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Tag: Monsoons

  • Doctors treat thousands of heatstroke victims in southern Pakistan as temperatures soar

    Doctors treat thousands of heatstroke victims in southern Pakistan as temperatures soar

    KARACHI, Pakistan — A days-long intense heat wave has disrupted normal life in Pakistan, especially in its largest city, Karachi, where doctors treated thousands of victims of heatstroke at various hospitals, health officials said Tuesday.

    Several people fell unconscious in the city and some of them later died, local media said.

    Temperatures soared as high as 47 degrees Celsius (117 degrees Fahrenheit) in Sindh province on Tuesday. Authorities in Karachi, the provincial capital, are urging people to stay indoors, hydrate, and avoid unnecessary travel.

    Weather forecasters say the heat wave, which began in May, will subside next week.

    According to local media, the days-long heat wave also killed more than two dozen people in Karachi, but no government spokesman was available to confirm the number of heatstroke-related deaths.

    On Tuesday, Faisal Edhi, the head of the Edhi Foundation, which runs the country’s largest ambulance service, said they received dozens of bodies of heatstroke victims in Karachi the previous day.

    Imran Sarwar Sheikh, the head of the emergency ward at the state-run Civil Hospital in Karachi, told The Associated Press that they treated 120 victims of heatstroke the previous day. Eight of those patients later died, he said.

    On Monday, more than 1,500 victims of heatstroke were treated at other hospitals in the city, according to local media.

    Sardar Sarfaraz, the chief meteorologist in Karachi, said temperatures will continue to rise this week across Pakistan. “Today, the weather is dry. In such conditions, the temperature starts rising,” he said.

    Pakistan’s climate is warming much faster than the global average, with a potential rise of 1.3 to 4.9 degrees Celsius (2.3 to 8.8 degrees Fahrenheit) by the 2090s over the 1986–2005 baseline, according to a World Bank expert panel on climate change.

    The country, which is one of the most vulnerable in the world to climate change, also faces the risk of heavier monsoon rains, in part because of its immense northern glaciers, which are now melting as temperatures rise. Warmer air can hold more moisture, intensifying the monsoon.

    This year’s monsoon will start in July, causing flash floods, according to a statement released by Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority. The warning from the agency comes less than two weeks after a top U.N. official said an estimated 200,000 people in Pakistan could be affected by the upcoming monsoon season.

    However, officials say this year’s rains would not be as heavy as those in 2022 when devastating floods killed 1,739 people, destroyed 2 million homes, and covered as much as one-third of the country at one point.

    The 2022 floods caused more than $30 billion in damage to Pakistan’s already cash-strapped economy.

    Pakistan says despite contributing less than 1% to carbon emissions worldwide, it is bearing the brunt of global climate disasters.

    The ongoing heat in recent months also had a large impact on agriculture, damaging crops and reducing yields, as well as on education, with school vacations having to be extended and schools closed in several countries, affecting thousands of students.

    Climate experts say extreme heat in South Asia during the pre-monsoon season is becoming more frequent. The study found that extreme temperatures are now about 0.85 degrees Celsius (1.5 Fahrenheit) hotter in the region because of climate change, and this year Pakistan witnessed above-normal rains and heat.

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  • Arizona’s biggest city has driest monsoon season since weather service began record-keeping in 1895

    Arizona’s biggest city has driest monsoon season since weather service began record-keeping in 1895

    After a summer of extreme heat, Arizona’s most populous city is in the record books again

    PHOENIX — After a summer of extreme heat, Arizona’s most populous city is in the record books again. This time Phoenix is notching a record for dry heat.

    The National Weather Service said the monsoon season this year in the arid Southwest dropped only 0.15 inches (.38 centimeters) of rainfall from June 15 to September 30. That’s the driest since the agency began keeping records in 1895. The previous mark was 0.35 inches in 1924.

    The monsoon season normally runs for about three months each year starting in June, when rising temperatures heat the land and shifting winds carry moisture from the eastern Pacific and Gulf of California to the Southwest via summer thunderstorms.

    Phoenix’s average rainfall during a monsoon season is 2.43 inches (6.1 centimeters). Arizona gets less than 13 inches (33 centimeters) of average annual rainfall as America’s second driest state behind Nevada, which meteorologist say averages less than 10 inches (25.4 centimeters) of rain per year compared to the national average of about 30 inches (76 centimeters).

