May 2, 2015 - OREGON, UNITED STATES - The 'Lost Lake' off Oregon's Highway 20 has a deep, dark secret.
Most of the year, it looks like any other lake; peaceful and still.
But come winter, and a mysterious hole begins draining it of all its
water, leaving a barren landscape that has baffled scientists for
centuries.
As the eruption cooled, the hardened pipes emptied, leaving behind tubes in the form of vast tunnels.
WATCH: Oregon's mysterious "Lost Lake".
Jude McHugh, spokeswoman with the Willamette National Forest, told the Bulletin, that the hole has been there as long as anyone can remember.
There appears to be a relatively simple explanation to how the water is being lost.
Geologists claim the area's volcanic landscape is to blame for the lake's rapid drainage.
They believe a lava tube beneath the lake formed when flowing lava hardened near the surface and flowed downwards.
Similar
lava tube drain holes have been found at Fish Lake, only a few miles
from Lost Lake near the junction of U.S. Highway 20 and state Highway,
according to the Bulletin.
But what has stumped researchers is where exactly all this water goes.
McHugh claims it may seep into the porous subsurface underground,
refilling the aquifer that feeds springs on of the Cascades. However,
this has never been confirmed.
Now and again, locals will find strange objects in the lake, such as car parts, engines and other types of debris.
McHugh believes these are attempts to try and 'plug the leak', but warns this may simply lead to flooding of the local area.
'If anyone was ever successful at plugging it, which we're not sure they
could do, it would just result in the lake flooding, and the road. It's
an important part of how the road was designed,' she said. - Daily Mail.
June 03, 2014 - EARTH - The following stories constitutes some of the latest incidents of Earth changes across the globe.
Lake Superior Breaks Record With Ice Still Around
Lake Superior May, 31th 2014. @LAKSuperiorFoto
It is now the month of June and there is still ice hovering on the southern shores of Lake Superior making it now thelatest this much ice has been on the lake this late in the season.
The last time ice was around this late into the year was back in 2003
when the frozen water finally melted on May 29th. Here is what the
shores of northern Michigan looked like on Saturday...
Ice has all collected on the southern end of the lake and can be seen by satellite image... this one taken this past Thursday.
The lake is now 2.1% ice covered but is expected to be ice free by the weekend.
Huge 16 FOOT Wide Sinkhole Uncovered By Highway Engineers In Summerset, UK
The road workers were expecting to find a small dent in one of
Somerset's roads but were instead faced
with a real sinking feeling. A gaping chasm measuring 16ft wide in Somerset
Road workers got more than they bargained for when the pothole they were
sent to inspect turned out to be a gaping chasm 11ft deep.
The giant sinkhole - which measured 16ft wide, was found by workers at Somerset County Council.
The huge pit was so deep it needed 200 tonnes of stone to fill it before draining and resurfacing works could take place.
Harvey Siggs, cabinet member for highways at Somerset County Council, said it was unclear what caused the massive hole.
Deep: The hole needed 200 tonnes of stone to fill
He said: "Our roads have been hit hard following the
severe weather over the last couple of years but our teams have worked
exceptionally hard throughout.
"Somerset County Council repaired over 25,000 potholes during the last
financial year which is nearly 70 every day - thankfully extreme
incidents like this one are very rare.
"I'd like to praise the highways staff and contractors involved in this repair project."
The road, in Green Ore, Wells, was forced to close while work was carried out and reopened last week.
- Mirror.
Dramatic Film Of Lightning Bolt Striking Lorry On Motorway In Poland
A motorist was caught in the eye of the storm, when he saw an intense bolt of lightning strike a lorry
traveling in the opposite direction. The lorry appears to be engulfed in flames. CEN
The man, who was driving on the A8 motorway on his way home near the
Polish city of Wroclaw, was eager to film the adverse weather and so
decided to attach a camera to his windscreen.
However, his footage of the torrential rain also captured a more shocking moment.
The driver, who uploaded the video to YouTube after the incident, is
heard shouting an expletive at the tense moment the lightning appears to
create a ball of fire, as it crashes onto the roof of the lorry.
The footage has already gone viral with over 120,000 views.
WATCH: Lightning strikes truck on Polish highway.
Polish road safety expert, Jozef Wieczorek, said: "Instances where
vehicles are hit by lightning are extremely rare simply because they are
sitting on rubber tyres, and that means they don't earth the
electricity through the vehicle.
"When it does happen all that usually takes place is that the
electricity goes round the vehicle, and that seems to be the case here.
"If you look at the video you can see that the lightning seems to go
round the lorry before it hits the central reservation and the central
crash barrier, leaving a red hot glowing spot that quickly vanishes
behind the car.
"It seems as if the lightning was destined for the crash barrier which is metal and the truck was simply in the way.
"The reason there was no report of an accident is because the truck was
probably not damaged although it would have made a deafening bang inside
the cab."
- Express.
Hurricane Force Winds In China Force Rescue Of 100 People From Highway
Footage emerges of firefighters battling against gale force winds to
rescue over 100 people stranded on a highway during a hurricane in China
A hurricane hit northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region on Saturday, leaving over 100 people stranded on a highway.
WATCH: 100 hundred rescued from hurricane force winds in China.
The gale force winds also created a sandstorm, with visibility dropping to less than seven feet.
Firefighters and highway traffic policemen arrived
at the site with an armoured personnel carrier to rescue the travellers.
They tied rope to the travellers' cars to help the passengers pull
themselves into the rescue vehicle in the high winds.
