Raging Wildfires in Colorado, Arizona Prompt More Evacuations

Arizona Gov. declares a state of emergency for Yavapai County as fast-growing Doce Fire rages uncontrolled

The Doce Fire, burning in Granite Mountain Wilderness about 8 miles northwest of Prescott, is threatening several communities and about 500 homes. The blaze had consumed about 7,500 acres by Thursday afternoon and was 0 percent contained.

Evacuations are in place for the following locations:

Granite Basin Summer Homes and American Ranch

The areas of Granite Basin Homes, Black Jack, Camp Anytown, Sundown Acres, Cielo Grande, Old Stage Acres, south half of Mint Creek Wash and American Ranch remain evacuated. Neighborhoods in the Williamson Valley corridor are on notice for potential evacuation.

(Evacuation center at Yavapai College and for livestock at the Prescott Rodeo Grounds)

 

Firefighters are working to contain a blaze in central Arizona, not far from the state’s Prescott National Forest. Aircraft could be seen dumping massive buckets of water on the fire which as of Thursday, is not contained. The fire is spread across a 10-square mile area. More than 600 firefighters are working in an attempt to stop the blaze. Hundreds of people have been forced to evacuate their homes. So far, no buildings have been impacted.

Colorado Wildfires – Colorado Office of Emergency Management

a 1,000-acre wildfire in northwestern Colorado near the Utah state line forced the evacuation of 40 oil and gas well sites on Wednesday in Rio Blanco County, said the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

“Hampering firefighting efforts is limited access, rugged terrain, thick smoke and high winds,” the bureau said, adding  that firefighters had observed wind-blown embers igniting new spot fires more than 800 yards away.

Another 1,000-acre blaze near the Spanish Peaks in Huerfano County forced about 200 scouts and staff members to flee their camp, said a report.

Authorities have also issued evacuation orders and pre-evacuation notices for residents south and west of the fire for 30 miles to the New Mexico border, the report said.

Active Colo. Fires:

• East Peak Fire  Acres: 9,400 – Containment: 0% – Evacuations: ~700
• Wild Rose Fire  Acres: 850 – Containment: 0%
• Bull Gulch Fire  Acres: 150 – Containment: 0%
• Lime Gulch Fire  Acres: 600 – Containment: 0% – Evacuations: ~100
• Ward Gulch Fire  Acres: 485 – Containment: 95% – Evacuations: ~30
• Black Forest Fire Acres: 14,280 – Containment: 100%  Evacuations: 4117  people and ~20,000 homes (Estimated total of about 80,000 people-FEWW) – Fatalities: 2 civilian deaths –  Homes destroyed: 509 – Homes damaged: 28
• Royal Gorge Fire  Acres: 3,216 – Containment: 100%
• Big Meadow Fire  Acres: 604 – Containment: 95%
• West Fork Complex Fire Acres: 15,000 – Containment: 0%

Today’s Fire Outlook

The fire situation rating for the Rocky Mountain Area has increased to Preparedness Level 4. The Nation remains at a Preparedness Level 2. This rating indicates highly complex large fire activity is occurring, with multiple large fires in the zone. Fire severity is extreme as reported in multiple areas, and fires are escaping initial attack, as evident by the number of large fires.

New Record Pollution Chokes Singapore

Pollution levels hit new record high as smog tightens chokehold on Singapore

The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) hit 401 at 12:00 on Friday (04:00 UTC)—the highest in the country’s history, as smoky haze from fires in Indonesia shrouded the city state for a 3rd consecutive day.

A PSI reading above 300 is defined as “hazardous”, while Singapore government guidelines regard a PSI reading of above 400 over 24 hours as “Very Hazardous.”

A PSI of above 400 is defined: “May be life threatening to ill and elderly persons. Healthy people experience adverse symptoms that affect normal activity.”

Meantime, the government has warned that the haze could persist for weeks.

“We can’t tell how this problem is going to develop because it depends on the burning, it depends on the weather, it depends on the wind,” said the PM.

“It can easily last for several weeks and quite possibly it could last longer until the dry season ends in Sumatra which may be September or October.”

Parts of Malaysia have also been shrouded in “hazardous” pollution levels, prompting the authorities to close at least 300 schools in the south of the country.

Air Quality Index for Singapore, June 20, 2013 @ 12:00UTC. Sources:
Meteorological Service Singapore; http://aqicn.org Composite image by FEWW.

Prelude to more serious events?

Our colleagues at EDRO believe that the collapse of Singapore may occur as a result of volcanic activity on the island of Sumatra. However, they have not disclosed any further detail.

Map of Singapore smog. Source: ASEAN Specialized Meteorological Center/ Meteorological Service Singapore via BBC

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Mass Evacuations in W Canada amid Worst Flooding in 90 Years

Widespread flooding in W Canada could force 100,000 people out of their homes

More than 100,000 people in in Calgary alone been sent evacuation orders or notices as widespread flooding  in the region intensifies, Calgary city officials said.

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Update: Jun 21, 2013 7:00 AM ET  ppp

• At least 80,000 people have been evacuated from more than two dozen Calgary neighborhoods, so far.
• Up to 30mm of rain is forecast across the region on Friday.
• At least 12 communities in the province are under states of emergency, and 30 communities are under mandatory evacuation.

