Global Disasters/ Significant Events – September 29, 2013

Deep Freeze Ends Growing Season in Nevada Counties

The growing season has ended for White Pine, Southern Lander and Southern Eureka counties, said NWS.

Temperatures dipped into the 20s across the majority of Southern Lander/Eureka and White Pine counties on Friday, killing most tender vegetation in these areas.

Light freezes have also occurred in other forecast zones including Northern Lander, Northern Eureka, Southeastern Elko and northern Nye counties. Growing season in isolated areas in these counties may have also ended.

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Dozens drown as Nigeria boat sinks

At least 48 people drowned and more that 100 others are reported missing after a boat sank on the River Niger in central Nigeria late Friday, according to local reports.

The boat may have been overloaded, carrying more that two and a half times the number of passengers allowed, reports said.

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Dozens Still missing after refugee boat sinks

“More than 30 people were still missing two days after a boat carrying asylum seekers to Australia sank off the Indonesian coast, killing 22 people including seven children,” Indonesian security officials said.

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Dozens killed in Mumbai building collapse

Death toll reached 60 on Sunday in the collapsed apartment building in India’s financial capital of Mumbai, officials said. Some 33 others were rescued from the building’s wreckage.

The five-story building, which collapsed on Friday, was the third deadly cave-in of a Mumbai structure in six months, said a report.

“In April, at least 72 people died when an illegally constructed building fell. Two months later, a three-story structure collapsed, killing at least 10 people, including five children.”

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Giant Hornets Kill Dozens in China

Attacks by swarms of giant hornets in Shaanxi province, central China, has left at least 28 people dead and up to a thousand others injured, many of them seriously, according to reports.

Terrorized victims have described being chased by large swarms of hornets for hundreds of yards and stung as many as 200 times over several minutes.

The insects have a highly toxic sting that can lead to anaphylactic shock and kidney failure, according to experts.

It’s believed that the swarms are populated mainly by the Asian giant hornet or Vespa mandarinia, which grows up to 50mm (2 ins.) long with a 6mm sting.

Experts have previously suggested that warmer temperatures in the region may be responsible for hornets breeding more successfully.

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Wisconsin Gov Signs Emergency Declaration for Buckling I-43 bridge\

A span on the Leo Frigo Memorial Bridge in Green Bay shows signs of buckling Wednesday in this view looking west. Gov. Scott Walker signed an emergency declaration Friday that makes federal funds available for repairs. Photo credit: Jim Matthews/ jsonline.com

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German Town Evacuated after Gas Explosion

The entire town of Hartenhausen (population: ~ 3,000) near Ludwigshafen  in central Germany was evacuated on Saturday after a major gas explosion injured 16 firefighters and shattered windows. The blast was so powerful it could be heard up to 30 kilometers away, AP reported.

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50 Nigerian students killed in armed attack

At least 50 Nigerian students have been killed in an armed attack, AP reported. The attack occurred at an agricultural college in northeast Nigeria’s Yobe State.  Gunmen broke into the college dorm at night and shot students as they slept. The authorities have blamed the Boko Haram [“Western education is forbidden”] group.

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Bomb blasts kill 39 in Peshawar, NW Pakistan

Two bomb explosions in the northwestern Pakistan city of Peshawar killed 36 people and wounded more than 100 on Sunday, authorities said.

The victims included 12 members of a family who were shopping at the blast sites, according to local officials.
The powerful blasts destroyed about 20 buildings and many vehicles in nearby streets.

The Peshawar twin blasts were the third major terrorist in the city over the past 8 days. A twin suicide bomb attack on a Christian church on September 22 killed more than more than 80 people. On Friday September 27, a bomb planted on a bus carrying local government employees exploded killing at least 19 people.

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Iraq Violence: Death Toll for September Reaches 1,079

At least 30 more people were killed in Iraq Saturday and Sunday, as of posting, in the cities of Arbil, Baghdad, Baiji, Basra, Falluja Mosul, Mussayab, Muqdadiya and Tikrit by bombs, AEDs, IEDs and gunfire, raising the death toll for September to 1,079 so far.

Death toll for 2013 has exceeded 6,000 and is expected to climb higher.