    Nevada has struggled with drought conditions since 2020. New Mexico, the fourth driest state in the U.S. with an average annual rainfall of about 14 inches (35.5 centimeters) per year, also has been affected by the drought in recent years.

    Phoenix this summer experienced the hottest July and the second-hottest August. The daily average temperature of 97 F (36.1 C) in June, July and August passed the previous record of 96.7 F (35.9 C) set three years ago.

    In July, Phoenix also set a record with a 31-day streak of highs at or above 110 F (43.3 C), creating a health hazard for people whose bodies were unable to cool off sufficiently amid the persistent, relenting heat.

    Confirmed heat-associated deaths in Arizona’s most populous county continue to rise in the aftermath of the record summer heat.

    Maricopa County public health data shows that as of Sept. 23, there were 295 heat-associated deaths confirmed with a similar number — 298 — still under investigation for causes associated with the heat.

    The rising numbers are keeping Maricopa on track to set an annual record for heat-associated deaths after a blistering summer, particularly in Phoenix. No other major metropolitan area in the United States has reported such high heat death figures or spends so much time tracking and studying them.

    Scientists predict the numbers will only continue to climb as climate change makes heat waves more frequent, intense and enduring.

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  • India’s devastating monsoon season is a sign of things to come, as climate and poor planning combine

    India’s devastating monsoon season is a sign of things to come, as climate and poor planning combine

    BENGALURU, India — Sanjay Chauhan witnessed monsoon rains lash down over his home and farm in the Indian Himalayas this year with a magnitude and intensity he’s never experienced before.

    “Buildings have collapsed, roads are broken, there were so many landslides including one that has destroyed a large part of my orchard,” said the 56-year-old farmer, who lives in the town of Shimla in Himachal Pradesh. “I have not seen anything like this.”

    The devastation of this year’s monsoon season in India, which runs from June to September, has been significant: Local government estimates say that 428 people have died and Himachal Pradesh suffered over $1.42 billion worth in property damage since June.

    Human-caused climate change is making rain more extreme in the region and scientists warn Himalayan states should expect more unpredictable and heavy seasons like this one. But the damage is also exacerbated by developers paying little mind to environmental regulations and building codes when building on flood- and earthquake-prone land, local experts and environmentalists say.

    Damages to property in Himachal Pradesh this year were more than the last five years combined. Other regions also suffered heavy losses in terms of lives, property and farmland — including the neighboring state of Uttarakhand, Delhi and most northern and western Indian states.

    In the second week of July, 224.1 millimeters (8.82 inches) of rainfall descended on the state instead of the usual 42.2 millimeters (1.66 inches) for this time of the year — a 431% increase — according to the Indian Meteorological Department. Then for five days in August, 111.9 millimeters (4.41 inches) poured down on Himachal Pradesh, 168% more than the 41.7 millimeters (1.64 inches) it would typically receive in that timeframe.

    The rainfall spurred hundreds of landslides, with overflowing rivers sweeping vehicles away and collapsing multiple buildings, many of them recently constructed hotels. Key highways were submerged or destroyed and all schools in the region were shut. Around 300 tourists stranded near the high altitude lake of Chandratal had to be airlifted to safety by the Indian Air Force.

    Jakob Steiner, a climate scientist with the International Center for Integrated Mountain Development, said rising global temperatures from human-caused climate change means more water evaporates in the heat which is then dumped in heavy rainfall events.

    And when all the water pours in one place, it means other regions are starved of rain.

    In the south of the country, rain was so rare that the region had its driest monsoon season since 1901, the IMD said. The government of Karnataka in southern India declared drought conditions in most of the state.

    Climate change compounds the phenomenon of weather extremes, said Anjal Prakash, a research director at the Indian School of Business, with both droughts and deluges expected to intensify as the world warms.

    In the Himalayas, the problem of climate changed-boosted rain is worsened by unregulated development and years of devastation piling up with little time to adapt or fix the damage in between.

    “Roads, dams and settlements have been built without proper environmental assessments or following building codes,” said Prakash. Unregulated development has also led to increased soil erosion and disrupted natural drainage systems, he said.

    Y.P. Sundarial, a geologist with Uttarakhand-based HNB Garhwal University, agrees.

