The most intense heatwave of the year is underway across southeastern Europe, with the highest temperatures between 42 to nearly 45 °C recorded from south Italy across Greece to western Turkey over the last few days. As we head into early August, the heatwave is expected to intensify even more and may challenge the European highest temperature ever recorded. Monday or Tuesday could both peak around +47 °C. Dangerous wildfire threat has developed over Turkey, parts of Greece and Sicily.
While July was very hot across the southern and southeastern parts of the European continent, the month ended with extreme heat this week and continued to increase over the weekend. The worst heat has developed across southern Italy, Greece, and Turkey, as well are surrounding countries Albania, North Macedonia, Kosovo, southern Serbia, and Bulgaria.
Temperatures were gradually increasing after Tuesday as an intense heatwave began under the strengthening upper High over the Mediterranean and the Balkan peninsula. So far, the observed maximum temperatures were up to nearly 45 °C, being the hottest this weekend.
As we are heading into the first week of August, the heatwave is, believe it or not, forecast to increase further. Seriously. The forecasted maximum temperatures across parts of the southern Balkan peninsula are expected to climb very close to the all-time European heat record from Monday to Thursday.
And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future
Greenland's ice sheet has experienced a "massive melting event" during a heatwave that has seen temperatures more than 10 degrees Celsius above seasonal norms, according to Danish researchers.
Since Wednesday the ice sheet covering the vast Arctic territory, has melted by around 8 billion metric tons a day, twice its normal average rate during summer, reported the Polar Portal website, which is run by Danish researchers.
The Danish Meteorological Institute reported temperatures of more than 20 degrees Celsius (68 Fahrenheit), more than twice the normal average summer temperature, in northern Greenland.
And Nerlerit Inaat airport in the northeast of the territory recorded 23.4 degrees on Thursday, the highest recorded there since records began.
With the heatwave affecting most of Greenland that day, the Polar Portal website reported a "massive melting event" involving enough water "to cover Florida with two inches of water" (five centimeters).
And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future
Lake Oroville reaches all-time low level; hydroelectric plant shuts down for first time ever
August 5, 2021
Four years ago, Oroville Dam, the tallest in the United States, made international news when its massive 10-mile-long reservoir filled to the top in heavy winter storms, and raging waters destroyed its spillway, causing the emergency evacuation of 188,000 people.
But now, in the latest symbol of California’s worsening drought, the opposite problem is underway: Lake Oroville’s water level has fallen so low that on Thursday, for the first time since the dam was built in 1967, its power plant was shut down because there is no longer enough water to spin the turbines and generate electricity.
“This is just one of many unprecedented impacts we are experiencing in California as a result of our climate-induced drought,” said Karla Nemeth, director of the state Department of Water Resources, which owns the dam.
On Thursday, the reservoir was only 24% full, having fallen below an all-time low record set in September 1977. The lake level has dropped a stunning 250 feet in the past two years. The water level has fallen below the intake pipes that normally send water to spin six huge turbines at the Edward Hyatt Power Plant in the bedrock under the dam.
The loss of Oroville’s electricity won’t by itself cause blackouts. Even when the lake is full, the Hyatt power plant, one of the largest hydroelectric plants in the state, provides about 1% of California’s peak statewide electricity demand.
(In These Times) In July 2020, Claudia Durán felt compelled to complete her shift harvesting blueberries in the fields of Allegan County, Mich., before driving to the local hospital’s emergency room to be treated for dehydration, where she arrived dizzy, with an acute headache and chest pain. That same month, at least three of her coworkers also ended their shifts in emergency rooms to be treated for dehydration, she says. Durán and her coworkers get paid by the hour, 50 cents for every pound of fruit they pick, and they cannot afford to miss work time and lose income. That is why Durán, who is undocumented, rations her water intake throughout the day — to avoid going too often to the restroom, which is far removed from the harvesting fields.
“I have asked for medicines for the headache, and he [the supervisor] says, ‘No, nothing is happening, nothing is wrong,’ and does not give you medicine,” said Durán, who in 2004 emigrated from poverty and violence in the state of Zacatecas in Mexico. For fear of retaliation, she declined to provide her employer’s name. “Until the workday is over, if you feel very unwell, then you go to the emergency room,” said Durán, who is 35 years old and has four children to support.
During the last several years, Durán says she has been treated at the emergency room around twice a summer for dehydration, with July 2020 marking her last visit. Toiling under difficult heat conditions, she and her coworkers have been forced to gamble with their health: Chronic dehydration can cause kidney damage.
The effects of the climate crisis on the more than 1 million agricultural workers in the United States, already severe, have been worsened by profit-driven employers. The increasingly severe heat waves ravaging the country damage some crops, so to protect the market value of their produce, the agricultural industry is accelerating the harvesting season — and in many instances forcing longer shifts on workers.
With no access to shade and for wages often below the poverty level line, agricultural laborers are being pressured to harvest at a higher pace than in previous years, according to workers and advocates who spoke to In These Times.
One of our most recent members gave me the idea to look for an article like the one below.
