Notable weather patterns & earth changes...

[KNOWTHIS]

Heat wave blankets Japan

www.chinaview.cn 2004-07-09 21:44:55


TOKYO, July 9 (Xinhuanet) -- Oppressive heat continued to cover the Japanese archipelago Friday as the mercury shot up to over 35 degrees Centigrade in some parts of the country during what is normally the height of the rainy season.

According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, temperatures hit 37.5 C in Kumagaya, Tokyo's neighboring Saitama Prefecture, 37.1 Cin the city of Gifu in central Japan, and over 36 C in Kyoto and many other cities across the country.

The heat wave has hit most parts of Japan in July, prompting many people to wonder whether this year's rainy season is already over and to call the agency to check.

Meanwhile, a 67-year-old man and a 74-year-old woman died of heat exhaustion after doing agricultural work, while a man in his 50s found collapsed on a street in Osaka also died apparently due to the heat, the agency statistics show.

In the eastern region of Japan, the level of water in some reservoirs has fallen by more than 10 percent since July 1.

The agency also said that due to the string of hot days brown cicadas have been reported buzzing earlier than usual in 17 locations nationwide, including four cities.

The extremely hot weather is expected to end this weekend, according to the agency. Enditem@

[KNOWTHIS]

www.terradaily.com/2004/040709081609.e4xlvvy4.html

Heavy storms causing flooding, traffic chaos in Germany

BERLIN (AFP) Jul 09, 2004
Heavy storms overnight flooded homes and caused rail and road chaos in parts of northern and eastern Germany, while power supplies were cut by lightning strikes, police said Friday.
In the eastern city of Chemnitz, car drivers were forced to climb onto their vehicles as water levels rose cutting off several roads in the area.

At Frankfurt-an-der-Oder on the Polish border, high winds blew down trees and the overhead lines for the town's tram system. Lightning caused numerous power blackouts.

Flying debris and downed power cables caused delays on the Berlin to Frankfurt-an-der-Oder railway line, police said.

Emergency workers in the northern port city of Hamburg spent several hours pumping out flooded basements and underpasses overnight

[KNOWTHIS]

www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/local/9156746.htm

Fish fall from sky during O.S. thunderstorm

By KAREN NELSON and MARY LOUISE MASON


OCEAN SPRINGS - Something fishy happened during the hailstorm that pounded the city Tuesday evening.

Gulf Islands National Seashore Ranger Melissa Perez and volunteer Adam Wilson were pelted briefly with small, very cold fish while on the park's pier.

It was around 6 p.m. Tuesday when the storm had eased briefly. The two ran out to try and locate minnow traps that had been left on the pier.

The traps were gone, but while Perez and Wilson were looking, something began falling into the water near them causing splashes. Then two icy cold fish hit the deck of the pier and one hit Perez's hat.

"I was pretty upset that I had lost those traps, when fish fell from the sky," Perez said.

"We went for cover. One was incredibly cold and one of them actually was icy," she said. Fellow workers told her it was a rare phenomenon.

"But sure enough, it happened here," she said.

Perez didn't know how many fell into the water; the event took her by surprise. But it all happened in an area that had roughly a 20-foot diameter.

The fish that hit the deck were small, about 3 inches long, and she said that she didn't immediately recognize the species.

"The weather was so bad that we threw them off and ran for cover," she said.

Todd Adams, assistant coordinator of educational programs at J.S. Scott Marine Education Center, has a degree in physical geography and a master's in geo-science.

He ventured two possibilities: The storm could have pulled the small fish into the thundercloud where they were coated with ice until they got heavy enough to fall from the cloud or the storm could have sucked them off a fishing boat and dropped them at the park.

"Obviously there was hail," Adams said. "And a water spout will pull up and throw all types of things."

Adams, like other motorists Tuesday in Ocean Springs, experienced the storm along U.S. 90. He said the wind was blowing in one direction and then another, in a vortex action.

Debbie Anglin, another Ocean Springs resident, said she waited out what she thought was the worst of the storm at a church downtown. She left and encountered hail on Government Street near the high school at around 6 p.m., about the time the fish were falling a couple of miles east.

She said motorists were pulling over at Oak Park Elementary and at a service station on Halstead Road, where there was protection.

"I went creeping along," she said. "The hail that hit me was bigger than marbles, bouncing off the hood and hitting the windshield."

She said it sounded like rocks hitting her car.

Police Chief Kerry Belk said his department on Wednesday assessed and repaired damaged to its phone system, which was struck by lightning during the storm and went out for several minutes on Tuesday.

