Earthquake strikes off Philippines, triggers tsunami warning

Dec. 28, 2019

A strong earthquake of 6.9 magnitude struck off the southern Philippine island of Mindanao on
Saturday, raising fears of dangerous tsunami waves across the region, but after about two hours,
the tsunami warning was withdrawn.

There were no reports of casualties or damage from the earthquake, which the US Geological
Survey (USGS) said struck 193 kilometres east of the Philippine city of General Santos, at a
depth of 60 km.

The Indonesian islands of Geme and Tabukan Tengah, and Davao in the Philippines could all
experience the damaging waves within the hour, reported The Sydney Morning Herald.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre initially said "hazardous tsunami waves" were possible
within 300 km (186 miles) of the epicentre", along the coasts of the Philippines, Indonesia and
the Pacific island nation of Palau, reported Reuters.

However, about two hours after the quake struck, the centre said there was no longer a
tsunami threat.

The USGS initially said the magnitude of the quake was 7.2 but later downgraded it to 6.9.

Residents of the southern Philippines said the earthquake lasted about a minute and people
rushed out of buildings but there had been no major damage, it stated.

Clinton Polancos, an official in the southern district of Governor Generoso, said: "We've alerted
the communities for possible tsunami."

https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ec-2019-000006-phl
 Widespread flooding hit Jakarta

01 January, 2019

Since Dec. 31, some of the heaviest rain since records began has caused chaos in the mega-city,
killing at least 60 people and displacing nearly 175,000 – and more rain is forecast for this
month.

“Indonesia has got enough resources to deal with these problems,” said Leonard Simanjuntak,
country director for Greenpeace Indonesia in Jakarta.

“However, for decades, political leaders never really had any consistency in implementing long-
term plans for flood management,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Southeast Asia’s biggest city is located by the coast and built on a swampy plain, with 40% lying
below sea level.

More than 10 rivers flow through the capital, but the water catchment areas and forests around
it have been largely converted over decades for residential and agricultural use, falling victim to
rapid urbanisation.

The capacity of Jakarta’s rivers has also shrunk because of sedimentation, poor waste
management and illegal settlements, meaning remaining waterways tend to clog up during
heavy rains.

Making matters worse, most residents and businesses rely on wells that drain underground
aquifers for their water supplies, causing the city to sink by 5-10 cm (2-4 inches) each year.

Rising sea levels and the inability of infrastructure to cope with excess water during the
monsoon season have resulted in regular flooding in the city, which is home to more than 10
million people.

Jakarta’s authorities must dredge and clean up its rivers and waterways, and help communities
access water without huge, uncontrolled groundwater extraction, said Milag San Jose-
Ballesteros, director of East, Southeast Asia and Oceania for the C40 Cities network.

Many cities, meanwhile, are now looking at nature-based solutions, such as turning concrete
drainage and grey infrastructure back into flood-plains, she added.

http://tradearabia.com/touch/article/MISC/349202
 Christmas Typhoon Batters Central Philippines

Dec. 26, 2019

Typhoon Phanfone ravaged three provinces in the central Philippines over the Christmas holiday, with at
least 16 people reported to have been killed.
The typhoon made landfall on Tuesday at 4:45 p.m. over Salcedo in Eastern Samar Province, according to
Pagasa, the national weather agency. The eastern portion of Samar Island caught the brunt of powerful
winds and rainfall as the typhoon battered the province.
Thirteen people were killed in western Visayas, the central of the three main island groups that make up
the Philippines, news agencies quoted disaster agency officials as saying. Three others were reported to
have died in the eastern part of the island group.
The typhoon, known in the Philippines as Ursula, was upgraded from a tropical storm as it approached
the country. It led to the evacuation of more than 58,000 people and stranded thousands of travelers
over the holiday period. Ferries were suspended and flights canceled.
The storm prevented many in the overwhelmingly Catholic nation from traveling to be with their families
for Christmas.
Earlier in the week, the authorities advised residents in areas prone to floods and landslides to leave
their homes as the typhoon picked up speed, with sustained winds up to 75 miles per hour, heavy rain
and flooding.
Among the places the typhoon hit was Tacloban, which was drowned within minutes when Typhoon
Haiyan struck in 2013. This storm was less devastating but still managed to cause severe damage,
shredding through houses, causing power outages and leading to the evacuation of hundreds of families
there. The typhoon also hit Boracay, Coron and other popular tourist destinations.
Felled trees cut electricity in several provinces, and emergency services distributed food and medical aid.
Roads were impassable across several provinces, disaster agencies reported.
The typhoon was reported to be easing in strength on Thursday as it moved over the western Philippines
toward the South China Sea.
At least 20 typhoons have hit the Philippines this year, with one hitting three weeks ago as the country
hosted the Southeast Asia Games. That typhoon, Kammuri, killed at least 17 people as it pummeled the
capital, Manila, and surrounding areas.

