"We warned at the start of ZetaTalk, in 1995, thatunpredictable weather extremes, switching about from drought to deluge,would occur and increase on a lineal basis up until the pole shift. Where this occurred steadily, it has only recently become undeniable. ZetaTalk, and only ZetaTalk, warned of these weather changes, at that early date. Our early warnings spoke to the issue of global heating from the core outward, hardly Global Warming, a surface or atmospheric issue, but caused by consternation in the core. Affected by the approach of Planet X, which was by then starting to zoom rapidly toward the inner solar system for its periodic passage, the core was churning, melting the permafrost and glaciers and riling up volcanoes. When the passage did not occur as expected in 2003 because Planet X had stalled in the inner solar system, we explained the increasing weather irregularities in the context of the global wobble that had ensued - weather wobbles where the Earth is suddenly forced under air masses, churning them. This evolved by 2005 into a looping jet stream, loops breaking away and turning like a tornado to affect the air masses underneath. Meanwhile, on Planet Earth, droughts had become more intractable and deluges positively frightening, temperature swings bringing snow in summer in the tropics and searing heat in Artic regions, with the violence of storms increasing in number and ferocity."
The wobble seems to have changed, as the temperature in Europe suddenly plunged after being like an early Spring, Alaska has its coldest temps ever while the US and much of Canada is having an extremely mild winter. India went from fatal cold spell to balmy again. Has the Earth changed position vs a vs Planet X to cause this?[and from another]Bitter cold records broken in Alaska - all time coldest record nearly broken, but Murphy's Law intervenes[Jan 30]http://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/01/30/bitter-cold-records-broken-in-alaskaJim River, AK closed in on the all time record coldest temperature of -80°F set in 1971, which is not only the Alaska all-time record, but the record for the entire United States. Unfortunately, it seems the battery died in the weather station just at the critical moment. While the continental USA has a mild winter and has set a number of high temperature records in the last week and pundits ponder whether they will be blaming the dreaded "global warming" for those temperatures, Alaska and Canada have been suffering through some of the coldest temperatures on record during the last week.
There has been no change in the wobble pattern, the wobble has merely become more severe. Nancy noted a Figure 8 format when the Earth wobble first became noticeable, in early 2005, after Planet X moved into the inner solar system at the end of 2003. The Figure 8 shifted along to the east a bit on the globe between 2005 and 2009, (the last time Nancy took its measure) as Planet X came closer to the Earth, encountering the magnetic N Pole with a violent push earlier in the day. But the pattern of the Figure 8 remained essentially the same. So what changed recently that the weather patterns became noticeably different in late January, 2012?
The N Pole is pushed away when it comes over the horizon, when the noon Sun is centered over the Pacific. This regularly puts Alaska under colder air, with less sunlight, and thus the historically low temps there this January, 2012 as the wobble has gotten stronger. But by the time the Sun is positioned over India, the N Pole has swung during the Figure 8 so the globe tilts, and this tilt is visible in the weather maps from Asia. The tilt has forced the globe under the hot air closer to the Equator, warming the land along a discernable tilt demarcation line.
The next loop of the Figure 8 swings the globe so that the N Pole moves in the other direction, putting the globe again at a tilt but this time in the other direction. This tilt is discernable in weather maps of Europe, again along a diagonal line. Depending upon air pressure and temperature differences, the weather on either side of this diagonal line may be suddenly warm or suddenly cold. The tilt and diagonal line lingers to affect much of the US and Canada, but the Figure 8 changes at this point to be an up and down motion, pulling the geographic N Pole south so the US is experiencing a warmer than expected winter under a stronger Sun. Then the cycle repeats, with the magnetic N Pole of Earth pushed violently away again as the Sun is positioned over the Pacific.
