Flood

Three states have been hit by freak storms with hundreds of thousands of lightning strikes and giant hail as others battle record floods.

It’s a wet and steamy day in Darwin on Wednesday, with up to 35mm of rain expected to fall on the northern capital. Another 25mm is expected to fall each day until the weekend when the rain is expected to ease. It has brought flooding to multiple regions including major flooding on the Georgina River and moderate flooding on the Flinders River. It is likely to produce damaging winds, large hailstones and heavy rainfall that may lead to flash flooding over the next several hours. Minor flood warnings are in place in the Norman Rivers, Gilbert River, Nicholson River, Leichhardt River, Upper Herbert River and the Diamantina River. A moderate flood warning remains in place along the Lachlan River at Hillston and the lower Murrumbidgee River at Balranald. Damaging winds, large hailstones and heavy rainfall are expected and may lead to flash flooding are likely. The sun is expected to come out by Friday, when temperatures in the high thirties stay for the weekend. Ex-Tropical Cyclone Ellie is expected to finally move steadily to the east on Friday. In the Dampier Peninsula, up to 250mm could fall in the next 24 hours. “People in the north of WA experience these types of weather conditions at this time of year but the extended nature of this event and associated flooding is unusual and dangerous,” a spokesman for the Bureau of Meteorology said. Victoria and NSW were hit by huge thunderstorms as a cold front spread from the northwest of the country all the way to the southeast on Monday.

Cyclone Ellie has brought continuous rainfall, lifting the Fitzroy River to its highest level ever in Western Australia.

‘Minor flooding is occurring at Fitzroy Barrage and is set to extend downstream to Looma and Willare from tomorrow, with further rises expected towards the weekend. A statement read: ‘Record major flooding at Fitzroy Crossing is expected to peak during Wednesday afternoon. According to the Bureau, Cyclone Ellie is expected to slow down over the next 24 hours, and finally move to the east on Friday.

The volume of water surging through the river has astounded the Bureau of Meteorology, with the flow rate estimated to be about 60000 cubic metres per ...

“To put that in context it is probably one of the highest flow rates we’ve ever seen in Australian rivers.” “The amount of water that is moving down the Fitzroy River in a day is about what Perth uses water-wise over 20 years,” he said. The torrent of water currently rushing through the Fitzroy River is one of the highest flow rates ever seen in an Australian river.

Ex-Tropical Cyclone Ellie brought heavy rain to parts of northern Australia in late December 2022, resulting in flooding in areas of northern Queensland, ...

The Georgina River burst its banks in areas near the border between Northern Territory and Queensland. Ex-Tropical Cyclone Ellie also brought heavy rain to northern parts of the Northern Territory, including Barkly and Victoria Daly Regions. Massive amounts of water are flowing through the region, impacting multiple communities now and over the coming days.” Military teams from the Australian Defence Force have been called in to assist victims. We’re providing evacuation and resupply missions where weather conditions allow, and we will continue to undertake rescues where possible in a very dynamic and changing environment. Ex-Tropical Cyclone Ellie brought heavy rain to parts of northern Australia in late December 2022, resulting in flooding in areas of northern Queensland, Northern Territory and the Kimberley Region in Western Australia.

Fitzroy Crossing and dozens of Indigenous communities have already been hit by record flooding and WA's only road transport route to the north of the state is ...

"In the meantime, the West Australian government has been able to source some of its own aircraft and relocate people," he told ABC Radio. About 60,000 cubic metres of water per second has been flowing down the swollen waterway, which snakes its way to the coast at Derby, north of Broome, according to the Bureau of Meteorology. Flooding has forced authorities to close a 700km section of the Great Northern Highway between Broome and Halls Creek, isolating Derby, a town of about 3000 people.

Located along Laguna de Santa Rosa, Park Village, which includes residents who were previously unhoused, often floods during strong storms, ...

The intersection is about one-third of a mile from Lakeville Highway. Other calls the department responded to included a UPS delivery driver whose truck was trapped between two felled trees, Lunardi said. A portion of Highway 1 was also closed at its juncture with Bodega Highway. At about 7 p.m., emergency crews and a Press Democrat reporter at the scene heard a large tree fall. Lunardi said he rushed the child to emergency personnel stationed on Joy Road. Upon arrival, Lunardi encountered a man carrying an injured child who was believed to be under 2 years old.

In addition, a High Wind Warning was in effect for the entire San Francisco Bay Area and Central Coast until 10 a.m. Thursday. KPIX 5 First Alert Weather: ...

