Residents urged to flee as N.B. river passes flood level

Canada

Homeowners along New Brunswick's St. John River are facing rising waters and a deadline to evacuate.

Time is running out for people to decide whether they want to leave their homes or hunker down and wait out the rising water, which was at 7.1 metres Tuesday and projected to hit 7.8 metres by today -- nearly 1.5 metres above the flood level.

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MAINE - The rain-swollen St. John River crested early Thursday after HITTING A RECORD HIGH, forcing hundreds of residents to flee to higher ground. Image: A man walks his dog past a flooded Main St. in Fort Kent, Maine on Wednesday April, 30, 2008. Homes and businesses were evacuated Wednesday as spring floods along the St. John River spilled into the downtown of this Canadian border town, marking what emergency management officials described as a 100-year flood for the St. John. (AP Photo/ Shawn Patrick Ouellette)

Town and state officials called it THE WORST FLOOD IN 80 YEARS OF RECORD-KEEPING. "We have never seen anything of this magnitude."

NCotabato officials declare state of calamity due to flood damage

Philippines
North Cotabato officials have declared a state of calamity in the province after floods last Saturday caused millions worth of damage to crops and infrastructure. The floods severely affected the towns of Pigkawayan, Libungan, Midsayap, Aleosan, Alamada, Pikit and Matalam. Millions worth of palay and corn as well as infrastructure were reported to have been damaged. No fatalities were reported in the floods.

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AUSTRALIA - Flooding causes major damage to NSW dairy region - Dairy farmers in the Manning Valley on the NSW mid-north coast have begun assessing flood damage after 400 millimetres of rain fell in just eight days. Milk tankers haven't been able to get to a number of properties and farmers have had to dump milk. An estimated 500 hectares of recently sown pastures have been lost, and will cost up to $400,000 to re-sow in time for winter. A lack of feed will lead to less milk production. "I think it'll be down probably by anywhere up to 20%. The cows have just had to be take off pastures and hand-fed in a lot of areas.

Massive Floods in Ontario, After Record Snowfalls

Breaking Earth News
Ontario, Canada

Flooding is happening all over Ontario after record snowfalls, officials assure frustrated local flooding victims

Little Lake flooding too now, high water also at Young's Point, Katchewanooka Lake, Stony Lake

FLOODING MAKES RESIDENTS FEEL STRANDED
'Nobody is going to help us, absolutely nobody'

Image: Ian and Phyllis Phaure wade in front of their home in Peterborough, April 14, 2008, where water levels along the Otonabee River keep rising because of the spring runoff.

Apr 15, 2008 04:30 AM

Jackson Hayes
Staff Reporter

Sitting on her front deck with floodwater climbing 60 centimetres up the side of her Peterborough-area home, Phyllis Phaure felt totally abandoned.

"I feel very alone, very frustrated and very, very angry," she said yesterday. "The municipality isn't going to help us, the provincial government, the federal government, nobody is going to help us, absolutely nobody."

With massive flooding of the Otonabee River in south Peterborough this past week, Phaure and some of her neighbours on Greenwood Rd. are in the same boat, facing evacuation but with no place to go.

This is the fourth time this year these residents near the river's edge have been asked to evacuate because of dangerous water levels.

Flooding continues to devastate

Arkansas, USA
Arkansas has seen massive amounts of rain that has caused the flooding of both the Black and White Rivers. These floods have devastated the areas, leaving families displaced due to their damaged homes. Schools have been closed, and roads have become rivers. Many people have had to find new routes to get to where they're going. According to reports, there is about $9 million worth of damage to public property across the state. Also, countless homes have been severely damaged in Jackson, Greene, Lawrence, and Craighead counties.

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More Rain and Storms on the Way
Image: The Cindy Celeste tow takes on water as barges float loose on the Mississippi River south of the bridges Sunday afternoon. (Contributed by Donna Ingram)
More River Restrictions Possible

Crest forecast rises to 49.3 feet; crops in trouble
Another third of a foot of water was added to the crest forecast at Vicksburg this morning where a major employer laid off most of its 1,300-person work force and indications for crops in the Yazoo backwater area grew more doubtful.

The new forecast from the National Weather Service is that on Sunday the Mississippi River will reach 49.3 feet on the Vicksburg gauge. That's up 0.3 foot from the previous estimate.

Upstream, stages were rising again, including at Memphis, where the Mississippi appeared to have topped out.

