A once-fearsome cyclone that was threatening Bangladesh and Myanmar dissipated quickly, causing some deaths but largely relieving authorities who had told more than 1 million people to leave vulnerable coastal areas in preparation for a far worse storm. Cyclone Mahasan lost power as it shed huge amounts of rain and then veered west of its predicted path, sparing major Bangladeshi population areas, including Chittagong and the seaside resort of Cox’s Bazar, said Mohammad Shah Alam, director of the Bangladesh Meteorological Department.
Unusually heavy winter rains have hit the Middle East, forcing the closure of main access routes to Tel Aviv. Torrential rains also swept through desert Jordan, sparking widespread flooding and traffic chaos but bringing welcome water to reservoirs in one of the world’s 10 driest countries. Flash floods tore through Lebanon, where several rivers burst their banks cutting highways off. Howling winds have swept away tents in refugee camps – and there are warnings of a major snowstorm approaching.
28-years-old Robert Muhangi, a father of two children stared at what is left of his house and he bursts into tears. His home was torn into pieces by boulders during a heavy down pour in Bulembia Division, Kilembe Mines in the western Ugandan district of Kasese. The heavy rains forced River Nyamwamba to burst its banks breaking up homes, shops, washing way bridges and roads among others. Muhangi was not alone; he was part of the 25,000 people who have been affected by the flash floods in the district that experts have described as the worst natural catastrophe Uganda has ever faced in terms of physical destruction of property. Government statistics indicated that nine people have been killed and 25,000 others made homeless by the floods that started on May 1.
Odisha will again experience a sharp rise in day temperature from Wednesday and the trend would continue for at least four days, said a weather forecast on Tuesday.
Op dinsdag, people got some respite as moderate showers lashed parts of coastal Odisha, including Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. The day temperature came down by 1 op 2 degree Celsius. Bhubaneswar recorded 36.8 degree Celsius, three degree less compared to temperature on Monday. The interior pockets of the state, however, continued to reel under heatwave like condition with Sonepur, Bhawanipatna and Sundargarh recording 42 degree Celsius each.
Officials say snow and rain in the past month have improved drought conditions in much of South Dakota, but soil deep below the surface is still very dry.
Over the past few days, residents in the Wichita area have spotted something not seen in more than a year: water puddling in their yards. Water is once again flowing in the Arkansas River, which for much of 2012 in Wichita resembled an elaborate sandbar striated by the occasional rivulet of water. A wet spring has eased the short-term drought in much of Kansas, including Wichita.
Flood-weary homeowners and sandbaggers across the Midwest were braced for record-level river crests Wednesday amid forecasts that rain would add more water to already-swollen rivers. Possible snow flurries were also predicted for some flood-hit areas.