Dubai Creates Fake Rain Using Drones As Temperature Soars Over 50 Degrees
Updated July 22, 2021
(India.com) Dubai: Fed up with the scorching heat, Dubai has come up with a unique method to create artificial rain as temperatures surpass 50C. Footage of monsoon-like showers drenching roads and sparking flashes of lightning have gone viral on social media, generating interest among users. Interestingly, the city is now employing drone technology that ‘shocks’ clouds into producing rain. The rainmaking technology, known as ‘cloud seeding’, was put into use as summer temperatures surged past 50C in the United Arab Emirates city.
And the weather manipulating method has largely been a success as cloud seeding contributed to the heavy rainfall seen across the country earlier this month. According to Gulf Today, both the NCM and Abu Dhabi Police issued warnings to the public, urging caution in the wake of poor visibility and driving conditions.
On Sunday, the UAE’s National Meteorological Agency also released a video of the heavy rains. (See article linked above quote box).
Last edited by caltrek on Sat Aug 07, 2021 3:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
In a summer where stretches of 90-degree Fahrenheit temperatures have been frequently broken up by rounds of unseasonably cool conditions, AccuWeather meteorologists say a developing hot and humid pattern for much of the northeastern and midwestern United States could bring the longest heat wave of the summer to a number of locations. Humidity levels and blazing sunshine will make AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures soar into dangerous territory.
Even though average temperatures slowly trend downward during the month of August as the nights grow longer and the sun angle declines, there can still be stretches of hot and humid weather. The forecast calls for a lengthy stretch of above-average warmth, with official criteria for a heat wave likely for many areas. When temperatures hit 90 or higher for three days in a row or more in the Midwest and Northeast, an official heat wave can be called.
And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future
Prolonged period of 'potentially dangerous heat' becoming more likely for the Northwest, weather
Source: CNN
More than 260 million people in the United States are forecast to experience highs of at least 90 degrees by the end of this week as a new heat wave envelops the Northwest, threatening the region with record-breaking, dangerous temperatures.
"There is increasing confidence in another prolonged stretch of exceptionally hot weather by mid to late next week, and potentially as early as Tuesday across portions of the Pacific (Northwest)," warned the National Weather Service in Portland, Oregon.
Other regions are also expected to sweat it out with the above-average temperatures, with the central United States experiencing it early in the week, and then the Northeast by the middle of the week.
In total, more than 60 daily records could be broken nationwide by next weekend.
Sicily scorcher at 48.8C in highest ever temperature in Europe
17 minutes ago
Sicily has broke the highest ever temperature record in Europe.
Temperatures climbed to a record-breaking 48.8 degrees in Syracuse, located on the island’s south-east coast, on Wednesday, according to Sicily’s Agrometeorological Information System (SIAS).
Athens previously held the record title for the hottest temperature in Europe at 48C, accepted by World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).
As temperatures soared, fires have continued to ravage southern Italy on Wednesday.
Sicily hits nearly 120 degrees, may have set Europe's all-time heat record
Source: Axios
A weather station in Sicily may have set an all-time high temperature record for all of Europe on Wednesday, when the temperature climbed to a scorching 48.8°C (119.8°F) amid a regional heat wave that has shown few signs of relenting.
The big picture: The intense heat wave continues to roast the Mediterranean and northern Africa. The hot and dry weather has played a large role in creating the conditions conducive for explosive and devastating wildfires in Turkey and Greece.
Details: Numerous monthly and national temperature records have fallen during the heat wave, including in Greece, Turkey and Tunisia, but if verified through an examination of the weather instruments, the Sicily observation would be the most noteworthy. The previous continental heat record was 48°C (118.4°F), set in Greece in 1977.
For the record to be considered, a committee from the World Meteorological Organization would need to investigate the instrumentation and circumstances of the data, including whether similar temperatures were observed nearby.
Death toll from floods in northern Turkey reaches 31
Source: AP
By SUZAN FRASER
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — The death toll from floods and mudslides in northern Turkey rose to at least 31 on Friday, officials said, as emergency crews searched collapsed buildings, swamped homes, and submerged basements for more victims and survivors. An opposition politician said more than 300 people may be unaccounted for.
Torrential rains that pounded the Black Sea coastal provinces of Bartin, Kastamonu, Sinop and Samsun on Wednesday caused the flooding that demolished homes and bridges and swept away cars. More than 1,700 people were evacuated across the region, some lifted from rooftops by helicopters, and many were being temporarily housed in student dormitories.
Most of the people killed were in Kastamonu, where a stream burst its banks and inundated the town of Bozkurt. Raging floodwaters demolished one waterfront building and severely damaged two neighboring buildings. A number of bodies washed up on the Black Sea shore, Halk TV reported, airing footage of people carrying a body bag on a beach in an unidentified province.
The floods struck on the heels of wildfires in southern Turkey that devastated forest lands in the seaside provinces of Mugla and Antalya that are popular with tourists. At least eight people died and thousands of residents were forced to flee.