An awning from The 19th Hole driving range on U.S. 90 blew off and hit a mobile home in an RV park next door, he said, and there was flash flooding in several neighborhoods, including Woodhaven.

"It was a very bad storm and a very dangerous storm," Belk said. "We're thankful that there wasn't more damage throughout the city."

[KNOWTHIS]

story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1540&e=8&u=/afp/20040714/sc_afp/bangladesh_floods

Bangladeshi villagers without food as two million marooned in floods



SYLHET, Bangladesh (AFP) - Villagers marooned by floods that have stranded at least two million people in northern Bangladesh say they are running out of food and fresh water, as rescuers struggle to reach them.











People stranded in northeastern Sylhet district told an AFP correspondent travelling by boat they had been trapped in their villages for six days, adding food supplies were running low and they had no access to fresh water.


They said rescuers who are delivering emergency supplies of rice, biscuits and water purification tablets had yet to reach them.


"The waters are besieging us. We've been completely cut off for six days and we've not got any food or fresh water because the wells have gone under water," a resident of one flood-surrounded village said.


"We don't have boats so we're trapped. We're waiting for relief but none has come yet."


The country has been lashed by torrential monsoon rains that have hampered rescue efforts and caused rivers to overflow.


In neighbouring Sunamganj, officials told AFP by telephone Tuesday five people had died in flood-related accidents, bringing to 13 the number of people killed since the start of the weekend.


Eight died at the weekend, including five in the southwest of the country when their slum was engulfed by a landslide caused by the heavy rains.


The Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre said the weather might take a "serious turn" over the next 48 hours, triggering floods in low-lying areas near the capital and in three districts to its south and west, the official news agency BSS reported.


BSS added around 1.7 million people in the northeastern Sunamganj district alone were marooned in villages. A further 300,000 people were cut off from their villages and stranded in emergency shelters in Sylhet district, it said.


It gave no figures for other flood-hit districts.


Officials in the northwest told AFP Tuesday large parts of their region also remained under water and that the flooding was getting worse.


In Gaibandha district, one of 10 flooded districts in the northwest, an estimated 200,000 people were marooned, chief district administrator Tapan Chandra Mojumdar told AFP.


He said rescuers in boats were transporting emergency supplies to marooned villagers but had not yet reached all affected areas.


"We go to one area and then use loudspeakers to summon people from surrounding villages to come and collect the aid. Some people come in boats, others wade through the water or swim if the water is deep," he said.


Mojumdar added some villagers, mostly families with young children whose homes had been inundated, were being evacuated to higher ground. Cattle were also being shifted but faced starvation due to lack of food.


"The worst affected people are being taken by boat to areas not at risk from flooding and we've given them bamboo and plastic sheeting to construct temporary shelters," he added.





The low-lying South Asian nation suffers flooding every year during the monsoon in which many die or are left homeless.

At least 32,000 hectares (80,000 acres) of land have been submerged by the heavy rains so far, officials said.

[KNOWTHIS]

www.kesq.com/Global/story.asp?S=2040850&nav=9qrxOnhU

Palm Springs Fire using high tech earthquake detection system


Along with wildfires, Southern Californians also live with the constant threat of earthquakes. And yesterday afternoon, a 4.0 magnitude earthquake struck the valley it was centered just east of Indio.

There were no reports of damage, but the quake was a wake up call for emergency workers in the valley. And now the Palm Springs Fire Department is using a high tech earthquake detection system they hope will save lives in the event of a major earthquake.

It's the simple warning Palm Springs firefighters will hear just before the next big one hits. That's because this station is equipped with a new high tech earthquake detection system that's meant to give firefighters here a heads up before the shaking starts

“(The system) alerts firefighters that an event has been detected and that shaking is imminent.”

Imminent, meaning a quake is anywhere from 10 seconds to a minute out. Palm Springs Fire Chief Mike Goetz recently pushed to get these warning sensors installed in all 5 city fire stations. No other valley city has even one of these. They can detect primary waves or P Waves from an earthquake. They're the waves that hit before the stronger more damaging S Waves strike.

“The sensors can detect those and here at the station. It will trigger certain events to happen.”

But it doesn't just sound an alarm. Goetz says the quake detection system also automatically opens these large garage doors on the fire station so emergency crews can get out.

Firefighters are worried that in the event of a major earthquake, there could be structural damage to the station itself, meaning the doors wouldn't open. This detection system will make sure they do.

