**Many of life's failures are people who did not realize
how close they were to success when they gave up.**
Thomas A. Edison
LARGEST QUAKES so far today -
6.0 SANTA CRUZ ISLANDS
Yesterday, 4/13/14 -
5.4 SOUTH SANDWICH ISLANDS REGION
5.1 KURIL ISLANDS
5.2 PHILIPPINE ISLANDS REGION
5.2 BALLENY ISLANDS REGION
6.2 BALLENY ISLANDS REGION
5.2 OFF EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
5.5 PACIFIC-ANTARCTIC RIDGE
5.0 SOLOMON ISLANDS
5.8 CELEBES SEA
5.0 STATE OF YAP, MICRONESIA
VOLCANOES -
Peru evacuates Ubinas volcano area after ash cloud. The authorities in Peru say they are evacuating people living near the Ubinas volcano, in the south of the country, because of increased activity. Officials said it would take three days to move 4,000 residents and their livestock to safer grounds.
Ubinas, Peru's most active volcano, recently began spewing ash clouds up to 4km (two miles) high. An eruption of cinder and toxic gases in 2006 killed livestock and forced a similar evacuation. Last week, the Peruvian government declared a state of emergency in the provinces closest to the volcano to help those most-affected. The residents and their 30,000 animals, including llamas and alpacas, will be moved to an area 20km (12 miles) away. The volcano is located about 100 kilometers (60 miles) east of Arequipa, Peru's second-most populous city. (photos at link)
TROPICAL STORMS -
Current tropical storms - maps and details.
No current tropical storms.
New Zealand - Storm continues to pose problems. Thousands are without power and roads are closed in many parts of the country as the remnants of tropical Cyclone Ita washes out the start of the easter holiday.
Residents in the South and North Islands are battling stormy conditions. Weather from ex-tropical cyclone Ita bore down across the country yesterday and overnight, bringing widespread power outages, flooding and slips in many areas. Those along the West Coast - one of the worst hit areas - have been working all morning to clear flooded areas and debris, with more bad weather expected tomorrow.
Gale force winds even forced a group of Cobden residents to seek shelter at an emergency refuge centre. The bridge was closed about midday yesterday, with winds gusting up to 140km/h. A Fire Service southern communications shift manager said teams were working to secure properties, before the next predicted deluge tomorrow. Most of our damage is from Greymouth up to Granity, north of Westport.
Further south, sodden Christchurch residents were also cleaning up. Sixty five millimetres of rain fell across the city overnight, and 180 millimetres in Akaroa. All river levels were running high this morning. In the North Island, those around the Bay of Plenty were facing rolling thunderstorms and heavy rain. A severe thunderstorm watch was in place for the Coromandel Peninsula, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Rotorua and Taupo.
Australia - Cyclone Ita Ravages Queensland Crops. Australia's northern Queensland coast was lashed by powerful Cyclone Ita, which was the strongest storm to strike the region in three years.
The cyclone made landfall as a Category-4 storm on the international Saffir-Simpson scale very near Cooktown. “I've never been so scared in my life,” Hope Vale's mayor said. The aboriginal community is located just west of where the storm roared ashore with sustained winds of more than 130 mph. “I thought the wind was going to pick up the ute (utility vehicle) and smash it into the house."
Officials estimate Ita inflicted more than $1 billion in damage, including the destruction of a banana plantation and large tracts of sugarcane crops. In Cooktown, which bore the brunt of the storm, four buildings were destroyed and another 50 were damaged by high winds. Power was knocked out over a wide area and may take weeks to restore in some of the most remote locations. Remnants of the storm later hit New Zealand with high winds and squalls that knocked out power and caused numerous traffic accidents.
SEVERE RAIN STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES -
On Thursday, Michigan's governor declared state of emergency, disaster in 3 counties after severe weather, sewer damage. He declared the state of emergency for Marquette County following widespread, severe damage to water and sewer lines caused by this winter's extreme cold.
He also separately declared a state of disaster in Newago and Osceola counties located halfway between Grand Rapids and Traverse City. The counties have been hit with severe storms since last Saturday.Marquette County earlier this year requested an emergency declaration, saying that there already was more than $1.6 million in damage. The county's water and sewer infrastructure has been severely hurt by the weather.
"I admire the public works personnel who have been working around the clock thawing and repairing water and sewer mains. They are the heroes in this situation." State officials said the county's deep frost levels also have hurt fire hydrants and public roads, compromising public health and safety due to delayed fire suppression and emergency vehicle response and reduced capacity to treat wastewater.
"As temperatures warm and the ground thaws, we expect this situation to worsen before it gets better." Parts of Michigan are grappling with flooding. Floodwaters are receding along rivers in the central and western Lower Peninsula, a trend that should continue with mostly dry weather in the forecast for the next several days.
The most severe problem has been in Osceola County around Evart, where the National Weather Service reports that the Muskegon River remains at major flood stage. It had dropped from a RECORD 15.97 feet to 15.6 feet as of late Thursday morning. The Muskegon also had dropped from a high of 13.1 feet Tuesday to 11.97 feet Thursday at the Croton Dam about 35 miles north of Grand Rapids, which puts that area at moderate flood stage. Michigan rivers with minor flooding are the Chippewa below Mount Pleasant, the Pere Marquette at Scottville and the Saginaw River at Saginaw.
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