At least 10 killed in Tennessee flash floods; dozens missing
Source: AP
By JONATHAN MATTISE and R.J. RICO
McEWEN, Tenn. (AP) — Catastrophic flooding in Middle Tennessee left at least ten people dead and dozens missing Saturday as record-shattering rainfall washed away homes and rural roads, authorities said.
Business owner Kansas Klein watched in horror from a bridge Saturday morning as cars and entire houses were swept down a road in Waverly, a town of about 4,500 people that Klein, 48, has called home for more than half his life. Two girls who were holding on to a puppy and clinging to a wooden board swept past, far too fast for Klein and other onlookers to go down and grab hold of them.
After being told by authorities to go back, Klein returned a couple hours later, shocked that the floodwaters had almost entirely receded and aghast at the destruction that was left behind.
“It was amazing how quick it came and how quick it left,” Klein said.
At least 22 dead, 60 missing in 'unbelievable' Tennessee flooding
At least 22 people are dead and 60 are missing after middle Tennessee was hit with record rainfall Friday into Saturday morning.
The flooding in the region caused cars to be tossed like toys and houses ripped off their foundations, officials said.
A preliminary rainfall total of 17.02 inches was measured at McEwen, Tennessee, Saturday, which would break the all-time 24-hour rainfall record for the state of Tennessee, according to the National Weather Service. The old record was 13.06 inches, recorded in Milan on Sept. 13, 1982.
In Humphreys County, 10 were killed and about 40 people remain missing, according to Rob Edwards, chief deputy with the Humphreys County Sheriff's Office said on Saturday. By Sunday that number grew to 22 dead and 60 missing.
N.J. weather: Gov. Phil Murphy declares state of emergency due to widespread flooding, storm damage
Source: Newark Star Ledger
Gov. Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency Wednesday evening as fierce storms unleashed by the remnants of Hurricane Ida touched off multiple tornados and caused extensive flooding, damage and power outages.
“Tropical Storm Ida is severely impacting all areas of our state,” said Murphy in a statement. “The safety of our residents is our main priority, and we urge everyone to be informed of local weather conditions and to stay off the roads.”
The declaration issued just after 10 p.m. was effective immediately and applies to all 21 counties.
Multiple tornadoes were reported in Gloucester and Burlington counties on Wednesday evening as the storm pushed into the state along the Delaware River. In North Jersey, relentless rain that started as early as Wednesday morning pounded already saturated areas and caused numerous road closures and some evacuations.
Depleted by drought, Lakes Powell and Mead were doomed from the beginning
Source: Wash. Post via MSN
For the first time, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation issued a water shortage for Lake Mead starting in 2022. Located between southern Nevada and northwestern Arizona, Lake Mead provides water and generates electricity for the more than 20 million people in the lower Colorado River Basin.
This shortage isn’t a surprise. Water levels at Lake Mead and Lake Powell to the northeast have already reached historic lows amid the summer drought. By January, the bureau projects water levels at Lake Mead to fall to 1,065.85 feet — nine feet below the first shortage trigger elevation. Levels on Lake Powell, which stores water for the Upper Colorado River Basin, are only marginally better, projected to be just 45 feet above the required elevation to produce hydropower.
The overall situation is not good, but why? This whole reservoir system along the Colorado River Basin was designed to get us through the drought years. Why isn’t it working? A glimpse into the history of the system, how it was designed and the impacts of climate change sheds light on why it was destined to fail — and why it may never recover.
At least 1 dead, 10 missing in landslide near Mexico City
Source: AP
By MARÍA VERZA
TLALNEPANTLA, Mexico (AP) — Rescuers planned to resume the search Saturday for victims of a landslide that brought tons of massive boulders down on a steep hillside neighborhood outside Mexico City, killing at least one person and leaving 10 missing.
The operation is complicated by the sheer size of the rocks that cleaved from the peak known as Chiquihuite Friday afternoon, the narrow paths of the neighborhood largely inaccessible to heavy machinery and the worrisome instability of the exposed mountain face looming above.
The landslide in Tlalnepantla in Mexico state followed days of heavy rain in central Mexico and a 7.0-magnitude earthquake Tuesday in Acapulco that swayed buildings 200 miles away in the capital. Mexico state Gov. Alfredo del Mazo said Friday night that both factors likely contributed to the slide.
Neighborhood residents immediately started to dig for their neighbors Friday. They formed lines across the towering debris pile, passing 5-gallon buckets of debris and individual rocks down.
88K without power in Michigan after storms bring rain, wind and cold
Source: The Grand Rapids Press
GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Over 88,000 customers are without power, particularly along the east side of Michigan, after rain and high winds.
DTE reported 77,125 customers were without power Thursday, Sept. 23. The utility said that wind damage caused many outages.
Outages were high in the Thumb area, especially along the Lake Huron shore. A restoration estimate was not immediately available.
The National Weather Service for Detroit/Pontiac said that a wind advisory remains in effect Thursday morning for Lake Huron and Saginaw Bay shoreline counties. Wind gusts of 45 to 50 mph are possible.
