordering state of Pennsylvania were also added to the disaster declaration because they are contiguous.

• Pennsylvania: Potter and Tioga counties.

Other Disasters

• Minnesota, USA. USDA has designated 15 counties in Minnesota as Agricultural Natural Disaster Areas due to losses caused by the combined effects of excessive rain, excessive heat, high winds, tornadoes and an early fall frost that occurred April 1 – Sept. 15, 2011.
• The counties designated as Primary Disaster areas are Kandiyohi, Lincoln and McLeod.
• Minnesota counties designated as Contiguous Disaster areas are Carver, Chippewa, Lyon, Meeker, Pipestone, Pope, Renville, Sibley, Stearns, Swift, Wright, Yellow and Medi.

The following counties in South Dakota were also declared natural disaster areas because they are contiguous.

• South Dakota: Brookings, Deuel and Moody counties.

Monster Storm Emergency Declared

• Alaska, USA. The city of Nome in Northwest Alaska has declared a disaster following a Bering Sea storm considered the worst in at least four decades.
• The extent of damage caused by strong winds and flooding is said to be  “beyond the capability” of municipal resources that are allocated to storm response and recovery, a report said.

[November 23, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,575 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Global Disasters: As of August 2011, a total of 72 states, as well as seven  areas, were confirmed or suspected to be mine-affected, the report said.
• The recorded casualties in 2010 rose by 5% compared with 2009.
• Four largest producers of anti-personnel weapons were China, India, Russia and the United States.
• Israel and Myanmar were identified as laying new antipersonnel mines in 2010-2011.
• An estimated 120 million mines are laid globally killing or maiming thousands of people each year, according to the Red Cross.
• In 2010, about4,200 new casualties were recorded, 5% higher than 2009.
• Landmines are more than ten times more likely to kill or maim a civilians after a conflict than a combatant during war, according to the UN.
• Landmines have killed and injured more people in the  last 50 years than nuclear and chemical weapons combined.
• Up to 5 million new anti-personnel mines are laid in the ground each year, according to the Red Cross.
• More than a third of the victims of landmines are children under the age of 15.

[November 24, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,574 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• United States. About 63 million Americans  are expected to travel long distances during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend producing millions of tons of greenhouse gasses, ground-level ozone and other deadly air pollutants.
• Planes:  23.2 million people to fly domestic and international routes over the Thanksgiving holiday period, according to ATA.
• Trains: Up to a million people are expected to go by rail.
• Automobiles: About 38.2 million Americans are expected to drive at least 50 miles (80 km) away from home during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, up 4 percent from 2010 according to AAA.

Other Global Disasters

• Western Australia. A massive blaze erupted after firemen lost control a routine burn-off in a national park near the Margaret River in Western Australia. The fire consumed about 2,000 hectares (~ 5,000 acres), destroying about 3 dozen homes and chalets and forcing hundreds of residents to evacuate.
• A bushfire warning was operating as of posting.
• New Mexico, USA. The Disaster President has declared a major disaster exists in the State of New Mexico caused by flooding during the period of August 19-24, 2011.
• The worst affected areas are in Cibola and Sandoval Counties and in the Pueblo (Native American community) of Acoma and the Pueblo of Santa Clara.
• Washington USA. An  extraordinary storm has slammed into the Pacific Northwest, bringing record rain, hurricane-force wind gusts and massive snow.
• Up to 8 inches of rain in the southern Cascades has led to major flooding on some rivers.
• Numerous landslides have been reported in Western Washington.
• Sicily, Italy. Landslides caused by torrential rains have destroyed a village in Scarcelli, a district of Saponara in the Sicilian province of Messina, leaving at least 4 people dead.
• Major flooding have also been reported in other parts of southern Italy.
• Europe. Industrial air pollution from Europe’s 10,000 largest polluting facilities cost citizens up to €169 billion ($228 billion, as of posting) in 2009, according to a report by the European Environment Agency (EEA).
• Half of the total damage cost (between € 85 billion) was caused by less than 2 percent of the outlets (191 facilities).
• Power plants emissions were responsible for the largest share of the damage costs (estimated at €112 billion).
• Second largest part of the damage was caused by production processes (up to €28 billion).
• Third was manufacturing combustion (€21 billion).
• Transport, households and most agicultural activities were excluded from the report–if included the cost of pollution would be even higher.