Would the Zetas be able to let us know what is causing the early break-up of the Arctic Ice, the ice seems to have taken on a swirling pattern at the same time, would this be wobble related?[and from another]http://www.vancouversun.com/news/national/Canada+Arctic+cracks+spec... The ice in Canada’s western Arctic ripped open in a massive “fracturing event” this spring that spread like a wave across 1,000 kilometres of the Beaufort Sea. Huge leads of water – some more than 500 kilometres long and as much as 70 kilometres across – opened up from Alaska to Canada’s Arctic islands as the massive ice sheet cracked as it was pushed around by strong winds and currents. It took just seven days for the fractures to progress across the entire area from west to east.[and from another]http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=80752&src=iot... A high-pressure weather system was parked over the region, producing warmer temperatures and winds that flowed in a southwesterly direction. That fueled the Beaufort Gyre, a wind-driven ocean current that flows clockwise. The gyre was the key force pulling pieces of ice west past Point Barrow, the northern nub of Alaska that protrudes into the Beaufort Sea.
The Figure 8 formed by the N Pole during the daily Earth wobble has shifted somewhat to the East, due to Planet X positioned more to the right of the Earth during its approach. This was anticipated, and well described in ZetaTalk, the Earth crowding to the left in the cup to escape the approach of Planet X, so the angle between these two planets would change slightly. This shift of the Figure 8 to the East is due to the push against the Earth’s magnetic N Pole occurring sooner each day than prior. Thus instead of occurring when the Sun is high over the Pacific, over New Zealand, it is now occurring when the Sun is high over Alaska. All the wobble points have shifted eastward accordingly.
This has brought a lingering Winter to the western US, and a changed sloshing pattern to the Arctic waters. Instead of Pacific waters being pushed through the Bering Straits into the Arctic when the polar push occurs, the wobble is swinging the Arctic to the right, and then later to the left, creating a circular motion in the waters trapped in the Arctic. Since the Earth rotates counterclockwise, the motion also takes this path. This is yet another piece of evidence that the establishment is hard pressed to explain. They are attempting to ascribe this to high pressure and wind, all of which are not new to the Arctic, but this circular early breakup of ice in the Arctic is new.
Qatar’s residents have gotten used to rainy weather of late, but last night’s thunder and lightning was still something special. ------------------------------------------ Thundershowers continue to pound UAE
Northern Manitoba town's grocery shelves are bare as residents face another blizzard
Locals say there is hardly any meat left at the one store in Churchill.
Another winter blizzard is hitting the remote northern Manitoba community of Churchill, where people are already desperate for groceries that have been delayed since the last blizzard two weeks ago.
But there could be relief as soon as Monday afternoon, if the train can get all the way through to the town of about 900 residents.
Churchill, Man., is located about 1,000 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg. (Google Maps)
OmniTrax, the Denver-based company that owns the rail line that brings supplies into Churchill, cleared the tracks and is trying to get supplies delivered as soon as possible. A train with supplies departed from the northern Manitoba town of Gillam, about 270 kilometres southeast of Churchill, at around noon Monday.
"A lot of families are suffering because they have young children and they need milk," said local resident Lana Bilenduke.
No bread or vegetables are for sale at the local store and meat is scarce, she said.
"Everyone's in a crisis until we get our groceries in."
The northern Manitoba town is again in the midst of near-zero visibility, wind gusts of 90 km/h and wind chill values in the –40s due to an intense low pressure system over Hudson Bay, according to Environment Canada.
Churchill has been under a local state of emergency since March 10, after the area was hit with 60 cm of snow over three days.
The forecast calls for five more centimetres of snow, on top of the 60 cm that fell over three days during the previous blizzard. The town has been under a local state of emergency since then.
The latest blizzard conditions should ease late Monday afternoon or early in the evening.
Churchill Deputy Mayor Shane Hutchins said a freight train hasn't come into town in nearly three weeks, and people are still digging out from the earlier blizzard.
Deliveries usually come once a week, but shelves are bare at the town's lone supermarket — the Northern Store, he said.