The new forecast puts the Mississippi here just 2.3 feet lower than the 1973 crest, which was the worst flood since 1927. It would equal flooding last experienced in 1983.

Thousands flee floods in Brazil

Brazil, S.A.

Flooding in north-eastern Brazil has killed at least 15 people and driven tens of thousands from their homes, civil defence officials have said.

The victims drowned when the River Paraiba burst its banks and the walls of a medium-sized dam cracked in the normally arid state of Paraiba.

The flood waters, caused by torrential rains, have also destroyed corn and bean crops, and washed away roads.

Brazil's government has released around $360m (£180m) to help those affected.

Some 14,000 residents of Paraiba have abandoned their homes to escape the floods, while about 19,000 have been forced to flee in nearby Piaui state, officials said.

Another 8,000 people have been evacuated in Maranhao state, and 7,500 in Pernambuco and Ceara, they added.

Nith River flooding worst on record

Canada
Ontario - Nith River flooding WORST ON RECORD - Ayr residents' backyards disappeared under the Nith River in the WORST FLOODING IN AT LEAST 60 YEARS. By 10 p.m., the Nith was roaring through Ayr at a rate of 450 cubic metres per second, the FASTEST FLOW SINCE RECORDING STARTED IN 1948. Upriver in New Hamburg, the worst was already over for residents who spent the day cleaning up in the wake of THE HEAVIEST FLOODING TO HIT THAT TOWN IN MORE THAN TWO DECADES. Flood warnings remain in place for Ayr, New Hamburg, Wolverton and Paris and the Grand River communities of Brantford, Six Nations and Haldimand County. "This is just the start of the spring melt season. There's still some snow on the ground and there's some rain in the forecast, so that could get things going again."

Flooding Drowns Crops

Arkansas
USA



Thursday officials announced the white river could reach 100-year flood levels as it moves toward the Mississippi, further devastating wheat fields. The last flood of similar size was in 1982, which resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. State officials have to wait for the water to recede, before they can assess the damage. In some places the water is still standing only a few feet lower than where it stood after the 1982 flood. The heavy rains and up to six feet of flood water has left many farmers shaken by the loss of crops. Thirty-five counties, or nearly half the state, have been declared federal disaster areas because of the flooding. Last year Arkansas produced about 29 million bushels of wheat.

Floods inundate half of Arkansas

Arkansas, USA
Image: Staff photo by Jim Williamson Flood waters submerge a fishing pier and parking lot Monday morning at Beard’s Bluff on Millwood Lake. Heavy rains from last week’s storms left the lake about 8 foot higher than normal. Rising water continues to wreak havoc across the state, with 35 counties declared disaster areas.

Story: Floods inundate half of Arkansas - 35 counties declared disaster areas. The White River continued its HIGHEST SURGE IN A QUARTER-CENTURY through eastern Arkansas. After heavy rains last week, major rivers overflowed their banks, inundating north and central Arkansas and driving people from their homes and businesses. Tuesday, the waters continued to rise even as the sun was shining. The Army Corps of Engineers did not expect the White River to crest down river at Clarendon until Friday at 33.5 feet. The flooding was particularly unnerving to wheat farmers whose investments were under water. The flooding will reduce yields and may kill crops in some places, depending on how long the water stands. All the money farmers invested in their crops could be lost on tens of thousands of acres.

Historic Flooding This Week

USA
The flooding across the Midwest will go down as THE WORST FLOODING IN THE 80 YEARS THAT FLOOD RECORDS HAVE BEEN KEPT. The death toll has climbed to 17 with a few more people missing across the region.



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ARKANSAS - Forecasters warned communities in the Arkansas prairie along the White River that they could suffer their worst flooding in more than a quarter-century. "You may be wondering why we issued a flash flood watch in eastern Arkansas when there is little to no rain in the forecast. There will be water going into areas where people have not seen it before, and may not be expecting to see high water." Upstream, the Black River sliced through a 60-year-old levee before emergency workers and volunteers could stem the tide with a mountain of sandbags Saturday. The Black enters the White River near Newport in northeast Arkansas. Forecasters issued a flash flood warning through Monday morning for communities along the White River. The break was fueled by water pouring in from soaked southeastern Missouri, flooding outlying areas to the south of Pocahontas. Arkansas emergency management officials have said early estimates for statewide damage to homes, businesses and infrastructure was at $2 million, though that figure was expected to grow. Forecasts show it likely will be the middle of this week before rivers statewide see significant drops. Last week's torrential rainstorms also caused flooding in parts of Ohio and southern Illinois and in wide areas of Missouri. Towns south of where the Mississippi and Ohio rivers meet in Cairo, Ill., braced for flooding expected in the next couple of days. Image Above: A semi tractor trailer cab sits partially submerged in flood water from the Meramec River at the intersection of state route 141 and Interstate 44 in Fenton, Mo., Saturday, March 22, 2008. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

Yellow River's flood water pours into town in northern China

China
Image: Women carry produce along the Yellow River in Shanxi Province, China.

