Anthrax Outbreak Kills 109 Hippos in Namibia

Namibian authorities say an anthrax outbreak may have caused the deaths of 109 hippos in one of the country’s national parks, Bwabwata National Park.

“We first noticed the deaths of 10 hippos last week Sunday, but the number increased during the week,” Bwabwata National Park director told reporters. “As we speak, the number of deaths is 109. We suspect an anthrax outbreak, but our vete­rinary team is still to confirm that.”

Two of the hippos were discovered dead in the Kavango River outside the park. New Era toured the park on Saturday with the help of park warden Jonas Hausiku and one could see hippo carcasses scattered by the river in the park and over streams of stagnant water that link with the river.

“This is a situation that we have seen before. It happened in Zambia before and it mainly occurs when the level of the river is so low… Our scientist will advise properly, but we suspect it is anthrax.

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State of Emergency Declared as Namibia Runs Out of Forage

Drought forces state of emergency declaration in Namibia livestock industry

Namibia has declared a state of emergency, as drought across the country continues to severely impact the livestock industry, affecting  the livelihood of 72 percent of all Namibians who depend on the industry, directly or otherwise.

“The dramatic announcement of an emergency drought strategy follows hot on the heels of the the crop farming industry announcing a dismal total harvest in both the commercial and communal areas during a similar meeting two weeks ago,” said a report.

The worsening crisis will have far worse repercussions than the drought two years ago “as cattle and small stock producers have used up all available grazing with no reserve grazing available.”

Farmers have been urged to sell their animals as prices for cattle have dropped from more than N$19 p/kg to just N$14 p/kg in the past week alone.

“[However,] local abattoirs are struggling to accommodate volumes of livestock delivered to them by desperate farmers who are trying to get rid of their animals.”

 

Drought and Deluge Plague Southern Africa

Tropical Storm FUNDI brings torrential rains to Madagascar, as below average rains deepen rainfall deficits in Angola and Namibia, said NOAA.

Storms, floods kill at least 158 in Mozambique

At least 158 people have been killed as floods plagues central and northern Mozambique, said the state news agency AIM.

More than 177,000 people were affected, many of them displaced as severe weather destroys 654 schools, 7 health centers and more than 100 places of worship, reported AIM.

Meantime, a cholera outbreak in Nampula, Niassa and Tete provinces have has killed at least 19 people, from a total of 1,671 cases, said the Deputy Health Minister

“Since mid-December, consistent and significantly heavy rainfall has been received over southeastern Africa. In parts of southern Malawi, as well as, central and northern Mozambique, these rains have resulted in widespread flooding, extensive damage to crops, livestock and infrastructure, thousands of displaced people, and fatalities. The excess moisture also has elevated the risk for downstream river inundation along the Shire, Licungo, Zambezi, Mazoe, Pungue, and Save Rivers in the region. Above-average rain forecast for the next week will keep flooding risks elevated,” said NOAA

Extreme Rain Events Pound China

Emergency Warnings in 9 Chinese provinces as record rains batter central and south China

Extreme rain events have dumped between 50 and 100mm of rain across nine provinces in central and south China, with 34 monitoring stations reporting record rainfalls.

• “Authorities have issued emergency warnings. Forecasters say it is rare to see such strong rains in May,” said a report.

• Forecasters have warned that up to 200mm of rain could swamp Hunan, Jiangxi and Guangdong provinces and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, triggering floods and landslides.

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Cold, Snow, Rain Buffet Vermont

More than 19cm (7½ in) of snow fell on Mount Mansfield in Stowe by early Sunday, as a winter storm moved across the region.

• Other significant snowfall reported in Walden (6 in), and Marshfield and Greensboro (4 in), NWS said.

• Meantime, NWS issued Flood Watches across most of Vermont, and Flood Warnings in northern portion of the state.

Related Links

• How Homo Ignarus Killed Spring March 21, 2013
• Mass Die-off: Diseased Carcasses Removed by Truckload May 26, 2013

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Namibia: No Grazing, No Water for Livestock

The worsening drought in Namibia has decimated most of the available grazing across the country, said a report.

“According to farmers in the Northern Communal Areas (NCAs) the situation is getting worse by the day and grazing in areas that farmers thought would save them is gradually decreasing. To worsen matters farmers do not have water for their livestock.”

