Death toll climbs to 38 in China mine explosion

China’s 2nd deadly mine incident in a week claims dozens of lives

Thirty-eight miners are confirmed dead and five others are missing after a massive explosion in a coal mine in southwest China’s Yunnan province.

Disaster Calendar 2011 – November 13

[November 13, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,585 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Yunnan province. Thirty-eight miners are now confirmed dead and five others are missing after Thursday’s massive explosion in a coalmine in southwest China’s Yunnan province.
• The explosion was china’s second deadly incident in less than a week.
• A  “rock burst” at Qianqiu coalmine in the city of Sanmenxia, central China’s Henan province, which occurred shortly after a magnitude 2.9 earthquake struck the area, left at least 10 miners dead on November 3.
• About 100 people were killed in mining incidents across China last month.
• China’s official death toll from mining accidents was 2,433 last year.

Other Global Disasters

• Van, Turkey. Death toll from Turkey’s deadly aftershock has climbed to at least 39, Anatolia news agency reported.
• The combined death toll from the two deadly quakes since October 23 has exceeded at least 645, with about 2,000 people injured.
• Tens of thousands of people have been made homeless.
• New Zealand. A measles epidemic is rapidly spreading across New Zealand.
• “New Zealand is in the midst of an epidemic, with 387 cases this year (at November 4) – the most since 1997 – in a population of just over 4 million. The US, with about 313 million people, had recorded about 200 cases this year.”
• Somalia. A dramatic rise in the number of rape cases for women at internally displaced camps has occurred, according to the UN officials.
• “Attacks on women have gone up dramatically in the last two months and the severity of the attacks has become worse,” said a specialist on gender-based violence at the U.N. Population Fund.

Related Links

• 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)

• 2011 Disaster Calendar – November
• 2011 Disaster Calendar – October
• 2011 Disaster Calendar – September
• 2011 Disaster Calendar – August
• 2010 Disaster Calendar 
• 2011 Disaster Calendar

North Dakota Declared Disaster Area

Extreme weather, insects and diseases render North Dakota a disaster area

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 52 out of  53 counties in North Dakota as natural disaster areas because of extreme weather, insects and diseases that have plagued the state this year.

Disaster Calendar 2011 – October 27

[October 27, 2011]  Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.  SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,602 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• North Dakota. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 52 counties in North Dakota as disaster areas due to losses caused by the combined effects of spring snowstorms, frosts and freezes in late spring and early fall, excessive rain, flooding, ground saturation, landslides, high winds, hail, tornadoes, periods of unseasonably cool spring temperatures, excessive summer heat and weather-related insects and diseases that occurred from Jan. 1, 2011, and continues.

List of 42 counties that are designated as primary disaster areas.  Source: USDA

• The 10 North Dakota counties designated as contiguous disaster areas are Adams, Burleigh, Emmons, Kidder, Logan, Morton, Sheridan, Sioux, Slope and Stark counties.

• Minnesota, Montana and South Dakota. The following 17 bordering counties in the states of Minnesota, Montana and South Dakota have also been designated as disaster areas:

Source: USDA

Other Global Disasters

• Mexico, Central America and Colombia. More than two weeks of torrential rains, triggering widespread flooding and mudslides and swamping up to 1,000 towns and cities in the region, have displaced or severely affected over a million people, destroying  their food stocks in southern Mexico and Central America.
• “In the Mexican state of Tabasco alone, over 250,000 people have been displaced by the floods and are demanding government aid,” a report said.
• Floodwaters have inundated tns of thousands of farms, destroying or damaging hundreds of thousands of hectares of crops in the region.
• “Drought, freezing temperatures, and floods have contributed to the loss of some 400,000 heads of cattle,” the report said.
  
• The region has also experienced  severe losses in the production of corn, beans and sorghum.
• Colombia. Torrential rains have again hit Colombia, killing at least 35 and severely affecting more than 100,000 people.
• The country hasn’t even remotely recovered from last year’s epic floods, which have contributed to devastating mudslides that have destroyed much of Colombia’s infrastructure over  large areas.
• Famine. Food shortages are forcing up prices, and leaving  thousands threatened with famine, the report said.
• “The price of tortillas, a staple in the Mexican diet, is expected to be 30 percent higher at the end of this year relative to 2010. The expectation for the rise in the price of corn is higher, 56 percent in comparison with last year. The price of beans is already 70 percent higher, and that of vegetable shortening 100 percent, sugar 40 percent, milk 50 percent, rice 130 percent, and bread 60 percent.”
• El Salvador. The Mega Deluge has destroyed more than 40 percent of the corn crop and 75 percent of the bean crop according to preliminary reports.
• Guatemala. At least 40,000 peasant farmers whose entire crops have been wiped out are now facing famine.
• Nicaragua. Mega floods have affected up to 150,000 people, displacing at least 10,000 villagers.