HOHHOT, March 20 (Xinhua) -- Flood water is pouring into a town in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region after sections of the main embankment of China's second longest river -- the Yellow River -- collapsed, local authorities said on Thursday afternoon.

About 13,000 people in six villages on the southern bank were evacuated from their homes to the Kubuqi desert, around 10 kilometers from the town, on Wednesday night.

Flooding, heavy snow plague Midwest

Breaking Earth News
USA
Slideshow
VALLEY PARK, Mo. - Residents of this Meramec River town are crossing their fingers in hopes hat the community's new earthen levee, built to withstand a 100-year flood, will pass its first big test.

The surging Meramec was expected to crest Saturday at a record 40 feet — 24 feet above flood stage and within three feet of the levee's lip.

Flood-weary residents of Missouri, Arkansas and Ohio also were fighting to save their homes after heavy rain pushed rivers out of their banks.

In addition to this past week's rain, a lingering storm blew more snow through parts of the Upper Midwest on Saturday, a day after it canceled flights and some Good Friday services.

More than a foot of snow fell Friday in parts of southern Wisconsin and nearly as much blanketed southeastern Minnesota.

Cleveland and Youngstown each had 7 inches of snow and counting by Saturday, while Toledo had 4 inches, according to the National Weather Service. The blast came two weeks after the Cleveland area saw a foot of snow.

Record Flooding Hit the Ozarks

Missouri, USA
Many areas of the Ozarks had nearly 36 hours of continuous rain. There are widespread reports of 4-10 inches of rain across the Ozarks. These are ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE RAINFALL TOTALS. The rainfall total of nearly 4 inches at Springfield-Branson National Airport is a RECORD DAILY AMOUNT for the month of March. This has the potential for being the wettest March on record as well. RECORD or near-record crests are expected on numerous rivers including the James River, the Jacks Fork River, and the Current River.

With nearly 10 inches already accumulated around Southeast Missouri, "this is going to go down into the record books." The series of storms battering Southeast Missouri is UNUSUAL. "It seems like every Tuesday since February, we have had a disaster on our hands. We just cringe, at the Weather Service. We've had ice storms, terrible Tuesdays and this flooding has just been horrendous."

Vicious Floods Sweep Midwest US

Breaking Earth News
USA
More Than 70 Roads Under Water
(CBS/AP) Flooding forced hundreds of people to flee their homes and closed scores of roads Wednesday across the nation's midsection as a storm system linked to nine deaths poured as much as a foot of rain on the region.

Image Above: Fedex driver Jay McMullin helps 78-year-old Odell Bunch into the delivery truck after Bunch's Ford Ranger was swept off of Hwy 34 by flood waters on Tuesday, March 18, 2008. Torrential rains that hammered southern Missouri caused widespread flooding Tuesday that left two people dead, hundreds homeless, closed nearly 200 roads and sent propane tanks and debris spiraling down lowlands turned into raging rivers. Associated Press

The National Weather Service posted flood and flash flood warnings from Texas to Pennsylvania on Wednesday, and evacuations were under way in parts of Missouri, Arkansas and Ohio.

Parts of Indiana saw eight inches of rain in the last 24 hours, and rivers are at or near flood stage, reports CBS News correspondent Cynthia Bowers.

Heavy rain began falling Monday and just kept coming. Just over a foot had fallen at Mountain Home, Ark., and about 10 inches had fallen by Wednesday morning in southeast Missouri's Cape Girardeau County, where officials said street flooding marooned some residents in their homes. The weather service said 6.2 inches had fallen at Evansville, Ind. Photo Gallery

Flood waters encroach on central homes

Vietnam
Image: The eroded dyke in Thanh Khe Tay District in Da Nang City is being reinforced. — VNA/VNS Photo Xuan Quang

Many people have had to be evacuated from their houses as flood tides encroach up to 200m of low lying coastal land. Dozens of shrimp ponds have also been inundated, causing severe losses. The situation seems to be worsening this year. Last year the tide took over 100m of land. "The northern coastal line of the Lien Chieu District used to be far away from our coast guard station, but now it is under my feet."

