The Star Online: World Updates
The Star Online: World Updates |
- Hurricane Raymond swirls off Mexico, hits Acapulco with more rain
- Australian firefighters race to contain wildfires
- Venezuela recovers likely remains of Italian fashion boss killed in plane crash
| Hurricane Raymond swirls off Mexico, hits Acapulco with more rain Posted: ACAPULCO, Mexico (Reuters) - Ports were closed, school classes were suspended and hundreds of people were evacuated along Mexico's southern Pacific coast on Monday as a major hurricane loomed over a region still recovering from record flooding a few weeks ago. Raymond, a category three hurricane, weakened slightly on Monday night as it hovered about 145 km (90 miles) offshore. The major storm was moving in "a slow and erratic motion" with winds blowing up to 193 km per hour (120 mph) on Monday, Miami's National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. "It's not going to move much in the next 24 to 36 hours," Luis Felipe Puente, head of Mexico's national emergency services, said at a news conference in Acapulco. The NHC's forecast said the storm could move closer to the coast Monday night and Tuesday before turning west on Wednesday. The hurricane was already dumping steady rain on coastal areas including Acapulco, where storms wrecked homes, roads and cars and stranded tourists last month. By early afternoon, parts of the city were covered with water, its port was closed and many roads were washed out. Acapulco's beaches were almost deserted on Monday afternoon as winds picked up. "This is really bad luck after (tropical storm) Manuel," said Anaberta Lopez, 26, who braids tourists' hair on the city's beaches, surveying a vacant stretch of sand. "There's no work now and people here live off tourism." Mexico has no major oil installations in the area threatened by Raymond, which has swirled around 233 km (145 miles) west-southwest of Acapulco since Sunday night. Mexico's Gulf Coast is also facing heavy rains due to the advance of a cold front from the north, which has halted Raymond's progress in the south, the government said. "If (Raymond) carries on moving at this speed and the cold front keeps holding it, we'll have permanent rain for the next 72 hours," Puente said at a conference earlier on Monday. A hurricane watch is in place from Acapulco to Tecpan de Galeana about 107 km (66 miles) to the south. More than 800 people have been evacuated from the northwestern fringe of Guerrero down to Acapulco, emergency services said. SHELTERS Anticipating heavy rains, schools closed in Acapulco, in Lazaro Cardenas and other parts of the southwestern coast. The port in Lazaro Cardenas was also closed, the government said. Rainfall during the next few days could trigger life-threatening flash floods and mud slides, the NHC said. Angel Aguirre, the governor of Guerrero, urged people to leave areas at high risk of flooding, and Michoacan's government said all maritime activity and road travel should be avoided. Mexico suffered its worst floods on record in mid-September when tropical storms Manuel and Ingrid converged from the Pacific and the Gulf of Mexico, killing more than 150 people and causing damage estimated at around $6 billion. Some 5,700 people are still living in shelters in Acapulco due to the impact of those storms, the Guerrero government said. Acapulco, whose economy relies heavily on tourism, saw hotel occupancy rates plunge to record lows after the storms, which also knocked out the city's airport for a time. As of Monday afternoon, Acapulco's airport was still open. The flooding, mudslides and displacement of thousands of people caused by the recent storms have heightened the risk of waterborne illness in Mexico. The country has recorded its first local transmission of cholera in just over a decade. (Additional reporting by Lizbeth Diaz; Writing by Dave Graham; Editing by Simon Gardner, Eric Walsh and Paul Simao) |
| Australian firefighters race to contain wildfires Posted: SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian firefighters worked desperately on Tuesday to try and contain a series of massive wildfires burning in mountains west of Sydney ahead of the return of dangerously hot, windy weather forecast for Wednesday. More than 200 homes have been destroyed in New South Wales (NSW) state since last Thursday, when fires tore through farm and bush land and scattered communities on Sydney's outskirts, razing entire streets. The insurance council of Australia said claims of more than A$93 million ($90 million) were expected to grow and the NSW government has declared a state of emergency. One man died of a suspected heart attack last week while trying to defend his home from a fire north of Sydney. Air pollution in parts of Sydney spiked on Tuesday to dangerously high levels as smoke and ash blanketed the city. Some 60 fires were still burning on Tuesday, with the largest and most dangerous in the Blue Mountains around 100 km (62 miles) west of Sydney, New South Wales Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons told reporters. Thousands of firefighters, hundreds of fire engines and 90 aircraft were battling the blazes, which have burned through more than 120,000 hectares (300,000 acres) and have a perimeter of 1,600 km (990 miles), he said. With steep terrain carpeted by tinder dry eucalyptus forests and dotted with small communities, the Blue Mountains are a popular day trip from Sydney, but its rugged and often inaccessible terrain can become a fire nightmare during the long, hot Southern Hemisphere summer. "You are talking about some of the most beautiful, scenic country in the world but it is an awful challenge for fire fighting and fire management," said Fitzsimmons. Efforts had been concentrating on back-burning vegetation to reduce the fuel available for the fires, bulldozing containment lines, and merging two large fires into a single blaze that would be easier to control. Winds were light, temperatures were cool and patchy light rain was falling on Tuesday, but those benign conditions were not expected to last. A storm cell was moving towards the region, while strong, dry westerly winds gusting to 80 kmph (50 mph) and temperatures in the mid-30 degree Celsius (high-80 degree Fahrenheit) range are predicted for Wednesday. "Tomorrow I'm hoping it's not going to be as bad as everyone is forecasting, but I understand they have to give us the worst possible scenario too," Blue Mountains resident Daniela Fullagar told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. Police arrested two boys suspected of starting fires in the Hunter Valley north of Sydney. With dry weather and a massive land area, Australia is particularly prone to brushfires. In 2009, the "Black Saturday" wildfires in Victoria state killed 173 people and caused $4.4 billion (2.7 billion pounds) worth of damage. New South Wales has just experienced the warmest September and warmest 12 months on record, according to the Bureau of Meteorology. (Reporting by Lincoln Feast; Editing by Michael Perry) |
| Venezuela recovers likely remains of Italian fashion boss killed in plane crash Posted: CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela said on Monday it has recovered what it believes are the remains of Italian fashion executive Vittorio Missoni, who went missing in January after taking off in a small plane from the Los Roques archipelago in the Caribbean. Four months ago, Venezuela's government said it had discovered the aircraft in 76 meters (249 feet) of water. It had been carrying Missoni, 58, his wife, Maurizia Castiglioni, another couple, and two Venezuelan crew members. "All the remains were complete in the plane," Venezuelan Attorney General Luisa Ortega told reporters. "There was the luggage and other belongings which indicate to us ... that they belonged to the people we were looking for." Ortega said Venezuelan navy divers recovered the remains of five of the passengers, but that the sixth was in a hard to reach spot in the wreckage. The remains will be submitted to DNA tests to verify that they belonged to Missoni and the other victims, she said. Earlier this year, Italy's agency for flight security, ANSV, said its investigation had found that the airline that owned the plane was not fully licensed to operate and that the pilot's license had expired more than a month before the flight. Missoni was the oldest child of the founders of the fashion house famous for its exuberantly coloured knits, featuring bold stripes and zigzags. He was co-owner with siblings Luca and Angela, who handle the technical and design sides of the firm. (Reporting by Liamar Ramos and Efrain Otero; Writing by Daniel Wallis; Editing by Eric Beech) |
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