The declaration "will allow the state to respond quickly as the storm develops" in addition to providing support for local jurisdictions, the statement said. Mayor Tom Butt said in his e-forum newsletter Wednesday that arrangements were made for residents without places to go to stay in an Emeryville hotel. The Weather Service said as of 4:37 p.m., Doppler radar and automated rain gauges indicated heavy rain. From the National Weather Service: Post frontal rain showers and isolated thunderstorms will continue into at least the first half of Thursday. It's also important that businesses not take advantage of the current demand for essential supplies," Bonta said. He was transported to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose to be treated for non-life threatening injuries and was awake and alert. [On Twitter,](https://twitter.com/NWSBayArea/status/1611096039825768448) the NWS posted that the city saw 10.33 inches of rain from Dec. citing an extreme threat to life or property for residents near the Carmel River Lagoon, including areas south of 14th Avenue and east of Carmelo Street. The Monterey County Sheriff's Office said the Yankee Point community of the Carmel Highlands area was under evacuation orders at 11:35 a. Around 11:30 a.m., California State Parks alerted the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office about a sailboat at Bodega Harbor had run aground and was stuck on the rocks near Port Bodega. [a falling tree smashed into a mobile home in the community of Occidental](https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/atmospheric-river-falling-redwood-kills-infant-in-sonoma-county/) around 5:30 p.m. A Wind Advisory was still in effect for higher terrains where wind gusts were to continue in the 40 to 65 mph range, diminishing through the remainder of the morning.

Authorities warned heavy downpours would likely unleash flash flooding and mudslides, especially in areas where the ground remains saturated from rains that ...

The National Weather Service (NWS) said gale-force gusts were expected to uproot trees, shear off limbs and knock down power lines, disrupting electricity service in many areas. The state operations center had been placed at its highest level, she said. “We anticipate that this may be one of the most challenging and impactful series of storms to touch down in California in the last five years,” she said. The latest round of extreme weather was the second in a series of potentially damaging storms expected to hit the state over the next seven to 10 days, Nancy Ward, director of emergency services, told reporters. Register for free to Reuters and know the full story The incoming blast of extreme winter weather - the next in a succession of storms expected to wash over California in the coming weeks - originated from a sprawling, hurricane-force low pressure system churning over the eastern Pacific, forecasters said.

Another round of heavy rain and snow fueled by atmospheric rivers will pound the drought-stricken state for the next several days.

"We don’t know if it’s going to be a wet year or a dry year until the end of March. “This is a prime example of the threat of extreme flooding during a prolonged drought as California experiences more swings between wet and dry periods brought on by our changing climate.” Even more snow is expected later this week and over the weekend. There’s very little correlation from one month to the next," Lund said. Gavin Newsom earlier declared a state of emergency as the weather was expected to bring heavy rain, snow and flooding. Lake Shasta was 34% full and Lake Oroville was 39% full on Wednesday, The Los Angeles area, as well as cities like Ojai and Oxnard, were under a flood watch began at 10 p.m. San Francisco and other counties were under a flood warning until 12:30 a.m. The declaration will allow state agencies to respond quickly as the storm develops and support local jurisdictions. The storm was also bringing high and potentially dangerous winds. “San Francisco has been upgraded to a flood warning which means floods are inevitable,” Breed said. "They haven’t been tested in several years."

Officials began ordering evacuations in a high-risk coastal area and residents elsewhere braced themselves for flooding and power outages after a huge storm ...

In Northern California, a 40-kilometre stretch of Highway 101 was closed between the towns of Trinidad and Orick due to several downed trees. As the storm intensified, state officials warned residents in Northern California to stay off the roads. [By India Today Web Desk](/author/india-today-web-desk): Officials began ordering evacuations in a high-risk coastal area after a huge storm approached California on Wednesday.

Rains were expected to reach peak intensity on Thursday morning. Read more at straitstimes.com.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said gale-force gusts were expected to uproot trees, shear off limbs and knock down power lines, disrupting electricity service in many areas. The state operations centre had been placed at its highest level, she said. Fallen trees, already weakened by prolonged drought and now left poorly anchored in rain-soaked soil, were likely to pose a significant hazard in the upcoming storms, said Ms Karla Nemeth, director of the state Department of Water Resources. “We anticipate that this may be one of the most challenging and impactful series of storms to touch down in California in the last five years,” she said. The latest round of extreme weather was the second in a series of potentially damaging storms expected to hit the state over the next seven to 10 days, Ms Nancy Ward, director of emergency services, told reporters. The incoming blast of extreme winter weather – the next in a succession of storms expected to wash over California in the coming weeks – originated from a sprawling, hurricane-force low pressure system churning over the eastern Pacific, forecasters said.