"I've lived here 50 years and no, we've never had anything like this."
Blizzard conditions with near-zero visibility, wind gusts of 90 km/h and wind chill values in the -40s are expected in Churchill on Monday, just two weeks after the above storm slammed the area.
However, the news that OmniTrax has a train loaded with supplies headed that way is welcome news, he said.
"It looks like we should have groceries available to us hopefully some time either late this afternoon or early tomorrow morning," he said, adding: "I don't know what the expiry date of the vegetables or produce is … fingers crossed they are in relatively good shape."
People in Churchill were becoming increasingly frustrated with OmniTrax after what Hutchins described as "nearly non-existent" communication between the company and the town since snow-clearing plows on the line were recently shut down.
Ron Margulis, an OmniTrax spokesperson, said the snow on the rail line to Churchill was abnormal and difficult for crews to get rid of. But as of Monday the crews had accomplished that goal.
Margulis also disputed Hutchins's assertion OmniTrax has not communicated properly with the town.
Margulis said the company had sent notices to communities along the route that were affected by the line's temporary closure.
Comment by SongStar101 on March 24, 2017 at 10:03am
Lake Tahoe expected to fill up with largest physical rise in recorded history
The depressing scene of boat docks sitting high and dry on wide beaches around Lake Tahoe will likely be a fleeting memory this summer.
Winter's unrelenting storms built up a substantial Sierra snowpack and are expected to fill the lake for the first time in 11 years.
Many low-lying areas that were exposed when the lake level was declining during the drought will be inundated with water. The docks will be bobbing in crystal blue waters once again.
Straddling the California–Nevada border, Tahoe is the sixth largest lake in the United States, an outdoor playground for people around the world, and the main water source for the Reno-Sparks, Nevada, area. The renowned ecological wonder is fed by 63 tributaries that drain 505 square miles known as the Lake Tahoe Watershed. With a vast surface area of 191 square miles, Tahoe requires an immense amount of water to fill, especially because roughly 100 billion gallons of water evaporates annually.
Lake Tahoe's natural rim is at 6,223 feet above sea level. The lake can store an additional 6.1 feet in its reservoir and climbs up to 6,229 feet at full capacity, its legal maximum limit. The only outlet, a dam at Tahoe City, regulates the upper 6.1 feet above the low water mark, and this winter water is being released into the Truckee River as billions of gallons flow into the lake.
Tahoe's water level reached 6,226.84 feet on Wednesday, and the lake needs some 88 billion gallons of water to jump up the 2.26 feet required to be completely full. That's the equivalent of filling more than 133,000 Olympic-size swimming pools.
"We feel really good right now," said U.S. District Court Water Master Chad Blanchard. "We're releasing 500 cubic feet of water per second, and trying to manage the elevation. The elevation has been flat for a couple weeks, but we don't want to get too high because we have two-and-a-quarter feet of room. But we could still have as much as four to five feet of water to come into the lake in next five months. It's a balancing act. We have to fill, but we don't want to overfill. And the forecasts we get are just forecasts. They're not perfect."
Lake Tahoe is feeling the effects of the drought and is at its lowest water level in four years.
Media: tvjson
If Tahoe reaches full capacity, as Blanchard expects the lake will do at the end of July, it would see its largest physical rise in recorded history going back to 1900.
Since the start of the rainy season on October 1, the lake level has shot up 4.5 feet. If the lake fills, it will rise a total of 6.5 feet, beating the 1995 record when it jumped up six feet in a single season, which runs Oct. 1 to Sept. 30.
This is a huge milestone for a body of water that flirted with record-low levels amid a five-year drought. At the same time last year, the lake level was a full 4.19 feet lower. This was discouraging in an El Niño year when storms expected to bring record-breaking snow and rain delivered only average precipitation, filling some reservoirs but making only a small dent in California's drought conditions overall.