    “People here are building six floor buildings on slopes as steep as 45 degrees” in a region that is both flood and earthquake prone, Sundarial said. “We need to make sure development policies keep the sensitiveness of Himalayas in mind to avoid such damage in the future.”

    When these structures almost inevitably topple year after year during monsoon rains, it creates a “cumulative impact” said local environmentalist Mansi Asher, meaning residents are now living with years of unaddressed devastation.

    Ten years ago, an estimated 6,000 people died in flash floods caused by a cloudburst in Uttarakhand which destroyed hundreds of villages; between 2017 and 2022, around 1,500 people died in Himachal Pradesh from extreme rain-related incidents; and earlier this year at least 240 families were relocated away from the religious town of Joshimath after the ground caved in from over construction despite warnings from scientists.

    Governments on the state and national level have been looking at how to address the destruction.

    Himachal Pradesh’s government announced a $106 million disaster risk reduction and preparedness program with support from the French Development Agency this year to strengthen its response to extreme rainfall.

    The state also published a comprehensive climate action plan in 2022 but many of the plan’s recommendations, such as creating a fund to research climate challenges or helping farmers in the region adapt to changing weather conditions, have not yet been implemented.

    The Indian federal government meanwhile has set an ambitious target of producing 500 gigawatts of clean energy by 2030 and has installed 172 gigawatts as of March this year. India is currently one of the world’s largest emitters. The country also created a national adaptation fund for climate change, releasing just over $72 million for various projects since 2015.

    But these initiatives are too little, too late for apple farmer Chauhan and others picking up the pieces after an especially catastrophic monsoon season.

    Chauhan, who’s also the former mayor of Shimla, wants to see a firm plan that addresses climate change in the face of the region’s growing population and development needs.

    “Those in power really need to step up,” he said.

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    Follow Sibi Arasu on X, formerly known as Twitter at @sibi123

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    Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about AP’s climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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  • The extreme heat in Phoenix is withering some of its famed saguaro cacti, with no end in sight

    The extreme heat in Phoenix is withering some of its famed saguaro cacti, with no end in sight

    PHOENIX — After recording the warmest monthly average temperature for any U.S. city ever in July, Phoenix climbed back up to dangerously high temperatures Wednesday. That could mean trouble not just for people but for some plants, too.

    Residents across the sprawling metro are finding the extended extreme heat has led to fried flora, and have shared photos and video of their damaged cacti with the Desert Botanical Garden. Nurseries and landscapers are inundated with requests for help with saguaros or fruit trees that are losing leaves.

    Phones have been “ringing nonstop” about everything from a cactus to a citrus tree or ficus, said Sophia Booth, a landscape designer at Moon Valley Nursery, which has nearly a dozen locations across the Phoenix suburbs.

    “A lot of people are calling and saying their cactus is yellowing really hard, fell over or like broken arms, that sort of thing,” Booth said. “Twenty-year-old trees are losing all their leaves, or they’re turning a crisp brown.”

    She advises people to give water and specialty fertilizer to a distressed tree or plant every other day and not to trim them.

    At the Desert Botanical Garden, three of the treasured institution’s more than 1,000 saguaro cacti have toppled over or lost an arm in the last week, a rate that officials there say is highly unusual.

    These saguaros, a towering trademark of the Sonoran Desert landscape, were already stressed from record-breaking heat three years ago, and this summer’s historic heat — the average temperature in Phoenix last month was 102.7 degrees Fahrenheit (39.3 degrees Celsius) — turned out to be the cactus needle that broke the camel’s back.

    “Since 2020, we have had elevated mortality in our population of saguaros compared to mortality rates pre-2020,” said Kimberlie McCue, the garden’s chief science officer. “So part of our thinking is that there are still saguaros today that were compromised from what they went through in 2020. And that this could be sending them over the edge.”

    Saguaros can live up to 200 years and grow as tall as 40 feet (12 meters). Some in the Desert Botanical Garden date beyond its opening 85 years ago, and the largest there measure almost 30 feet (9 meters), according to McCue.

    People commonly assume that cacti are made to endure scorching heat, but even they can have their limits, McCue said. It wasn’t just this summer’s 31-day streak of highs at or above 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 Celsius), but also the multiple nights when the low never dipped below 90 degrees (32.2 Celsius). Nighttime is when cacti open their pores to get rid of retained water and take in carbon dioxide, she explained.