As a huge storm approached California Wednesday, officials began ordering evacuations in a high-risk coastal area where mudslides killed 23 people died in ...

The storm had extremely high winds and moved through the area before dawn, she said. The storms in California still aren’t enough to officially end the drought, now entering its fourth year. Christina Thornton, director of the Montgomery Emergency Management Agency, said radar indicated a possible, but unconfirmed, tornado. In the San Francisco Bay Area, 8,500 sandbags distributed by officials weren’t enough to reach demand Wednesday as forecasters warned of imminent flooding. Heavy downpours accompanied by winds with gusts of up to 60 mph (96 kph) were expected later Wednesday and through Thursday, making driving conditions difficult, the National Weather Service said. In Northern California, a 25-mile (40-kilometer) stretch of Highway 101 was closed between the towns of Trinidad and Orick due to several downed trees. Storms in the last 30 days have produced between 8 to 13 inches of rain, soaking coastal hills in Santa Barbara County. Because the states’ major reservoirs are at a record low from a dry three-year period, they have plenty of room to fill with more water from the impending storm, officials said. Drought Monitor showed that most of the state is in severe to extreme drought. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency to allow for a quick response and to aid in cleanup from another powerful storm just days earlier. He has sleeping bags and three days’ worth of water, nuts and protein bars. Among them is the tony town of Montecito, home to many celebrities, including Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle.

As floodwaters surge down the Fitzroy River, Derby is the latest town to be cut off and Broome is expected to follow amid a "one-in-100-year deluge" that's ...

"If there's no food here we all need to be flown out. My aunty who lives next door, she's had a stroke, and they're running low on food." We've got three babies in the house. "The Kimberley is not a network of roads, there are just a few key roads that run through there and the road to Fitzroy to Halls Creek, [they're] absolutely crucial," he said. "It's very crucial … "We've run out of milk.

Ex-tropical Cyclone Ellie brings once-in-a-century flooding, forcing evacuations and road closures.

The river snakes its way to the coast at Derby, north of Broome. “That’s a decision for those people to make,” he said. “Winds and rain will increase again across the area. The system looks like moving out of WA and into the Northern Territory over the weekend.” Derby, Broome and Noonkanbah have already been isolated. It’s likely to be shorter-lived and the contribution of rainfall to the flooding is likely to be minimal.

The Australian Defence Force will help evacuate residents from central Kimberley regions in Western Australia. The embattled region continues to suffer ...

Homes have been inundated and residents evacuated as a record-breaking flood hits a remote WA town.

River levels are expected to remain above the major 9.7m flood level at Menindee through to mid-January and an evacuation order remains in place for properties expected to be impacted by flooding. He said roads had been cut and it was too late to leave as the region faced “at least a one-in-100-year” flood event. Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner Darren Klemm warned residents in the communities of Willare and Noonkanbah on Tuesday they would be inundated in the next 24 to 48 hours. Travellers in Derby have been warned to leave the area and go to Broome. “DFES is bringing in more aircraft to bolster our evacuation and resupply efforts as some communities may be isolated for at least a week,” the Department of Fire and Emergency Services said in a statement. “We have not seen rain like this for at least a hundred years so it’s kind of shocking to see the water as high as it is.”

Authorities confirmed multiple rescue missions had been conducted in and around Fitzroy Crossing on Thursday, with emergency services having received 49 ...

While the record-high floodwaters in the Fitzroy River catchment area have begun receding after reaching 15.8 metres a vast amount of water is now moving downstream. The flooding has resulted in significant damage to the Fitzroy River Crossing bridge and hundreds of kilometres of the Great Northern Highway is closed south of Derby. Dawson said the state government was unable to assess the scale of the damage, but was in the process of activating disaster-recovery funding alongside the federal government for affected people across the Kimberley.

The intense downpours — coming after an earlier deluge days ago — pushed some rivers toward flood stage, prompting a string of evacuations from towns along ...

(Updates with showers sweeping state; weather-related deaths; fallen tree hazards; weather extremes symptomatic of climate change).

Almost eight months later, parts of KwaZulu-Natal are still trying to recover from the horrific floods that claimed over 400 lives, left over 40 000 people ...