“If we can get these doors half way or all the way up before the shaking, then we can be guaranteed to get our engines our of the apparatus room.”

And Goetz says that will allow his crews to respond faster to emergency calls across the city, calls that will likely come after a major quake hits.

But there's a catch. The quake warning system will only detect earthquakes stronger than magnitude 5.0. Tuesday's 4.0 quake centered near Coachella didn't trigger this system. But the chief says that tremor should be a wake up call.

“It's not a matter of if a quake will happen, it's a matter of when.”

And when the next big quake hits, the chief says this warning system will mean his first responders have a crucial head start that could save lives.

[KNOWTHIS]

www.reuters.co.uk/newsPackageArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=547762§ion=news

Quake jolts Pakistan and Afghanistan
Thu 15 July, 2004 10:30

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A moderate earthquake has jolted Pakistan and Afghanistan, but no casualties have been reported.

The quake, measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale, shook several northern Pakistani cities at 0818 GMT (9:18 a.m.). It was also felt in the Afghan capital, Kabul.

The epicentre was in the Hindu Kush mountain range in Afghanistan, about 250 km (155 miles) north of the Pakistani city of Peshawar.

At least 15 people were killed in February when an earthquake shook several towns and cities in northern Pakistan, while more than 9,000 people were killed by two powerful earthquakes in Afghanistan's Takhar province in 1998.

[KNOWTHIS]

www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2004/07/15/floodspeter040715.html

State of emergency remains in parts of Ontario, Quebec

Last Updated Thu, 15 Jul 2004 09:07:43 EDT

PETERBOROUGH, ONT. - A state of emergency remains in effect for Peterborough, Ont.. and Témiscaming, Que., after heavy rain overnight caused massive flooding in the two areas.



Peterborough marina submerged
The downpour caused storm sewers to back up in the central Ontario city of Peterborough, leaving much of its downtown core underwater.

People were being advised to limit their consumption of drinking water after the city's Jackson Creek overflowed.

Police said most streets were impassable, with the water almost one-metre deep and lapping at car windows.

"It's insane. We had an officer come in from a place east of here in Havelock, which is about a 20-minute drive from here, and it was bone dry until he reached the outskirts of the city," said Sgt. John Lyons of the Peterborough Lakefield Police Services. "He said it hit him just like a tidal wave."

"It's a localized cell of rain that is just parked over Peterborough. It's just bizarre."

"It's very wet here in Peterborough," said Mayor Sylvia Sutherland.

"Don't flush your toilets and don't go down to the basement," she advised people in the city.

A group of senior citizens had to leave their home after their building flooded and the roof caved in. There have been no injuries reported.

Further heavy rains were expected across much of Ontario, with specific warnings for Belleville, Haliburton, Algonquin Pembroke, Smiths Falls and Lanark.

The Quebec town of Témiscaming, on the Ontario border, also declared a state of emergency on Thursday.


Road outside Témiscaming
The community was isolated because both major roads into it were under water.

There was no evacuation order early in the morning, but police said the situation was serious, with a nearby lake threatening to spill its banks.

Emergency officials were monitoring the rising waters, and Hydro Quebec was considering opening a dam to relieve pressure on Lake Kipawa.

In Pontiac, Que., another 70 millimetres of rain were expected on Thursday.

[KNOWTHIS]

www.canada.com/vancouver/theprovince/news/story.html?id=94b7e533-f098-4f69-8b86-7315ea9fb152

Richter 5.7 quake awakes Van. Island residents



A significant earthquake was felt on Vancouver Island and as far away as the Lower Mainland early Thursday morning.

The Pacific Geoscience Centre says a quake registering 5.7 on the Richter scale was centred about 120 kilometres west of Campbell River on central Vancouver Island.

While the quake awoke residents of many coastal B.C. communities shortly after 5 a.m., there were no reports of damage or injuries.

People reported feeling the shaker in Tofino, Tahsis, Campbell River, Vancouver and North Vancouver.

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www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=D921A04E-AD51-4441-BD3CD4E4D143BBFE

Natural Disasters More Frequent Than Before, says UN Official
Kerry Sheridan
New York
14 Jul 2004, 20:43 UTC

Jan Egeland
A U.N. official says natural disasters, such as the recent deadly earthquakes in Iran and Algeria, are occuring with greater frequency than in past. The U.N. humanitarian chief, Jan Egeland, says natural disasters affect up to 10 times more people per year than war and global conflict.
Mr. Egeland says the world has seen an increasing number of severe natural disasters in recent years. Climate change and population shifts, according to the report, are to blame for the more frequent occurence of natural disasters.