This year is telling a different story as storms ceaselessly battered the Sierra Nevada in January and February. The Lake Tahoe Basin received 10 more inches of precipitation than any year in recorded history, going back to 1910. Because Tahoe has a large surface area, the precipitation alone provides a significant rise.
And then there's the Sierra Nevada snowpack. The range is piled high with the most snow it has seen in decades, and a recent survey on March 1 indicated the snowpack is 185 percent of average. As the weather warms, this snow will melt and pour billions of gallons of water into the rising lake.
And perhaps the most significant milestone is that the drought will be considered over in the Tahoe area.
"In the Truckee basin, drought is defined as water storage in Lake Tahoe," Blanchard said. "Tahoe is the defining factor. If we're full at Tahoe, the drought is over. Typically, we can get three year's worth of water from the reservoir part. Of course, that could vary in some freak extreme."
Comment by SongStar101 on March 24, 2017 at 9:47am
As drought slashes rice harvest, 900,000 face hunger in Sri Lanka
COLOMBO (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - The worst drought in five years has pushed 900,000 people in Sri Lanka into “acute food insecurity”, the World Food Programme (WFP) says.
An unpublished survey conducted by government agencies and relief organizations in February found that both food insecurity and debt were rising sharply among families hit by drought, the WFP office in Sri Lanka confirmed to the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The country’s rice harvest could be the worst in 40 years, charity Save the Children predicted. The just-completed harvest was 63 percent below normal, it said.
The survey found that over one third of the drought-affected households had seen their income drop by half since September and 60 percent of the households surveyed were in debt.
The average amount of debt was about 180,000 Sri Lankan rupees, or $1,200, WFP said.
The survey findings are expected to be formally released later this month.
Sri Lanka’s government said over 1.2 million people have been affected by the country’s current drought, which began last November and continues despite some occasional rainfall over the last two months.
Save the Children estimates that over 600,000 of those affected – two thirds of the total – are children.
The Western and Northern Provinces have been worst hit, with over 400,000 people struggling with drought in each province.
RICE HARVEST HALVED
Government and WFP assessments suggest Sri Lanka’s 2017 rice harvest could be less than half the 3 million metric tons recorded last year.
According to WFP assessments the island needs 2.3 million metric tons of rice for annual consumption but the overall 2017 rice harvest is projected to yield just 1.44 metric tons.
The government has already taken steps to increase rice imports to stave off shortages, Disaster Management Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa said.
“We have a shortfall in the rice harvest. We have been taking action to prevent any shortfalls and will allow for tax-free rice imports until the harvest recovers,” he said.
Worst-affected by the drought have been farmers and those relying on agricultural work for income. The joint WFP and government survey indicated that one out of five farmers and one out of four farm laborers is now classified as food insecure in the drought region.
Preliminary data in the survey also indicated that female-headed households in drought areas were faring worse than others, with almost 20 percent reporting “poor” to “borderline” ability to access enough food as a result of the drought.
Yapa said that the government was devising a plan to help those affected and “we will begin cash assistance very soon”.
The initial plan is to provide 500,000 persons with cash assistance, he said. The government has so far set aside 8 billion rupees ($52 million) for cash-for-work programs in drought-hit areas.
Over 50 million rupees ($300,000) has been allocated to distribute water to affected populations in 22 of the island’s 25 districts, he said.
The drought is expected to continue into April, according to seasonal forecasting by the Meteorological Department.
“The big rains will come with the next monsoon”, which is expected to arrive in late May, said Lalith Chandrapala, director general of the Meteorological Department.
(Reporting by Amantha Perera; editing by Laurie Goering :; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, climate change, resilience, women's rights, trafficking and property rights.
Mass evacuations as wildfire threatens Colorado City
Firefighters are battling to contain a raging wildfire just outside Boulder, Colorado which has already forced the evacuation of more than 1,000 homes.
The fire broke out overnight and quickly expanded to cover 62 acres, according to the Boulder Office of Emergency Management (OEM). The blaze lies just west of the city of Boulder.