Continued…

Yellow River Contaminated by Diesel Leak

Despite frantic efforts by 700 emergency workers to contain the spill, diesel leak contaminated the Yellow River

The Yellow River, the water source for millions of people, was contaminated by a diesel fuel leak from a broken oil pipeline in northern China, despite efforts by more than 700 emergency workers to contain the spill, China’s official news agency Xinhua reported.

Emergency workers repair the leakage on a diesel pipeline in Huaxian county in northwest China’s Shaanxi province, Jan. 3, 2010. The Yellow River, the water source for millions, has been contaminated by a diesel fuel leak despite efforts to contain the spill in a tributary, forcing authorities along the river to suspend water supplies. (Xinhua/Yuan Jingzhi). Image may be subject to copyright.

Some 150,000 litres of diesel had spilled into the Wei river in Shaanxi province following a construction, Xinhua had reported earlier.

The diesel spill had first entered the Chishui river, a tributary of the Wei. The Wei is a major tributary of the Yellow River, China’s second-longest, and the water source for millions of people.

The leak which occurred in a pipeline owned by China National Petroleum Corp., the country’s largest producer of oil and gas, has now contaminated the Yellow River.

“Running through eight cities in Henan Province, the Yellow River provides the source of drinking water for Zhengzhou and Kaifeng, two of the province’s largest cities [combined population of about 10 million.]” Xinhua reported.

“One third of the Yellow River is heavily polluted by industrial waste and unsafe for any use, according to criteria used by the U.N. Environmental Program.” Washington Post reported.

Related Links:

• Disasters Caused by Oil and gas Drilling, Oil Spills, Leaks, Land, Water and Air Pollution
• 2010 Disaster Calender

This’s Got to Be the Year of Radioactive, Chemical and Oil Spills, Too!

The Moderators have so far declared 2008 the year of fire, tornadoes and volcanic eruptions.

We were wondering whether 2008 could also be declared the year of radioactive, chemical and oil spills, too, almost certain of the knowledge that Areva, EDF and the likes would not “disappoint” us!

French Nuke Industry, Again!

Sure enough, in the third incident of uranium spillage in two weeks, it was revealed that about 100 employees at a nuclear power plant in southern France were contaminated with radiation during maintenance work at the Tricastin reactor number four.

Nuke Leaks, USA: Contaminated US site faces ‘catastrophic’ nuclear leak

More than 210 million liters of radioactive and chemical waste are stored in 177 underground tanks at Hanford in Washington State. Most are over 50 years old. Already 67 of the tanks have failed, leaking almost 4 million litres of waste into the ground. New Scientist reported.

Mississippi Oil Spill [Though Not the Largest Ever!]

Meanwhile, back home, A chemical tanker broke a fuel barge in half on the Mississippi River. About 420,000 gallons (1,589,700 liters) of fuel oil No. 6 [described as lighter than crude oil, but heavier than diesel] were spilled forcing the closure of a 58-mile (93km) stretch from New Orleans southward.

“It’s not the largest spill we’ve ever had, but it’s a large one,” said Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality spokesman Rodney Mallett. [Well, isn’t that a relief!]

Vanadium mine leak in China

Sludge from a vanadium mine in northwestern China contaminated two nearby rivers, Shuanghe River and Donghe River in Shaanxi province, when a spillway collapsed on Tuesday and sent authorities scrambling to protect drinking water supplies, Xinhua news agency said.

“The black-colored waste water with a layer of white bubbles on the top is being stopped by multiple (makeshift dams) and stored and diverted to low-laying areas,” Xinhua said.

“In April, ore tailings from another vanadium mine in Shanyang county polluted and literally blackened three rivers, state media reported at the time.” Reuters reported.

[All vanadium compounds should be considered highly toxic. Generally, the higher the oxidation state of vanadium, the more toxic the compound is. The most dangerous compound is vanadium pentoxide.]

Oil Spill in Amur River

Russia informed China of oil pollution in the Amur River On July 8. last week, the Ministry of Environmental Protection ruled out the possibility that the fuel oil pollution in Amur, or Heilongjiang River, was China.

Mystery oil spill in Patagonia: January 2008 [Don’t you just love the murder mystery spin?]

“The overall spill is made up of several slicks, two to three kilometers wide along a total extension of approximately forty kilometers,” reported the local newspaper El Chubut.

“Argentine government is analyzing recent satellite imagery to determine the cause of the spill but has yet to determine where the oil came from. According to local media reports, several corporations are suspected of causing the spill.” IFAW reported.

