Wildfires exacerbated by an intense heat wave led to the evacuation of dozens of residents in Cordoba Province, Argentina, on October 10, 2023. The fires neared the resort city of Villa Carlos Paz and involved the deployment of 960 firefighters.
Category 4 Hurricane “Lidia” made landfall along the coast of west-central Mexico near Las Penitas in the state of Jalisco around 23:50 UTC on October 10, 2023, with maximum winds estimated to be near 220 km/h (140 mph).
Heavy rains and a subsequent dam burst led to a devastating landslide in Yaounde, Cameroon, on October 8, 2023. At least 30 people were killed in the disaster that occurred in the impoverished Mbankolo district.
Japan’s Izu Islands and parts of the Pacific Coast near Tokyo experienced tsunami waves up to 60 cm (2 feet) in height triggered by a shallow M5.0 earthquake that occurred at 20:26 UTC on October 8, 2023 (05:26 local time, October 9). The quake’s epicenter was situated near the uninhabited Torishima Island at the southern end of the Izu chain and is part of an ongoing earthquake swarm in the region.
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.3 hit western Afghanistan at 06:41 UTC (10:11 local time) on October 7, 2023. The quake was followed by M5.5 at 06:49 UTC, M4.7 at 07:10 UTC, M6.3 at 07:12 UTC, and M5.9 at 07:40 UTC — all at shallow depths between 7.7 and 14 km (4.8 – 8.7 miles).
The Italian government is exploring the potential evacuation of tens of thousands of residents living near the Campi Flegrei supervolcano, 20 km (12.5 miles) from Naples, following over 1 100 earthquakes in the area within a month. The announcement was made on Thursday, October 5, 2023, and further measures are set to be discussed in a cabinet meeting.
Typhoon “Koinu” made landfall in Cape Eluanbi, southern Taiwan, on October 4, 2023, breaking wind speed records and injuring 190 people. Despite the high winds and significant rainfall, no deaths have been reported.
A glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) triggered a rapid surge in water levels along the Teesta River basin in Sikkim, India at approximately 01:30 LT on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. The water levels soared to heights of 5 – 6 m (15 – 20 feet), resulting in significant infrastructure damage, at least 8 fatalities, and more than 60 individuals reported missing.
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by India’s National Center for Seismology as M6.2 hit Nepal at 09:21 UTC (15:06 local time) on October 3, 2023. The agency is reporting a depth of 5 km (3.1 miles). USGS and EMSC are reporting M5.7 at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). The quake was preceded by M4.6 and followed by M3.6, M3.1, M3.5, M4.3, M3.9 and M3.0 by 14:00 UTC.
A recently published study in the journal Geophysical Research Letters has revealed that the Gulf Stream transport of water through the Florida Straits has weakened by approximately 4% over the past 40 years. Researchers state with 99% certainty that this is more than what would be expected from random variations, marking the first definitive evidence of significant change in the current.