Authorities are struggling to contain the fire and the Denver Post reports that the flames is moving in a southerly direction towards downtown Boulder.
“That is a major concern,” Gabi Boerkircher of the Boulder Office of Emergency Management said. “It looks like it’s going to be very hot and very dry, and potential winds up to 20 mph. Which is not good.”
The office says it has multiple aircraft dropping water and slurry on the inferno. The Denver Channel reports that the blaze is “zero percent contained.”
A further 3,700 homes have been placed on evacuation notice and people have been told to prepare to leave. Large and small animals are also being evacuated to sites away from the path of the wildfire.
High temperatures, low humidity, and a significant breeze mean conditions are perfect for the fire to spread.
It’s not clear yet what sparked the fire. Multiple fire agencies are responding to the blaze and numerous roads have been closed as a result of the fire. There have been no reports yet of damage to homes or other buildings.
17 March, 2017. This year's wet season brings significant flooding to the most densely populated area of the country
Flooding in Namibia's Cuvelai-Etosha catchment area has reached alarming levels in recent weeks, with residents being warned to take the necessary precautions in expectation of the worst possible floods experienced in the region in living memory.
This is according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry; the disaster risk-management division in the prime minister's office; and the Namibia meteorological services.
In a joint statement, the authorities warned that the magnitude of flooding expected in the northern central regions is likely to surpass that of 2011, which saw the highest level of flooding in Namibia's recent history. "The 2017 floods are predicted to become even higher if good rains continue, as they are both in the headwaters of the Cuvelai catchments in southern Angola and in the northern border areas of Namibia within these catchments," the statement said.
The situation is predicted to be made worse by the opening of the sluice gates of the Gove Dam. Water from the dam is expected to flood the Kunene River, which in turn will flood parts of southern Angola and northern Namibia.
Erratic rainfall
Efundja, the annual seasonal flooding of the northern parts of the country, often causes not only damage to infrastructure but also loss of life. The rains that cause these floods fall in Angola, then flow into Namibia's Cuvelai basin and end up filling the flood plains there.
The basin is characterised by an interconnected system of shallow water courses, called oshanas, which are the "life-support system" for the most densely populated area in the country. They are easily prone to flooding through excessive rain or controlled release from dams. Water levels in the oshanas in the Omusati region have been rising since last week, an indication that more water from Angola has been flowing into the country.
Namibia is considered to be one of the most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change in sub-Saharan Africa. Dry land, a hot and dry climate and erratic rainfall patterns, have traditionally exposed the country to recurrent droughts and wild fires. In Namibia's interior, surface water is available only in the summer months when rivers are in flood after exceptional rainfalls. Luckily, boreholes can be used in about 80 percent of the country. Source: aljazeera.com
Dramatic footage shows young woman caked in brown sludge fighting to escape being swept away in Peru mudslide
Woman caked in mud spotted battling to survive as she clung on to flood debris
At one point she is dragged under pallets and pulled towards a rampaging river
But incredibly, she claws her way to safety by stepping across planks of wood
Dramatic escape filmed in flood-hit Punta Hermosa, south of Peru's capital Lima
This is the dramatic moment a young woman caked in brown sludge fought to escape being swept away in a devastating mudslide in Peru.
Footage shows the woman battling to survive as a raging torrent of flood water thick with debris ripped through a valley in the district of Punta Hermosa, south of captial city Lima.
Terrified onlookers shouted to try to get her attention but were powerless to intervene as she was carried out towards the heaving brown rapids.
The shocking video emerged after some of the the heaviest rains and hottest temperatures in two decades have battered Peru over the past month as weather linked to El Nino caused flooding and landslides that blocked the country's central highway and forced hundreds from their homes.
Dramatic footage shows a young woman caked in brown sludge trying desperately to escape being swept away in a devastating mudslide in Peru
At one point in the clip, the woman waves to acknowledge she is safe only to be dragged back under one of dozens of wooden pallets swirling in the mudslide.
