Archive for the ‘diaster’ Category

Strong earthquake jolts Indonesia

JAKARTA, Indonesia (CNN) — An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.9 struck in Indonesia on Wednesday, the U.S Geological Survey said.

The quake was recorded about 33 miles (53 km) from Padang, the capital city of West Sumatra, Indonesia

Source :

http://cnnwire.blogs.cnn.com/2009/09/30/strong-earthquake-jolts-indonesia/

Major earthquake strikes Indonesia, kills 6

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Six people were killed in Indonesia after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Wednesday, officials said.

The quake was initially categorized as magnitude 7.4 before being downgraded to 7.0 by geological officials.

No details were immediately available about the deaths. At least 18 other people were injured around the capital, Jakarta, said Rustam Pakaya, a health ministry spokesman.

A tsunami watch went into effect and quickly expired, according to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

It struck about 2:55 p.m. (3:55 a.m. ET) and was centered 242 km (150 miles) from Jakarta, according the U.S. Geological Survey. The quake was about 60 km (37.3 miles) deep.

In Tasikmalaya, a city in the Indonesian island of Java, some older buildings were damaged and people panicked in the streets because there was no electricity, according to a witness named Maya.

Tasikmalaya is about 142 km (88 miles) from the epicenter. Several homes in that city were destroyed and a building collapsed, the health ministry spokesman said.

John Aglionby, a journalist with the Financial Times, was in Jakarta during the quake.

“The whole building started to sway. People got very serious,” Aglionby told CNN. “People left the building. But there was no sign of damage here.”

About three weeks ago, a series of earthquakes — ranging in magnitude from 4.7 to 6.7 — struck off the western coast of Indonesia’s Sumatra Island.

At least seven people were injured and one building collapsed in Padang City in West Sumatra, officials said.

– CNN’s Andy Saputra contributed to this report.

Source :

http://cnnwire.blogs.cnn.com/2009/09/02/major-earthquake-strikes-indonesia/

LA fire likely to pass across Mount Wilson

The wildfire ravaging Northern Los Angeles County is expected to pass across Mount Wilson, home to TV and radio towers and the famed Wilson Observatory.

Mount Wilson Observatory Director Hal McAlister said Monday in an ongoing blog that the U.S. Forest Service informed him that passage of the fire across Mount Wilson was imminent. The USFS also said firefighters would battle the blaze from the air rather than on the ground.

Firefighers have already been pulled from Red Box, a major staging area about five miles from the observatory.

In his blog late Monday, McAlister reported:

Monday, 31 Aug 09, 2:46 pm PDT – I just spoke with Sherry Roman, Public Affairs Officer of the Angeles National Forest. She could give no updates as to the status of the fire in the Mount Wilson vicinity except that the USFS still considers that passage of fire across Mount Wilson is imminent and will be fought aerially rather than with ground personnel. Once the fire is through the area, they can assess the damage by air after the event before they can send in ground personnel. She also confirmed that firefighters have been removed from Red Box.This roller coaster has taken a dip downward.

McAlister’s latest blog (which mistakenly lists the day as Monday rather than Tuesday):

Monday, 1 Sep 09, 7:15 am PDT – …I do not at this point have any news – only what we can all deduce from Towercam and other sources. Towercam scenes continue to show thick smoke on the mountain with a concentration on the right side of the image implying activity on the mountain’s north side. It clearly has not reached the mountain and, if advancing towards us, it is only doing so slowly.

McAlister also reported that one of the two power lines to the mountain was knocked out by the fire. But the towercam showing the latest images is still online for now, allowing the Mount Wilson staff to monitor the flames.

The latest news from CBS in Los Angeles reports that the Station fire is still only 5 percent contained, and officials don’t expect full containment for another two weeks. At this point, the fire has destroyed 121,000 acres and 53 homes.

Full Story :

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-10323008-94.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20

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