Recent Natural Disasters | Calamities | Hazards

Devastating floods in Chile have claimed lives of at least six people and left 19 others missing. The downpours in the usually arid region have been the heaviest in about 80 years, Reuters reported.

Heavy rainfall and flooding have formed massive sinkholes in roads in Brazil. Sinkhole disaster in the state of Para near the cities of Itaituba and Ruropolis has swallowed a bus. After the bus was evacuated, it fell into a sinkhole and was pulled down by the high flood water rushing beneath the road, The Washington Post reported. 

Extremely dangerous tornado in Tulsa, Oklahoma has claimed life of a person and injured several others. The death occurred inside a mobile home park near suburban Sand Springs on Wednesday, BBC reported quoting Tulsa police.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Flash floods in Chile's Atacama desert, one of the driest regions in the world, have left thousands of people without electricity or water. Chile's government has declared a state of emergency for the Atacama desert region after heavy rainfall triggered flooding in the region.

A state of emergency has been declared in Peruvian town of Chosica as landslide claimed lives of at least seven people and destroyed 65 houses. According to Reuters, six people are missing and 25 have been injured in the landslide disaster in Chosica. A 60-day emergency has been declared in the district of Lurigancho-Chosica by the Government of Peru.

A giant sinkhole in Jersey's South Amboy has swallowed a car destroying part of a street. The sinkhole in New Jersey is at least 20 feet deep and 15 feet across. Three nearby homes along Gordon Street in South Amboy had to be evacuated, NJ.Com quoted Chief Michael Geraltowski of the South Amboy Fire Department as saying.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Major hailstorm in Bogota, the capital city of Colombia covered the area with a 24-inch layer of icy snow  affecting lives of around 900 people. More than 900 people have been affected by recent hailstorm in Fraguita, Antonio Nariño and Restrepo in the southern part of the city, El Espectador quoted Fire Department as saying. 

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

An avalanche in British Columbia , Canada has claimed life of a person and left one other missing. Both were group members snowmobiling near the Dore River drainage area, near McBride, B.C.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

The city of Germantown is offering a free Community Emergency Response Training. "Adults of all abilities and specialties are invited to participate in upcoming Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) sessions," City of Germantown, Tennessee has mentioned in its website. The 20-hour course covers disaster preparedness , fire suppression, basic medical operations, light search and rescue and team operations. CERT members can assist others in their neighborhood or workplace when professional responders are not immediately available to help during emergencies. Community Emergency Response Team in action (Source: www.fema.gov) According to Ready.gov, the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program helps train people to be better prepared to respond to emergency situations in their communities. Emergency preparedness classes will take place March 27, 28 and April 11 at Fire Station 4, 3031 Forest Hill-Irene Road. Friday sessions begin at 7 p.m., Satu

 Recent forest fire in China has claimed lives of at least five Dahei mountain climbers. More than 300 fire fighters were send to control the forest fire in Dahei Mountain in northeastern Chinese city of Dalian, state run Xinhua news agency quoted local fire safety officials as saying. 

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

M 4.5 moderate earthquake rocks southwest of Kuwait today, the Kuwait National Seismic Network (KNSN) reported. According to the Kuwait National Seismic Network, the quake's epicenter was five kilometers underground.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Flooding caused by severe thunderstorm in south-east Queensland, Australia has claimed life of a person. The man was found dead near the Brisbane River 400 metres into an underground tunnel, ABC News mentioned.

The Government of India announced at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction Conference that it will host the first Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction of the post-2015 era. The Minister of Home Affairs of India, H.E. Rajnath Singh, said the Indian government will take lead in hosting the conference in 2016 in collaboration with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR).

A natural disaster alert has been declared in West Java, Indonesia until May as a form of preparation for facing any possible natural disaster. "Almost all regions in West Java were prone to natural disasters and seven of them, including Garut regency, were categorized as very prone, " The Jakarta Post has quoted West Java Deputy Governor Deddy Mizwar as saying on Thursday.