https/www.nytimes.com/2019/12/26/world/asia/christmas-typhoon-philippines-phanfone.html
Date: Monday, 09 December 2019

Gauteng Provincial Disaster Management Centre on high alert during persistent rains

Several parts of the Gauteng Province are flooded due to the persistent heavy rains and thus left
some residents homeless. The South Africa Weather Service (SAWS) issued warnings of heavy
rain expected to persist in areas around the Gauteng Province.
Gauteng Provincial Disaster Management Centre together with Municipal Disaster Management
Centres and Municipal Emergency Services have been working around the clock to assist and
evacuate affected residents and offer aid, including relocation.
An impact based early warning on flooding of roads and settlements, danger to life due to fast
flowing streams and deep water and major disruption of traffic flow due to major roads being
flooded was issued by SAWS. In Gauteng, the areas most affected by the heavy rains per SAWS
are City of Tshwane, City of Joburg, Ekurhuleni, with minor incidences in the West Rand and
Sedibeng District municipalities.
While disaster management centres are still busy conducting assessments, current reports
indicate that as at 09 December 2019, approximately 500 people, mostly residing in informal
settlements have been displaced with 2 children missing. The City of Tshwane is the worst
affected.
Head of Gauteng Provincial Disaster Management Centre (PDMC) Dr Elias Sithole mentioned
that PDMC together with municipalities remain on high alert. “The disaster management
centres in the affected municipalities have been activated and are on standby,” he highlighted.
Dr Sithole further mentioned that the PDMC today convened a special meeting discuss to the
status quo in the province and further outline contingency arrangements available.
“The PDMC together with Municipal Disaster Management Centres (MDMC) are working
around the clock to intervene and offer aid where needed. We however urge residents,
especially those situated on low-lying areas to be vigilant during this time and take necessary
precautionary measures,” Sithole highlighted. He further urged motorists to be cautious on the
roads and not cross overflowing bridges.
“Unfortunately, floods are natural disasters and no human being can do anything to prevent
them. The best all of us could do is work together to offer aid to those in need in times like
these,” Sithole said, adding that “PDMC has thus embarked on various programmes to help
reduce the risk of disasters and I hope everyone is taking the heed to the education by the
Centre to stay clear of disaster-prone areas and reduce the damages, accidents and deaths that
may be caused by disasters.”
Sithole reiterated that PDMC disaster response teams remain on high alert to assist and deal
with any incidents within the Province. There are no fatalities reported. Per SAWS, rainfall is still
expected for the next two days.

http:/ / www.neo.lebethe@gauteng.gov.za

Claire P. Nakila
Grade 11-STEM

Iran’s Long Night Is Capped by an Earthquake

Jan. 08,2020

It had already been an eventful day in Iran: The country had just launched missiles at United
States forces based in Iraq and an airliner carrying at least 176 people crashed shortly after
takeoff from Tehran on Wednesday, killing everyone on board.

Then just before dawn, a 4.5-magnitude earthquake struck southern Iran at a depth of about six
miles, the United States Geological Survey reported, in the same region as the troubled Bushehr
nuclear power plant. It struck just as Iranian leaders were trumpeting their strike on two Iraqi
bases housing United States forces, in retaliation for last week’s American drone strike that
killed Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani, commander of Iran’s elite security and intelligence forces.

No casualties were immediately reported, but rescue teams were working at the site, Jahangir
Dehqani, managing director of the Bushehr crisis management agency, told the state-run IRNA
news agency.

The quake was reported about 30 miles from the Russian-built Bushehr nuclear plant. The plant,
which is monitored by the International Atomic Energy Agency, has long been seen as a safety
concern by Western countries. It has been plagued by construction delays and technical
problems, and is on an active fault line. Experts have feared that could lead to an accident on
the scale of the Fukushima disaster in Japan, or even Chernobyl.

https/www.nytimes.com/2020/01/08/world/middleeast/iran-earthquake.html