Magnitude 5+ Earthquakes – Global
5.4 earthquake hits the southern east Pacific rise.
5.3 earthquake hits the island of Hawaii, Hawaii.
Storms and Floods
Tropical Storms – Roundup of Tropical Storms:
In the eastern Pacific Ocean: Tropical Depression 06e (Emilia), located about 835 mi…1340 km wsw of the southern tip of Baja California with maximum sustained winds…30 mph…45 km/h. Present movement…wnw or 295 degrees at 12 mph…19 km/h.
Tropical Storm Fabio is located about 530 mi…850 km ssw of Manzanillo Mexico with maximum sustained winds…40 mph…65 km/h. Present movement…wnw or 285 degrees at 13 mph…20 km/h.
In the western Pacific Ocean: Tropical storm (ts) 09w (Prapiroon), located approximately 113 nm south-southwest of Kadena AFB, Okinawa, Japan, is tracking north-northwestward at 11 knots.
NewsBytes:
Ukraine – Tremendous thunderstorms hit Ukraine in early hours of June 30, awaking many Ukrainians in their apartments and homes and sending them rushing to close windows as heavy rain and strong winds swept the country. As terrified and amazed people shared pictures of lightning flashes on social media, the lightning caused several fires around the country, and huge downpours caused floods in several cities and towns. The storm first hit western Ukraine on June 28 and then spread all over Ukraine during the night of June 29 – June 30. Strong winds downed dozens of trees and even bent metal billboards in Ukraine’s east. Power was cut off in 400 villages and towns overnight because of the storm. Heavy rain caused Ukraine’s Dniester, Syan, Siret, and Prut rivers to break their banks. The rivers’ levels rose by more than two meters, causing flooding throughout Lviv, Chernivtsi, and Ivano-Frankivsk oblasts in western Ukraine. The storm started in western Ukraine on June 28. More than 200 houses, 35 fields, and 40 basements were flooded. Flood waters also destroyed 14 kilometers of roads.
India – Authorities on Saturday sounded a flood alert in central Kashmir even as three deaths were reported in rain-related mishaps in the Jammu region of the state. Srinagar-bound traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar highway was suspended due to the threat of floods in the Valley, leaving hundreds of commuters stranded.
Wildlife
Chernobyl’s ‘Radioactive’ Wolves
Gray wolves from the radioactive forbidden zone around the nuclear disaster site of Chernobyl are now roaming out into the rest of the world, raising the possibility they’ll spread mutant genes that they may carry far and wide, a new study finds.
The wolves are prospering not due to any mutant superpower, but because the radioactive zone now acts like a wildlife preserve, researchers added.
A number of juveniles have been tracked leaving the exclusion zone and interacting with wolves from surrounding areas. Chernobyl has 7 times the population density of wolves compared to surrounding preserves.
Disease
Typhoid Fever – Pakistan
So far in 2018, three cases of extensively drug-resistant XDR typhoid fever were reported in travelers to Pakistan — one who returned to the United Kingdom, and two who returned to the United States. This has prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to issue a Level 2 travel alert for travelers to the country.
Swine Flu – Indiana, USA
Indiana has reported the first human case of of H3N2 variant influenza in a resident with exposure to pigs since 2013. The State Health Department has issued a warning to take steps to prevent illness while visiting events where pigs are exhibited.
Polio – DR Congo and Somalia
The total circulating vaccine-derived polio cases (cVDPV) cases has risen to 13 globally after additional cases have been reported in the African countries of Somalia (one new case) and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (two new cases).