Rockfall in China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region has claimed lives of at least seven people and injured 19 others, including eight Taiwan tourists on Thursday morning. Huge boulder hit the tourist group while visiting the Diecai Mountain scenic spot in Guilin City, China Radio International (CRI) said. Four people were dead at the scene, and three others were confirmed dead after being rushed to the hospital.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Agricultural sectors have been bearing the major burnt of natural disasters with worst in the developing world, according to initial results from a new FAO study released at the UN World Conference for Disaster Risk Reduction in Japan. The study focused on the impact of natural hazards and disasters on the agriculture sector and sub–sectors in developing countries. Major data gaps on the impact of natural hazards and disasters on the agriculture sectors in developing countries were found during the study. Natural hazards and disasters in developing countries have affected more than 1.9 billion people and caused over US$494 billion in estimated damage between 2003 and 2013. Economic losses from natural disasters have tripled over the past decade, and continue to rise. It has caused heavy cost on poor farmers who do not have insurance or the resources to rebuild their lives after floods and other natural calamities.

At least twelve residential houses collapsed and several other partially damaged Tuesday due to land sinking in Indian-controlled Kashmir's Baramulla district following heavy downpour and snowfall for the past several days. The worst affected include Laridora in Narwaw area of Baramulla, where at least eight residential houses collapsed, Greater Kashmir has written.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

A dam burst in West Java province of Indonesia has triggered floods that affected over 15,000 people and caused evacuation. The dam at Cimanuk river at Pilangsari village of Indramayu district burst on Monday and forced at least 4,000 people to flee home, Xinhua reported quoting Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman of the national disaster management agency.

About a dozen people have been evacuated from their homes because of wildfire in Oklahoma today that has burned 37 square miles. The fire is 16 miles long and has destroyed one home, The Denver Post has written quoting the Woodward County emergency manager Matt Lehenbauer.

Tropical Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu as a category five storm, causing widespread destruction, killing several people and leaving thousands displaced. The official death toll remains at eight, with many more injured, and is expected to rise as communication begins to be restored. According to ABC News, "Disaster relief workers and Vanuatu officials who surveyed the storm's aftermath have been left shocked by the severity of its impact."

A 5-mile long wildfire has been spread from Kansas into northwest Missouri. Mandatory evacuation orders have been issued for part of St. Joseph, Missouri, Tristatehomepage reported.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Two moderate earthquakes struck  Kazakhstan's largest city Almaty today, the Kazakhstan National Data Center, Institute of Geophysical Research reported. According to the Kazakhstan National Data Center, the quake epicenters were located in Lake Issyk-kul region. Both quakes were recorded within seconds with magnitude 5.0 and 5.1 in the same area. The epicenter of the earthquakes were 28 km to the south of Almaty on the border with Kyrgyzstan.

M 2.5 weak earthquake shakes Darmstadt, Germany  today, the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) reported. According to the EMSC, the quake's epicenter was located just 3 km NE of Zwingenberg. It was 6.2 miles deep.

Governor Jay Inslee has declared a drought emergency across three regions of Washington state. The worst drought conditions are in the Olympic Peninsula, the east side of the central Cascade Mountains including Yakima and Wenatchee, and the Walla Walla region, Reuters reported.

An emergency has been declared following forest fire in Chile forcing thousands of people to flee their homes. Some 4,500 people have been evacuated from Valparaiso and neighboring Vina del Mar, Reuters reported.

Floods triggered by torrential rains have claimed lives of at least 64 people including 35 children in the Angolan city of Lobito. The flood water has reached 3m (9.8ft) in some areas of the city since Wednesday, BBC has reported quoting the Angop state news agency.

The National Disaster Management Office in Vanuatu has activated all emergency operation centers in the country following a Severe Tropical Cyclone Pam. "Tropical Cyclone Pam is likely to become the most devastating cyclone since Cyclone Uma in 1987," the Vanuatu National Disaster Management Office acting director Peter Korisa said Radio New Zealand.  The Vanuatu Meteorological Services (VMS) said that at 18:00 local time (05:00 GMT), Pam was 105 km north-northeast of Port Vila. The storm's winds are equivalent to a Category 5 hurricane.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Mudslide triggered by heavy rainfall has injured two people and blocked the main Hasroun-Bsharri road in north Lebanon. Civil Defense workers rescued an elderly woman after her bedroom was flooded. Flood waters also washed away a number of vehicles along the Hasroun-Bsharri road, The Daily Star reported.

The flood insurance claims filed by every Superstorm Sandy victims will be reopened and reviewed by Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The flood insurance claims review will involve approximately 144,000 claims and not limit corrective action to 2,200 that are currently in litigation, AP reported.

Flash floods in Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas has claimed life of a person. The eight-hour downpour caused flood damage estimated at $42.8 million, the provincial governor said on Thursday.