    “With water loss, if they become dehydrated, that can compromise the structural integrity that they have in their tissues,” McCue said.

    A cactus’ size can also influence its susceptibility, said Kevin Hultine, the garden’s director of research, and bigger plants with more mass are more prone to the effects of heat and drought.

    “Larger (and older) plants have more arms and thus, they tend to be the first to start to lose structural integrity,” Hultine said via email. “The first sign of heat-related stress in a population are arms falling from large plants. Eventually, the entire plant might fall over from the stress.”

    There is hope that the arrival of thunderstorms during the monsoon season, which traditionally starts June 15, could bring more delayed moisture that will help struggling flora. The U.S. monsoon is characterized by a shift in wind patterns that pull moisture in from the tropical coast of Mexico. It sets up differently in other parts of the world. In Arizona, about half the rain that falls during the year comes during the monsoon.

    It can be a mixed bag — cooling sweltering cities like Las Vegas and Phoenix but bringing the risk of flooding to mountain towns and low-lying deserts alike. It carries a promise of rain but doesn’t always deliver. And even when it does, the moisture isn’t shared equally across the Four Corners region and beyond. The last two seasons were impressive, and the two before that largely duds.

    In the southern Arizona city of Tucson, which has already seen some monsoon activity, the outdoor living Sonoran Desert Museum isn’t running into the same problems with its succulents, McCue said.

    “We have the double whammy of this heat dome that seems to have decided to sit over Phoenix. And we’re also this massively spread out space with highways and parking lots,” McCue said. However, “the story isn’t complete yet.”

    Booth, of Moon Valley Nurseries, agreed that rain could still keep some plants and trees from reaching the point of no return. In the meantime, staffers at the nursery are preparing for temperatures to soar again this week.

    “We do take a lot of precautions, especially to our planters and people that don’t just work in the office,” Booth said. “Our yard crew, they’re in long sleeves. They have their straw hats on. We make sure we have bottled water in the fridge at all times. We haven’t had any heat exhaustion yet out of this (location).”

    As of Wednesday, there was no rain in the forecast anytime soon according to the National Weather Service. After two days of a slight drop, high temperatures reached 111 (43.9 Celsius) and are expected to be 110 degrees (43.3 Celsius) or more for the next 10 days.

    There has been some monsoonal activity in southern and northern Arizona, but Phoenix is “stuck in the middle,” meteorologist Matt Salerno said.

    “There’s still hope maybe the middle of this month the monsoon will become more active again,” Salerno said.

    There will likely be some record-breaking before then, however. The Weather Service plans to issue an extreme heat warning Friday through Monday, when the highs will be between 111 (43.9 Celsius) and 117 (47.2 Celsius).

    In the meantime, the Desert Botanical Garden has been working to propagate cacti that seem better able to endure searing conditions after staffers noticed the 2020 heat was more difficult for some plants than others. Some just seemed to have a genetic makeup that allowed them to thrive.

    “We want to try and capture that and grow more saguaros from seed here to add into our population at the garden with the idea that over time, that is going to bring more resiliency into into our population here,” McCue said.

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  • The extreme heat wave that blasted the Southwest is abating with late arriving monsoon rains

    The extreme heat wave that blasted the Southwest is abating with late arriving monsoon rains

    PHOENIX — A historic heat wave that turned the U.S. Southwest into a blast furnace throughout July is beginning to abate with the late arrival of monsoon rains.

    Forecasters expect that by Monday at the latest, people in metro Phoenix will begin seeing high temperatures under 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 degrees Celsius) for the first time in a month. As of Friday, the high temperature in the desert city had been at or above that mark for 29 consecutive days.

    Already this week, the overnight low at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport fell under 90 (32.2 C) for the first time in 16 days, finally allowing people some respite from the stifling heat once the sun goes down.

    Temperatures are also expected to ease in Las Vegas, Albuquerque and Death Valley, California.

    The downward trend started Wednesday night, when Phoenix saw its first major monsoon storm since the traditional start of the season on June 15. While more than half of the greater Phoenix area saw no rainfall from that storm, some eastern suburbs were pummeled by high winds, swirling dust and localized downfalls of up to an inch (2.5 centimeters) of precipitation.

    Storms gradually increasing in strength are expected over the weekend.

