February 7, 2016 - AUSTRIA - Five Czech skiers were killed in a huge avalanche that swept away their
group of 17 in the Austrian skiing region of Tyrol on Saturday, police
said.
The avalanche, which the regional TV station ORF Tirol said was 2 km
(1.25 miles) wide and 5 m (16 feet) deep, came down shortly after noon
at the Wattener Lizum region, about 40 km (25 miles) southeast of
Innsbruck.
Two people were injured but out of acute danger, while 10 others survived unharmed, police said.
An avalanche warning sign is pictured in
Wattental valley in Austria's skiing region of Tyrol February 6, 2016.
The experienced Czech skiers were taking part in a so-called "freeride
camp" and had been repeatedly warned about the danger by locals,
according to ORF.
The entire skiing region had been on a 'level three' avalanche alert,
out of a maximum five, and several avalanches were also reported
elsewhere. - Reuters.
February 7, 2016 - RELIGION - The head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, is to
meet his Roman Catholic counterpart, Pope Francis, during a historic
visit to Latin America. The groundbreaking meeting is to happen in
mid-February in Cuba.
The meeting between heads the two major Christian churches would be an unprecedented move to mend a millennium-long rift between the Western and Eastern branches of the religion, which started with the Great Schism of 1054.
The upcoming meeting confirms Russia’s status in the Christian world, according to Alexandr Avdeev Russia’s ambassador to the Holy See. “In light of the Western sanctions, the meeting between the two celebrants is a confirmation of Russia’s role in Christian civilization,” he told TASS.
Persecution of Christians in the modern world is the main issue for the two leaders to discuss, the Russian Orthodox Church said. Christians are among the minorities suffering at the hands of groups adhering to radical Islamist ideology in places like Iraq, Syria and Somalia.
In addition to Cuba, Patriarch Kirill’s Latin American tour from February 11-22 includes Paraguay, Chile and Brazil. The meeting with Pope Francis will happen on February 12.
“The intersection of the routes allowed this meeting to be organized,” commented Metropolitan Hilarion, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church's Foreign Relations Department.
“The situation in the Middle East, in northern and central Africa and in some other regions where extremists are perpetrating genocide of Christians, requires immediate action and even closer cooperation between Christian churches.
“In the current tragic situation, we need to put aside internal disagreements and join efforts to save Christianity in the regions where it is subjected to most severe persecution,” he said.
Sergey Brun from the Museum of Russian Icons told RT that the meeting could signal a possible warming of relations between Russia and the West.
WATCH: First time since 11th century - Pope Francis to meet Russian Orthodox Patriarch .
“It is a sign that the relations are going to get warmer at least between one of the parts of the Orthodox church, namely the Russian Orthodox church, and the church of Rome…I hope it will positively influence the dialogue between Russia and the West.”
The pontiff will make a stop in Cuba on his way to Mexico.
The meeting has been in preparation for two decades and both Moscow and the Vatican agreed that some neutral country would be most suited for it. Austria and Hungary were among those considered, but Cuba was eventually chosen. The Patriarch and the Pope are expected to sign a joint declaration after the talks.
The Holy See called the upcoming meeting a “sign of good faith” and called on all Christians “to pray to God to bless the meeting,” the Vatican said in a statement.
For the Russian Orthodox Church the meeting will be the biggest foreign affairs event since reuniting in 2007 with the Russian Orthodox Church outside Russia after a 90-year split.
The Great Schism formalized the break of communion between the Latin and Greek parts of Christianity after years of accumulating differences over theology, jurisdiction and ritual. The division endured over centuries, with mutual anathemas declared by the Pope and the Patriarch of what was then Constantinople (now Istanbul) in 1054 nullified only in 1965. - RT.
February 6, 2016 - MEXICO - Popocatepetl
volcano record in the last 17 hours of low intensity exhalations
accompanied by steam and gas, and vulcanotectónico earthquake with
preliminary magnitude of 1.7, according to the National Center for
Disaster Prevention (Cenpared).
Also three explosions of low intensity, the most important at 3:32 pm on Saturday, which produced an ash column height of about 800 meters (2,624 feet) above the crater, moving east.
According to the latest report monitoring body within the Ministry of Interior, during yesterday Friday a continuous emission of steam and gas was observed.
Meanwhile, as of this morning and so far this report has been a slight emission of steam and gas that spread east winds.
The Cenapred urged not to approach the volcano, especially the crater, the danger of falling ballistic fragments, so that the traffic light Volcanic Alert remains at Yellow Phase 2.
At this stage the planned scenarios are to continue small-scale explosive activity at intermediate, rains of ash mild to moderate in nearby towns to register, and the possibility of pyroclastic flows and mudflows short range.
WATCH: Spectacular eruption at Popocatepetl volcano.
Therefore recommended to continue the established safety radius 12 kilometers, so stay in that area is not permitted, as well as maintaining the controlled transit between San Pedro and Santiago Xalitzintla Nexapa via Paso de Cortes.
A Civil Protection authorities suggested to keep their preventive procedures, according to their operational plans, and the public to be alert to the official information disseminated. - El Economista. [Translated]
Plants by Wolfangel owner Barb Henry reported on Facebook Thursday that the hole was quickly fenced off.
"The unknown of an event like this is scary," Henry told WCPO Thursday. "Just
standing there yesterday watching the earth crumble in, the sounds of
it, the smell of it, it's all familiar and it doesn't bring back good
memories."
Plants by Wolfangel was shut down for nearly two years after
sinkholes in April and June 2011 swallowed the parking lot and
threatened to cut the property in half. The store reportedly lost
merchandise into the hole that was never found.
A sinkhole formed feet from an Anderson Twsp business & it's not
the first time! A closer look on #TheNow at 4 @WCPO
pic.twitter.com/DY3UkIXKWn
— T.J. Parker (@TJParkerWCPO) February 4, 2016
WATCH: Anderson Township shop faces massive sinkhole.
Henry said she started noticing another sinkhole beginning to form early
last month. She said it was 8 feet across, with a small recession in
the ground — a far cry from what she came to find at work Wednesday.
"The minute I pulled up close enough to see a wall of brown dirt crumbling, I just honestly started crying," she said.
Henry told WCPO in 2013 that her plant business stayed open as the holes
grew larger and until the neighboring Taco Bell approached her in
August 2011 to buy the front half of her property. Henry retained and
maintained the back end of the property and reopened the grounds in May
2013.
She said the repairs after the sinkhole 2 years ago cost her roughly $500,000. - WCPO.