Locations of the 191 European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (E-PRTR) facilities that contributed 50% of the total damage costs estimated in 2009.  Source EEA.

“A small number of individual facilities cause the majority of damage costs. Three quarters of the total damage costs were caused by the emissions from just 622 industrial facilities – 6 % of the total number.” The report said.

“Carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions contribute the most to the overall damage costs, approximately €63 billion in 2009. Air pollutants, which contribute to acid rain and can cause respiratory problems – sulphur dioxide (SO₂), ammonia (NH₃), particulate matter (PM₁₀) and nitrogen oxides (NO_x) – were found to cause €38-105 billion of damage a year.”

There’s no mention of the particulate matter (PM_2.5) in the report. PM_2.5 causes high plaque deposits in the arteries, leading to vascular inflammation and atherosclerosis, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association.

[November 25, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,573 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Malaysia. Rising floods have left at least 3 children dead, a teenager missing, and forced thousands to evacuate their homes across 2 north-eastern states of Terengganu and Kelantan. Up to 40 percent more rain is forecast for the monsoon season (November 2011 – March 2012) compared with last year.
• The Malaysian states expected to receive extreme rain are  Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Kedah and Sabah.
• The govt has designated 5,156 evacuation centers, which could accommodate  about 1.4 million evacuees.
• The Malaysian Govt has categorized about 500 schools with a total of more than 200,000 students as being at high-risk of flooding.
• The flooding would be exacerbated by high tides.
• “The high-tide phenomenon is predicted to occur on Dec 25 this year and Jan 23, 2012.” Malaysia’s deputy PM told reporters.

Other Global Disasters

• Zambia.  Early rains have destroyed about a third of Zambia’s 2010/11 maize harvest.
• “We are talking about a bumper harvest of 3.1 million tonnes but close to a million tonnes has gone to waste because farmers did not anticipate the rains coming early,” said Zambia National Farmers Union spokesman.

[November 26, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,572 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Mexico.  Worst drought in 70 years has affected more than two thirds of Mexico, leaving 2.5 million people without drinking water, about half million cattle dead and a million hectares of crops destroyed. The drought is expected to continue into 2012.
• More than 2.5 million people in the northern states of Coahuila, San Luis Potosi, Sonora, Tamaulipas and Zacatecas face acute water shortage.
• Mexican government has cut its 2011 corn production estimate for a third time, down from 23 million tons to 20 million.
• A further 3 million hectares of crops (Mexico has total arable land of 22 million hectares) have been damaged by drought.
• The losses are expected to be compounded by ongoing drought and frost during the winter season.
• Beans production is expected to fall by about 30 percent this year.

Other Global Disasters

• New York, USA. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has declared 24 counties in New York as agricultural disaster areas due to losses caused by excessive rain, flash flooding and flooding associated with Tropical Storm Lee that occurred Sept. 4-14, 2011.
• The counties declared as Primary Disaster Areas are Broome, Columbia, Greene, Tioga, Chemung, Cortland, Otsego and Tompkins.
• The counties declared as Contiguous Disaster Areas are Albany, Dutchess, Oneida, Schuyler, Cayuga, Herkimer, Onondaga, Seneca, Chenango, Madison, Rensselaer, Steuben, Delaware, Montgomery, Schoharie and Ulster.

• The following counties in bordering states of Connecticut, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania are also designated as disaster areas because they are contiguous.