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Calgary declares state of emergency, first of its kind in 90 years

Extreme rain events and severe flooding throughout southern Alberta on Thursday have washed out many roads, bridges and entire houses, reports said.

About 7,000 people were ordered to leave their homes in Calgary on Thursday as heavy rainfall across southern Alberta swelled the Elbow and Bow rivers, prompting the city’s first state of emergency declaration in more than 90 years.

States of emergency have also been declared in several other towns and more than a dozen communities.

More than 2 dozen communities in and around Calgary, which lie along the flooded rivers, have been evacuated.

• Mandatory and immediate evacuations have been ordered for areas along the Elbow River including communities of The evacuation orders cover the communities of Beltline, Bonnybrook, Bowness, Bridgeland Industrial Area, Chinatown, Eau Claire, Cliff Bungalow, Deer Run, Discovery Ridge, Downtown, East Village, Elbow Park, Erlton, Inglewood, Hillhurst, Mission, Montgomery, Quarry Park, Rideau, Riverbend, Riverdale, Roxboro, Stanley Park, Elboya, Sunnyside, Victoria Park, Westmount and Windsor Park.

Water levels on the Elbow could top twice those of the last large deluges in 2005, said Calgary’s director of water services.

“It’s actually one of the most significant flood events this city has ever experienced,” said a city alderman. “This is a state of emergency, the first in this municipality since the 1920s.”

Meantime, mudslides have forced the closure of the Trans-Canada Highway, cutting off access to the mountain resort towns of Banff and Canmore.

• The mountain town of Canmore, about 100 km west of Calgary declared a state of emergency.
  • A resident of Canmore who as waken up by a “kind of rumbling” sound in the middle of the night, and realized it was the flooded nearby creek said:”At first it was just intense, pretty powerful, amazing thing to watch.””As daylight came, it just got bigger and bigger and wider and wider, and it’s still getting bigger and bigger and wider and wider.” Wade Graham told CBC.”
  • “I watched a refrigerator go by. I watched a shed go by. I watched couches go by. It’s insane,” he added.
  • Looking from my bedroom window directly at Grotto Mountain, “which has no waterfalls on it ever, I can count seven major waterfalls from here.” He said.

• High River, a town about 70 km south of Calgary, also declared a state of emergency, as High River submerged a great portion of town under several feet of water.
• Hamlet of Bragg Creek, 44 km west of Calgary,  was evacuated as the Elbow River surged.
• Residents of  Redwood Meadows were told to abandon their properties.
• Parts of the Crowsnest Pass are being evacuated as water levels continue to rise.

Record flooding in Alberta

Record flooding in the heart of the Alberta tar sands dramatically illustrates their threat to Canada’s ‘Serengeti’, the Mackenzie River basin. Only days before this week’s flooding in Fort McMurray, a panel of international science experts warned that the nearly 200 square kilometres of toxic wastewater lakes near rivers like the Athabasca pose a direct threat one of the world’s most important ecosystems http://desmog.ca/2013/06/13/fort-mcmurray-flooding-emphasizes-tar-sands-threat-mackenzie-river-basin

House Smashes Against Bridge | Bragg Creek Alberta Flood 20/06/2013

Sour gas well rupture

In Turner Valley, southwest of Calgary, a sour gas wellhead ruptured at the same time as the town dealt with fast-rising flood waters in the Sheep River.

Turner Valley Coun. Barry Williamson said the pipeline was struck by river debris, adding that an evacuation was ordered for residences in the area.

The rupture caused a release of sour gas containing hydrogen sulfide (H2S) — a colourless, flammable gas that smells like rotten eggs — but officials have said the risk is now contained. Air quality monitoring at the point of the rupture isn’t detecting dangerous sour gas levels. CBC

Flood zones across Canada: Major deluges mapped from 2002-2011

Deadly Floods Force Thousands of Evacuations in SW France

Storms Devastate Lourdes Catholic Shrine, Thousands Evacuated

Unseasonal stormy weather across France continued dumping heavy rain over large areas of the country, triggering flash floods in the southwest that killed at three people on Thursday, said a report.

The floods have devastated the Catholic pilgrimage site of Lourdes, forcing the authorities to evacuate at least 2,000 people since Tuesday.

The Roman Catholic shrine at Lourdes has been evacuated after flash floods struck SW France.

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High winds and inch-wide hail batter central Switzerland

Winds of more than 130 kph and golf ball-sized hail tear down trees and leave piles of ice 20cm deep, said reports.

Road, train and air traffic were disrupted, according to MeteoNews. “… in the space of just a quarter-hour, near 20 litres of rain per square metre fell between Geneva and Nyon. Normally, all of June sees 70 litres per square metres.”

High winds also drove swept through Geneva’s international airport,” causing one plane on the tarmac to crash into a container.”

Several people were hurt, some seriously, by falling trees, reports said.

Geneva attacked by a significant hail storm.

Continued …

U.S. Drought Map – June 20 Release

Drought Intensifies in Western U.S.

US Drought Map as of June 18, 2013, released by US Drought Monitor on June 20, 2013.

Related Links

• Drought Disaster Declared for 72 Counties in 9 States  May 31, 2013
• U-S Drought 2013: Fueled by Heat from Hell? January 31, 2013 [FIRE-EARTH Forecast]
• US: Drought Disaster 2013 [Index Page]