DeSantis declares state of emergency for South #Florida as torrential rain brings heavy #flooding
"#FlashFlood warnings were issued for parts of Miami-Dade and Broward counties, where rainfall rates of several inches an hour submerged streets and snarled traffic.
The storms are part of a stalled system that's pummeled Florida, dumping a month's worth of rain in just 24 hours, with more rain forecast this week."
"When we hear about the threat of #flooding and #SeaLevelRise caused by #ClimateChange, that may appear like a distant future. It’s not — and this week’s torrential rainfall proves South #Florida is not fully ready for increased water levels despite local governments and the state having spent millions of dollars to keep streets dry."
"The southern states of #Bavaria and #BadenWürttemberg have been inundated, causing #DamBursts and prompting dramatic rescues. States of emergency have been declared in several areas with more heavy rain expected."
"A partnership between #NASA and the French space agency, the satellite is poised to help improve forecasts of where and when #flooding will occur in Earth’s rivers, lakes, and reservoirs."
"In most cases, local officials’ initial instinct has been to protect property and persist without changing where people live. However, that might only buy time for some areas before people will have little option but to move.
When they examine their vulnerabilities, many of these communities have started to recognize the interconnectedness of zoning, storm drains and parks that can absorb runoff, for example."
"In the Fowl River’s case, unusually high tides slowed floodwaters as they went downstream to drain. This increased the water’s depth and flooded a wide expanse — even several miles upstream. The result was deluged roads, washed out cars and damaged houses from a flood that was larger, deeper and longer-lasting due to #RisingSeas."
No hurricane, but
"For weeks, drenching rains in #Texas and parts of #Louisiana have filled reservoirs and saturated the ground.
Heavy storms slammed the #Houston area again Friday, widening already dangerous #flooding in Texas and leading to numerous high-water rescues, including some from the rooftops of flooded homes. Officials redoubled urgent instructions for residents in low-lying areas to evacuate, warning the worst was still to come."
"Most of the weekend rain will fall over western and central #Texas, but a chance of heavier rain returns for the greater Houston area on Sunday. The heaviest downpours in central Texas will occur upstream of the #flooding in #Houston – which is located in Harris, potentially exacerbating flooding in a region where 12 river gauges have reached major flood stage."
"Three weeks after one of #Brazil’s worst-ever floods hit its southernmost state, killing 155 people and forcing 540,000 from their homes, experts have warned that water levels will take at least another two weeks to drop.
“These rains were typical of the climate crisis: very intense, with a large volume of water concentrated in a short period”, said Anderson Ruhoff"
"Almost one in four #stadiums in the top four divisions of English football will experience total or partial #flooding within the next quarter of a century.
The 2023-24 #football season in the #UK has already been hit by 10 named storms including Babet.
It's not just rising sea levels that pose a problem: heatwaves, drought, fires and air pollution are all set to disrupt a multitude of sports in the coming decades."
Russia, Kazakhstan battle record floods as river levels rise further
> The Russian city of Orenburg battled rising water levels on Thursday after major rivers across #Russia and #Kazakhstan burst their banks in the worst #flooding seen in the areas in nearly a century.
The gradual sinking of coastal land areas has been a “silent problem” that figures to exacerbate flooding risks and livelihoods in locales experiencing sea-level rise, such as Houston-area communities along the Gulf Coast, according to a new study.
"vegetation is rebounding and putting down densely matted root systems that can stand firm against #flooding and surging waves. These features, essential for making the #estuary resilient, are on the mend in large part due to the #SeaOtters’ insatiable appetite for herbivorous marsh #crabs"
Israel has destroyed some Hamas tunnels in Gaza by flooding them, the military has said.
Late last year, plans from the Israeli military to flood some of Hamas’s network of tunnels with seawater from the Mediterranean leaked to the press. Experts warned that this could permanently damage the water supply in Gaza as well as the viability of agricultural land.
UK Conservative lawmaker quits, criticizes government's climate plans
"The [Sunak] government aims to pass a new bill guaranteeing annual licencing rounds for #OilAndGas exploration in the North Sea.
#Skidmore said that as the energy minister who signed Britain's net zero pledge into law in 2019, he could not vote for a bill that promotes the production of new oil and gas."
UK voters: it appears that your Tory government stands back while your homes and mortgages go underwater.
"In January, a report from the Public Accounts Committee said that the #UK government does not know if it is making the country more resilient to #flooding. This followed on from a National Audit Office report, published in December, that said the government has no effective strategy to make the country more resilient."