All the people standed on the highway were rescued. - Telegraph.
Eight Killed, Two Missing As Storm Hits Odisha, India
At least eight persons were killed and two others went missing in
separate incidents of boat capsize and other mishaps, when a severe
northwester hit Jharsuguda and Bargarh districts of western Odisha early
on Sunday morning.
While seven persons were killed, including five in four boat mishaps in
the Hirakud reservoir on the river Mahanadi, in Jharsuguda district, a
woman died in a boat tragedy in Bargarh district, sources in the Special
Relief Commissioner's (SRC) office said.
The body of Purnima Mallick (45) was fished out of the reservoir at
Pudubagh, while Tejraj Kalo (65) and his son Bibhuti Kalo (35) died
after their boat capsized in Hirakud at Khebra, they said.
Similarly, bodies of Jagannath Dhurua (35) and
Khusiram Sa (28) were fished out of the reservoir from different places
in Jharsuguda district. A man was missing after a boat mishap in
Lakhanpur area.
One Biswambar Bhoi (60) died when lightning struck at Singeipalli in Jharsuguda district.
Eight-year-old Bibek Seth was killed when an uprooted tree fell on him
during a storm in Lakhanpur area. Similarly, a woman Hemakanti Dhurua
drowned when a boat sunk at Ambabana in Bargarh district while her
husband Ashok
Dhurua went missing, SRC office sources said. Most of the victims were
fishermen as the disaster lashed the region when they had gone out for
fishing in country boats. Efforts were on to locate the two missing
persons.
Rescue and search operation has been launched by the personnel of fire
brigade and Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF), they said. - Indian Express.
Freak Heatwave Kills 4, Hospitalizes 1,600 In Japan Last Week
Pedestrians use their parasols to shelter from the strong sunshine in Tokyo on June 1, 2014 AFP Photo/Yoshikazu Tsuno
Emergency services rushed more than 1600 people to hospital suffering
from heat stroke and heat exhaustion due to a week of unseasonably hot
weather through June 1, Japan's Fire and Disaster Management Agency said
Tuesday.
According to the agency, temperatures in some areas in Japan soared to
above 35 degrees Celsius, with the heatwave causing a preliminary total
of 1,637 people to be rushed to hospital, with four of them dying from
their symptoms.
The figure for those taken to hospitals by ambulance was some seven
times higher than for the same time a year earlier, the agency said,
with the worst cases seen as the mercury spiked on May 31 and June 1.
According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, in
Tatebayashi in Gunma Prefecture and Ibigawa in Gifu Prefecture,
temperatures rose to as high as 36.3 C.
The heatwave was still punishing Tuesday and showing no signs of
abating, the meteorological agency said Tuesday, with temperatures
hitting 37.8 C in the town of Otofuke in Hokkaido, Japan's northernmost
prefecture.
The agency said that record temperatures for the year were logged at 12
points around Japan and an official heat alert had been issued for the
majority of Hokkaido and Akita Prefecture, in Japan's northeast.
The disaster agency confirmed Tuesday that more than 40 percent of those requiring hospital stays were aged 65 or older. - Shanghai Daily.
Stunning Video Of Extreme Weather In May
Large scale disasters continue to strike with regularity, causing
catastrophic damage to multiple areas around the globe, and leaving
hundreds of thousands of people displaced. Rare, strange, unusually
extreme and 'biblical' weather conditions have taken place the past week
or so. Also included are some dramatically breathtaking weather events
caught on video last month.
May 16, 2014 - EARTH - The following stories constitutes some of the latest incidents of Earth changes across the globe.
Entire Family Struck By Lightning
A nine-year-old boy was taken to hospital in a serious condition on Wednesday after he was struck by lightning along with four other members of his family. The family were gathering their garden furniture and toys in during a storm at their home near Chemnitz, Saxony, when they were struck at around 5pm. The boy's grandmother, her daughter, her daughter-in-law and two grandsons, aged six and nine, were all hit and taken to hospital The daughter-in-law told Bild newspaper that she was hit by a tingle "from head to toe". All suffered minor injuries apart from the nine-year-old boy who had to be resuscitated in the garden. - The Local.
Video Shows That Extreme Weather Events Increasing Across The Planet
The uptick in earthquake activity continues all along the Ring of Fire. At the center of these changes, the United States dealt with "historic flooding" which was labelled a "one-in-500-year event"!So much more has taken place over the last month or so than this video shows. Deluges continue to hit heavily populated areas. Be prepared for large-scale disasters in your area. It has and it will continue to worsen, whether we like or not.
WATCH: Signs of change in April and early May 2014.
Disturbing Amounts Of Plastic Found In Mediterranean Seabirds
Cory's shearwater was the species with the highest level of ingested plastic
A new study has discovered that 94 per cent of Cory's shearwaters on the Catalan coast have ingested plastic. In the case of Yelkouan and Balearic shearwaters, the conclusion is that 70 per cent of studied birds were similarly affected. Jacob González SolÃs from the Department of Animal Biology and the Biodiversity Research Institute (IRBio) of the University of Barcelona (UB), headed a research group that carried out the study, published in the Marine Pollution Bulletin. Plastic pollution is known to be a threat for marine ecosystems around the world, but it has not yet been extensively studied. SolÃs explained that, "this is the first assessment of plastic ingestion in Mediterranean seabirds. The Mediterranean Sea has been recognised as a singularly sensitive ecosystem because its coast is very industrialised, shipping activity is intense and it contains high density floating plastic areas." Floating plastic debris can cause entanglement, ulcers, infections and death in marine animals. They can ingest them by mistake, because plastic fragments resemble their natural food items such as jelly fish, or take them in by eating prey which has in turn consumed plastic. Ingested fragments found were filaments, plastic spheres, laminar plastic and industrial pellets.