As the government, we have mobilised all available resources and are undertaking every effort to ensure that as we rebuild and rehouse flood victims, no one is left behind,” Dube-Ncube said. “Cabinet therefore met in a special session last night and decided to declare a national state of disaster. [KZN beaches](https://www.iol.co.za/ios/news/wave-of-water-woes-cd9b9b82-9b5b-4497-9e1c-8336717619d6) were safe and ready to welcome visitors to the ocean and beach activities across the 600km KZN coastline. [rebuild](https://www.iol.co.za/dailynews/news/kwazulu-natal/challenges-remain-in-kwazulu-natal-after-floods-8a17f8e1-93f9-465c-ba35-ce902e8cf8b4) the parts of the province that were affected. [diarrhoea and gastro-enteritis](https://www.iol.co.za/ios/news/wave-of-water-woes-cd9b9b82-9b5b-4497-9e1c-8336717619d6). [ temporary residential units (TRUs)](https://www.iol.co.za/dailynews/news/kwazulu-natal/kzn-floods-sufficient-budget-to-build-all-temporary-residential-units-by-december-2022-kzn-department-of-human-settlements-180f1cd2-97bc-4afb-b362-daeaa582a104). [close all mass care centres](https://www.iol.co.za/mercury/news/kzn-premier-vows-to-move-flood-victims-to-better-accommodation-before-christmas-ef554950-4ac0-4607-8d3a-2f66db33bde1) within seven days and relocate all flood victims to new accommodation before Christmas. [economy](https://www.iol.co.za/mercury/news/kzns-weakened-economy-can-ill-afford-any-more-blockades-or-business-disruptions-economists-warn-70aa0b4d-12dd-46e0-a98f-850baf989fc1). [July Unrest](https://www.iol.co.za/news/environment/look-of-fires-and-floods-durbans-tourism-industry-one-year-after-the-july-riots-3314cb92-a773-4ee0-ae60-6c3a81743781) that heavily impacted many parts of the province. [President Cyril Ramaphosa](https://www.iol.co.za/news/read-ramaphosas-full-speech-declaring-a-national-state-of-disaster-in-wake-of-kzn-floods-7c62622e-3cfd-44fc-9354-c08bf36a30e2) declared a national state of disaster. [damage](https://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/kwazulu-natal/effects-of-the-kwazulu-natal-flood-in-numbers-32c45aae-9611-4d8a-b137-25fc9843b8f0) and brought the provincial economic hub of Durban to a near standstill, causing more damage than what the city and provincial authorities had capacity and resources to deal with. [horrific floods ](https://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/gauteng/pics-devastating-kzn-floods-wreak-havoc-in-durban-72e621fe-44a2-4ff2-b6ab-9cdfe8b8e5b0)that claimed over 400 lives, left over 40 000 people displaced and destroyed over 12 000 homes including other infrastructure such as roads, health centres, [schools](https://www.iol.co.za/education/schools/kzn-floods-over-240-schools-damaged-by-the-recent-floods-bad96159-3ab5-49b4-827b-7a54a927431b), in April 2022.

News and Press Release in English on Pakistan and 1 other country about Health, Flash Flood and Flood; published on 5 Jan 2023 by Govt. Türkiye.

The project, which included the donation of various medications and medical equipment, will provide health services in hard-to-reach areas. In his speech at the ceremony, Ambassador Paçacı noted that Pakistan and Türkiye have close relations in every field, and that the Turkish people were there for the people of Pakistan with the aid campaigns they launched after the floods in Pakistan. In Pakistan, floods caused by heavy rains after June killed many people and damaged properties, including more than 880 health centers.

SYDNEY, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- Australian Defence Force (ADF) members were deployed to help with flood evacuation in the state of Western Australia, ...

The Bureau of Meteorology said heavy rainfall which may lead to flashing floods is still likely in west of Fitzroy Crossing on Thursday. According to reports by the Australian Associated Press (AAP) on Thursday, road access to the town of Derby was cut and more than 50 Australian Defence Force personnel winged their way to the state's flood-ravaged Kimberley region. Severe weather is expected to ease in southwest Kimberley and shifts into southern Kimberley and North Interior district during Friday as ex-tropical cyclone Ellie moves inland, the Bureau of Meteorology said.

The conference will be opened Monday by co-hosts Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Delegates from some 40 ...

Speaking from the capital Islamabad, he said the cost of reconstruction is estimated at $16.3 billion. … But it also comes at a time where the world is realizing that this is a global issue. “What is unique about this conference is that it is mobilizing support for the immediate response to the disaster,” Ostbysaid. He said Pakistan’s flood crisis is a global problem and must be addressed as such. Delegates from some 40 countries, including several heads of state, representatives of financial institutions and international development organizations will attend. The conference will be opened Monday by co-hosts Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and U.N.

Fitzroy Crossing locals say poor communication, language barriers and a lack of local support has left the community fending for itself.

