A massive landslide slid onto Highway 14 in Idaho on February 18, 2016, trapping about 250 people in the small remote town of Elk City. According to Idaho Transportation Department (ITD), about 14 tons of debris slid onto a section of the highway, some 16 km (10…
A very deep earthquake registered by Geoscience Australia as M6.0 hit south of Fiji at 15:51 UTC on February 20, 2016. The agency is reporting a depth of 600 km (373 miles). USGS is reporting M5.8 at a depth of 579.4 km (360 miles). According to the USGS, the…
The natural gas leak in Porter Ranch, California, was officially declared sealed on February 18, 2016. Four months passed since the pipeline rupture spewed massive amounts of methane and displaced thousands of Los Angeles residents from their homes. Tests performed…
Severe Tropical Cyclone "Winston" is heading toward Fiji and is expected to slam into the island with violent winds, equivalent to Category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson wind scale, within the next 24 hours. Expert meteorologists warn Fiji residents…
Heavy rainfall has induced disastrous mudslides in the Pampa Hermosa district, Peru. According to media reports, about 12 km (7.4 miles) of the district have been affected, 25 people suffered injuries and over 100 homes have been devastated. Drone footage in the…
Guatemala is experiencing one of the worst droughts in its recent history. 1.3 million people have been affected, and approximately 720 000 are encountering severe food insecurity. The inhabitants of the Central American 'dry corridor' – an area…
USGS scientists have found algal toxins known as microcystins in 39% of streams assessed in Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The results will become part of a larger, systematic national survey of algal toxins in small streams of the…
The 2015/16 El Niño has passed its peak and continues to decline gradually, according to the latest updates from the World Meteorological Organization (WHO) and Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BOM). Despite the weakening trend, it will continue to influence…
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New activity/unrest was observed at 4 volcanoes from February 10 – 16, 2016. During the same period, ongoing activity was reported for 18 volcanoes. New activity/unrest: Aira, Kyushu (Japan) | Semeru, Eastern Java (Indonesia) | Soputan, Sulawesi (Indonesia) |…
POLSTRAC campaign initiated by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) was actively engaged in measurements in Arctic since the end of 2015. The research team has observed vertically extended polar stratospheric clouds, in unusually low regions of the…