The study was based on the analysis of 171 birds accidentally caught by longliners on the Catalan coast from 2003 to 2010. The UB research group studied plastic ingestion in nine particularly endangered seabird species: Cory's shearwater, Yelkouan shearwater, Balearic shearwater, gannet; Audouin's gull, Mediterranean gull, yellow-legged gull, black-legged kittiwake and great skua. Results showed that 66 per cent of the seabirds had at least one piece of plastic in their stomachs. "Results are alarming," said SolÃs. "All three of the worst affected birds are of conservation concern, particularly the Balearic shearwater, which is listed as critically endangered. There are only around 3,000 breeding pairs in the world." Seabird chicks are the most vulnerable to plastic ingestion as they cannot regurgitate as adults do. The lower occurrence of plastics in gulls probably results from their greater ability to regurgitate any hard remains. The study proves that plastic trash - most of it from recreational activities - is a global problem as it enters the oceans' food chain and becomes a threat for seabirds and marine ecosystems. "Plastic floats and is difficult to degrade," said SolÃs. "Eventually, all pollutants which are not destroyed on land arrive in the sea. But the sea is not a rubbish bin. The control over plastic production and transportation at industrial level has probably improved, but there is an urgent need to develop stricter controls on waste dumping and to prohibit ships from discharging into the sea." . - Wildlife Extra.
Seismologists Say Fracking-Linked Earthquakes Likely To Worsen
David McNew/Getty Images/AFP
Ongoing hydraulic fracking operations will only exacerbate seismic activity, leading to heightened earthquakes in areas where wastewater is injected deep underground, according to new research. To unleash natural gas, hydraulic fracturing - or fracking - requires large volumes of water, sand, and chemicals to be pumped underground. Scientists attending the Seismological Society of America (SSA) annual meeting said Thursday that this storage of wastewater in wells deep below the earth's surface, in addition to fracking's other processes, is changing the stress on existing faults, which could mean more frequent and larger quakes in the future. Researchers previously believed quakes that resulted from fracking could not exceed a magnitude of 5.0, though stronger seismic events were recorded in 2011 around two heavily drilled areas in Colorado and Oklahoma. "This demonstrates there is a significant hazard," said Justin Rubinstein, a research geophysicist at the US Geological Survey (USGS), according to TIME magazine. "We need to address ongoing seismicity." Not all of the more than 30,000 fracking disposal wells are linked to quakes, but an accumulatingbody of evidenceassociates an uptick in seismic activity to fracking developments amid the current domestic energy boom. The amount of toxic wastewater injected into the ground seems to provide some clarity as to what causes the earthquakes. A single fracking operation uses two to five million gallons of water, according to reports, but much more wastewater ends up in a disposal well. "There are so many injection operations throughout much of the US now that even though a small fraction might induce quakes, those quakes have contributed dramatically to the seismic hazard, especially east of the Rockies," said Arthur McGarr, a USGS scientist. The USGS researchers spoke with reporters via conference call on Thursday.
Scientists believe the cumulative effect of these operations could result in larger quakes becoming more common over time. "I think ultimately, as fluids propagate and cover a larger space, the likelihood that it could find a larger fault and generate larger seismic events goes up," Gail Atkinson, professor of earth sciences at Western University in Ontario, Canada, said at the SSA meeting. Seismologists say that widespread oil and gas development in one area could create hazardous quakes in nearby areas not equipped to handle activity above a low-level quake. "With these huge wells, the pressure they create can travel tens of kilometers," said Katie Keranen, assistant professor of geophysics at Cornell University. As fracking spreads to new areas like Ohio that haven't traditionally experienced many earthquakes, the scientists said more research is needed to understand the risks involved, for policymakers and the public. "There's a very large gap on policy here," said Atkinson. "We need extensive databases on the wells that induce seismicity and the ones that don't." The scientists said energy industry players must offer more information on their fracking operations, and data on these actions must be made publicly available more often. "There are minimums in terms of what needs to be recorded - injection pressure and volume - but these are only made available to the public once a year," Rubenstein said. "We need more information reported more frequently to do the science correctly." Last month, state geologists in Ohio said the link between fracking and five minor quakes in the state was "probable." Outside of increased seismic activity, fracking has been linked to groundwater contamination, exacerbation of drought conditions, and a laundrylist of health concerns for humans and the local environment. - RT.
Emergency Services Pull Fire Truck From Sydney Sinkhole
ABC News
Emergency services have freed a fire truck that was caught in a hole for 10 hours and teetering on the edge of a cliff in Bilgola on Sydney's northern beaches. The fire crew was responding to reports of flooding due to a burst water main about 4:00am when the vehicle hit what they thought was a pothole on The Serpentine Road. After first using a crane to lift the 14-tonne truck out of the hole, winches and airbags - normally used to lift train carriages - were brought in to help move the truck out of what police called a sink hole. Fire and Rescue NSW Superintendent Kel McNamara said when the truck became stuck, the crew immediately ensured people in the area were safe. The fire crew was responding to reports of flooding due to a burst water main about 4:00am when the vehicle hit what they thought was a pothole on The Serpentine Road.