California earthquake prediction has shown more likelihood of magnitude 8.0 or greater earthquake in next 30 years. The chance of a magnitude 8.0 or greater earthquake hitting California in the next three decades have been raised from about 4.7% to 7%, a new California earthquake forecast report by the U.S. Geological Survey has shown. “The new likelihoods are due to the inclusion of possible multi-fault ruptures, where earthquakes are no longer confined to separate, individual faults, but can occasionally rupture multiple faults simultaneously,” lead author and USGS scientist Ned Field said.

Snowfall in Capracotta, Italy has set the new world one-day snowfall record with 100.8 inches of snowfall in about 18 hours. It took Capracotta, Italy around 94 years to break earlier record set back between April 20 to 21, 1921 in Silver Lake, Colorado, US when 193 cm (75.8 inch) of snow fell hit the region. Now, Capracotta and Pescocostanzo, between Abruzzo and Molise in central Italy are officially the snowiest places in the world, the Italian weather website, MeteoWeb, has written. The Snowfall in Capracotta was heaviest in the world as one of the photos posted on MeteoWeb even showed a resident standing on top of the accumulation shaking hands with a neighbor. She is in a second-story window.

A code of high threat to air traffic has been enforced in Kamchatka in Russian following eruptions at Kluchevsky and Zhupanovsky volcanoes. Both Kamchatka volcanoes spewed volcanic ashes simultaneously nearly five kilometers high, a source from a regional department of the Institute for studies of seismological activity told TASS.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Mauritius Today's Weather Forecast Map (MMS) Tropical Cyclone Haliba has caused heavy rainfall in Mauritius today. According to the Mauritius Meteorological Services (MMS), Tropical Storm Haliba was located about 330 km to the west-south-west of Mauritius as of 10:00 am today and moving in an east-south-easterly direction at 15 km/h. The disturbance has caused heavy showers and thunderstorms over the whole island. All schools in Mauritius have been closed.

The total death toll from natural disasters in 2014 was over 6,000, according to the Natural Disasters in Asia and the Pacific: 2014 Year in Review report, released by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) on Monday.   "In total, over 6,000 fatalities were caused by natural disasters , compared to 18,744 deaths in 2013," Xinhua has written quoting the report released by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).

A landslide in Sao Paulo, Brazil has claimed lives of three kids aged between 7 and 13. The landslide occurred in Santana do Parnaiba when the three brothers were sleeping with their mother at home, local Fire Brigade said Xinhua News Agency.

M 4.0 light earthquake hits Oklahoma today, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake's epicenter was located 5 km SSW of Guthrie. It was 6.2 miles deep. Following USGS Pager Map, light shaking of MMI IV will have been felt by the people of Guthrie and Crescent. People of Langston, Piedmont, Edmond, Luther, Midwest City, Oklahoma City and Norman will have been felt weak shaking of MMI III. Similarly, slight tremor will have been experienced by the people of Moore and Tulsa as well.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Mount Sinabung volcano eruption has caused a forest fire in Karo regency, North Sumatra, and forced the cancelation of a flight at Kuala Namu International Airport in Medan on Thursday. Pyroclastic flow during eruption has caused forest fire in the areas along the Lau Borus River in Berastepu village, The Jakarta Post has written.

Heavy rains and strong storm in Italy today have claimed lives of at least two people.  A woman was crushed by a falling tree in Urbino in the Emilia Romagna region while a man died near the Tuscan city of Lucca when his Ford Focus was hit by a rock, The Life in Italy reported.

Boston Snow Storm 2015 could break its all-time record as it is less than two inches away from its snowiest winter on record. According to NWS Boston, Boston Snow Storm 2015 has already occupied the second position in the list. Total snowfall this 2014-2015 winter season was at 105.7 inches Wednesday morning, which is less than 2 inches below the record of 107.6 inches

Recent Natural Disasters 201 5 : This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

The global economic losses from natural disasters in the world have continued rising to reach an average of $250 billion to $300 billion annually, according to a U.N. report released Wednesday. The 2015 Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction (GAR15), prepared by the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) estimates that an investment of US$6 billion annually in disaster risk management would result in avoided losses of US$360 billion over the next 15 years.

About  56% of 100 cities most exposed to natural disasters are found in four Asian nations, a study published on Wednesday by risk analysis firm Verisk Maplecroft has shown. Philippine cities are most at risk from natural disasters as eight out of 10 world cities most exposed to natural disasters are located there followed by China, Japan and Bangladesh. The report was published analyzing the threats posed by storms, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, wildfires, volcanoes and landslides in more than 1,300 cities.