A man filming shouts 'somebody's down there' to rescuers after losing sight of the woman.
But incredibly, she avoids being dragged under or crushed and reappears, desperately clawing her way out of the water before stepping over floating planks of wood to the shore.
As she reaches the banks of the river, the terrified woman collapses to the ground before rescuers rush in to help her.
While the woman is dragged to safety, farm animals are also seen among the debris and torrents of mud, including a cow and what appears to be a piglet.
It is not known when exactly the video was captured.
It comes after a separate video emerged showing the Peruvian army dramatically rescuing stranded schoolchildren with a helicopter.
A video shows the moment the youngsters were pulled from the water by troops in an Mi-171 chopper.
The army at first rescued 72 people in the district of Pacora, among them 35 children who lived in the villages of La Junta Santa Isabel and Senor de Luren.
In total, over the course of various missions, more than 200 people - 123 of them children - had to be rescued after they became cut off from dry land.
In the video an army officer can be seen up to his waist in water, carrying a little boy over his shoulders.
He can be seen struggling towards the waiting helicopter, which hovers just over the dirty water.
Other soldiers can be seen helping the youngsters get into the helicopter which later flew them to safety.
The Peruvian Ministry of Defence confirmed they had rescued 210 people who had been isolated in their villages after La Leche river overflowed.
It comes after a separate video emerged showing the Peruvian army dramatically rescuing stranded schoolchildren with a helicopter
Eight villages were cut off and more than 30 houses collapsed due to the extreme weather conditions.
The flood was caused by heavy rains over just a few hours in the region of Lambayeque, north-western Peru.
The Ministry of Defence said the remainder were saved from the neighbouring district of Jayaca.
The government department shared a video of the dramatic rescue effort on social media.
Meanwhile at least 15 people were killed when a bus plunged into a ravine in central Peru during heavy rain, authorities said Sunday.
The accident took place Saturday in Yauya district, a remote part of the Ancash region in central Peru, north of Lima.
Fifteen people have been confirmed dead, and the bus was carrying 22, so the toll could rise, police said. Rain and poor visibility were impeding recovery efforts, they said.
Traffic accidents are common and often deadly in this country of 30 million, which rises from coastal desert to the towering Andes and encompasses tropical Amazon basin lowlands.
Earlier this month Peru's weather agency, Senamhi, put the country on alert for even more intense rains the rest of the week after downpours overwhelmed towns along the northern coast and in the central Andes and Amazon.
'We haven't seen this volume of rain since 1997' during the last strong El Nino phenomenon, Agriculture Minister Juan Manuel Benites said.
El Nino is a warming of sea-surface temperatures in the Pacific that can intensify rains and cause drought.
Temperatures in several seaside and jungle towns have also reached 20-year highs, said Nelson Quispe, a Senamhi official.
Several major rivers already carrying twice as much water as usual threatened to wash over shantytowns built in flood zones along Peru's coast.
This season's El Nino has already left 5,000 homeless and impacted an additional 80,000 people, according to Indeci.
The disaster will likely squeeze food prices and could stoke inflation that is already near a four-year high. News channel Canal N reported shortages of some products in wholesale markets.
The government deployed mobile clinics after floods shuttered some hospitals. The education minister said officials were evaluating pushing back the start of the school season in some areas.
Two men play golf with a tennis ball as a snowstorm sweeps through Times Square, Tuesday, March 14, 2017, in New York. A powerful nor'easter hit the Northeast on Tuesday after a largely uneventful winter, grounding thousands of flights and leading to school and work closures along the coast. Mark Lennihan AP Phot
15 March, 2017. Even as the big storm that pummeled the Northeast winds down it is still setting records: It is now the second largest snowstorm ever recorded in South Burlington, Vermont.
