ERE Force Closure of Roads, bridges, railway lines in Taiwan

Extreme Rain Events (ERE) dump up to 810mm of rain on Taiwan

Landslides triggered by torrential rains brought by tropical storm KONG-REY have forced the evacuations of thousands of people from mountainous areas and damaged dozens of roads and bridges, especially in the SW county of Chiayi, and shut down railway services.

Tropical Storm KONG-REY has caused widespread flooding and substantial damage to property and infrastructure since August 28.

Southern Taiwan is devastated, reports said.

Tropical storms TRAMI and KONG-REY have caused millions of dollars in agricultural losses in Taiwan since late August, said the Council of Agriculture.

Disaster Calendar – August 19, 2013

Hundreds dead or missing as floods and mudslides devastate China

Extreme rain events, flooding and mudslides in northeast and southern China have left hundreds of people dead, injured or missing.

“The Heilongjiang Provincial Hydrological Bureau forecast the stretch of the Heilong River between Tongjiang and Fuyuan County will witness the largest flooding in its history. Authorities in Tongjiang have started a Grade I response preparing for floods,” said a report.

• The deluge has destroyed or damaged at least 210,000 houses in Jilin, Heilongjiang, Guangdong and Liaoning provinces, with the direct economic losses estimated at 18.5 billion yuan (3 billion U.S. dollars), said a report.
• Torrential rains and floods triggered by Typhoon Utor have affected 680,000 people in eight cities in Guangxi. Some 16,660 hectares of crops have been damaged and 1,080 houses have been destroyed.
• In Guangdong Province, TY UTOR has affected more than 2.5 million people destroying or damaging about 19,000 houses and forcing 513,000 people to relocate. The extreme rain has also ruined 173,333 hectares of farmland, according to local authorities.
• “In central China’s Hunan Province, landslides triggered by continuous rainfalls over the past two days have left one dead and 14 others buried or missing,” said a report.

[NOTE: Some of the stats quoted above are already outdated as the  catastrophe continues to unfold in China on an almost hourly basis.]

Original caption: People walk on ruins after the flood in Nankouqian Township, Fushun, northeast China’s Liaoning Province, Aug. 18, 2013. The death toll has risen to 54 as of Monday morning after the worst flooding in decades ravaged Fushun City, northeast China’s Liaoning Province, said the local authorities on Aug. 19, 2013. Extreme rainstorms battered Liaoning from Thursday to Saturday, leaving many rivers flooded in Fushun. (Xinhua/Pan Yulong)

• In Fushun City, 139,800 houses were damaged and many have collapsed.

• In Guangdong province, 19,000 houses have collapsed or sustained severe damage, forcing  about 513,000 residents to relocate.  The direct economic loss is estimated at 490 million yuan (80 million U.S. dollars).
• “Heilongjiang Province reported [37]  flood-related deaths. The floods have destroyed over 2,500 houses and severely damaged at least 12,500 others, with direct economic losses estimated at 7.13 billion yuan (1.15 billion U.S. dollars).”
• In Jilin Province, at least “35,000 houses were destroyed or damaged with direct economic losses at 2.4 billion yuan (387 million U.S. dollars).”
• “As of 10 a.m. Monday, a total of 1.8 million people in 30 counties in Liaoning Province have been affected and 162,000 have been evacuated from flooded areas. More than 6,100 buildings have collapsed and the total direct economic loss is around 8.5 billion yuan(1.39 billion U.S. dollars), according to the ministry.”

Don’t bring your car to China!

Heping Town in Shantou City, south China’s Guangdong Province devastated by extreme rain events and severe flooding, August19, 2013.  (Xinhua/Yao Jun). More images…

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Philippines’ Cebu declares calamity as sunken ferry leaks oil

The central Philippine province of Cebu has declared a state of calamity as an oil slick from a ferry that sank last week spread to about 20 percent of the coast, said a report.

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16 Counties across three states declared agricultural disaster areas

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 16 counties in three states as agricultural disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by frost and freezing temperatures that occurred March 25-29, 2013.

The disaster designations are

• Alabama: Baldwin, Escambia, Mobile, Washington, Choctaw, Clarke, Conecuh, Covington and Monroe counties.

• Florida: Escambia, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa counties.

• Mississippi: George, Greene, Jackson and Wayne counties.

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Beaver Creek Fire Consumes 100,000 acres

As of August 18, 2013 10pm,  the Beaver Creek Fire had grown to at about 100,921 acres with 8% containment.

Beaver Creek Fire. Red Flag conditions, including higher temperatures and wind gusts to 38 miles per hour, increased fire activity on the Beaver Creek Fire. Credit: Sawtooth National Forest/ USFS.

For additional information see

• “Take Your Essentials Belongings and Pets and GO NOW” August 18, 2013

State of Emergency Declared in Oregon due to Wildfires

Josephine and Douglas counties declare states of emergency

Oregon Gov. has declared a state of emergency Josephine and Douglas counties as wildfires burn thousands of acres, destroy scores of buildings and threaten hundreds of homes.

At least 7 major wildfires are currently active in the state of Oregon.  [Dozens of smaller fires have not been logged.]

Meantime, a threat of dry lightning and thunderstorms is forecast Tuesday night through Wednesday.