Mr. Egeland says at least two kinds of these disasters, floods and earthquakes, tend to strike fast and can be more deadly than the bloodiest wars. To emphasize his point, Mr. Egeland gave the death tolls for the recent earthquakes in Algeria and the Bam region of Iran.

"The Bam [Iran] earthquake and the Algerian earthquake killed 30,000 people in seconds," said Jan Egeland. "That is more than most wars cost in a decade."

According to Mr. Egeland's research, 700 natural disasters last year killed some 70,000 people. He says the disasters affected 600 million people and cost $65 billion in material damage.

Mr. Egeland says natural disasters have an especially devastating impact on the poorest regions of the world because more low-income people tend to live in disaster-prone areas. Too often, he says, the international community ignores the problem until it is too late.

"What we hope is that the world will invest more in disaster prevention," he said. "Donors are waking up to this, but it is much easier to get, unfortunately, assistance the day after an earthquake, than to fund some preventive work to prevent a disaster from happening."

A new U.N. report, called Living With Risk, details some preventive measures that communities can take, such as constructing safer buildings and creating early warning systems.

A world conference on disaster reduction is scheduled for early next year in Japan.

[KNOWTHIS]

www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/9156746.htm

Fish fall from sky during O.S. thunderstorm

By KAREN NELSON and MARY LOUISE MASON


OCEAN SPRINGS - Something fishy happened during the hailstorm that pounded the city Tuesday evening.

Gulf Islands National Seashore Ranger Melissa Perez and volunteer Adam Wilson were pelted briefly with small, very cold fish while on the park's pier.

It was around 6 p.m. Tuesday when the storm had eased briefly. The two ran out to try and locate minnow traps that had been left on the pier.

The traps were gone, but while Perez and Wilson were looking, something began falling into the water near them causing splashes. Then two icy cold fish hit the deck of the pier and one hit Perez's hat.

"I was pretty upset that I had lost those traps, when fish fell from the sky," Perez said.

"We went for cover. One was incredibly cold and one of them actually was icy," she said. Fellow workers told her it was a rare phenomenon.

"But sure enough, it happened here," she said.

Perez didn't know how many fell into the water; the event took her by surprise. But it all happened in an area that had roughly a 20-foot diameter.

The fish that hit the deck were small, about 3 inches long, and she said that she didn't immediately recognize the species.

"The weather was so bad that we threw them off and ran for cover," she said.

Todd Adams, assistant coordinator of educational programs at J.S. Scott Marine Education Center, has a degree in physical geography and a master's in geo-science.

He ventured two possibilities: The storm could have pulled the small fish into the thundercloud where they were coated with ice until they got heavy enough to fall from the cloud or the storm could have sucked them off a fishing boat and dropped them at the park.

"Obviously there was hail," Adams said. "And a water spout will pull up and throw all types of things."

Adams, like other motorists Tuesday in Ocean Springs, experienced the storm along U.S. 90. He said the wind was blowing in one direction and then another, in a vortex action.

Debbie Anglin, another Ocean Springs resident, said she waited out what she thought was the worst of the storm at a church downtown. She left and encountered hail on Government Street near the high school at around 6 p.m., about the time the fish were falling a couple of miles east.

She said motorists were pulling over at Oak Park Elementary and at a service station on Halstead Road, where there was protection.

"I went creeping along," she said. "The hail that hit me was bigger than marbles, bouncing off the hood and hitting the windshield."

She said it sounded like rocks hitting her car.

Police Chief Kerry Belk said his department on Wednesday assessed and repaired damaged to its phone system, which was struck by lightning during the storm and went out for several minutes on Tuesday.

An awning from The 19th Hole driving range on U.S. 90 blew off and hit a mobile home in an RV park next door, he said, and there was flash flooding in several neighborhoods, including Woodhaven.

"It was a very bad storm and a very dangerous storm," Belk said. "We're thankful that there wasn't more damage throughout the city."

[KNOWTHIS]

breakingnews.iol.ie/news/story.asp?j=58935668&p=58936x4z&n=58936139

Australians amazed by freak snowfalls
18/07/2004 - 10:46:32

Surprise snowfalls prompted people in Sydney, Australia, to flock to the mountains today to catch a glimpse of what for them is a rare winter phenomenon.

Overnight snow dusted much of south-eastern Australia, including the Blue Mountains just west of Sydney and the rolling hills south of the city.

The unexpected wintry weather brought a warning from traffic officials to stay at home.