Many of the nearly 1,000 towns and cities that have been inundated across the vast geographical area, which  extends from Mexico to Colombia, would be unable to recover from the ongoing disasters and face certain collapse.

In fact, collapse is already occurring:

• Famine is already present in some parts of Mexico, the Torreón Catholic Diocese has reported.
• “Every day hundreds of displaced farmers and their families flock to this city in Coahuila state to ask for food that they can no longer afford to buy. And it is not just food: the cost of potable water is also on the rise, forcing families to turn to sources of drinking water that are contaminated by parasites and pollutants.”

• Minnesota, USA. Thirty-four counties in the state of Minnesota  have been designated as natural disaster areas due to the combine effects of excessive rain, excessive heat, high winds, tornadoes and an early fall frost that occurred during the period of April 1, 2011, through Sept. 15, 2001, USDA reported.

List of the 11 Minnesota counties designated as primary disaster areas.  Source: USDA

List of the Minnesota counties designated as disaster areas because they are contiguous.  Source: USDA

• North and South Dakota. The following counties in North and South Dakota have also been declared as disaster areas because they are contiguous:
• North Dakota: Richland County.
• South Dakota: Deuel, Grant and Roberts counties.

• Turkey. The powerful quake that struck eastern Turkey together with large swarms of aftershocks have now claimed at least 525 lives, injured 1,650 people and made thousands homeless, officials said.
• Hundreds are still missing under the rubble.
• Survivors are buffeted by freezing rain and snow in worsening conditions.
• There are severe shortages of tents and aid supplies, reports said.
• A major earthquake could yet strike Turkey in 2011/2012 with a certainty of 0.7 (P= 66%).

Related Links

• 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)

• U.S. back-to-back disasters phase has begun

• 2011 Disaster Calendar – October
• 2011 Disaster Calendar – September
• 2011 Disaster Calendar – August
• 2010 Disaster Calendar 
• 2011 Disaster Calendar

Shallow Quake Strikes Western Turkey

M5.9 earthquake shook western Turkey, killing 2, injuring 30 and damaging buildings

The quake  was centered in the town of Simav (39.14°N, 29.16°E) and struck at a depth of about 6 km at 20:15UTC on May 19,2011.

One person reportedly died in Simav after jumping out of window in panic, and the second fatality occurred as a result of a heart attack. Several dozen people were injured from broken glass, or jumping off balconies, but there was no report of widespread damage, AP said.

“Most of the town of Simav was without electricity and telephone lines were down, reports said. At least one empty building collapsed in Simav and some other old buildings were also slightly damaged, said the Anatolia news agency.”

A politician who was on the fifth floor of an apartment building in Simav when the quake struck said: “It was so strong that we could not even move in the first few seconds. [Too afraid to return to their homes] people are waiting in their cars now.”

Distances [USGS]

• 80 km (50 miles) WSW (247°) from Kutahya, Turkey
• 118 km (73 miles) ESE (117°) from Balikesir, Turkey
• 118 km (74 miles) S (180°) from Bursa, Turkey
• 334 km (208 miles) WSW (256°) from ANKARA, Turkey

JAPAN QUAKE UPDATE

Data collected by underwater geodetic equipment placed on the seabed off the coast of Japan indicate that the March 11 Mega Quake moved the ocean floor laterally by about 20m (65ft), and caused also an upwards movement of 3m (10ft), a report said.

Related Links

• FEWW Volcano Links
• Volcanoes
• FEWW Earthquake Links

Deadly Quake Kills Dozens in Turkey

UPDATE: Turkey Quake Death Toll Reaches 41: Local Sources

Strong Earthquake Measuring 6.0Mw Strikes Eastern Turkey

The quake struck at a depth of about 2 km with the epicenter located at 38.82°N, 40.50°E, on March 8, 2010 at 02:32:34UTC European Mediterranean Seismological Center reported.

The mainshock was followed by at least a dozen aftershocks, as of posting, the largest of which measured 4.4Mw.

Up to several dozen people have been killed, as of posting.  The victims were from the small village of Okcular, where dozens of houses collapse in the earthquake various sources reported a local official as saying.

• Magnitude: 5.9 [Max Mag Estimated at 6.0Mw by Fire-Earth]
• Region: EASTERN TURKEY
• Date time: 2010-03-08 at 02:32:33.5 UTC
• Location: 38.82 N ; 40.05 E
• Depth: 2 km
• Distances:
  • 74 km E Elazig (pop 298,004 ; local time 04:32 2010-03-08)
  • 16 km S Karakoçan (pop 29,735 ; local time 04:32 2010-03-08)
  • 105 km (65 miles) SSE of Erzincan
  • 625 km (390 miles) E of ANKARA (Capital of Turkish Capital)

10-degree Map Centered at 40°N,40°E

EQ Location Map. Source: USGS/EHP. Image Edited and Enhanced by FEWW.