After first using a crane to lift the 14-tonne truck out of the hole, winches and airbags - normally used to lift train carriages - were brought in to help move the truck out of what police called a sink hole. Fire and Rescue NSW Superintendent Kel McNamara said when the truck became stuck, the crew immediately ensured people in the area were safe. Earlier, Supt McNamara had said the truck was stuck in a three-metre deep sink hole, tethered to a tow truck at a 45-degree angle on the cliff. Police had feared the hole could open up further, dislodging the truck and causing it to roll onto houses further down the embankment. At the bottom of the cliff the burst water main caused huge amounts of damage to at least five homes. Backyards have been covered in mud, retaining walls have been destroyed and houses have filled with mud and silt. State Emergency Services (SES) workers and engineers were called in to assess if there would be any further landslips. A police spokesman said there had been similar incidents on The Serpentine Road and residents were aware of the issue. "The people who have been evacuated self-evacuated, so they're looking after themselves," he said."There's one couple we are providing some assistance with, using the SES."Sydney Water did not know what caused the burst main and shut off the water. - ABC Australia.
April 18, 2013 - UNITED STATES - A massive storm system carrying potentially severe thunderstorms,
damaging winds and possibly even tornadoes was soaking the nation’s
midsection on Thursday, with flash floods reported in Chicago and heavy
rain expected to cause major flooding along the Mississippi River.
Flooding in the Chicago area – with more than 4 inches of rain reported
-- closed major expressways and filled up the city’s underground storm
and sewer overflow system.
City engineers were forced to reroute the
water system, known as the “deep tunnel” into Lake Michigan, NBCChicago.com reported. Residents, however, were not expected to see any overflowing of sewers or any impact on the lake, officials said.
Firefighter Jason Kelley and police officer Shannon Vandenheuvel carry children from Barbara Jones' partially submerged car in Grand Rapids, Mich., on Thursday.
Parts of the Edens and Eisenhower expressways in Lake County, Ill., were closed in both directions, the station's website reported.
Gov.
Pat Quinn declared a state of emergency across Illinois as thousands of
people struggled with flood damage even as another wave of wet weather
was on the way.
Quinn said a hospital in Morris, Ill., had to be evacuated and two trailer parks severely flooded.
"Heavy rainfall over the past few days has created dangerous flooding in areas across the state," Quinn said, NBCChicago.com reported.
"Everyone should stay home and off the roads if possible. To ensure
safety as these storms continue, people should be alert and avoid
flooded areas."
Residents were told to tune in to local TV and radio stations for updated information about any closed roadways or evacuations.
WATCH: NewsNation's Tamron Hall reports on the massive storm which called flash flooding in Chicago.
More than 500 flights were canceled
at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport due to the extreme weather, and some trains
were delayed. Air travelers were urged to check airline websites or
call to confirm whether flights were still planned.
In Midland, Mich., Northwood University canceled classes for the rest of the week because of flooding problems, NBC station WDIV reported.
The
Weather Channel's Greg Forbes, a severe weather expert, categorized the
storm as a “major/massive flood event” for the Midwest.
Flood
watches and warnings were posted on Thursday stretching from
northeastern Oklahoma to much of Missouri, northern and central
Illinois, southern and central Wisconsin, and parts of Lower Michigan, Weather.com said.
Flood warnings were issued in some cases for areas already swamped by melting snow.
Seventeen
gauges placed along the Mississippi River to monitor the rising water
already showed major flooding, Forbes said, and the water was predicted
to rise in the next 24 hours in Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin and
Michigan.
WATCH: Heavy rain caused a sinkhole in Chicago that swallowed three cars. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.
Indeed, the band of predicted extreme weather stretched from northern Michigan to Houston and the Texas coastal area.
States
along the Eastern Seaboard were set for heavy rain on Friday,
Weather.com reported. The tornado risk, however, was expected to
diminish as the storm moved east.
Still, heavy rain was likely in
Pennsylvania, New Jersey and the New York metropolitan area as well as
the Atlantic Coast.
A forecast issued late Wednesday by the
National Weather Service showed a 40 percent chance that the Red River
will top the 2009 record of just under 41 feet.
Fargo City
Administrator Pat Zavoral said he's confident the area will be
protected. He said a forecast closer to 44 feet would have made things
"a little dicey." - NBC News.
April 02, 2013 - CANADA - Two cars fell into a sinkhole that opened up Friday in a parking lot
near Montreal's Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport. The cars
didn't completely disappear - the nose of one of the cars slipped into
the hole while the side of the other car was partially submerged.
A man looks inside a sinkhole that opened up at a parking lot at
Montreal Airport on Friday, March 29, 2013, after two
partially-submerged cars were pulled from the hole. (Graham Hughes / The
Canadian Press)
A spokesman for Montreal's airport authority says the hole is just under
a metre deep and covers an area of about five metres long and three
metres wide.
Francois Asselin says it's located in an outdoor employee parking lot and stressed it won't disrupt business at the airport.
Montreal Airport employees look into a sinkhole that opened up at a
parking lot at Montreal Airport, Friday, March 29, 2013, after two
partially-submerged cars were pulled from the hole. (Graham Hughes / The
Canadian Press)
No one has been injured and the cars were pulled out by mid-afternoon.
Police and firefighters have cordoned off the area in case the hole widens. - Windsor Star.
March 27, 2013 - UNITED STATES - A possible sinkhole had two Seffner families out of their homes
Tuesday night. They were evacuated from a duplex after the floor began
to buckle.
Ronnie Rivera, spokesperson for HCFR, said there is
no gaping hole, but that the duplex has a buckled floor and there are
cracks in the walls.
The duplex, at 5315 Peach Avenue, is about two miles from a sinkhole that swallowed a man last month.