“A strong weather system will move through the Pacific Northwest and across the northern Rockies over the course of the week. Dry, gusty winds are already contributing to increased fire danger in this region, but conditions will worsen on Wednesday as the weather system brings a chance of ‘dry’ thunderstorms. The lightning from these storms could ignite new wildfires that could spread rapidly.” NWS reported.

Douglas Complex Fire. Credit: Marvin Vetter, ODF

Douglas Complex Fire. Some 54 lightning-sparked blazes have been burning at least 21,400 acres since Friday and were only 5 percent contained Tuesday evening.

• Location: 7 miles north of Glendale, OR
• Percent Contained: 5%
• Complex Size: 21,400 acres
• Cause: Lightning
• Start Date: 7/26/13
• Total Personnel: 1,260
• Growth Potential: Extreme
• Terrain Difficulty: Extreme

Evacuations and Closures:

Cow Creek Road from Riddle into the fire area and from Glendale into the fire has been closed. The public is asked to honor the road blocks and not interfere with firefighters working in the area.

Evacuations have been ordered for McCullough Creek Road, Reuben Road, and Mt. Reuben Road in Douglas County, and Poorman Creek Road in Josephine County.

An additional four hundred residences are considered threatened. This means evacuations could be necessary at some point in the future. Any official evacuation orders would be issued by the Douglas County or Josephine Sheriff’s Offices. [Inciweb]

The Whiskey Complex Fire. The Whiskey Complex consists of four distinct fires on the Tiller Ranger District: Buckeye, Big Brother, Whiskey, and Smith Ridge. The fires were caused by lightning on July 26, 2013. The blazes have consumed at least 3,068 acres in steep and remote terrain in timber, the fire activity has been primarily ground fire with occasional tree torching and spotting. [Oregon Interagency Incident Management]

The Whiskey Complex Fire.  Credit:  K. Gregor

The Whiskey Complex Fire is currently ZERO – 7 percent contained with about 780 personnel deployed.

• Nine people were evacuated from five residences in Ash Valley on Monday as the Buckeye Fire crossed the top of the ridge above the homes. Firefighters expect the fire to slowly back down toward Ash Creek and spare the homes, but asked residents to leave as a precaution.

• Residences in Ash Valley are being served a Level 3 evacuation due to an increase in fire activity on the Buckeye Fire.  Additional road closures are expected.

The Big Windy Complex Fire. The Big Windy consists of 3 fires: The Big Windy Fire, Calvert Peak Fire, and Jenny Fire (formerly the Windy 16 Fire).

• Cause: Lightning
• Size: 2,914 acres
• Date of Origin: Friday July 26th, 2013 approx. 03:00 AM
• Location: 25 miles NW of Grants Pass
• Total Personnel: 186
• Containment: 0 percent
• Growth Potential: High
• Terrain Difficulty: Extreme

Brimstone Fire.  Another lightning-sparked wildfire 10 miles northwest of Merlin, the blaze has consumed more than 2000 acres since Monday July 29th, 2013. Some 773 personnel have been deployed to control the fire.  Brimstone is one of 24 lightning-fires on land protected by ODF’s Grants Pass District.

The Labrador Fire. The blaze was ignited by lightning on July 26. The fire is currently estimated to be 1,050 acres and burning adjacent to the Illinois River near the community of Oak Flat.

• Containment: The fire is 0 % contained
• personnel: 414
• Growth Potential: Extreme
• Terrain Difficulty: High

The Colockum Tarps Fire. The blaze started at about 8:00 a.m. on Saturday July 27 near  the intersections of Colockum Road and Tarpiscan Road, south of Malaga, Chelan County, Washington. Malaga is near Wenatchee, Washington.

• The Kittitas County Sheriff established a Level 3 Evacuation Notification for the western shore of the Columbia River from the northern boundary of Kittitas County south to Skookumchuck Creek and Scammon Landing. The Wild Hourse Wind Farm was placed under Level 2 evacuation notice. The Renewable Energy Center is now closed to the public. A Level 1 Evacuation Notice is now in effect for the Whiskey Wildlife Area as well.
  

• Size:  59,316 acres (~93 square miles)
• Percent Contained 8%
• Total Personnel: 370
• Significant Events:  Evacuations, continued progress on west, scouting for perimeter control opportunities in the south. Significant growth continues in south and west portions of the fire. Fire crossed Quilmene Rd. to the south. VLAT used to hold fire on Quilmene ridge and check slopover. Established trigger points with Kittitas County.
• Growth Potential: Extreme
• Terrain Difficulty: High

News Link: Evacuation and destruction caused by Colockum Tarps Fire

The Mile Marker 28 Fire. The blaze started on Wednesday, July 24, 2013. The fire is located 15 miles northeast of Goldendale, Washington along Highway 97 and is burning in grasslands, shrub brush, timber, and timber litter. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

• Size 22,469 acres
• Percent Contained: 60%
• Total Personnel: 1,345
• Significant Events: US Hwy 97 remains closed Teusday. The Level 1 (advisory) advisory and level 2 (potential evacuation) remains in effect.

Sunnyside Turnoff Fire

• Size: 51,340 acres
• Contained: 95%

Related Links

• Dry Thunderstorms Threaten Pacific Northwest  July 31, 2013
• Oregon Wildfires Threaten Hundreds of Homes July 30, 2013