Earth Report – Global Disaster Watch
Magnitude 5+ Earthquakes – Global
5.8 earthquake hits near the east coast of Honshu, Japan.
5.7 earthquake hits near the east coast of Honshu, Japan.
5.5 earthquake hits near the east coast of Honshu, Japan.
5.2 earthquake hits near the east coast of Honshu, Japan.
5.1 earthquake hits near the east coast of Honshu, Japan.
5.1 earthquake hits Vanuatu.
5.1 earthquake hits Fiji.
Tropical Storms – Roundup of Tropical Storms:
In the Eastern Pacific Ocean: Tropical depression 10e (Ignacio), located approximately 757 nm south of San Diego, is tracking east-southeastward at 06 knots.
Tropical Storm 08e (Hilda), located approximately 972 nm south-southwest of San Diego, is tracking northwestward at 08 knots.
In the western Pacific Ocean: Tropical storm 13w (Lupit), located approximately 109 nm east-southeast of Hong Kong, is tracking east-northeastward at 03 knots.
Tropical depression 14w (Fourteen), located approximately 93 nm south-southeast of Kadena AFB, Okinawa, Japan, is tracking northeastward at 14 knots.
Newsbytes:
India – Air Force helicopters and rescue teams from the Indian Army were deployed to flooded areas in the state of West Bengal in eastern India on 02 August 2021. As of 03 August, 14 people have died and nearly 250,000 displaced by floods across the districts of Purba Bardhaman, Paschim Medinipur, Hooghly, Howrah and South 24 Parganas. The flooding was a result of heavy rainfall and discharge of water from dams. The rainfall was particularly pronounced on 29 July when Diamond Harbour in South 24 Parganas district recorded 218 mm of rain, Midnapore 134 mm and Kolkata 146 mm.
Philipppines – Heavy rainfall associated with the Southwest Monsoon has been falling in the Philippines since late July, causing flooding and landslides. According to authorities, over 60,000 people have been evacuated at some point. The city of Baguio in Benguet Province, Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) has seen persistent heavy rain since 26 July, recording over 1,000 mm between then and 02 August. Iba, capital of the province of Zambales in Central Luzon region recorded 395 mm of rain in 24 hours to 29 July.
Wildfires – Greece
More than 500 firefighters struggled into the night on Tuesday to contain a large forest blaze on the outskirts of Athens, which raced into residential areas, forcing thousands to flee. It was the worst of 81 fires that broke out in Greece over the past 24 hours amid one of the country’s worst heatwaves in decades.
Wildfires – Impact on Climate
While pandemic-related lockdowns led to a dramatic drop in greenhouse gas emissions last year, the event that had the biggest impact on the climate in 2020 was actually a series of devastating bushfires in Australia, according to a new study.
Researchers compared the effect of both the drop in vehicle emissions and industrial activity during the pandemic with smoke released by the Australia wildfires. They found that the decline in pollution during lockdowns produced clearer skies, allowing more sunlight to reach Earth, thereby warming the planet by around 0.05 degrees C. Smoke from the Australian bushfires, on the other hand, blocked sunlight, cooling the planet by around 0.06 degrees Celsius.
Wildfires – California, Montana, USA
Evacuation orders have been issued in several regions in the West due to spreading wildfires. Thousands of residents in Northern California and Montana were ordered to flee their homes as both new and existing wildfires neared neighbourhoods. Currently, about 90 large wildfires are burning in 12 states in the West — much of which is suffering from severe drought conditions.
The Dixie Fire — the largest in the state — has been through more than 253,000 acres and is just 35% contained.
The McFarland Fire in Wildwood, California, prompted evacuations in the area after it grew to more than 15,000 acres and remains just 5% contained.
Evacuation warnings are in effect for the Monument Fire in Big Bar, California, after scorching through more than 6,000 acres.
The Boulder 2700 Fire near Polson, Montana, burned through nearly 1,500 acres by Tuesday afternoon and prompted evacuations over the weekend. Multiple structures have been destroyed by the fire.
At least 35 new wildfires ignited over the weekend due to lightning strikes. Dozens of wildfires have sparked in Oregon alone over the last 48 hours, while 13 new fires have started in the last 24 hours in Montana.
Covid-19
The countries with the 10 greatest number of Covid-19 cases:
Lymphatic filariasis – Philippines
Health Authorities in the southern Philippines report intensifying surveillance and case-finding activities against filariasis to keep the province free from the mosquito-borne parasitic disease. The remote barangays (villages) of Maan and Mongocayo in Tboli town have recorded confirmed cases in the past several years and in 2021, 33 cases of lymphatic filariasis, also known as elephantiasis have been recorded.