Fire Rescue cleared the scene, and code enforcement is investigating.
March 27, 2013 - MALAYSIA - About 300 residents of Pangsapuri Beringin in Puchong, here had to vacate their apartment units yesterday when a nearby hillslope collapsed for the second time this year.
The first incident occurred on Feb 19 and residents claimed that repairs were completed late, which resulted in the second landslide about 4.30pm yesterday.
The landslide is also threatening a row of terrace houses near Pangsapuri Beringin. Pic by Saifullizan Tamadi.
They said an official from the Subang Jaya Municipal Council had directed residents of Block B of the apartments to evacuate to a hall nearby.
Resident Siti Zaleha Dalli, 38, described this landslide as even worse than the first one.
"I was told about the incident at about 4.30pm by my son before I noticed that a large part of the hill slope next to the building had collapsed. I was made to understand that a sewage pipe and a water pipe had burst, which aggravated the situation. The landslide was very near my unit," said Siti Zaleha, who expressed disappointment at the slow pace of repairs following the first landslide.
"When such things happen, we cannot sleep peacefully for fear that our lives may be in danger. If it rains, we will be more worried because the soil will sink."
Another resident, L. Vijayan, 31, also expressed disappointment claiming repairs on the temporary retaining wall were a short-term solution.
"About 2am, I came to learn that there was a burst pipe.
"It was raining heavily then, but I did not expect the situation to turn this bad because I thought the temporary retaining wall could sustain the pressure."
A check revealed that a section of the landslide had affected the back of a row of terrace-houses located near Block B.
Assistant Director of Operations of the Selangor Fire and Rescue Department Mohd Sani Harul said there were no casualties.
The cause of the incident was still being investigated. - NST.
March 26, 2013 - UNITED STATES - Members of a family moving to Tombstone said they aren't concerned by a new sinkhole in the backyard of a home.
Photographer: The Sierra Vista Herald.
They're purchasing the home in the historic mining community.
A tow truck's winch was used to extract the family's truck from the sinkhole after its left front tire sank when the ground collapsed Friday evening.
According to the Sierra Vista Herald, Michael and Mary Berrryman and their son Mikey all said they find the sinkhole an interesting part of Tombstone's history.
There's a network of underground mine tunnels underneath Tombstone, and town archivist Nancy Sosa said three mines connect near the new sinkhole.
Fire Chief Jeff Fought said the house appears to be structurally sound. - ABC15.
March 25, 2013 - UNITED STATES - A new sinkhole opened up in Seffner, Fla., the same town where a sinkhole swallowed a man. This is at least the third sinkhole in the Florida town in a month
Authorities say a sinkhole has opened between two homes in Seffner and the houses have been evacuated as a precaution.
This
video image shows an aerial photo of a sinkhole earlier this month in
Seffner, Fla., that opened up underneath a bedroom and swallowed Jeffrey
Bush. Florida is one of only two states where insurers of residences
have to cover damage related to earth movement.
ABC Action News-WFTS TV/AP
Hillsborough County Fire Rescue spokeswoman Jessica Damico said the hole was estimated at 8 feet across and 10 feet deep. It opened about 7 p.m. Saturday. Seffner was also the site of a massive sinkhole that swallowed a man in his bedroom, killing him about a month ago.
As LiveScience.com points out, "sinkholes are an increasingly deadly risk in Florida, due primarily to the region's geology. The state is largely underlain by porous limestone, which can hold immense amounts of water in underground aquifers.
As groundwater slowly flows through the limestone, it forms a landscape called karst, known for features like caves, springs and sinkholes.
The water in aquifers also exerts pressure on the limestone and helps to stabilize the overlying surface layer, usually clay, silt and sand in Florida. Sinkholes form when that layer of surface material caves in."
As The Christian Science Monitor reports, sinkhole insurance for homeowners is rare. "Only in Florida and Tennessee - where sinkholes are common - are home insurance providers required to offer coverage for damage related to earth movement.
"In California, earthquake coverage is optional," says Lynne McChristian, the Florida representative for New York-based Insurance Information Institute. "The home and your property are covered but not the land. Insurers in Florida are required to cover land as well."
"Sinkhole insurance in the Sunshine State has been somewhat of a nightmare for policyholders and providers alike in recent years. Rates for sinkhole coverage jumped last year, with state-run Citizen's Property Insurance hiking rates 50 percent in parts of "sinkhole alley" - pockets of Hernando, Pasco, Hillsborough, and Pinellas counties, in and around the greater Tampa area, according to the Consumer Insurance Guide. Private insurers hiked rates up to 200 percent. " - CSM.
Alberto Ignacio Jr., geothermal projects division vice president of
construction firm First Balfour, said the four bodies were retrieved
Wednesday morning buried in the ground along the road where they were
building a pipe shelter at the time of the landslide.
Rescuers on Monday retrieve the body of a worker following a landslide
in a geothermal power plant in Kananga, Leyte. The body was taken to a
local hospital to be identified by relatives. Seven workers have been
killed in the incident. GMA News/EDC/HO
Ignacio identified the first four bodies recovered on Wednesday as
those of Salvador Lascañas Jr., Alfredo Arabis, Romeo Yazar and Danilo
Mabuti.
The fifth body later recovered
in the day and a sixth early morning Thursday were identified as
Salvador Yabana and Jorden Salcedo.
"We
are extending full assistance to the family for funeral/burial expenses.
We have also assigned staff to be with the families as we did for the
rest who were earlier recovered," Ignacio said in a text message to GMA
News Online.