• Connecticut: Litchfield County.
• Massachusetts: Berkshire County.
• Pennsylvania: Bradford, Susquehanna, Tioga and Wayne counties.
• See also: Four Disaster Declarations Issued for New York

• South Dakota, USA. Seven counties in SD have been declared  agricultural primary disaster areas due to losses caused by severe storms, excessive rain and flooding that occurred March 15 – Sept. 22, 2011.
• Brown County has been declared as Primary Disaster Area.
• The counties declared as Contiguous Disaster Areas are Day, Edmunds, Faulk, McPherson, Marshall and Spink.

• The following counties in North Dakota were also declared natural disaster areas because they are contiguous.
• North Dakota: Dickey and Sargent counties.

• Mohmand tribal region, Pakistan.  NATO helicopters have attacked a Pakistan military post about 1.5 miles from the Afghan border killing 26 Pakistani soldiers and wounding 14 others.
• Pakistani government has described the attack at Salala checkpoint as “unprovoked and indiscriminate,” and closed the border crossing for supplies bound for NATO forces in Afghanistan, reports said.

• Sri Lanka. Heavy rains and strong winds buffeted the southern coast of Sri Lanka killing at least 14 people and leaving 30 fishermen missing, the authorities said.
• The extreme weather conditions have affected at least 26,000 people.
• Storms and landslides have destroyed more than 100 houses and damaged another 1,000 structures.

[November 27, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,571 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• NWS, Australia. Torrential rain has caused severe flooding in New South Wales, Australia, isolating dozens of communities and hundreds of farms.
• More than 2,000 residents have been isolated.
• “I’ve just flown over the area in the chopper and it’s very extensive the amount of flooding,” said a State Emergency Service official.
• The floodwater has “created an inland sea and it’s quite spectacular when you’re in the air but not so happy for the people on the ground,” the official added.
• Floods have already killed a a three-year-old boy, who drowned  when he was swept into a stormwater drain at Bingara.

Other Global Disasters

• Arizona, USA. “Extreme drought conditions have now expanded from southern Arizona up into central portions of the state, including the Phoenix metro area,” said a report.
• The water levels in some of the state’s reservoirs have dropped by as much as 27 percent compared with a year ago.
• USA. More than 43 percent of the Contiguous USA is currently in a drought (D0-D4), with about a third of the country (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) in moderate (D1) to exceptional (D4) drought, according to the US Drought Monitor.
• “This is the most drought for the contiguous U.S. since Jan. 22, 2008,” according to the National Drought Mitigation Center in Lincoln, Nebraska.

[November 28, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,570 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Alberta, Canada. Dozens of buildings were damaged as strong winds uprooted trees, blew out windows and spread debris around downtown Calgary. The winds also caused several vehicles to overturn along Highway 2, and fueled a large fire northeast of Nanton since last Tuesday, which forced hundreds to evacuate their homes.
• “Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation closed portions of Fish Creek Provincial Park because of tree damage and public risk of power lines falling down,” said a report.
• Strong winds have been wreaking havoc in southern Alberta from Okotoks to the American border since Tuesday.

Other Global Disasters

• Indonesia. A 720-meter bridge linking the towns of Tenggarong and Samarinda in East Kalimantan province in central Indonesia collapsed killing at least 13 people and leaving dozens more missing, presumed dead. The bridge over the Mahakam river in central Indonesia was built to resemble SF’s Golden Gate Bridge.
• About 2 dozen others were injured in the incident, 10 of them critically.

• Indonesia. The recorded number of HIV/AIDS patients in Indonesia (population: 240 million) has climbed to at least 200,000.
• Yunnan Province, SW China.  The SW China province of Yunnan registered about 84,000 HIV carriers and AIDS patients as of the end of l2010, one of the worst among Chinese provinces or regions, a report said.
• Global. At least 34 million people around the world had HIV in 2010, up from 33.3 million in 2009, the UNAIDS reported.
• Some 2.7 million new HIV infections were reported worldwide in 2010.
• About two-thirds of new HIV infections in 2010, and more than a third of AIDS-related deaths, occurred in sub-Saharan Africa.