    Scientists calculate that July will prove to be the hottest globally on record and perhaps the warmest human civilization has seen. The extreme heat is now hitting the eastern part of the U.S, as soaring temperatures moved from the Midwest into the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, where some places are seeing their warmest days so far this year.

    The new heat records being set this summer are just some of the extreme weather being seen around the U.S. this month, such as flash floods in Pennsylvania and parts of the Northeast.

    And while relief may be on the way for the Southwest, for now it’s still dangerously hot. Phoenix’s high temperature reached 116 (46.7 C) Friday afternoon, which is far above the average temperature of 106 (41.1 C).

    “Anyone can be at risk outside in this record heat,” the fire department in Goodyear, a Phoenix suburb, warned residents on social media while offering ideas to stay safe.

    For many people such as older adults, those with health issues and those without access to air conditioning, the heat can be dangerous or even deadly.

    Maricopa County, the most populous in Arizona and home to Phoenix, reported this week that its public health department had confirmed 25 heat-associated deaths this year as of July 21, with 249 more under investigation.

    Results from toxicological tests that can takes weeks or months after an autopsy is conducted could eventually result in many deaths listed as under investigation as heat associated being changed to confirmed.

    Maricopa County confirmed 425 heat-associated deaths last year, and more than half of them occurred in July.

    Elsewhere in Arizona next week, the agricultural desert community of Yuma is expecting highs ranging from 104 to 112 (40 C to 44.4 C) and Tucson is looking at highs ranging from 99 to 111 (37.2 C to 43.9 C).

    The highs in Las Vegas are forecast to slip as low as 94 (34.4 C) next Tuesday after a long spell of highs above 110 (43.3 C). Death Valley, which hit 128 (53.3 C) in mid-July, will cool as well, though only to a still blistering hot 116 (46.7 C).

    In New Mexico, the highs in Albuquerque next week are expected to be in the mid to high 90s (around 35 C), with party cloudy skies.

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  • Suffocating heat wave in metro Phoenix starts easing after first major monsoon storm of the season

    Suffocating heat wave in metro Phoenix starts easing after first major monsoon storm of the season

    The persistent heat wave that suffocated Phoenix for most of July was slightly easing on Thursday after the first major monsoon storm of the season kicked up dust and high winds and brought the first measurable rainfall in months

    ByANITA SNOW Associated Press

    A jet takes flight as heat ripples radiate from the runway, Tuesday, July 25, 2023 at Sky Harbor International Airport, in Phoenix. Phoenix this month shattered its record for consecutive days in which the temperature reached at least 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43 Celsius), standing at 26 days and counting as of Tuesday. (AP Photo/Matt York)

    The Associated Press

    PHOENIX — The persistent heat wave that has suffocated Phoenix for most of July was slightly easing Thursday after the first major monsoon storm of the season kicked up dust and high winds and brought the first measurable rainfall in some areas since March.

    The Wednesday night storm, featuring high winds hitting over 60 mph (96.5 kph), ripped the roofs and awnings off numerous manufactured homes in Mesa. It even lifted the roof of a small one-story apartment building in that Phoenix suburb, pushing the overnight low below 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32.2 degrees Celsius) for the first time in 16 days.

    “The heat wave is not over yet,” said Tom Frieders, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Phoenix. “It will continue to be hot, but we’re hoping that once we get beyond Saturday it will start to cool off.”

    The Wednesday night storm brought heavy dust, lightning and rainfall of 0.25 inches (0.63 cm) to 1 inch (2.54 cm) in some locations, according to the Maricopa County Flood Control District.

    No injuries were reported, but some people in that area temporarily lost power when utility poles were knocked down. Scores of trees were toppled across the region.

    Despite the storm, an excessive heat warning remained in effect for Phoenix through Saturday night. The high was forecast to hit 115 degrees Fahrenheit (46.1 degrees Celsius) on Thursday, and temperatures were expected to remain above 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 degrees Celsius) at least through Sunday.

    By Monday, the high was forecast to fall to 108 degrees Fahrenheit (42.2 degrees Celsius).

    In the meantime, isolated scattered thunderstorms are possible across south-central Arizona for the rest of this week, with brief, localized downpours and blowing dust that could reduce visibility.

    Possible hazards from thunderstorms are expected to increase over the weekend and into next week.