Previously recovered
were Bonifacio Poliño, Etcheld Dela Austria, Edgar Cabarse, Billy
Abella, Joel Milay, Marlon Buanghog, Uldarico Taboranza, and Abelardo
Permangel.
The landslide occurred at Pad 403 of the Upper Mahiao Geothermal Project in Leyte last Friday.
“'Yung ginagawa kasi sa pipe shelter sa road 403 and 409, there's a
section on the pipeline along the road na nagka-landslide,” Ignacio told
GMA News Online in a phone interview.
The
plant's operator Energy Development Corp. (EDC) suspected that an
earthquake last Feb. 27 and two weeks of rain may have triggered the
landslide Friday morning, which initially claimed five lives.
First Balfour is the contractor for one of the civil works in the province.
“The Emergency Response Team and all available personnel, as well as
company resources and equipment, have already been mobilized,” the
company said in a statement.
The EDC accident is the second landslide to claim lives in the country this year.
Five were killed while five are still missing when a section of the
west wall in a mine pit of Semirara Mining Corp. in Antique collapsed on
Feb. 13. - GMA News.
January 31, 2013 - UNITED STATES - Construction at Birmingham's $64 million baseball stadium is hampered with a recent discovery of a massive sinkhole at the entrance to the sports facility.
Construction at Birmingham's $64 million baseball stadium is hampered with a recent discovery of a massive sinkhole at the entrance to the sports facility. City officials said the sinkhole, which was at least 100-feet deep, is repaired but forces the relocation of sewer lines at the site. The sinkhole was at the ballpark's plaza entryway on15th Street and 3rd Avenue. (Joe Songer/jsonger@al.com).
City officials said the sinkhole, which was at least 100-feet deep, is repaired but forces the relocation of sewer lines at the site. As a result, Mayor William Bell asked the City Council for emergency permission to grant an easement to reroute the sewer line. Bell will sign the easement now, with an official council vote Tuesday. The rare move is an attempt to continue work at the new Regions Field and prevent a delay in opening the 8,500-seat ballpark. The sinkhole was at the ballpark's plaza entryway on15th Street and 3rd Avenue .
"We're still mapping the extent of it, but we have fixed it," said Virginia Williams, Bell's senior aide in charge of capital projects. Work to fix the problem began last week and is expected to cost at least $200,000, Williams said. That money is covered in a contingency budget for the project, she said. "We run into sinkholes all over the city," said Chuck Faush, Bell's chief of staff. "We will from time to time have to shore up infrastructure in the normal course of building.
This is one that happened to occur around the stadium." In spite of the unexpected complication, Williams said the Birmingham Barons April 10 opening date remains on schedule. "We plan to meet the April date," Williams said. In 2008, a giant sinkhole swallowed a Bush Hills home and threatened others. Within days, it had swallowed the backyard and crept toward the house, leaving the back deck dangling. - AL.
January 29, 2013 - CHINA - Several buildings have fallen into an enormous sinkhole in Guangzhou, China, destroying at least five shops and taking out power for 3,000 residential units nearby, Shanghaiist reports.
The sink hole was 300 square meters wide (3,229.2 square feet), and appears to be growing. Thankfully there does not appear to be any injuries at present. This video shows the moment the sinkhole expanded, taking out much of the building and creating a chaotic scene.
Sinkholes are becoming a worrying problem in China.In 2007,
there were 54 sinkhole collapses, and by 2009, that number was all the
way up to 129. According to one estimate, between July 21st and August
12th 2012, 99 sinkhole collapses occurred just in Beijing.
While the cause of this sinkhole has not been determined yet, most
appear to have been caused by rapid economic development and poorly
planned infrastructure.
- Business Insider.
January 09, 2013 - UNITED STATES - One-tenth to one-twentieth of the methane gas estimated to be trapped under the Bayou Corne and Grand Bayou communities in northern Assumption Parish has been burned off so far, according to parish emergency response officials. Scientists believe the failure of an abandoned underground salt cavern owned by Texas Brine Co. LLC set in motion a series of events that scrambled the substrata thousands of feet deep, creating a 8.5-acre sinkhole at the surface and unleashing oil and gas from nearby natural formations underground. The cavern, which was never used to store methane, was carved over a 27-year period from the Napoleonville Dome, a large subterranean salt deposit.
This “free gas,” as it is known, presents a risk to the 150 households in Bayou Corne and Grand Bayou areas, scientists have said, because the colorless and odorless gas can accumulate in enclosed spaces in homes and garages and pose a risk of explosion. The risk is one of the reasons evacuated residents remain out of their homes more than five months since discovery of the swampland sinkhole Aug. 3, parish officials have said. The pace of installing the wells that will vent the gas has drawn fire from residents and parish officials. Parish Police Jury President Martin “Marty” Triche raised this issue last month during a community meeting in Napoleonville. As a comparison, he pointed to the reaction of Gulf South Pipeline Co. LP to a natural gas leak in late December 2003 in the Grand Bayou area east of where the sinkhole is now located. The underground leak resulted from the failure of metal casing in an access well to an underground gas storage cavern on Dow Chemical Co.’s property. The cavern also was carved from the Napoleonville Dome. The leak led to a 50-day evacuation of 28 residents who lived in Grand Bayou, most of whom were later bought out. Gulf South, which was in a partnership with Entergy Corp. and Koch Gateway Pipeline at the time and was leasing the cavern from Dow, installed 36 vent wells. Triche said that took only weeks to do. “I just want to tell that you sit here and you tell us you’ve committed to doing everything you can to resolve the situation and all we can do is take you at face value,” Triche told Bruce Martin, Texas Brine’s vice president of operations, during the meeting amid a broad critique of the company’s response. “But I can tell you, for those of you that were here, the response to the 2003 incident and what we see today are night and day,” Triche said. Triche, a lawyer, represented Dow in later litigation over the gas leak. The 2003 Gulf South leak released an estimated 600 million cubic feet of gas underground in the same water aquifer now affected by the Texas Brine-cavern leak. Seventeen of the 36 wells drilled collected or burned off gas, removing 375 million cubic feet before officials started closing down the wells in July 2004, according to the Louisiana Office of Conservation and an insurance report filed in connection with litigation over the 2003 leak.