Penguins warm up after being affected by the oil spill in Patagonia.
© IFAW. See FEWW Fair Use Notice!

Black Sea and San Francisco Bay Oil Spills: Environmental disasters follow oil spills

“In the Black Sea and San Francisco Bay, tens of thousands of birds, countless marine creatures and a half-dozen people died following oil spills. The spills in the Black Sea were caused by ships running aground and sinking during the worst storm the region has seen in decades, while the spill in the Bay Area was caused by a lone container ship hitting a bridge in fog. Environmental groups working in both regions call the spills ecological catastrophes.” GEOTIMES wrote.

In Russia, a severe storm struck the Black Sea on Nov 11 damaging or sinking 11 ships and tankers. a total of about 1 million gallons (1,378,500 liters ) of oil was spilled into the Kerch Strait, which ends in the Black Sea, killing as many as 15,000 birds. It’s thought as many as 11 endangered species of birds inhabit the area, and many more migrate through the fragile eco-region.

San Francisco Bay oil spill. Image may be subject to copyright. See FEWW Fair Use Notice!

A container ship in San Francisco Bay struck the Bay Bridge on Nov. 7, causing substantial damage to the vessel and spilling about 60,000 gallons (~ 227,00 liters) of fuel oil into the bay. Some 2,500 birds died as a result. Experts say the region may be affected by the spill for the next 20 years.

Although the two incidents happened in November 2007, the full environmental impacts are now beginning to appear.

Norwegian oil spill raises concern about future oil plans

The second biggest oil spill in Norway occurred in December 2007, reviving concerns of the possible expansion of oil and gas exploration in Norwegian waters.

The spill of around 25,000 barrels left an oil slick 5 kilometres wide and 10 kilometres long. Fortunately the accident was mostly contained by favourable winds. The accident occurred as a tanker was loaded at energy group StatoilHydro’s Statfjord field. IceNews reported.

Norway Again: Oil spill on Draugen

The Petroleum Safety Authority Norway (PSA) has conducted an investigation of the incident that occurred on Draugen on 10 January 2008, which led to an oil spill of about 6 m3 to the sea. On the basis of our findings we have issued an order to A/S Norske Shell (Shell) and Teekay Shipping Norway AS (Teekay). The Petroleum Safety Authority Norway reported.

Oh, NO! Not Norway Again!

During oil offloading from the Statfjord A platform in the North Sea, about 4,000 cubic meters (~ 1.1 million gallons) of crude oil was spilled into the sea on the December 12 causing marine pollution. The Statfjord field is located around 200 kilometres west of Bergen, close to the border of the UK continental shelf. Statfjord was discovered by Mobil in 1974, and Statoil took over the operatorship on 01 January 1987. The field is likely to remain in production until 2019. MarineBuzz reported.

Stril Pioner and seagoing booms at Gullfaks. Imagt credit: MarineBuzz [click link for more photos.] Image may be subject to copyright. See FEWW Fair Use Notice!

Oil Spill Lebanon

“war on Lebanon brought about the biggest environmental catastrophe in the history of this small country. 15,000 tons of oil spilled from Jiyyeh power [plant] after Israeli bombardment spilling oil onto most of the Lebanese coast. ”

“A lot of oil is still on the beach, but all oil spill cleanup operations have stopped due to lack of funding. The last organization doing cleanup is ‘Bahr Loubnan’ NGO that was cleaning rocks from oil near Jiyeh using high pressure water jets. A lot of oil can still be found on shore all along the coast in Jiyeh, Beirut, Tabarja, Jbeil and Anfeh. The Ministry of Environment has issued a call for the second phase of cleanup and is looking for funding.” Oil Spill Lebanon reported.

The oil pollution on the Lebanese Coast (Rena Karanouh). Image may be subject to copyright. See FEWW Fair Use Notice!

Oil Spill Korean Style

In South Korea’s worst oil spill [December 2007,] a crane barge punched holes into Hebei Spirit tanker which spewed 10,500 tons (3.4 million gallons) of its crude oil load into the sea.

Folks, it’s time to drill the Arctics some more. There’s too much pollution out here!

Related Links:

• 2008: Year of the Fire
• Will 2008 be year of the tornadoes, too?
• 2008: Year of the Expected Unknowns!