    Until then, the heat will remain extremely dangerous, Frieders said.

    Heat-associated deaths have continued to rise in recent weeks, with seven more confirmed in Maricopa County, home to Phoenix, as of Saturday. That brought the county’s total confirmed for the year so far to 25.

    There were 425 confirmed heat-associated deaths in the county of nearly 4.5 million last year.

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  • Lightning strikes kill 10 as pre-monsoon rains lash Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province

    Lightning strikes kill 10 as pre-monsoon rains lash Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province

    Pakistani officials say at least 10 people have been killed by lightning in eastern Punjab province as pre-monsoon rains lash the region

    ISLAMABAD — Lightning strikes across Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province killed at least 10 people, officials said Monday as heavy pre-monsoon rains lashed the region.

    The strikes on Sunday mainly took place in the Sialkot and Sheikhupura districts of Punjab. Lightning strikes are frequent across Pakistan, especially in Punjab’s mountainous areas and plains.

    The Pakistan Meteorological Department said more rains were expected this week, bringing some respite from the ongoing heatwave. The National Disaster Management Authority warned the ongoing rains could trigger flash flooding.

    Every year, many areas of Pakistan struggle with the annual monsoons, drawing criticism for poor government planning. The season runs from July through September.

    Last summer, floods triggered by rains killed 1,739 people across Pakistan. The deluge displaced about 8 million people and caused $30 billion in losses.

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  • Southwestern US rivers get boost from winter snowpack

    Southwestern US rivers get boost from winter snowpack

    ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Federal water managers have more room to breathe this spring as two Southwestern rivers that provide New Mexico and Texas with drinking water and irrigation supplies are seeing the benefits of record snowpack and spring runoff.

    Forecasters with the National Weather Service delivered the good news Tuesday for water managers, cities and farmers as federal officials rolled out operating plans for the Rio Grande and the Pecos River.

    The mountain ranges in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico that serve as headwaters for the two rivers last winter saw nearly double the snowpack of historic averages, resulting in runoff that will provide a major boost to reservoirs.

    And even more of that snowmelt will reach streams and rivers since soil moisture levels were able to recover last summer during what was one of the strongest monsoons the region had seen in 130 years.

    “This is really good news for us because one of the big things that’s been killing water supply for the last 10, 15 years is really dry soils soaking up a lot of that runoff before we could ever get any of it. That is not going to be the case nearly as much this year,” said Andrew Mangham, a senior hydrologist with the National Weather Service. “We’re going to have a much more efficient runoff coming out of this.”

    The same story is playing out around the West. In California, most of that state’s major reservoirs were filled above their historical averages at the start of spring thanks to one of the massive snowpack in the Sierra Nevada. In neighboring Nevada, the snowfall was so overwhelming that the final day of the high school ski championships had to be cancelled.

    Many of the officials gathered for Tuesday’s river briefing were combing their collective memories, trying to recall when they last saw hydrology graphs this favorable.

    “We’re in better shape than we’ve been for a real long time,” Mangham said.

    New Mexico’s largest cities that rely on diverted water from the San Juan and Chama rivers are expected to get a full allocation this year — the first time since 2019.

    The Carlsbad Irrigation District on the southern end of the Pecos River opted to allocate a bit more to farmers this year due to the increased runoff.

    “With the snowmelt coming in and still the chance for the monsoon season, things are looking pretty good,” said Coley Burgess, the irrigation district’s manager.

    Still, he said farmers have had to be economical about how they use what amounts to just a little over half of a full allotment. Some have left fields unplanted so they can shift their share of water to their best alfalfa crops.

    On the Rio Grande, managers say they have enough water stored in Elephant Butte — the largest reservoir in New Mexico — to avoid restrictions that prevent storing water in some upstream reservoirs. Under a water sharing agreement with Colorado and Texas, New Mexico is required to deliver a certain amount to Texas each year.

    The states also are tangled up in litigation over management of the Rio Grande that is pending before the U.S. Supreme Court. A special master is considering a proposed settlement that would resolve the decade-long fight.

    Officials with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in New Mexico said whether the state can keep enough water in Elephant Butte later this year will depend on the monsoon season.

    Farmers across southern New Mexico and in West Texas will be crossing their fingers, too.

