Weather-related insurance claims have almost trebled in cost as relentless rain and winds are causing havoc for households. Rain damage and flooding mean the cost of repairs has shot up this year compared with the costs of dealing with the aftermath of Storm Éowyn in January last year.
"There's 30% to 40% chance of thunderstorms on Monday. We could see damaging wind gusts, intense rainfall, water spouts or brief, weak tornadoes." Though it's expected to start drizzling overnight, Angelenos likely won't see heavy rainfall until late Monday afternoon, with showers predicted through the evening. The coasts could see 1 to 2½ inches of rain, with up to 5 inches predicted for the foothills and mountains.
A deep area of low pressure to the south-east of New Zealand's North Island swept into the region on Sunday, bringing heavy rain, gale-force winds and dangerous coastal swells that lashed exposed shorelines. The storm triggered power outages, forced evacuations and damaged infrastructure, with further impacts likely on Monday as the system lingers for a time, before tracking southwards later.
I do understand that you're going to get some rain in winter, but it has definitely got worse. Even if you do manage to work for a day, it's punctuated by periods of an hour and a half of rain where you're sitting in your truck doing nothing. Before, I used to think, a day off, that's great. But now you think, oh, jeez, not another day off!
Spain and Portugal have endured another storm over the weekend, just days after the deadly flooding and major damage caused by Storm Kristin and Storm Leonardo last week. Storm Marta passed over the Iberian peninsula on Saturday bringing fresh torrential rain, killing two people. Storm Kristin killed at least five people when it swept through Portugal last week with Storm Leonardo claiming another victim last Wednesday.
When Storm Dennis hit the UK in 2020, a wall of dirty, frigid water from a tributary of the Taff threw Paul Thomas against the front of his house in the south Wales village of Ynysybwl. He managed to swim back into his home before the storm surge changed direction, almost carrying him out of the smashed-in front door. I was holding on to downpipes to stop myself being dragged out again.
Weather alerts were lifted for 13 counties yesterday, but emergency services stressed that the flooding threat will not ease for a number of days. The levels of the Rivers Liffey, Slaney, Nore, Suir, Barrow and Blackwater remain high, with pressure mounting on ESB to sanction releases from major reservoirs including Poulaphouca, which are near capacity and potentially adding to the flooding challenge.
The threat of flooding is set to peak this morning, with road networks expected to bear the brunt of the deluge. However, damage to residential and commercial properties is also likely, emergency services have warned. With Dublin, Louth, Waterford and Wexford under ­Status Orange rain warnings, people in those counties have been urged to work from home in order to keep the roads clear for emergency vehicles.
Met Éireann has issued rainfall alerts for 11 counties as further downpours on top of already swollen rivers and saturated land threaten potentially damaging flooding across Munster, Leinster and Ulster. The worst of the flooding is expected tonight and early tomorrow morning across Wicklow and Waterford, though flooding is also possible in nine other counties, particularly Wexford, Kilkenny and Dublin.
When Emilia Machel, 30, and her three children rushed to the Chiaquelane site for displaced people on the afternoon of January 17, much of her hometown of Chokwe in Mozambique's Gaza Province was already flooded. The Limpopo River, which begins in neighbouring South Africa and flows into Mozambique, had reached dangerously high levels after heavy rain fell on the Southern Africa region from late December to mid-January.
Monitor Met Éireann forecasts as conditions can change quickly. Monitor local authority websites and social media channels for notices on road closures, flooding updates and community alerts. Allow for disruption when travelling and plan extra travel time. Flooding may impact public transport and the public is encouraged to check with operators in advance of travelling. Stay vigilant while driving, reduce speed, expect surface water, debris and poor visibility.
In Emilio Pena Delgado's home, several photos hang on the wall. One shows him standing in front of a statue with his wife and oldest son in the centre of San Jose and smiling. In another, his two sons sit in front of caricatures from the film Cars. For him, the photos capture moments of joy that feel distant when he returns home to La Carpio, a neighbourhood on the outskirts of Costa Rica's capital.
Mr Browne, under whose departmental remit Met Éireann falls, said that communication and forewarning are essential components in preventing the types of flood damage currently being experienced by households and businesses in eastern counties as a result of Storm Chandra which continues to affect communities, particularly in Wexford, Wicklow and Dublin. The minister said there is a distinct deficiency in information-sharing on adverse weather events coming down the tracks that could severely hit communities.
"Ninety-five percent of the people in Berkeley disregard the signs, which we have placed to regulate traffic," Fisher continued. "There is no excuse for this when it is considered that the ordinance is the work of the people themselves. From July (1925) to January (1926), there were 522 accidents in this city. In these five persons were killed and 178 injured".
The death toll from Saturday's landslide in a residential area of West Java province has risen to 10. Indonesian rescuers have resumed searching for some 80 people still missing in a deadly landslide, after the mission coordinator said operations had to be suspended overnight due to harsh weather. The death toll from Saturday's landslide in a residential area of West Java province rose to 10 on Sunday, according to state-run media, announcing three more deaths.
