State of Emergency Declared in Washington

Washington declares a state of emergency amid deadly ice storm

A deadly ice storm swept across the U.S. Pacific Northwest (PNW) following record snowfalls.

Disaster Calendar 2012 – January 20

[January 20, 2012]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,517 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Washington, USA.    Washington’s governor declared a state of emergency following the deadly “Snowmageddon” and ice storm, which swept across PNW killing at least 2 people and cutting power to hundreds of thousands of people in the region.
  • At Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, a new daily snowfall record of 6.8 inches was set, shattering the previous record of 2.9 inches set in 1954, reports said.
  • “Authorities called for voluntary evacuations of the town of Mapleton, Oregon, which has about 1,000 residents, and some nearby areas because expected flooding,” a report said.

U.S. Weather Warnings Map. Source: NWS

U.S. Composite Satellite Image  (Source: SSEC/Wisc-Uni)

Other Global Disasters

• Nevada, USA. Gov. Brian Sandoval has declared a state of emergency after a massive wildfire, fanned by 82-mph winds, burnt thousands of acres near Reno, killing at least 1 person, destroying more than 2 dozen homes and forcing the authorities to evacuate over 10,000 people.
• Oregon, USA.Extensive flooding has forced the Governor to  declare a state of emergency in Marion, Coos, Benton, and Lincoln counties.
  • More counties will likely be added as conditions worsen, he said.
  • The city of Salem has activated its Emergency Operations Center due to flooding.
  • The combined impact of snowmelt and torrential rains have flooded communities across Oregon.
  • “The return of severe winter weather has overwhelmed communities across our state,” the Governor said. “My priority is to ensure the safety of all Oregonians and their properties. With this emergency declaration, I have directed all available state resources to help affected counties in any way possible.”
  • Benton County, Or.Officials have declared Benton County a disaster area. “Flooding and landslides beginning January 18 in the area due to heavy rains and melting snow from a recent snow storm have created high water conditions,” the officials said in a statement. “A preliminary assessment shows damage to roads and homes and closed roads resulting in isolated areas of the county.”
    • “Rising creeks flooded much of Marion and Linn counties, including the communities of Turner and Scio, where hundreds of residents were evacuated from their homes and businesses,” said a report.
• Hawaii.  Hawaii County in Hawaii has been declared a Primary Natural Disaster Area by USDA.
  • The disaster declaration follows losses caused by drought that occurred from January 1, 2011, and continues.

• Tennessee, USA. USDA has declared 13 counties in Tennessee as agricultural disaster areas.
  • The disaster declaration follows losses caused by drought and excessive heat that occurred June 1 – October 20, 2011.
  • Primary Disaster Areas:  Henry and Williamson Counties.
  • Contiguous Disaster Areas: Benton, Cheatham, Dickson, Marshall, Carroll, Davidson, Hickman, Maury, Rutherford, Stewart and Weakley counties
• Kentucky, USA.The following counties in the neighboring state of Kentucky were also added to the disaster list because they’re contiguous.
  • Calloway and Graves counties.
• Tennessee, USA.  Seven counties in Tennessee have been declared agricultural Disaster areas due to losses caused by excessive rain, high winds, hail and flooding that occurred June 21 – December 5, 2011.
  • Primary Disaster Areas:  Claiborne and Union counties.
  • Contiguous Disaster Areas: Anderson, Campbell, Grainger, Hancock and Knox counties.
• Kentucky, USA. The following counties in the neighboring state of Kentucky were also added to the disaster list because they’re contiguous: Not Specified.
• Virginia, USA. The following counties in the neighboring state of Virginia were also added to the disaster list because they’re contiguous: Lee County.
• Mozambique. Flooding in Mozambique has left at least 5 people dead and made hundreds of others homeless.
  • Tropical depression DANDO, the first to strike Southern Mozambique in nearly 30 years, brought heavy rain and strong winds with gusts of up to 120km, dumping more than 250mm of precipitation over much of the south.
  • The winds and flooding have damaged thousands of homes schools and businesses in Gaza Province, and hundreds more in the capital Maputo.
  • Hundreds of people have lost their home and thousands more have been evacuated.
  • The Mozambican authorities have issued a Red Alert for the southern part of the country, which covers the capital Maputo, Matola city, Many districts in Maputo province, and the coastal areas in Gaza and Inhambane provinces, the National Meteorological Institute (INAM) said.
• USA. Violent sex crimes committed by active U.S. Army soldiers have nearly doubled in the past five years, according to a US Army report.
  • The crimes are blamed, in part, on the trauma of war.
  • Of the 2,811 violent felonies reported in 2011, about a half were violent felony sex crimes, and most were committed in the United States.
  • List of the top five violent felony offenses committed by soldiers in 2011:
    1. Aggravated assault
    2. Rape
    3. Aggravated sexual assault
    4. Forcible sodomy
    5. Child pornography.
  • “One violent sex crime was committed by a soldier every six hours and 40 minutes in 2011.”

Billion-dollar disasters of 2011 [Updated]

Extreme drought, heat waves, floods, unprecedented tornado outbreaks, hurricanes, wildfires and winter storms set  a record 14 weather and climate disasters in 2011 each causing  at least $1 billion in damages.

1. Groundhog Day blizzard (January 29-February 3, 2011)
2. Tornadoes  in Midwest/Southeast (April 4-5, 2011)
3. Tornadoes in Southeast/Midwest  (April 8-11, 2011)
4. Tornadoes in Midwest/Southeast (April 14-16, 2011)
5. Tornadoes in Southeast/Ohio Valley/Midwest (April 25-28, 2011)
6. Tornadoes in Midwest/Southeast (May 22-27, 2011)
7. Tornadoes and severe weather in Midwest/Southeast (June 18-22, 2011)
8. Drought and Heatwave in Southern Plains/Southwest (Spring-Fall, 2011)
9. Mississippi River flooding (Spring-Summer, 2011)
10. Severe weather in the Rockies and Midwest (July 10-14, 2011)  added Jan. 19, 2012
11. Flooding in the Upper Midwest (Summer 2011)
12. Hurricane Irene (August 20-29, 2011)
13. Wildfires in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona  (Spring-Fall 2011)
14. Tropical Storm Lee (Early September, 2011)  added Jan. 19, 2012)

Global Disasters: Links, Forecasts and Background

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

• 2010 Disasters [Links to 2010 Disaster Calendar]
• Mega Disasters
• 2011 Disaster Calendar
• 2012 Disaster Calendar

Wildfire Attacks Reno

Reno Fire Declared a Major Disaster by FEMA

A fast-moving 2,000-acre blaze whipped by 100 kph (60 mph) destroys at least 20 Reno homes, forces 10,000 people to evacuate and prompts Nevada Gov to declare a state of emergency in the state’s largest city (pop: 700,000 metro area)

Disaster Calendar 2011 – November 19

[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.

Related Links

• Deadly Tornadoes Strike Southeastern U.S.
• Dozens of Counties in 15 States Declared Agri Disaster Areas

• 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

• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities  (EDRO Forecast)
• 2011 Much More Disastrous: FIRE-EARTH Forecast
• Global Disasters in 2011 Could Impact 1/3 to 1/2 of the Human Population  (FIRE-EARTH Forecast)
• Back to the Primordial Future
• Mass Die-offs  (FIRE-EARTH Forecast)

• 2010 Disaster Calendar 
• 2011 Disaster Calendar