The Namibian President declared a national drought emergency earlier this month.

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DISASTER CALENDAR – May 27, 2013 — 
SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,020 Days Left 

Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.

• SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,020 Days Left to ‘Worst Day’ in the brief Human  History
• The countdown began on May 15, 2011 …

GLOBAL WARNINGS

• WARNING: Human impact 2.85 x Earth’s diminishing carrying capacity
• WARNING: RAPID PLANETARY DECLINE IN PROGRESS!
• Europe: The First Phase of Collapse Has Started 
• United States: The First Phase of Collapse Has Begun

Global Disasters: Links, Forecasts and Background

• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities
• Back to the Primordial Future
• The Fate of Energy Dinosaurs
• Mass Die-offs

Our Shrinking World Series: Deluge in Namibia

Parts of Southern Africa Submerged by Deluge

Flooding has affected Namibia, Angola, Zambia, Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique. Rainfall was above normal in southern Africa for January to March, 2009, reports said.

Deadly Flooding in Namibia – Earth Observatory Images

Image acquired March 27, 2009

Image acquired October 18, 2002

At least 350,000 people were affected by flooding in Namibia during the annual rainy season in southern Africa in March 2009. According to a report from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, at least 92 people had been killed and 13,000 people were displaced as of April 1.

Among the places affected by the heaviest rains and most severe flooding was the Caprivi Strip, a narrow “peninsula” of Namibia that stretches out along the Zambezi River between Zambia to the north and Botswana to the south. This pair of natural-color images of the area was captured by the Advanced Land Imager sensor on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite on March 28, 2009 (top), and the Landsat 5 satellite on October 18, 2002 (bottom).

Flood waters pooled across a wide swath of the Zambezi flood plain on March 28, and numerous towns and villages were either underwater or surrounded by floods. In the dry season, the river meanders in a narrow ribbon across the region. The vegetation is dry, and the land is shades of beige and brown. In the flooded image, the vegetation across the area is greener, which makes the flooded landscape look almost purple in places.

Flooding during the southern Africa rainy season is a normal occurrence, but this year’s rains and flooding were exceptional. Quoting Caprivi Governor Leonard Mwilima, an Agence-France Press news report said that the Zambezi River rose to its highest level in 40 years.

NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using EO-1 ALI data provided courtesy of the NASA EO-1 Team, and Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey Global Visualization Viewer. Caption by Rebecca Lindsey. Instrument:  EO-1 – ALI

Southern Africa hit by worst floods in years

The Zambezi River passes the town of Tete in central Mozambique after floods took place in three river basins in 2008. Photo AFP. Image may be subject to copyright.

On Mar 27, 2009 AFP reported:

• Southern Afica’s  worst floods in years, has killed more than 100 people, displacing thousands more.
• Record river levels across the region have affected hundreds of thousands of people.
• In March, Namibia’s government declared a state of emergency in areas where floods have affected over 350,000 people, 13,000 of whom were displaced.
• Some 160,000 people have been affected in Angola.
• The Zambezi river, along Namibia’s northeastern Caprivi Region, rose to 7.82 meters last week, its highest level in 40 years.
• Large areas were submerged by water and access to several villages was cut off.
• The death toll stood at 112.
• Nearly 200 schools have closed.
• One hospital and 19 clinics were cut off due to floods.
• “Water engineers are telling us these are the worst floods here since 1965,” an official told AFP.
• In Zambia, 21 districts have been affected by flooding and the army has been called in to assist the worst affected region of Shang’ombo, where they are also helping reconstruct a bridge connecting it to the rest of the country.
• In northern Botswana, rain has caused the Okavango, Zambezi and Chobe rivers to swell, leaving 430 people displaced and submerging eight villages.
• The villages of Satau and Parakarungu (population 1,000), could be swept away by the rising rivers within a matter of days, said a district official.
• In Mozambique,  about 4,000 people were cut off by floods.
• In 2008, heavy rains in Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi caused flash flooding in Mozambique displacing tens of thousands of people and destroying 100,000 hectares of crops.
• In 2000 and 2001 about 700 people were killed in Mozambique’s floods caused by torrential rains.
• “We must seriously consider the present floods and those of a year ago as having to do with climate change,” Guido van Langenhove, a Namibian government hydrologist, said.