MONTREAL, Canada (AFP) — A pilot died in a helicopter crash in western Canada fighting wildfires that have ravaged the country, police said Thursday. He is the third person to die battling the huge blazes after two firefighters were killed last week during separate operations. His helicopter was reported missing early Wednesday evening, and the aircraft was later located near Haig Lake in northern Alberta province. The aircraft “collided with terrain during firefighting operations,” the […]
Tag: climate
Extreme heat scorches Europe, world
By Alexandria SAGE Agence France-Presse ROME, Italy (AFP) — Swathes of Europe baked Tuesday in a heatwave trailed by wildfires and health warnings, as parts of Asia and the United States also suffered under extreme weather. Firefighters battled blazes in parts of Greece and the Canary Islands and Spain issued heat alerts, while some children in Italy’s Sardinia were warned away from sports for safety reasons. In the United States, the city of Phoenix […]
Extreme heat scorches Europe
ROME, July 18, 2023 (AFP) – Swathes of Europe baked Tuesday in a heatwave trailed by wildfires and health warnings, as parts of Asia and the United States also suffered under extreme weather. Firefighters battled blazes in parts of Greece and the Canary Islands, Spain issued heat alerts while some children in Italy’s Sardinia were warned away from sports for safety reasons. “You can’t be in the street, it’s horrible,” said Lidia Rodriguez, 27, in […]
World must prepare for more intense heatwaves: UN
GENEVA, July 18, 2023 (AFP) – The world should get ready to face increasingly intense heatwaves, the United Nations warned on Tuesday, as countries across the Northern Hemisphere reeled from soaring temperatures. Health authorities have sounded the alarm from North America to Europe and Asia, urging people to stay hydrated and shelter from the burning sun, in a stark reminder of the effects of global warming. “These events will continue to grow in intensity, and […]
Scorching heatwave threatens to break top temperatures
By Gael BRANCHEREAU Agence France-Presse ROME, Italy (AFP) — Scorching heat across the Northern Hemisphere threatened to break records and whip up wildfires on Monday as the dire consequences of global warming take shape. Parts of Europe, Asia and North America were preparing for historic heat with health warnings and evacuations. Europe could record its hottest-ever temperature this week on Italy’s islands of Sicily and Sardinia where a high of 48 degrees Celsius (118 degrees […]
‘Oppressive’ heat wave scorches US west and south
LOS ANGELES, July 16, 2023 (AFP) – Swaths of the United States home to more than 80 million people were under heat warnings or advisories Sunday, as relentless, record-breaking temperatures continued to bake western and southern states. The National Weather Service (NWS) warned of “a widespread and oppressive heat wave” in parts of the Southwest, western Gulf Coast and southern Florida, with sizzling temperatures carrying into the coming week raising health risks for millions. Southern […]
Dangerous heatwaves strike globe as wildfires rage
ROME, July 16, 2023 (AFP) – Scorching weather gripped three continents on Sunday, whipping up wildfires and threatening to topple temperature records as the dire consequences of global warming take shape. Predictions of historic heat hung over swathes of Asia, Europe and the United States. In Japan, authorities issued heatstroke alerts to tens of millions of people in 20 of its 47 prefectures as near-record high temperatures scorched large areas and torrential rain pummelled other […]
Oceans are changing colour and climate change may be to blame
PARIS, July 12, 2023 (AFP) – Over the past 20 years huge swathes of the world’s oceans have changed colour, displaying a subtle greening towards the tropics that researchers say points to the effect of climate change on life in the world’s seas. In the new research published on Wednesday, scientists said they had detected shifts in colours across more than half of the world’s oceans — an expanse bigger than Earth’s total land area. […]
Evacuations as US state of Vermont hit by catastrophic floods
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency in the northeastern US state of Vermont Tuesday as heavy rains triggered flooding from which dozens of residents were rescued by boat. The move, which frees up funds to help relief efforts, came after officials warned that a dam close to the state capital Montpelier was nearing capacity and close to spilling into a river. “This has never happened since the […]
Heat wave in US turns Texas prisons into ‘ovens’
HOUSTON, July 10, 2023 (AFP) – On the afternoon of July 4, as Americans were celebrating the country’s independence with elaborate fireworks displays, a prisoner named Joseph Martire passed out in his cell in Texas, amid the excessive heat that has been swamping much of the southern United States in recent days. In concrete, brick and metal penitentiaries, industrial fans churn warm vapor without really cooling the air. And with no air conditioning in most […]
Swiss sweltered in 2022 with hottest year on record
GENEVA, July 10, 2023 (AFP) – Switzerland said Monday it experienced its hottest year on record in 2022, with its cherished Alpine glaciers melting at three times the rate previously considered extreme. The record heat had a negative effect on the landlocked European nation’s lakes, rivers, forests and agriculture, the environment ministry said in its climate overview for the year. “For Switzerland, 2022 was the hottest year in history,” it said in a statement. “The […]
Spain sweats as temperatures soar in new summer heatwave
MADRID, July 10, 2023 (AFP) – Temperatures were soaring across Spain on Monday with the mercury set to touch 44 degrees Celsius (111 Fahrenheit) in the south as the country braced for its second heatwave in a fortnight. The AEMET weather agency said the heat was caused by a mass of hot air arriving from North Africa, indicating it would last until at least Wednesday, with the southern Andalusia region expected to be worst hit. […]





