I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.
The eye of Tropical Cyclone “Belal” passed over the northern part of Reunion Island (population 870 000), shortly after 06:00 UTC on January 15, 2024, with maximum sustained winds of 148 km/h (92 mph), and gusts to 213 km/h (132 mph).
At least 11 people have died in Rio de Janeiro after a month’s worth of rain hit parts of the city, turning roads into raging rivers, the fire department confirmed on Sunday, January 15, 2024. The northern parts of the city were particularly affected, with incidents of landslides, drownings, and electrocutions reported.
The Ambrym volcano in Vanuatu has transitioned from minor unrest to a minor eruption state over the weekend, leading authorities to raise the Volcanic Alert Level from 1 to 3 on January 14, 2024. The eruption is occurring inside the Benbow crater, with a designated Danger Zone B extending approximately 2 km (1.2 miles) around Benbow and 4 km (2.4 miles) around Marum craters.
Another eruption began south-southeast of Hagafell, Reykjanes Peninsula, Iceland at 07:57 UTC on January 14, 2024. The latest images show the lava flowing toward the town of Grindavik. The perimeter was about 450 m (1 470 feet) from the northernmost houses in the town around 08:40 UTC.
A powerful winter storm is set to bring heavy snow, strong winds, and blizzard conditions across the Midwest to the Great Lakes through Saturday, January 13, 2024. Following this storm, dangerously low temperatures are forecasted for the Rockies and Plains. This storm system is part of the same weather pattern that caused significant disruptions in southern Ontario, Canada.
A severe winter storm, characterized by heavy snowfall and strong wind gusts exceeding 80 km/h (50 mph) in some areas, swept through southern Ontario on Friday, January 12, 2024. The storm led to widespread power outages, with over 30 000 reported by Hydro One. Additionally, the storm caused significant disruptions at Toronto-Pearson International Airport, leading to numerous flight cancellations and delays.
18 people have been confirmed dead, with 30 injured in Carmen de Atrato, Colombia, after heavy rainfall triggered at least four landslides on the Medellin-Quibido road on Friday, January 12, 2024. The most devastating landslide resulted in thousands of cubic meters of earth collapsing onto a house and vehicles.
A potent, fast-moving storm is expected to bring historical coastal flooding to Maine on Saturday morning (LT), January 13, 2024. The state is bracing for a combination of major coastal flooding, strong winds, heavy rainfall, and snow in mountainous regions, predominantly during the morning. The most severe rain and wind conditions are forecasted between 06:00 and 10:00 LT, with the most critical coastal flooding anticipated around 12:00 LT, coinciding with the high tide.
Residents of Mauritius and La Reunion are bracing for a possible significant impact from a developing tropical cyclone — Tropical Cyclone 05S, expected to rapidly intensify and pass between the islands on January 15, 2024, as a Category 3 hurricane equivalent. When named (Belal), this will be the second named storm of the 2023/24 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season.
The United States is bracing for its first significant Arctic air outbreak of the winter, impacting the north-central region with bitterly cold wind chills and extending through the weekend. The northern Rockies and Plains are particularly at risk, with the Arctic surge also expected to bring record-breaking cold to the south-central U.S.