Seismic Hazard Map of Turkey

Other Maps

• Shakemap of Eastern Turkey (USGS)
• Estimated Population Exposed (.PDF)
  

Tectonic Summary

The tectonic map of Turkey includes the North Anatolian fault, East Anatolian fault, and Hellenic and Florence trenches. The westward movement of the Anatolian block results from (1) differences in rates of motion between the Arabian and African plates, (2) different directions of motion between the Anatolian block and Eurasian plate to the north, and (3) subduction of the African plate beneath the Anatolian block at the Hellenic and Florence trenches. The Arabian plate is moving to the north faster than the African plate, both relative to a stable Eurasian plate. The result is a westward moving wedge incorporating most of Turkey. (Source: USGS)

Seismicity Map of Turkey

Seismicity Map of Turkey shows the location of a M6.4 earthquake which struck on May 1, 2003, close to the epicenter of today’s earthquake.

Seismic Hazard Setting

Tectonic Map of Turkey


Historic Earthquakes and Fatalities (Turkey)

• 1668 08 17 – Anatolia, Turkey – M 8.0 Fatalities 8,000
• 1899 09 20 – Menderes Valley, Turkey – M 6.9 Fatalities 1,100
• 1901 12 18 – Ayvalik, Turkey (Ottoman Empire) – M 5.9
• 1903 04 28 – Turkey – M 7.0 Fatalities 3,500
• 1903 05 28 – Gole, Turkey (Ottomon Empire) – M 5.8 Fatalities 1,000
• 1912 08 09 – Murefte, Turkey (Ottoman Empire) – M 7.8 Fatalities 2,800
• 1914 10 03 – Burdur, Turkey (Ottoman Empire) – M 7.0 Fatalities 4,000
• 1939 12 26 – Erzincan, Turkey – M 7.8 Fatalities 32,700
• 1942 11 26 – Turkey – M 7.6 Fatalities 4,000
• 1942 12 20 – Erbaa, Turkey – M 7.3 Fatalities 1,100
• 1943 11 26 – Ladik, Turkey – M 7.6 Fatalities 4,000
• 1944 02 01 – Gerede, Turkey – M 7.4 Fatalities 2,790
• 1946 05 31 – Ustukran, Turkey – M 5.9 Fatalities 1,300
• 1949 08 17 – Erzurum, Turkey – M 6.8 Fatalities 320
• 1951 08 13 – Kursunlu, Turkey – M 6.7 Fatalities 50
• 1953 03 18 – Yenice-Gonen, Turkey – M 7.3 Fatalities 1,073
• 1957 04 25 – Fethiye, Turkey – M 7.1 Fatalities 15
• 1957 05 26 – Bolu Province, Turkey – M 7.1 Fatalities 66
• 1964 10 06 – Western Turkey – M 7.0 Fatalities 36
• 1965 06 13 – Denizli, Turkey – M 5.4 Fatalities 2
• 1966 08 19 – Varto, Turkey – M 6.8 Fatalities 2,529
• 1967 07 22 – Mudurnu Valley, Turkey – M 7.3 Fatalities 173
• 1968 09 03 – Bartin, Turkey – M 6.6 Fatalities 24
• 1969 03 28 – Alasehir, Turkey – M 6.4 Fatalities 11
• 1970 03 28 – Gediz, Turkey – M 6.9 Fatalities 1,086
• 1971 05 12 – Western Turkey – M 6.3
• 1971 05 22 – Eastern Turkey – M 6.9 Fatalities 1,000
• 1975 09 06 – Turkey – M 6.7 Fatalities 2,000
• 1983 10 30 – Turkey – M 6.9 Fatalities 1,342
• 1999 08 17 – Izmit, Turkey – M 7.6 Fatalities 17,118
• 1999 11 12 – Duzce, Turkey – M 7.2 Fatalities 894
• 2002 02 03 – Turkey – M 6.5 Fatalities 44
• 2003 01 27 – Turkey – M 6.1
• 2003 05 01 – Eastern Turkey – M 6.4 Fatalities 177
• 2004 07 01 – Eastern Turkey – M 5.1 Fatalities 18

Related Links:

• FEWW Earthquake Links
• Volcanoes
• FEWW Volcano Links
• Arabia Shakes
• Volcanic Explosions Could Split More Than Africa

Other Links:

• Recent Earthquakes in Turkey
• Real-time Earthquake data from Turkey