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Latest update: 02/03/2010
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Atlantic storm 'Xynthia' leaves dozens dead in France
Atlantic storm Xynthia whipped through western Europe at the weekend, leaving at least 50 dead on the western coast of France. French President Nicolas Sarkozy unveiled three million euros in government aid during a visit to the affected areas.
The eastward-moving Atlantic storm dubbed “Xynthia” left devastation in its wake as it passed through western Europe at the weekend, leaving dozens dead and half a million without electricity.
French coastal towns in the regions of Vendee and Charente Maritime were the worst hit with heavy rains and gusts of winds uprooting trees and street signs. At least 50 people were killed in the floods in France, with a number of others missing.
FRANCE 24 correspondent, Nicolas Germain, reporting from the picturesque western town of La Faute-sur-Mer, said: “Even as late as Monday morning – over twelve hours after the storm passed through France, the roads are still flooded and the streets are filled with debris. Some still have no electricity; there are dozens of fire trucks, which are sending out rescue teams to conduct searches.”
Local residents waited on rooftops until help arrived.
Jean-Pierre, a resident of La-Faute-sur-Mer, told AFP that he and his wife woke in the night to find water pouring up the stairs, filling the house in less than half-an-hour.
More than 9,000 French firefighters and emergency workers backed by helicopters were deployed on Monday to try to reach stranded residents in Vendee and Charente.
Germain reports that some inhabitants of the nearby town of Aiguillon-sur-Mer suffered a gruesome and sudden end: “The sea wall protecting the town was destroyed, so the water rose quickly as the people slept and they drowned in their sleep.”
‘Natural catastrophe’
President Nicolas Sarkozy visited L'Aiguillon-sur-Mer on Monday, where he mourned "a national catastrophe, a human drama with a dreadful toll" and said "the urgent thing is to support the families who have people missing or dead."
Sarkozy unveiled three million euros of emergency funds available for the victims and promised that electricity would be restored by Tuesday.
France is also due to ask the European Union to release funds from its regional budget in order to help pay for recovery operations.
Commerce minister Herve Novelli said small businesses would receive 10,000 euros (14,000 dollars) in aid to help them cover the costs of repairs in storm-hit areas.
"It is a natural catastrophe," French Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux told reporters.
Hortefeux said the storm was particularly deadly because it hit at night.
"It's obvious that if this had happened during the day, the death toll would not have been disastrous, because people were taken by surprise during their sleep," Hortefeux said on France Info radio.
The storm, which originated in the Iberian peninsula on Saturday before hitting France’s western coast, passed into neighbouring countries.
At least four people died in Germany, three in Spain, one in Portugal and one in Belgium.
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The same pool of warm
The same pool of warm equatorial water that formed a convection that destroyed part of France had also formed a lesser convection that saved Brazil from something far worse.
“An area of disturbed weather has formed off the coast of Brazil, near 18S 38W. This disturbance has the potential to develop into subtropical or tropical depression early next week. ... plenty warm enough to support a tropical storm. ... I give this storm a low (< 30% chance) of developing into a tropical or subtropical depression by Sunday. ... disturbance is located much closer to the Equator than where Catarina formed“ (“Dr. Jeff Masters' WunderBlog”; Posted by: JeffMasters; wunderground.com, 3/5/10). “Tropical Storm 90Q is the second known tropical cyclone to form in the cooler South Atlantic Ocean ... located about 325 miles east of Puerto Alegre, Brazil in the waters of the South Atlantic Ocean near 30.0 South latitude and 45.8 West longitude ... "The only other tropical cyclone known to have occurred ... " said Hal Pierce, meteorologist on the TRMM satellite team at NASA Goddard. "That's when a hurricane called "Catarina" made landfall on March 28, 2004” (“Second only south Atlantic tropical storm: 90Q, moving away from Brazil”; Contact: Rob Gutro; NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center; eurekalert.org, 3/11/10).
With much newer construction
With much newer construction than the vilified napoleonic seawalls in France, “Strong winds accompanying a cold front caused waves of up to three meters to break through Havana's seawall, flooding the capital's streets since early Wednesday. ... more than 450 people have been evacuated to safe places. Castellis Sanchez, a resident of the flooded area ... has not seen such a scene since Hurricane Wilma hit in 2005” (“Strong winds cause sea water to flood Havana”; Xinhua; english.people.com.cn, 3/4/10).
With additional and profound
With additional and profound condolences and apologies, our extremist Republicans and Christians have yet to notice any suffering in France, let alone the US and beyond, in their crusade to maintain corporate welfare.
“Global warming has not met the criteria for science and scientists need to find a theory that matches the facts, Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) said Tuesday at the U.S. Capitol. “Science is verifiable, science is something that can be replicated,” Barton, the ranking Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, told CNSNews.com. ... Barton appeared Tuesday with House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) and other members of the House Republican Conference” (“Global-Warming Scientists ‘Need to Go Back to Square One,’ Rep. Barton Says”; By Karen ‘scumbag’ Schuberg; cnsnews.com, 3/3/10).
Atlantic storm 'Xynthia' leaves dozens dead in France
Banks and car industry gets billions from tax payers money while the people who are paying that taxes when needed of financial help after nature disaster gets 3 million euro!
Get well soon.
Time to get some rest.
Earth changes and its reality
Yesterday Hawaii Tsunami scientists prediction blown, today Western Europe winter storms exposed.
Please watch my video. It's about Earth Changes, caused by continental drift.
Continental Drift - One huge supercontinent, became 2 continents, then 5 (or 6) continents, and then?
Continental drift is an Earth's nature cycles, extreme greenhouse gas emission makes climate change move faster.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7I_eFoIk64
Global warming hurricanes
I tried to warn with semi-public predictions: “A. ... global warming (e.g. quakes, solar flares, and hurricanes), like diplomacy, is war by other means by those running ExxonMobil and willing accomplice investors. ... Again powered with the filth of ExxonMobil, global warming models strongly indicate ... getting torn new ones. There is an 80% chance of significant hurricane ecosystems forming off Mexico > Central America > Brazil/Argentina within 2 weeks” (“GBRWE 2/14 - 20/10''s Extreme Planetary Warnings for Earthquakes, Volcanoes, and Solar/Terrestrial Flares from Human Activities”; Robert Rhodes, Supplemental; GBRWE 2/14 - 20/10, 2/13/10). “IV. Hurricane (Tropical Cyclone) Ecosystem Predictions for the World in 2010. ... monster hurricane misery equally along the Americans... ExxonMobil dumping it all ... A. Total predicted Tropical Cyclones ... 2. North Atlantic Hurricanes monsters for 2010 ... 5 - 10 hits to US East Coast (including Canada to Europe), 2 - 4 hits to Texas ... B. Total predicted monster hurricane ecosystem hits and projected routes ... 1. The main routes (95%) of catastrophic devastation in the North Atlantic ... c. Mid Atlantic: Bermuda/Azores - Canada/Greenland” (“12th Annual 2010 North Atlantic Basin Hurricane Season Predictions with Related, Planetary Models”; Robert James Rhodes, Supplemental; GBRWE 2/7 - 13/10, 2/13/10).