Snowfall is rare in the region and officials trying to deal with icy roads in the mountains advised curious sightseers to stay away.

“Of concern is a large number of people seem to be heading from Sydney up toward the Blue Mountains, presumably to look at the snow,” said Roads and Traffic Authority spokesman Ken Boys.

“We are appealing to people to stay out of the area if they can.”

No snow fell in Sydney itself, but a number of trees were toppled by strong winds which lashed coastal suburbs, whipping up huge waves that battered beaches.

[KNOWTHIS]

www.cnn.com/2004/US/West/07/17/wildfires/index.html

New fire forces evacuations outside Los Angeles
Separate California blaze grows to nearly 16,000 acres
Saturday, July 17, 2004 Posted: 11:10 PM EDT (0310 GMT)



Firefighters gather after starting a backfire in Carson City, Nevada.



LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- A wildfire that started burning Saturday in the Santa Clarita foothills northwest of Los Angeles forced the evacuation of more than 100 homes and the closure of several highways, officials said.

More than 750 firefighters and others were fighting the blaze fanned by 20 mph winds that had burned 2,500 acres in the Sand Canyon area and in Placerita Canyon outside Los Angeles.

The Placerita Canyon Nature Center, College of the Canyons at Rockwell and the McBean area of Santa Clarita were threatened by the fire, said Ron Haralson, inspector for the Los Angeles Fire Department.

The fire was reported just before noon, and was only 10 percent contained by evening. Parts of several highways were closed, including the northbound lanes of State Highway 14 between Interstate 5 and Placerita Canyon, south of Santa Clarita.

The cause of the blaze is unknown.

Another fire burned 2,000 acres near Hemet, southeast of Los Angeles in Riverside County.

Capt. Rick Vogt of the California Department of Forestry said 2,000 people in 500 homes were evacuated. According to a recorded message from the county, no structures had been destroyed. The fire was burning eastward.

The fires are the latest in a series of blazes that have scorched California and Nevada this week. More than a dozen wildfires are burning in California alone.

Erratic winds are pushing the fires over tinder-dry brush in areas that are under drought conditions.

California's Pine fire has swelled to nearly 16,000 acres as it sweeps through Angeles National Forest. The fire has forced more than 1,000 people from their homes in Lake Hughes, about 30 miles north of Los Angeles, since it started Monday.

It has consumed three houses and seven other structures. More than 2,000 firefighters are battling the blaze.

A traffic accident killed one firefighter as he left the fire line. Three other people have been injured, officials said.

The flames jumped three fire lines in three days, and authorities feared winds would push the blaze over a ridge into the cities of Lake Hughes and Elizabeth Lake. They also feared the fire would burn crucial habitats for the California condor and the spotted owl.

But Saturday, winds gusting to 15 miles per hour pushed the flames away from the communities and wildlife habitats.

Meanwhile, a fire on the outskirts of Nevada's capital has burned 7,566 acres since it began Wednesday, fire officials said. The fire is about 50 percent contained.

More than 1,900 firefighters worked on the ground to stop the flames' spread, while aircraft attacked them from above.

Firefighters began the air assault after winds, which had gusted to 40 mph Thursday, calmed Friday morning.

Fire officials said the wind shifted late Friday afternoon and overnight, pushing the fire back into itself and areas it had already burned.

Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn said the winds made the fire the "meanest, ugliest, [most] uncooperative" fire in a long time.

Flames as high as 100 feet incinerated 20 homes and 26 other buildings in Carson City. Firefighters used foam and water to save dozens more.

Authorities issued mandatory evacuation orders to residents of 1,000 threatened homes.

"We're telling the public, 'Let us do our job. ... Stay away from it if you don't have to be there,'" interagency fire spokesman Kirk Frosdick said.

Carson City asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency for money to clean up the area once the flames are extinguished, Guinn said.

Five people -- four of them firefighters -- have been injured in Nevada, but none seriously, authorities said.

The cause of the fire is being investigated. Authorities want to question teenagers who had a party in the area before the fire broke out.

[KNOWTHIS]

tvnz.co.nz/view/news_national_story_skin/436808%3fformat=html

Woman dead following earthquake



Jul 18, 2004

A woman has died and two others have been moderately injured after a tree fell on three cars following a series of earthquakes in the Bay of Plenty registering up to 5.4 on the Richter scale.

Police say the woman died after a gum tree fell on three vehicles on Pye's Pa Rd between Tauranga and Rotorua just after 4pm on Sunday afternoon.

The deceased woman's name has not yet been released as relatives are still to be informed.