Massive Flooding in Malaysia

Malaysia
Massive floods - Floods as high as 1.2m have hit longhouses, timber roads, semi-urban villages and several parts of the Pan Borneo Highway after heavy rain over these interior regions from Wednesday afternoon. Hundreds of villagers and rural folks were cut off from the outside world. Image: Water logged: A longhouse in Limbang parliamentary constituency in Sarawak hit by floods after heavy rain.

Angola ravaged by new floods

LUANDA, March 6, 2008 (AFP) - Torrential rains forced more than 30,000 people to flee their homes in southern Angola and floods killed 30,000 cattle, state television reported Thursday.

The worst of the floods hit Kunene province on Wednesday covering about 72,000 hectares (178,000 acres) of land with up to two metres (6.5 feet) of water, TPA television reported.

"In almost all areas around town things have worsened," TPA quoted Kunene's national protection services co-ordinator Goncalves Namweya as saying.

Last month, some 10,000 people were displaced when three southern Angolan provinces were hit by heavy rains after a long drought.

Several countries in the southern Africa have been plagued by flooding since the start of the rainy season in December. An estimated 100,000 people were affected in Mozambique, where 10 people died in flooding and dozens more of related diseases.

Floods hit thousands in Argentina

Breaking Earth News
Argentina
Heavy rain in Argentina forces thousands from their homes and causes power cuts and transport chaos. About 2,000 people are reported to have been evacuated in the province of Buenos Aires. The capital is still on alert as more rain is expected. Thousands of small businesses lost stock as the storms took them by surprise. The national weather service says rains and storms are expected until Monday

RELATED NEWS
PERU - Two months of continuous torrential rains and floods have killed 16 people, left 24 missing and destroyed highways and homes since January.

Indonesia Floods Kill 11 People,Displace Thousands

Breaking Earth News
Indonesia
Floods and landslides triggered by torrential rains in Indonesia's Java and Nusa Tenggara Timur islands have killed 11 people and displaced thousands over the past two weeks, a health ministry official said on Friday.

Rustam Pakaya, head of the ministry's crisis centre, said more than 3,500 people have been displaced in Central Java where some cities have been inundated by filthy water up to two metres high for nearly two weeks.

Nine people have been killed in Central Java and two in the Nusa Tenggara Timur chain of islands, which lie east of Java island.

Worst flood in 20 yrs hits Mackay

Breaking Earth News
Australia
Image: Two Mackay residents paddle down the appropriately named River Street in Mackay. (ABC News: Sara Hicks)

The weather bureau says the rain lashing the central Queensland city of Mackay is causing the worst flood to hit the region in more than 20 years.

A disaster situation has been declared in the Mackay region and locals are being told to stay inside.

The situation is worsening in Mackay as four ABC staff members are among hundreds of people trapped waiting for State Emergency Service (SES) boat crews to take them to safety.

Businesses and schools are closed, rescue helicopters have been grounded and earlier, two people were saved from the roof of their car.

The weather bureau says there have been falls of more than 100 millimetres an hour, for several hours.

Mozambique floods claim more lives

Africa
Flooding caused by heavy seasonal rains claimed three more lives over the weekend in Mozambique where authorities bracing for a fresh surge along the Zambezi river were battling to get supplies to around 2,000 families that had fled their homes. This year's floods are THE HEAVIEST IN YEARS and were expected to worsen when the floodgates on the Kariba Dam upstream on the Zambezi on the Zambia-Zimbabwe border were opened to prevent it from bursting its banks. The operators of the dam had said they intended to start releasing water on Monday. "The situation remains critical. Given that it is raining heavily we do not have access to the places where the (flood) victims have been relocated. We know that there are some 2,000 families unattended (in and around Marromeu). They have no food for quite a long time." The INGC was stockpiling food in a nearby area in the hope of being able to deliver supplies by boat when the waters recede. Parts of Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Lesotho, Swaziland and Namibia have also been plagued by floods that have submerged villages and inundated thousands of acres of crops.

SOUTH AFRICA - Cars floating...trees collapsing...power lines down...shops flooded... caused by a deluge in East London on Monday afternoon. A flash thunderstorm caused a swathe of destruction across East London in a matter of minutes yesterday, dumping more than an inch of rain on the city and surrounding suburbs. Image: Swamped...Here a picture of a car being swamped by water on the East London beachfront. Picture: DARRYL PARRISH