Environment

SANTA CRUZ DE LA SIERRA (Bolivia), Oct 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Hundreds of thousands of protesters marched through the streets of Bolivia’s largest city, turning up heat on President Evo Morales as they voiced outrage over his government’s response to wildfires that have razed broad swaths of the country’s forests this year.

Protesters in the wealthy, industrial city of Santa Cruz brandished placards at the demonstration late on Friday calling for a “punishment vote” against Morales in the upcoming Oct 20 presidential election.

4 Oct 2019; AA: Yavuz, a Turkish drilling vessel, is undertaking a new expedition in Turkey’s continental shelf in northeast of Cyprus, according to an official.  

“Yavuz will launch a new round of offshore drilling operations on 7 October 2019,” Cagatay Erciyes, acting director general at the Turkish Foreign Ministry, said on Twitter.  

“The drilling area lies within the Turkish CS [continental shelf] registered with the UN," he added.

New Delhi, Oct 4 (PTI) Nearly 1,900 people lost their lives and another 46 were reported missing this monsoon season in rains and floods which affected more than 25 lakh in 22 states, Union Home Ministry officials said on Friday.

The highest 382 people died in Maharashtra, followed by 227 deaths in West Bengal in rains, floods and landslides that hit as many as 357 districts in the country.

Patna, Oct 3; GANASHAKTI: The death toll in rain-related incidents in Bihar soared to 73 on Thursday even as forces involved in relief and rescue operations fished out rotting corpses from water-logged areas in several places.

The torrential rain that took place between September 27 and 30 has created a flood-like situation in 15 districts of the state, including the state capital.

SEOUL, Oct 3 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least six people were killed and several others missing after Typhoon Mitag lashed South Korea with heavy rain and strong winds, authorities said Thursday.

The storm hit southern parts of the country on Wednesday night, prompting flood warnings and triggering landslides in affected areas.

A woman in her 70s died after she was swept away by strong winds in the southeastern city of Pohang while another woman was killed after heavy rain caused her house to collapse as she slept, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety said.

SEOUL, Oct 2 (NNN-YONHAP) – This year’s 18th typhoon Mitag is approaching the southern regions of South Korea, the country’s weather service said today.

The mid-strength typhoon is forecast to make a landfall in waters near the country’s southwest port city of Mokpo, at about midnight, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).

The maximum wind speed is reported at 29 metres per second, with its central pressure of 980 hecto-pascals. The strength of the typhoon is expected to be weaker when it arrives at the southern region.

BRASILIA, Oct 1 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — An oil spill has contaminated beaches and coastline across eight Brazilian states, the country’s environment agency said, although authorities are still stumped as to its origin.

Environmental agency Ibama said that beaches along a 3,000-kilometer coastline of Brazil’s Northeast region had been hit by the spill. It said some oil-coated birds and sea turtles had been washed up and were being treated.

Patna, Sep 30 (PTI) After being pounded by heavy rain over the weekend, most parts of the Bihar capital remained submerged even as the state-wide death toll mounted to 25

In Patna, there has been a let up in rainfall since morning though the sky is overcast and the IMD has predicted showers later in the day

According to the state disaster management department, six casualties have been reported from Gaya district where five persons were buried alive in a wall collapse while another person was drowned in a river which was in spate because of incessant rains

BANGKOK, Sept 30 (NNN-TNA) – The Thai Pollution Control Department (PCD), reported today (Monday), an unhealthy level of air pollution, covering 15 main areas in Bangkok, with particulate matter smaller than PM2.5.

The PCD said, levels of 42-66 micro-grams per cubic metre were found in the air, exceeding the safety threshold of 50 micro-grams per cubic metre of air, to the unhealthy level between 53-66 micro-gram per cubic metre.

JAKARTA, Sept 29 (NNN-ANTARA) – The number of casualty climbed to 30, with 156 others injured, while around 25,000 people took shelters, a senior disaster agency official said today (Sunday), after a 6.5-magnitude quake hit Indonesia’s eastern Maluku province, three days ago.

The jolts damaged 534 houses, one bridge, nine office buildings, six education facilities, one health facility and two other infrastructure facilities, according to the spokesman of the national disaster management agency, Agus Wibowo.