A flurry of at least a dozen quakes centred near Lake Rotoiti, were recorded by the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences between 4-5pm.

The quakes have also caused a series of slips between Lakes Rotoiti and Rotoma closing State Highway 30.

Seismologist for the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences, Ken Gledhill, says there were at least a dozen quakes.

The institute says the quakes were shallow and have been felt from Tauranga to Whakatane.

There was also an earthquake centred on the other side of the North Island in Manawatu, measuring 4.2.

Gledhill says there have been no reports of property damage at this stage and the tremors are not expected to get worse

[KNOWTHIS]

www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=3579704&thesection=news&thesubsection=general

Weight of water set off quakes, suggests expert

22.07.2004
By AINSLEY THOMSON
The weight of floodwater in the eastern Bay of Plenty is believed to have triggered the swarm of earthquakes that have rocked the region.

Since Sunday the area has experienced hundreds of earthquakes. They began after more than 250mm of rain fell in 48 hours.

The storm killed two women and caused thousands of people to be evacuated from their homes.

Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences duty seismologist Martin Reyners said the weight of the floodwater - estimated at up to a billion tonnes - could have triggered the quakes.

Dr Reyners said the crust in the region was already stretched and the weight of the water would have placed an extra load on it, bringing on the earthquakes.

"If you put on a load, like the load of the floodwater, you can actually destabilise the seismic regime, and if an earthquake is about to happen, it can bring it forward in time."

This type of activity is called induced seismicity.

Dr Reyners said the region was tectonically stretching by about 10mm a year.

There are faultlines to the east and west of the area that was flooded, but only ones on the western side were triggered.

The worst of the quakes measured 5.4 on the Richter scale and was centred a few kilometres north of Lakes Rotoehu and Rotoma, on the edge of the large Okataina volcanic crater which contains the Rotorua lakes and last blew in the devastating Tarawera eruption of 1886.

Yesterday, a quake of 4.4 was felt around the same area.

Dr Reyners said there had been hundreds of quakes, but most were too small to be felt by humans.

"It is a significant earthquake sequence and we will definitely look at the relationship between the floods and earthquakes in more detail."

Civil Defence said the state of emergency in Whakatane and Opotiki districts would remain in force until at least tomorrow.

Whakatane District Council spokeswoman Mary Hermanson said several rural communities in the eastern Bay of Plenty were still completely isolated and had food flown in yesterday. Some will not have road access restored for at least a month.

Three people with chronic medical conditions were airlifted from Ruatahuna yesterday as a precaution.

In Whakatane, flooded areas were drained and residents allowed to secure their homes.

There were still 100 houses in the suburb of Awatapu that were affected by flooding - meaning about 250 people could not go home last night.

Mrs Hermanson said several hundred residents of rural Edgecumbe and Thornton on the Rangitaiki Plain probably would not be able to return until the weekend.

The level of the Rangitaiki River was dropping and Civil Defence staff were having success channelling floodwaters back into the river.

But a temporary road across the flood plain to reach a major breach in the stopbank would take several days to complete.

- Additional reporting NZPA

[KNOWTHIS]

earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/uslfaq.htm

Magnitude 6.2 - RYUKYU ISLANDS, JAPAN
2004 July 22 09:45:17 UTC
Preliminary Earthquake Report
U.S. Geological Survey, National Earthquake Information Center
World Data Center for Seismology, Denver

A strong earthquake occurred at 09:45:17 (UTC) on Thursday, July 22, 2004. The magnitude 6.2 event has been located in the RYUKYU ISLANDS, JAPAN. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)





Magnitude 6.2
Date-Time Thursday, July 22, 2004 at 09:45:17 (UTC)
= Coordinated Universal Time
Thursday, July 22, 2004 at 6:45:17 PM
= local time at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location 26.545°N, 128.878°E
Depth 43.3 km (26.9 miles) set by location program
Region RYUKYU ISLANDS, JAPAN
Distances
130 km (80 miles) ENE of Naha, Okinawa, Japan
525 km (325 miles) ENE of Ishigaki-jima, Ryukyu Islands, Japan
585 km (360 miles) SSW of Kagoshima, Kyushu, Japan
1440 km (900 miles) SW of TOKYO, Japan

Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 6.2 km (3.9 miles); depth fixed by location program
Parameters Nst=104, Nph=104, Dmin=761 km, Rmss=0.83 sec, Gp= 90°,
M-type=moment magnitude (Mw), Version=7
Source USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)

Event ID uslfaq