In the latest incident in Bayou Corne, between 50 million and 100 million cubic feet of gas is believed under the area, scientists have estimated. And in the five months since the sinkhole was found, various kinds of wells have drawn off a combined 4.95 million cubic feet of gas through Friday, the new parish estimate says. At latest count from the state Office of Conservation, three wells are burning off a combined 59,200 cubic feet of gas per day. But the venting process in Bayou Corne has run into hurdles, affecting the number of wells burning gas and how much gas they burn. The first batch of four wells installed by the Office of Conservation and its agent, Shaw Environmental and Infrastructure Inc., ran into problems with blockages and water infiltration. Two of their wells are now venting gas. Two other wells Texas Brine installed on its 40-acre site hit hydrogen sulfide, a potentially lethal gas. That discovery forced the permanent closure of one well and the installation of specialized equipment in another before flaring will be allowed to resume. Water infiltration ended flaring last month from a converted pressure well, a separate kind of well that measures underground gas, company officials have said. Texas Brine is looking at two other pressure wells for new flaring options and has one vent well burning off gas. Texas Brine officials have also pointed out they continue to have trouble with land access around Bayou Corne where there are multiple property owners, including residential owners. In the Grand Bayou incident in 2003, most of the gas was found over the Napoleonville Dome, east of Bayou Corne and under property owned by industrial users, Texas Brine officials noted. “I think the circumstances were different,” company spokesman Sonny Cranch said. The Office of Conservation noted access difficulties Dec. 17 when it did not fine Texas Brine a second time for failing to meet vent well deadlines. The agency had cited that issue in an initial round of fines levied Dec. 1. But Triche, who reached an agreement with Texas Brine on reimbursement of parish response costs Friday, contends Texas Brine could have started much sooner to find well sites, a delay that is part of a pattern, he says, of not being proactive on its sinkhole response. Triche said he is glad Texas Brine will pay for its responsibilities, but he remains upset that the company has not done more to mitigate the sinkhole event. “They still got a lot of work left to do, and it’s long overdue,” he said. - The Advocate.
December 29, 2012 - CHINA - The sinkhole strikes again! While not as epic as the gaping Xi'an collapse in May, a road in Shanxi has imploded, damaging gas and infrastructure in the area. No one was hurt, and the only significant harm was caused to underground pipes. Shanxi should be glad not to have the bus-eating holes of Nanjing or pedestrian-assassins of Xi'an. - Shanghaiist.
December 28, 2012 - UNITED STATES - The 8.5-acre Assumption Parish sinkhole, located between the Bayou Corne and Grand Bayou communities, burped this week for the second time in a month, the company cleaning up the site reported Thursday. Sonny Cranch, a spokesman for Texas Brine Co. LLC, said the burp happened either Christmas night or early Wednesday.
Advocate file photo by HEATHER MCCLELLAND -- The sinkhole that emerged nearly five months ago in Assumption Parish swampland adjacent to the Napoleonville Dome already has grown to more than 8.5 acres in size. Seismic studies will be conducted to learn more about the sinkhole and determine its potential for future expansion.
He said crews have not been able to determine how much vegetation came up after the burp. The previous burp occurred on Nov. 27. The burp, Cranch said, is composed “of decayed leaves, branches and some tree trunks. It is very likely material from a slough-off that occurred a few weeks ago.” Cranch has said the sinkhole’s belching is simply part of its “natural life,” especially following a slough-off where more land was swallowed by the sinkhole. “When trees on the perimeter fall in due to the supersaturated soil conditions, the weight of the dirt around the root structure carries many — not all — of those trees to the bottom,” he said. “As the dirt washes off the roots over time, the natural buoyancy allows some to rise to the surface.”
Unlike the previous burp, which coincided with a long-period earth tremor, this one wasn’t due to a tremor, Cranch said. “To our knowledge there was no seismic event connected to this recent occurrence,” he said. “The stuff seems to have just floated to the surface. Most of it was removed yesterday; the remainder today.” The sinkhole, which scientists believe formed following the failure of an underground Texas Brine cavern in the Napoleonville Dome, was discovered south of La. 70 on Aug. 3. Since then, as predicted, the sinkhole gradually has increased in size and has released methane, natural gas and crude oil underground. Assumption Parish officials ordered the evacuation of more than 150 residences in the area on Aug. 3 because of safety concerns, and that evacuation order remains in place. - The Advocate.
December 24, 2012 - LOUISIANA, UNITED STATES - Here are excerpts from the recent Texas Brine Company, LLC UPDATES on the giant sinkhole in Assumption Parish, Louisiana:
December 21, 2012 LEAN flyover of giant sinkhole in Assumption Parish, Louisiana. Source: Joint flight for
Atchafalaya Basinkeeper, Louisiana Environmental Action Network and Lower Mississippi Riverkeeper;
Flight courtesy of SouthWings.
