3 women killed by lightning in east Tanzania

22:53, January 23, 2020

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  Firefighting plane crashes in Australia, killing 3 Americans

  In this undated photo released from the Rural Fire Service, a C-130 Hercules plane called "Thor" drops water during a flight in Australia.(File photo: AP)Three American crew members died Thursday when a C-130 Hercules aerial water tanker crashed while battling wildfires in southeastern Australia, officials said.New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian confirmed the crash deaths in the state’s Snowy Monaro region as Australia attempts to deal with an unprecedented fire season that has left a large swath of destruction.Coulson Aviation in the U.S. state of Oregon said in a statement that one of its Lockheed large air tankers was lost after it left Richmond in New South Wales with retardant for a firebombing mission. It said the accident was “extensive” but had few other details.“The only thing I have from the field reports are that the plane came down, it’s crashed and there was a large fireball associated with that crash,” said Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons.He said all three aboard were U.S. residents.“Unfortunately, all we’ve been able to do is locate the wreckage and the crash site and we have not been able to locate any survivors,” he said.The tragedy brings the death toll from the blazes to at least 31 since September. The fires have also destroyed more than 2,600 homes and razed more than 10.4 million hectares (25.7 million acres), an area bigger than the U.S. state of Indiana.Coulson grounded other firefighting aircraft as a precaution pending investigation, reducing planes available to firefighters in New South Wales and neighboring Victoria state. The four-propeller Hercules drops more than 15,000 liters (4,000 gallons) of fire retardant in a single pass.Australian Transport Safety Bureau, the national air crash investigator, and state police will investigate the crash site, which firefighters described as an active fire ground.“There is no indication at this stage of what’s caused the accident,” Fitzsimmons said.Berejikl...

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  6 killed, 3 missing as floods hit Indonesia's North Sumatra

  JAKARTA, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- Six people were killed and three others went missing as floods hit Indonesias North Sumatra province earlier Wednesday, a disaster agency official said.Photo: XinhuaTorrential rains triggered a rivers waters in North Tapanuli district to overflow its bank and submerge surrounding areas, spokesman for the National Disaster Management Agency Agus Wibowo said.Evacuation of floods-affected people was underway, involving soldiers, policemen and personnel of the agency, said Wibowo.Efforts to search and rescue for the three missing people were being undertaken, according to him.Photos showed the natural disaster destroyed roads, houses and electricity facilities.A seven-day emergency state has been declared to help pave a way for emergency relief works, he told Xinhua.The spokesman said a post for logistics and shelters for the evacuees had been set up, but he failed to give further details including that on the number of displaced persons as the risk assessment of the floods was still in process.The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency has warned of possible heavy rains from January to February.Indonesia has been frequently stricken by floods during heavy rains.

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  Tanzania's weather authorities warn fishermen over strong ocean waves

  File photo: AFPDAR ES SALAAM, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian weather authorities on Thursday warned fishermen in the Indian Ocean coastal waters to be vigilant over strong ocean waves caused by torrential rains.In its latest weather forecast, the Tanzania Meteorological Authority (TMA) said the strong ocean waves will be experienced beginning Thursday through Sunday in the Indian Ocean coastal areas of Dar es Salaam, Mtwara, Lindi and Coast regions, and the Islands of Mafia and Zanzibar."These strong ocean waves will endanger fishing activities and marine transport," said TMA in its weather forecast.The weather agency said the strong ocean waves will be accompanied heavy rains that were likely to disrupt transport, social services and businesses in these areas.Officials said on Tuesday tens of hundreds of people in Bahi district in the central region of Dodoma were made homeless after at least 120 houses were demolished by ongoing heavy rains.Last week, Joachim Wangabo, Rukwa regional commissioner, said the ongoing heavy rains in Tanzanias southern highlands have killed three people and washed away four bridges, paralyzing transport in three neighboring regions.He said the rains also swept away four bridges in Rukwa region that connected Mbeya, Songwe and Katavi regions, paralyzing transport between the regions also known as the east African nations bread basket.