Floods in Tanzania today have claimed lives of at least 50 people, Shinyanga's regional commissioner, Ally Rufunga, told AFP. Torrential rains, hail and high winds hit Kahama district in Shinyanga region late on Tuesday, injuring at least 82 people. According to The BBC, more than 60 rescued people are being treated for their injuries in hospital.

M 2.7 minor earthquake shakes Ventura today, the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) reported. According to the EMSC, the quake's epicenter was located just 8 km N of Ventura. It was 0.6 miles deep.

An avalanche in Austria today has claimed life of a 27-year-old Australian woman and critically injured a 30-year-old man. According to the Tyrol Police, two helicopters were involved in the rescue operation. Injured person is having treatment at an Innsbruck hospital, 80 km to the east.

Recent Natural Disasters 201 5 : This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.

Volcano Villarrica eruption in Chile has sent a plume of ash and lava high into the sky in the early hours and put Chile on high alert. Over 4,000 people were evacuated overnight as a preventive measure, Interior Minister Rodrigo Penailillo said Reuters. The Villarrica volcano erupted around 3 a.m. local time, according to the National Emergency Office, which issued a red alert and ordered evacuations. A column of ash and rock particles shot up to 3 km (nearly 2 miles) into the sky.

A fast-moving storm through Southern California on Monday dumped so much hail on Huntington Beach that it appeared to turn white. According to the National Weather Service, at least an inch of icy pellets coated the sand at Huntington Beach after the system roared ashore Monday morning. The pea-sized hail at Huntington was layered about an inch deep, The Los Angeles Times reported. 

A house collapsed by heavy rainfall in Thirpu VDC of Kalikot district of Nepal has claimed lives of three members of a family on Tuesday. The incident occurred due to incessant rain fall since Sunday, Nepal republic Media has written.

Update 16:30 UTC No information about the local people and villages even after 12 hours of the river being blocked by the landslide (or avalanche?). Only 10% water is flowing in the river, the district official said. Severe weather has obstructed the helicopters to reach the site. Heavy snowfall has been reported in the disaster area. The Lim river of Humla get mixed into Karnali river.

Around 150 firefighters are battling wildfires in Cape Town region of South Africa which have burned at least five houses. According to  Independent Online, five homes have been destroyed along Silvermine in Noordhoek. More than 50 people - residents of a retirement home - have been treated for smoke inhalation, BBC reported. Three mass care centres have been formed to those who have had to flee their homes.

The latest update of the Yellowstone volcano by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has shown total 78 registered earthquakes in the Yellowstone National Park region in February 2015. The largest event was a small earthquake of magnitude 2.4 on February 03 with epicenter located about 9 miles north northeast of West Yellowstone, Montana.

An avalanche in Himachal Pradesh region of India has claimed lives of four people including an infant and a mother. The avalanche hit Pangi village in Chamba districtof Himachal Pradesh, India. Himachal Pradesh State Board of School education postponed its examination because of the severe weather condition.

A tornado in Hesse state of western Germany has injured two people. Tornado has left at least 16 houses without roofs and has affected the phone and power connections, The Sputnik News has written.

A Shiveluch volcano eruption in Russia led to the cancellation of flights in Alaska over the weekend. "We canceled two roundtrip flights between Anchorage and Bethel, and Anchorage and Nome after an advisory of low visibility," Alaska Airlines spokeswoman Halley Knigge said CNN.

The international team led by astronomers from Peking University in China and from the University of Arizona have discovered a supermassive black hole. The recently discovered black hole is 12 billion times the mass of our sun pumping out a million billion times the energy of our Sun. They believe it may have been formed after the first stars and galaxies emerged after the Big Bang gave birth to our universe.

Drought in Pakistan has claimed lives of at least 40 people in last 28 days. Recently six children died in Mithi, Chhachhro, Nagarparkar, Islamkot and other areas of the Tharparkar district in Sindh province, Pakistan Today reported.. Farmers are facing poor rainfall for almost five successive years in Tharparkar district of Pakistan. The ongoing drought has claimed more than 500 lives in three years. The provincial government had also appealed to foreign donors to help mitigate the drought situation last year.

Recent Natural Disasters 2015: This natural disaster list covers important natural disasters in the world with detail update report.