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  • Indonesia’s Mt. Semeru eruption buries homes, damages bridge

    Indonesia’s Mt. Semeru eruption buries homes, damages bridge

    SUMBERWULUH, Indonesia — Improved weather conditions Monday allowed rescuers to resume evacuation efforts and a search for possible victims after the highest volcano on Indonesia’s most densely populated island erupted, triggered by monsoon rains.

    Mount Semeru in Lumajang district in East Java province spewed thick columns of ash more than 1,500 meters (nearly 5,000 feet) into the sky Sunday. Villages and nearby towns were blanketed with falling ash, blocking out the sun, but no casualties have been reported.

    Hundreds of rescuers were deployed Monday in the worst-hit villages of Sumberwuluh and Supiturang, where houses and mosques were buried to their rooftops by tons of volcanic debris.

    Heavy rains had eroded and finally collapsed the lava dome atop the 3,676-meter (12,060-foot) volcano, causing an avalanche of blistering gas and lava down its slopes toward a nearby river. Searing gas raced down the sides of the mountain, smothering entire villages and destroying a bridge that had just been rebuilt after a powerful eruption last year.

    Semeru’s last major eruption was in December 2021, when it blew up with a fury that left 51 people dead in villages that were buried in layers of mud. Several hundred others suffered serious burns and the eruption forced the evacuation of more than 10,000 people. The government moved about 2,970 houses out of the danger zone, including from Sumberwuluh village.

    Lumajang district chief Thoriqul Haq said villagers who are still haunted by last year’s eruption fled on their own when they heard the mountain start to rumble early Sunday, so that “casualties could be avoided.”

    “They have learned an important lesson on how to avoid the danger of eruption,” he said while inspecting a damaged bridge in Kajar Kuning hamlet.

    He said nearly 2,000 people escaped to emergency shelters at several schools, but many were returned to their homes Monday to tend their livestock and protect their property.

    Increased volcanic activity Sunday afternoon prompted authorities to widen the danger zone to 8 kilometers (5 miles) from the crater, and scientists raised the volcano’s alert level to the highest, said Hendra Gunawan, who heads the Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Center.

    People were advised to keep off the southeastern sector along the Besuk Kobokan River, which is in the path of the lava flow.

    Semeru, also known as Mahameru, has erupted numerous times in the past 200 years. Still, as is the case with many of the 129 active volcanoes in Indonesia, tens of thousands of people continue to live on its fertile slopes.

    Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 270 million people, sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a horseshoe-shaped series of fault lines, and is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity.

    ———

    Associated Press writer Niniek Karmini in Jakarta, Indonesia, contributed to this report.

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  • Indonesia’s Mt. Semeru unleashes lava river in new eruption

    Indonesia’s Mt. Semeru unleashes lava river in new eruption

    JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesia’s highest volcano on its most densely populated island released searing gas clouds and rivers of lava Sunday in its latest eruption.

    Monsoon rains eroded and finally collapsed the lava dome atop 3,676-meter (12,060-foot) Mount Semeru, causing the eruption, according to National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari.

    Several villages were blanketed with falling ash, blocking out the sun, but no casualties have been reported. Several hundred residents, their faces smeared with volcanic dust and rain, fled to temporary shelters or left for other safe areas.

    Thick columns of ash were blasted more than 1,500 meters (nearly 5,000 feet) into the sky while searing gas and lava flowed down Semeru’s slopes toward a nearby river.

    Increased activities of the volcano on Sunday afternoon prompted authorities to widen the danger zone to 8 kilometers (5 miles) from the crater, said Hendra Gunawan, who heads the Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Center.

    He said scientists raised the volcano’s alert level to the highest and people were advised to keep off the southeastern sector along the Besuk Kobokan River, which is in the path of the lava flow.

    Semeru’s last major eruption was in December last year, when it blew up with fury that left 51 people dead in villages that were buried in layers of mud. Several hundred others suffered serious burns and the eruption forced the evacuation of more than 10,000 people. The government moved about 2,970 houses out of the danger zone.

    Semeru, also known as Mahameru, has erupted numerous times in the last 200 years. Still, as is the case with many of the 129 active volcanoes in Indonesia, tens of thousands of people continue to live on its fertile slopes.

    Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 270 million people, sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a horseshoe-shaped series of fault lines, and is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity.

