Mudslides Carry Away Homes, Water Rescues Needed in California Storm

Motorists swam for their lives and residents were rescued from homes sliding downhill as the wettest winter storm of the year triggered floods and mudslides across California on Thursday.

In Sausalito, just across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco, a mudslide carried away two homes and engulfed five cars, sending one woman to the hospital, Southern Marin Fire Department tweeted. Dozens of homes were evacuated in the area.

Will Rebuilding After a Disaster Come to an End?

It is the natural American reaction to negative events — We will be back, bigger and better!" Maybe not ...

See this Governing magazine article Why Rebuilding 'Bigger and Better' After Disasters Is a Mistake. It is a great article that touches on many issues that are going to impact people's ability to execute on their desire to "be back."

The first and foremost issue is the increasing frequency, severity and cost of disasters of all types. Severe weather is in a position of ascendency. All extremes are in play, flooding and drought; hurricanes and tornadoes; rainstorms and wildfires; extreme heat and extreme cold — go figure.

Costly Natural Disasters Becoming More Frequent

The frequency of billion-dollar natural disasters is increasing rapidly in the United States due mostly to the cumulative effects of climate change, according to an analysis posted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

“The past three years (2016-2018) have been historic, with the annual average number of billion-dollar disasters being more than double the long-term average,” says Adam Smith in a blog post released this month by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information.

Heaviest Storm of the Season to Hit Fire-Scarred Southern California

(TNS) — The strongest and potentially wettest storm of the winter season is bearing down on Southern California this week, threatening to unleash debris flows in burn areas in Orange and Riverside counties as the region’s wild winter continues.

The atmospheric river-fueled storm, packed with subtropical moisture, will take aim at large swaths of the already-soaked state beginning early Wednesday and lasting through Thursday.

Climate Change and Cyber Attacks Named as Biggest Global Security Threats

Climate change is seen by more countries as a top international threat, but many also name ISIS and cyberattacks as their top security concern, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center conducted among 27,612 respondents in 26 countries from May 14 to Aug. 12, 2018.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a report last year expressing serious concerns about the possible impacts of climate change, both in the near and distant future. Broadly speaking, people around the world agree that climate change poses a severe risk to their countries. Since 2013, worries about the climate threat have increased significantly. The biggest increases have been in France (up 29 percentage points) and Mexico (up 28 points), but there have been double-digit rises in the U.S., U.K., Germany, Spain, Kenya, Canada, South Africa and Poland as well.

School shooters usually show these signs of distress long before they open fire, our database shows

Our initial analysis of the school shooting data found some noteworthy patterns. All mass school shooters since 1966 had a large number of risk factors for violence. Forty-five percent had witnessed or experienced childhood trauma, 77 percent had mental health concerns, as evidenced in a prior diagnosis, previous counseling or hospitalization, or medication use, and 75 percent had an interest in past shootings, as evidenced in their writing, social media posts or other activities. The majority of mass school shooters – 87 percent – showed signs of a crisis, as exhibited in their behavior, before the shooting. Seventy-eight percent revealed their plans ahead of time, often on social media. As juveniles, they also used guns that they stole from parents, caregivers and other significant adults in their lives. Our analysis found that about 80 percent of mass school shooters were suicidal. These findings make it clearer why current strategies are inadequate.

Firefighters Endangered During California Blaze, New Report Shows

Poor communication, short staffing and infighting among agencies may have endangered firefighters who nearly died during the massive Mendocino Complex of wildfires in Northern California, according to a new report released.

The Los Angeles Times reported that staff from three fire agencies examined an Aug. 19 incident where Los Angeles and state firefighters were trying to keep the three-week-old blaze from charging through wilderness and reaching homes.

Boeing Sued for Negligence in Southern California Wildfire

Boeing Co. was accused of negligence tied to a wildfire that tore through Malibu, California, in November and that purportedly started on the grounds of the nearby, disused Rocketdyne testing site.

A group of homeowners sued Boeing along with Edison International, the parent of the utility they say was at fault in igniting the fire, on Tuesday in Los Angeles. They claim Boeing failed to properly manage the vegetation on the Santa Susana Field Laboratory and allowed the fire to spread to surrounding neighborhoods.

PG&E Contains California Gas Leak That Caused Major Explosion

PG&E Corp. has contained a natural gas leak from a pipe that exploded on Wednesday along a major thoroughfare in San Francisco, engulfing in flames a stretch known for its bars and restaurants.

The blaze, which had spread to at least five buildings as of Wednesday afternoon, triggered an evacuation order for people within a block of the site on Geary Boulevard — a major artery that leads into downtown San Francisco. Eight workers near the explosion were accounted for and no injuries were reported, San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White told reporters.

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - External News