Extreme weather was the biggest reason for people to flee homes in 2020
London, UKThomson Reuters Foundation Extreme weather linked to climate change and mass evacuations to protect those at risk are driving a global surge in families forced from their homes, with a share remaining displaced long-term, analysts said on Thursday. About 98 per cent of new movements of people from their houses in 2020 were caused […]
Virus-hit Asian nations brace for double disasters as extreme weather looms
Rome, ItalyThomson Reuters Foundation Countries from India to the Philippines, already struggling with the coronavirus pandemic, are likely to also battle weather-related crises, from heat waves to cyclones, in coming months, disaster experts warned Thursday. In India – currently under lockdown with more than 12,000 confirmed cases of the virus – the cyclone season starts […]
Pacific nations stay vigilant against coronavirus in cyclone’s aftermath
Reuters A powerful cyclone that hit the Pacific Island nations this week bringing death, injuries and destruction cannot be allowed to disrupt containment efforts against the spread of the coronavirus, officials in the region said. Cyclone Harold, a Category 5 storm with winds in excess of 251 kph passed through the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji […]
South Pacific cyclone and coronavirus create “perfect storm” of worry
London, UKThomson Reuters Foundation As deadly Cyclone Harold churns through the South Pacific, small island nations in its path are struggling to balance responses to the disaster with maintaining efforts to stop the spread of the coronavirus outbreak, officials warned Wednesday. Cyclone Harold ripped through Vanuatu and Fiji as a deadly top-strength storm this week, […]
Cyclone Harold flattens homes, brings injuries in Fiji
Sydney, AustraliaReuters A powerful tropical cyclone battered the South Pacific island nation of Fiji on Wednesday, witnesses said, destroying buildings and causing injuries in Suva, the capital, pressuring a population already bracing for the coronavirus outbreak. Cyclone Harold, its strength ranked in the highest category of five, passed over Fiji’s south at about midday, levelling […]
Cyclone Harold tears through Vanuatu, bears toward Fiji
Melbourne, AustraliaReuters Tropical Cyclone Harold lashed the South Pacific island of Vanuatu for a second day on Tuesday, ripping off roofs and downing telecommunications, and was moving towards Fiji where it is expected to slightly weaken. The powerful cyclone made landfall on Monday in Sana province, an island north of Vanuatu’s capital Port Vila, with […]
Cyclone pounds Vanuatu, levelling buildings, amid virus shutdown
Sydney, AustraliaReuters A powerful tropical cyclone made landfall on the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu on Monday, witnesses said, levelling buildings in a country already in a state of emergency due to concerns about the coronavirus. Cyclone Harold approached Sanma province, an island north of the capital Port Vila, with winds of up to […]