A lot of the decision-making is taking place from Perth.” “The river is in some places is so rough that you can’t actually get there,” he said. The community is not just chipping in to save each other, or their homes. Davis said there was a huge need for support in the town, and the emergency services response, so far, had been significant. “We’re relying on information and knowledge from people who are remote. Many Aboriginal people in the Kimberley speak English as a second or third language. “A lot of people are walking around town frustrated and angry, they’ve been texting us for food,” Bedford said. “We’ve been told communities could be cut off for seven to 10 days at least,” she said. “We ourselves used our own boat to go out and rescue people, the community has been rallying around each,” she said. She said the response from authorities has been “appalling” and tensions were building, as some people have “lost everything”. We feel like we have been left alone.” “That’s in a three bedroom house – they are bunking in, they’re creating informal evacuation centres.

Pakistani officials are increasingly concerned whether next week's U.N.-backed conference will succeed in raising the billions of dollars needed to help ...

The world body has so far received only a third of the $816 million in emergency aid it sought last October for food, medicines and other supplies. The Islamic nation also struggles with militant violence. At one point, a third of the country was submerged. He told reporters that Guterres “will call for support to strengthen the resilience of the communities in Pakistan for the future.” The United Nations and Pakistan are jointly hosting the conference on Monday in Geneva, which had earlier been billed as a donors conference. He spoke at a news conference Thursday in Geneva alongside Knut Ostby, United Nations Development Program’s representative in Pakistan.

With the United Nations at its side, Pakistan is expected to seek $16.3 billion in aid from the international community for reconstruction for millions of ...

People who were displaced during severe flooding receive food handouts at an aid camp in Sehwan, Pakistan, on September 11, 2022.

To read the original story from RFE/RL's Belarus Service, [click here](https://www.svaboda.org/a/32211843.html). [appeared](https://pravo.by/document/?guid=12551&p0=H12300240&p1=1&p5=0) on the country's online registry of legal actions in the early hours of January 6. In one section, the 38-year-old recounts his two tours of Afghanistan -- first as a forward air controller in 2007-2008 and again in 2012, when he was a co-pilot gunner in Apache attack helicopters -- and the number of people he had killed. The energy ministers of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan have signed an agreement on the construction of the Kambar-Ata-1 hydropower plant in Kyrgyzstan. Iranian Ambassador to the UN Amir Saeid Iravani said in December at a UN Security Council meeting that Iranian-made drones were not transferred to Russia for use in Ukraine. [Live Briefing](https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-crisis-crosshairs-live-briefing/31668477.html) gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. The group will hear from the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, about the court's work and the role of the international community in supporting its investigations. Ukraine did not want the war, which he said resulted from "devilish malice and envy" on the part of "those who held us captive" for centuries. Pakistan has been urging Afghans in the country to register with the United Nations and local authorities to avoid any risk of deportation. A large explosion has been reported on a section of a gas pipeline in Lutuhyny in the occupied Luhansk region. "A total of 119 Russian 'propagandists of death' on the long list of sanctions.... The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) recently conducted searches at cathedrals and monasteries of the UOC-MP throughout Ukraine.

Residents in Western Australia's far north are facing an unprecedented disaster as the Kimberley's flood emergency continues.

"We've never seen certain buildings go under water. "Some of the families that have been relocated to Fitzroy Crossing have gone and stayed with family that live in town," he said. "Two fixed-wing aircraft are dedicated to start resupply operations out of Broome and onto the ground at Fitzroy Crossing as soon as the weather permits," he said. "The Fitzroy airstrip is being cleared and will be able to receive some aircraft for the resupply and relocation efforts." The Defence Force has been deployed to assist in evacuations, with DFES taking some vulnerable people from Central Kimberley communities such as Noonkanbah and Bungardi to Broome and Derby on Thursday. People in the Kimberley are waiting anxiously as major evacuations from record-breaking floods have been delayed due to severe weather, with no confirmation of when stranded residents will be airlifted from Fitzroy Crossing.

Trucks normally travel direct from Perth to Fitzroy Crossing but new return trip halfway across Australia is 'equal to a one-way trip from Paris to ...

There will be an enormous effort from our freight and logistics workers as they take the long journey to safely deliver supplies to the Kimberley.” “They’ll cross the Eyre Highway and the Nullarbor Plain to Port Augusta, then head up the centre to Katherine, then across to Kununurra. The journey will take up to a week and incur a diesel bill of about $12,000. Further, not all national roads are capable of taking triple road trains and goods – including mangoes – need to be brought back to Perth on the round trip. Ex-tropical Cyclone Ellie has been hovering between Fitzroy Crossing and Broome dumping up to 400mm of rain in 48 hours. If that’s not a can-do spirit to celebrate, I don’t know what is.”