December 18, 2012
A wireline measuring device found a narrow opening near
the center that descended to 410 feet [and] is the most probable source
of the bubbling that continues in the center of the sinkhole surface
December 19, 2012
The light bubbling that continues in the center of the
sinkhole is delivering an emulsified liquid hydrocarbon material to the
surface
December 20, 2012
Light bubbling continues to be observed in the center of
the sinkhole. The emulsified hydrocarbon that is rising to the surface
with the bubbling has been contained
December 21, 2012
The light bubbling that has been observed in the center of the sinkhole has diminished significantly
December 22, 2012
Very light bubbling was still observed in the center of
the sinkhole. [...] After today, no further clean-up activity is
scheduled until Wednesday, December 26
December 24, 2012 - LOUISIANA, UNITED STATES - Photographs from a flyover today, December 21, 2012, show the Bayou Corne Sinkhole is continuing to expand. The sinkhole is currently estimated to be approximately 8.5 acres in size. Three days after it formed on Aug. 3, 2012, the sinkhole was a smaller slurry area approximately 372 feet wide.
Bayou Corne Sinkhole Aug. 6, 2012.
Two months after it first formed, the sinkhole had expanded to several acres in size and had become a potential source of oil and brine contamination for the surrounding environment.
Bayou Corne Sinkhole Oct. 11, 2012.
December 21, 2012, Almost 5 months after it first formed. The sinkhole has expanded some more and a sheen of crude oil can still be seen on it's surface. A large area of natural gas bubbles can also be seen at it's center.
December 17, 2012 - FLORIDA - A massive sinkhole opened up Wednesday in the backyard of a Lake Mary home whose owners were forced out several months ago because of sinkholes.
The new sinkhole is estimated at about 25 feet wide and possibly 30 feet deep, according to a next-door neighbor.
Photo by Chase Cain @ChaseCainTV.
Neighbors told Fox 35's Chase Cain that crews were at the Lake Como Drive home earlier Wednesday, working to fix and fill the three existing sinkholes that opened up in August. The largest of those was about 7 feet wide and 4 feet deep.
In August, three sinkholes damaged the home and its foundation. Cracks creeped up the walls.
"The house cracks every day. There are new cracks everywhere," homeowner Debbie Coffman said then.
Engineers told her at time that the holes needed to be pumped with concrete. They planned to try to go under home and add support to parts of the foundation to stabilize the home.
Crews are expected out today to assess the new sinkhole. - WOGX.
December 12, 2012 - BAYOU CORNE, LOUISIANA, UNITED STATES - Texas-Brine, the company that owns the cavern that is suspected of being the cause of the sinkhole in Assumption Parish, reports that a small slough-in happened Tuesday night on the Southwest side of the sinkhole.
Source: Assumption Parish Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness.
No exact measurements of the slough-in have been provided. The massive sinkhole plaguing south Louisiana ate a large section of land on October 30, 2012. Officials stated a 20 foot by 80 foot chunk located on the east side of the sinkhole collapsed. About 500 square feet of earth was lost on Oct. 9. An exact measurement of the sinkhole is unknown at this time. About 150 homes have been under an evacuation order since Aug. 3. Officials say a second vent well is "shut-in" over concern about a highly toxic gas. Crews are trying to find the best way to control small amounts of Hydrogen Sulfide gas detected at the well. Officials say vent wells burning off gas trapped in an aquifer in Assumption Parish have removed slightly more than 2.7 million cubic feet of gas since flaring began.
This is at the first vent well site that was shut-in. Scientists believe the gas migrated upward from natural formations along the Napoleonville Dome after a Texas Brine Co. LLC cavern in the salt dome failed this summer and caused the large sinkhole to form. The Department of Health & Hospitals (DHH) and the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) along with parish officials have scheduled a briefing for Bayou Corne residents specific to health concerns. Information relative to updates of the sinkhole situation will not be presented at the meeting. The meeting will be focused on concerns brought up by residents to DHH & DEQ in past briefings. The meeting is scheduled for Thursday, December 13, 2012 at 6 p.m. at the Assumption Parish Community Center at 4910 Highway 1 in Napoleonville. - WAFB.
December 12, 2012 - LOUISIANA, UNITED STATES - The Observation Well remains shut in. Various options are under consideration to ensure any hydrogen sulfide in the natural gas or liquid hydrocarbon coming from this well is safely managed and flared. No additional hydrocarbon displacement will occur until then.
Bubbling in the center of the sinkhole was observed again today. After a rain delay, clean-up of the relatively small amount of debris and liquid hydrocarbon that remains on the sinkhole surface within the containment boom was resumed. A tree, located about 20 feet south of the mat road, fell into the sinkhole over the weekend. No other changes to the shape or size of the sinkhole were detected. The temporary geophone will be installed in the 480-foot-deep geophone well this week.
The data recorded by the geophone will be used to design a broader, permanent geophone system array. The shallow aquifer Relief Well #1 was closed in at 9:00 a.m. this morning in order to remove water that had accumulated in the well casing. Flaring was resumed at approximately 1:15 pm with the vent flow returning to a rate of approximately 63,000 cubic feet per day. Flaring will continue 24 hours/day. 5. - Texas Brine.
WATCH: Shocking Video Of Methane Gas Bubbling In Bayou Corne Near Sinkhole.
The latest flyover footage from the Assumption Parish officials, of the giant sinkhole shows oil surfacing in a new area, surrounding land now inundated. See all of the videos HERE.