[November 29, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,569 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• NSW, Australia. The state government in Australian state of New South Wales has declared 3 shires in the northwest as disaster zones after flooding destroyed farms and businesses.
• Thousands of people and livestock and hundreds of farms remain isolated after days of torrential rains which triggered mega flooding, creating an inland sea.
• The three shires of  Armidale Dumaresq, Inverell and Moree Plains have been declared disaster areas.
• “I saw first-hand how widespread the devastation is,” said the Emergency Services Minister.
• “There are many families and business owners who have been affected by these recent floods.”
• Evacuation orders remain in effect at various locations.
• WA, Australia. The Government of Western Australia (WA) has  declared the Margaret River region a disaster zone following devastating fires that consumed thousands of hectares of bushland and destroyed dozens of homes, sheds and chalets.
• Tungurahua Volcano, Ecuador. Ecuador’s government is urging about 700 people in 4 villages on the slopes of the Tungurahua Volcano in the Andes to evacuate the area after the 5,023-meter volcano began erupting on Monday, sending pyroclastic flows down the volcano flanks.
  

[November 30, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,568 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Global. World’s 13 warmest years on record have all occurred since 1997, a period of 15 years. The heating has impacted the extent of Arctic sea ice which fell to its second lowest this year, with its volume being the lowest ever recorded.
• The 2002-2011 period is the warmest decade on record (jointly with 2001-2010), some 0.46°C above the long-term average.
• See Diagram

• Average global temperatures this year so far are the 10th highest on record and are higher than all previous years with a La Niña event, which has a relative cooling influence, WMO reported.
• “Our role is to provide the scientific knowledge to inform action by decision makers,” said WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud in a press release.
• “Our science is solid and it proves unequivocally that the world is warming and that this warming is due to human activities,” he added.
• “Surface air temperatures were above the long-term average in 2011 over most land areas of the world. The largest departures from average were over Russia, especially in northern Russia where January-October temperatures were about 4°C above average in places,” the WMO report said.
• “Concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have reached new highs. They are very rapidly approaching levels consistent with a 2-2.4 degree Centigrade rise in average global temperatures which scientists believe could trigger far reaching and irreversible changes in our Earth, biosphere and oceans.” WMO’s Jarraud said.

[Hate to break this to you, Secretary-General Jarraud, but we saw  the “you’ve now passed the tipping point” sign down the highway many miles ago. FIRE-EARTH]

• Up-to-date weekly average CO₂ at Mauna Loa

• Week of November 20, 2011:     390.44 ppm
• Weekly value from 1 year ago:     389.38 ppm
• Weekly value from 10 years ago:     370.11 ppm

• Recent Global CO₂

• September 2011:     388.04 ppm
• September 2010:     386.44 ppm
• See Diagram

[NOTE: This listing is by no means exhaustive.]

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2011 Disaster Calendar

January 2011 | February 2011 | March 2011 | April 2011 | May 2011 | June 2011 | July 2011 | August 2011 | September 2011 | October 2011 | November 2011 | December 2011|

2010 Disaster Calendar

January 2010 | February 2010 | March 2010 | April 2010 | May 2010 | June 2010 | July 2010 | August 2010 | September 2010 | October 2010 | November 2010 | December 2010

Related Links:

• Nature’s Warnings Exponentially Intensifying  Posted by edro on April 14, 2011
• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities
• Index of Human Impact on Nature (HIoN) March 2008
• 2010: The Year of Disasters
• Earth’s Human Induced Antiphase Nears Completion
• 2011 SIX TIMES MORE DISASTROUS THAN 2010

“The antiphase will rapidly transform humans into vicious animals, fighting each other for water, food, fuel, land and all other dwindling natural resources. The fighting, in turn, enhances the positive feedbacks, accelerating the downward spiral.” —EDRO

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