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  • Indonesia’s Mt. Semeru unleashes lava river in new eruption

    Indonesia’s Mt. Semeru unleashes lava river in new eruption

    JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesia’s highest volcano on its most densely populated island released searing gas clouds and rivers of lava in its latest eruption Sunday.

    Monsoon rains eroded and finally collapsed the lava dome atop 3,676-meter (12,060-foot) Mount Semeru, causing the eruption, according to National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari, citing information from the Vulcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Agency at the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry.

    Several villages were blanketed with falling ash, blocking out the sun, but no casualties have been reported.

    Thick columns of ash were blasted more than 1,500 meters (nearly 4,000 feet) into the sky, while searing gas and lava flowed down Semeru’s slopes, traveling toward a nearby river.

    People were advised to stay 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) from the crater’s mouth, and keep off the southeastern sector area along the Besuk Kobokan river located about 13 kilometers (8 miles) from the crater.

    Several hundred people were moved to temporary shelters or left for other safe areas, mostly woman, children and elders, said Joko Sambang who heads the disaster management agency in Lumajang, East Java province.

    Semeru’s last major eruption was in December last year, when the rumbling volcano erupted with fury and left 51 people dead in villages that were buried in layers of mud. Several hundred others were injured with serious burns, and the eruption forced the evacuation of more than 10,000 villagers. The government moved about 2,970 houses out of the danger zone.

    Semeru, also known as Mahameru, has erupted numerous times in the last 200 years. Still, as is the case with many of the 129 active volcanoes monitored in Indonesia, tens of thousands of people continue to live on its fertile slopes.

    Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 270 million people, sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a horseshoe-shaped series of fault lines, and is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity.

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  • Pakistan welcomes ‘loss and damage’ deal inked at UN summit

    Pakistan welcomes ‘loss and damage’ deal inked at UN summit

    ISLAMABAD — A breakthrough funding deal at the COP27 conference to help poor countries ravaged by climate change was welcomed Sunday by Pakistan, a nation devastated this year by record-breaking monsoon rains,

    Flooding likely worsened by global warming submerged a third of Pakistan’s territory, left 33 million people scrambling to survive, and an estimated $40 billion in losses to the economy.

    Pakistani officials, who had framed the country as a victim of climate change and sought compensation from bigger polluting nations, called the funding deal “a step in reaffirming the core principles of climate justice.”

    The compensation agreement hammered out early Sunday in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh establishes funding for “loss and damage” suffered by poor countries as a result of global warming.

    It is a big win for developing nations that have long called for cash — sometimes viewed as reparations — because they are often the victims of climate-worsened floods, droughts, heat waves, famines and storms despite having contributed little to the pollution that heats up the globe.

    It has also long been called an issue of equity for nations hit by weather extremes and small island states that face an existential threat from rising seas.

    “Three long decades and we have finally delivered climate justice,” said Seve Paeniu, the finance minister of Tuvalu. “We have finally responded to the call of hundreds of millions of people across the world to help them address loss and damage.”

    Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Twitter welcomed the development, calling it the “first pivotal step towards the goal of climate justice.”

    Sharif acknowledged the work done on the summit deal by his Cabinet minister for climate change, Sherry Rehman, and her team. He said it’s now up to a transitional committee to build on the historic development.

    Rehman in a tweet said: “It’s been a long 30-year journey from demand to formation of the Loss and Damage Fund for 134 countries. We welcome today’s announcement and joint text hammered out through many nights.”

    “We look forward to (the fund) being operationalized, to actually become a robust body that is able to answer with agility to the needs of the vulnerable, the fragile and those on the front line of climate disasters,” she said.

    Pakistan suffered huge losses in the floods that affected a third of its 33 million population, who faced unprecedented suffering in terms of human and property losses. More than 1,700 people were killed and nearly 13,000 others injured. Over 13,000 kilometers (8,080 miles) of roadway, 439 bridges and 2.28 million houses were damaged or destroyed.

    Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said Pakistan came out a winner as a result of the compensation deal.

    “Win for climate justice, win for developing world in honor of 33 million victims of Pakistan floods and millions around the world who suffer from a climate catastrophe they did not create and do not have resources to address,” Zardari said.

    The world’s biggest polluters must must now live up to their promises and pay into the fund. A 2009 agreement for a $100 billion fund created by richer nations to pay for the development of poor nations was never fully funded.

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