“Some 6,000 hectares of Biebrza National Park in northeastern Poland were ablaze on Wednesday, as more than 120 firefighters rushed to extinguish the flames. Biebrza is home to 59,000 hectares of wetlands, wildlife such as moose, beavers, and unique species of birds, and hiking trails.
“”It is impossible to calculate the loss. This is a tragedy, it cannot be described. We may have to fight this fire for months,” park employee Janina Agnieszka Zach, told Polish broadcaster TVN.”
https://www.dw.com/en/wildfire-ravages-polands-largest-national-park-on-earth-day/a-53212297
“The Polish Institute of Meteorology and Water Management (IMGW) has warned on Wednesday that Poland could face a severe drought this season.
“Lack of rain is already causing rivers to remain well below their water levels since March 12, and the coming drought could be the worst in a century, said the institute.”
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2020-04/23/c_139000104.htm
“Haunting drone footage has revealed the path of destruction blazed by the forest fires in Chernobyl’s exclusion zone.
“Firefighters fought back the flames for almost two weeks, hyper-aware that the inferno was creeping towards the site of the exploded nuclear plant.”
“Germany’s agriculture minister said on Wednesday she is concerned about the impact of continued dry weather on crops and that a third drought year could hit farms “incredibly hard”.
“Germany suffered droughts in 2018 and 2019…”
“A large wildfire on the German-Dutch border has forced the evacuation of a village on the Dutch side which is home to around 4,000 people, local authorities said Wednesday.
“Emergency services evacuated Herkenbosch overnight, with the municipality saying that thick smog caused by a high concentration of carbon monoxide had prompted the operation.”
https://www.dailysabah.com/world/europe/4000-people-evacuated-from-dutch-village-due-to-wildfire
Nod to loss of global dimming:
“Reductions in air pollution have also contributed to recent warming in Europe, particularly in summer, he said. Burning fossil fuels such as coal, which is being phased out in several European countries, emits particles that prevent some sunlight from reaching the Earth’s surface.”
http://archive.vn/R4L06#selection-763.0-763.281
Morocco’s harvest down 42% due to drought:
“The [drought-hit] San communities in Tsholotsho and Plumtree [Zimbabwe] have raised complaints of hunger and neglect following the recent extension of the country’s lockdown against the spread of COVID-19…
“…besides the marginalised rural communities, people in urban areas that normally survive on informal trading had also become economically vulnerable due to the lockdown.”
https://www.newzimbabwe.com/drought-hit-san-communities-starve-during-lockdown/
“32,000 people have been displaced in the last 48 hours following heavy rains that caused flooding in Kisumu County [Kenya]…
“…the nation at large is facing probably the most trying time of our independence history. Never before have we had to deal with multiple disasters at the same time…”
“Scientists have been tracking the smoke [from Australian bushfires] since it formed in December, and it has since travelled around the globe several times…
“Their measurements have revealed unprecedented ozone loss in the smoke cloud… Last week, the cloud was observed over South Africa…”
“With hundreds of environmental enforcement agents sidelined by the pandemic, deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon has increased to its fastest pace in years…
“…and the season when clearing typically accelerates hasn’t even begun yet.”
“Santiago [Chile] registered seven heat waves – including one of five days – generating this summer to be the warmest in terms of maximum temperature since 1950…
“This caused this summer to be ranked as the warmest in terms of maximum temperature (since 1950), adds the DMC.”
“For ten days, the population of a good part of the country has suffered the consequences of a temperature rise due to a heat wave that in Oaxaca [Mexico] triggered the [heat] record at the Río Manso weather station, located in San Juan Lalana: 47 degrees Celsius [116.6f].”
“From South Texas to South Florida, all along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, temperatures in the spring frequently have leaped ahead to summer-like levels.
“South Florida, in particular, has turned downright hot, obliterating long-standing records… Meteorologists say the steamy weather is linked to abnormally warm temperatures in the adjacent waters of the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean…”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2020/04/22/record-april-heat-miami-florida-gulf-coast/
“…as the world warms, there are going to be a lot more slow-moving tropical cyclones like Harvey, according to high-resolution climate models.
“A slow-moving tropical cyclone dumps far more rain in one place than a fast-moving storm of a similar size and strength. The winds can also do more damage, as they batter structures for longer.”
“An outbreak of tornadoes in Oklahoma and Texas have resulted in the death of two and the destruction of hundreds of homes between the two states.
“Two people were killed Wednesday when a tornado tore through Marshall County in southern Oklahoma.”
“The spectacular eruptions of the Kīlauea volcano in Hawaii in 2018 were triggered by extreme rainfall in the preceding months, research suggests.
“Scientists say the finding raises the possibility that climate breakdown, which is causing more extreme weather, could lead to an increase in eruptions around the world.”
“The coronavirus pandemic is putting untold pressure on the supply chains that produce and transport the world’s food. Yet there’s one vital factor even harder to control than panic buying — the weather.
“A period of extreme weather that devastates harvests could force countries to deploy more protectionist food policies, creating a ripple effect through global trade.
“Concerns over access to wheat and other staples have already led nations including Kazakhstan and Russia to introduce export restrictions, sparking fears of a global food crisis…
“There is cause for concern. Drier weather has affected key growing regions in the Black Sea, Argentina and across Europe.”
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/weather-still-wild-card-global-230000325.html
“Unlike COVID-19 cases, temperature trends aren’t flattening yet.
“In fact, temperatures have risen in 98 percent of cities in the U.S. while the contiguous U.S. has warmed 2.4 degrees Fahrenheit in the 50 years since the first Earth Day. The annual average temperature in the Tampa Bay area has warmed 2.9 degrees since the first Earth Day.”
http://archive.vn/LXhKz#selection-1123.0-1131.103
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