Storm Heads for Central America and the Yucatan Peninsula
Associated Press Sep 3, 07 8:58 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Hurricane Felix grew into a Category 5—the most dangerous—storm last night, packing winds of 127 mph as it roared west across the southern Caribbean, heading for Central America. Felix is predicted to brush the Honduras coastline tomorrow, and hit Belize on Wednesday, the AP reports.
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Nearly a month’s
worth of temps
topping 110
Associated Press Aug 30, 07 3:44 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Phoenix citizens can’t blunt this hot spell with claims of “dry heat”: The city’s just marked its 29th day in a year of 110-degree temperatures. Urbanization and global warming are likely factors in the chart-topping season, though Phoenicians have been spared a highest-ever figure, the AP reports—they survived a 122-degree day in 1990.
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Death toll rises, heavy rains continue
Associated Press Aug 24, 07 4:50 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Powerful thunderstorms, humidity, and sky-high temperatures are making the flooding situation in the Midwest even stickier. The death toll has climbed to 17, and businesses and infrastructure have taken a big hit. Meanwhile, residents are returning home in droves as floodwaters abate, only to find that the electricity is out and they have no way to keep cool.
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Downgraded to tropical storm after 2nd landfall
Associated Press Aug 22, 07 6:37 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Hurricane Dean hit Mexico again today and poured heavy rains over flood-prone regions, the AP reports. Nobody died in the onslaught, which struck as a Category 2 hurricane and weakened into a tropical storm by evening. But Dean is raising water levels and fears of mudslides and flash floods as winds continue to howl near 70 miles per hour.
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Category 5 storm packs severe winds, but leaves no immediate deaths, damage
Associated Press Aug 21, 07 11:03 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Tearing into history as the most intense Atlantic storm to make landfall in two decades, Hurricane Dean today pounded the Yucatan peninsula, battering Mayan ruins and swinging toward oil rigs, the AP reports. Pummeling homes and trees in sparsely populated, mostly evacuated areas, the fierce Category 5 storm shrunk to a Category 3, and left no immediate deaths or major damage.
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Thousands flee as Category 5 storm approaches resorts
Reuters Aug 20, 07 5:06 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The Mayan Riviera emptied today as tens of thousands fled before Hurricane Dean, which has already killed nine and will likely be a Category 5 by the time it hits the Yucatan Peninsula tomorrow. Tourist destinations in the area are still recovering from 2005’s Hurricane Wilma, and beach resorts could see even worse damage this time, Reuters reports.
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Triple-digit temperatures take
toll in Midwest, Southeast
Associated Press Aug 19, 07 11:48 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The heat wave sweeping across the Midwest and Southeast has claimed at least 49 lives over the past week. Officials in Alabama and Memphis reported the 10 most recent deaths on Saturday, mostly elderly citizens. The weather forecast for next week predicts some relief from the triple digit-temperatures that has baked the two states for more than a week without a break.
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Dean on collision course with island
CNN Aug 19, 07 10:07 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Residents of Jamaica hunkered down today waiting for Hurricane Dean, packing winds as high as 155 mph. Forecasters described the storm that has already claimed as least six lives as "extremely dangerous." It ripped past Haiti and the Dominican Republic yesterday as panicked Jamaican packed supermarkets and tourists mobbed airports to flee Dean.
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Charges surface of preferential treatment for rich neighborhoods
New York Times Aug 17, 07 2:38 PM CDT
(Newser)
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New Orleans is still at severe risk from a serious flood, even though the Army Corps of Engineers has spent 2 years and $1 billion on the city's hurricane protection system. What's more, much of what's been done will benefit only wealthier neighborhoods. “We’re still with this damned patchwork quilt," says an engineering professor. The Times takes a look.
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Chicago Tribune Aug 16, 07 4:53 PM CDT
(Newser)
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This year's grape harvest in Italy will be unlike any one in living memory—for starters because it's happening in August. Because of sky-high temperatures and scanty rainfall, grapes are ripening three to four weeks ahead of normal schedules. Some grape growers blame it on global warming, but scientists warn not to be too hasty.
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Meanwhile, first Atlantic hurricane of the season forms
Associated Press Aug 16, 07 8:21 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Tropical Storm Erin made landfall on the Texas coast this morning and became a tropical depression, bringing powerful rains and a risk of flash flooding to the saturated state. The governor ordered emergency vehicles to the area, northeast of Corpus Christi, but many vacationers were unconcerned. "Unless I see a shark or whale go flying by, I'm good," said one.
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Oil prices spike over worries that storm will disrupt gas output
CNN Aug 15, 07 7:15 PM CDT
(Newser)
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National Guard teams are hunkering down on the Texas coast as Tropical Storm Erin moves in, carrying a “high risk of dangerous flash flooding,” the governor has warned. CNN reports that Erin intensified in the Gulf of Mexico today and will strike the Lone Star State tomorrow morning with 40 mph winds and 8 inches of rain. But it will not reach hurricane strength before hitting the shore.
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Plus, a 5.3 quake struck the Big Island last night
Associated Press Aug 14, 07 9:13 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Hurricane Flossie is barreling towards Hawaii, expected to pass less than a hundred miles from the Big Island. The National Weather Service has declared a hurricane watch, and the governor has activated the National Guard. Schools have been shut down, and residents have been warned to stock up on food an water.
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