By late Wednesday afternoon the National Weather Service said the storm that began Tuesday had dumped 29.9 inches at the airport in South Burlington, the second most since records began being kept in the late 1800s. The biggest snowfall was 33.1 inches in January 2010.
Other big snow totals in Vermont include 32 inches in Westford in Chittenden County and 34 inches in Jay, along the Canadian border. Portland, Maine, also set a record for the day, receiving 16.3 inches. In New Hampshire, big snow totals included 23.6 inches in Stratham in the south. Source: newsobserver.com
Indio records its highest temperature for March 13 in 101 years (Cal, US)
13 March, 2017. We're still a week away from the official start of the spring season, but cities around the Coachella Valley must be preparing for summer; Indio set a new daily high temperature record and Palm Springs tied its previous high temp for March 13.
KESQ First Alert Meteorologist Haley Clawson said Indio set a new record for March 13 by reaching 98 degrees. The city's previous high temperature for the day was 97 degrees, which was set in 1916. Source: kesq.com
NH city ties record set in 1874 for lowest high temperature
12 March, 2017. Saturday's frigid weather set records for the lowest high temperature in several northern New England cities.
In Burlington, Vermont, the temperature never climbed past 11 degrees on Saturday, the coldest maximum temperature for the day since 1885. The highest temperature in Montpelier was 8 degrees, four degrees colder than the record set in 1960.
Similar records were set in Augusta, Maine, where it got up to 14 degrees, and Portland, Maine, where the high temperature was 17. In Concord, New Hampshire, Saturday's high temperature of 18 degrees tied a record set in 1874. Source: nh1.com
March nor’easter one of the biggest snow storms ever recorded at Westover
15 March, 2017. While it wasn’t officially a blizzard, our March nor’easter was a record breaking snow storm.
According to Tracey Ress, Weather Station Manager at Westover Air Reserve Base in Chicopee, the snowfall total measured 21.7″ for the Tuesday, March 14th, 2017 snow storm.
This snowfall total makes this storm the SECOND biggest snow storm since snowfall measurements were first recorded at Westover in 1945, which is where our lower Pioneer Valley climate records are kept. Source: wwlp.com
Extreme winds wreak havoc in Newfoundland and Labrador
Hurricane-force winds wreaked havoc in the Canadian most easterly province of Newfoundland and Labrador on Saturday, March 11, 2017, downing power lines, damaging homes and tipping over cars. It was the fiercest storm the province has seen in more than 10 years, officials said.
The storm produced wind speeds of up to 180 km/h (112 mph) at its peak, causing significant power outages and damage to property. The authorities urged drivers to avoid all non-emergency travel and to clear off the roads while emergency crews deal with the damage.
Environment Canada meteorologist Wanda Batten said peak wind speeds in some areas broke records previously held by hurricane Igor in 2010. "It was the strongest storm we've seen in more than a decade," she said Saturday. "It blew through three-quarters of the island."
The extreme winds on the back of the low brought extensive damage to much of eastern Newfoundland,” the government said. “Reports of damage include: power outages, tipped over trucks and trailers, siding and shingles ripped from buildings. In extreme cases, sheds, roofs, and the top floor to some houses were blown away.”
Powerful winds grounded flights at St. John's International Airport, wreaking havoc on travel plans as the airport measured winds of up to 158 km/h (98 mph), the equivalent of a Category 2 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Ferry crossings in the region were also canceled and several roads closed due to white-out conditions.
In a statement released Sunday night, March 12, authorities at St. John’s International Airport said that the airport has sustained significant damage to its facilities. An electrical component in the Airport’s Terminal Electrical room was damaged, resulting in no electrical feed entering the Terminal Building.
"The Terminal Building is presently operating under backup emergency power provided by two emergency generators as well as reduced normal power. The Airport Authority is reviewing all options to have heat and key operational systems restored as soon as possible," it said.
At the height of the storm, some 70 000 customers were without power, Newfoundland Power said.
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