Asia's largest tulip garden is in full bloom with rows of tulips of all hues adding fairy tale-like splendour to the cascading slopes of the Zabarwan foothills. Mukhtar Ahmad reports
Officials say the deluge destroyed 100 houses and damaged 300 others after debris spread across a wide swath of Montecito - a wealthy enclave of about 9,000 people northwest of Los Angeles that is home to a number of high profile celebrities.
The most commonly asked questions relate to symptoms and prevention -- 'Will summer kill the coronavirus?', 'Should outside food and non-veg food be avoided?', 'Does smoking affect chances of recovery?', 'Are face masks useful?', 'Are hand sanitisers better than soap?', 'Are elders in my family more susceptible?'
Vidarbha is being evacuated, while Mumbai is also flooded.
At least 50 major landslides occurred in just four road stretches in calamity-torn Uttarakhand, where hundreds of pilgrims are feared to have perished in flash floods, an official said.
The pandemic is taking a deep, emotional, scarring toll. Will we survive, asks Shruti Vyas. If we do, will we be the same?
Efforts are on to rescue the other eight trapped in the tunnel for two days now.
The huge Veeranam lake in Cuddalore District surplussed, inundating many areas in the district. Temple town of Chidambaram in the district is also cut off due to floods.
Global warming can cause extreme floods and droughts and can mean snowfall is replaced by rain, with higher evaporation rates.
Thousands of defence personnel are working overtime to rescue lakhs of people still stranded in the floods in Jammu and Kashmir.
The toll in rain-related incidents since November one has risen to 249
One person was electrocuted in Samraspura village while a woman drowned in turbulent waters of Narmada in Shinor village, police said.
Showers continued to lash parts of Tamil Nadu, including the state capital, as death toll in the rain-related incidents mounted to 176 on Wednesday.
'For lakhs of people in the flood-afflicted state, battling against the elements is taking a huge toll. This is the time of the year that apples ripen, rice starts being harvested and preparations start in full swing to put aside some of the food stocks for the long winter months ahead. At this moment, though, people there believe if they can succeed in coming out of this calamity in one piece they will have won the war,' says Rashme Sehgal.
Authorities in Chamoli district said the toll may climb as about 50 persons from different villages in the area are missing and rescue operations are on.
'For around five hours the storm, reportedly the strongest one ever recorded in the Bay of Bengal, that mother of many a deathly vortex, shook Kolkata like a toddler playing with a rattling toy,' observes Debashish Chatterjee.
The India Meteorological Department said rainfall would be accompanied by gale wind speed reaching 140 to 150 kmph and gusting to 165 kmph along and off Odisha and north Andhra Pradesh coasts.
Mujhe bahar nikalo (Pull me out) had been her repeated plea, he said.
About 2.14 million people were displaced in India last year due to natural disasters, according to a United Nations-backed report which said the country was third after the Philippines and China to record the highest levels of displacement in 2013.
Flooding this monsoon underscores the need to buy home insurance, says Tarun Mathur.
Heavy rains triggered by a deep depression in the weather system claimed as many 38 lives in Gujarat on Wednesday.
'It is perplexing to see the leader of the First World with a first rate medical infrastructure come up short on its foresight to handle the pandemic,' notes Group Captain Murli Menon (retd).
The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Centre and Uttarakhand government to step up rescue operations to evacuate people caught in flash floods in the state.
The official toll has now crossed the 1000 mark
The issue was raised in both Houses of Parliament with main opposition Congress too seeking clarification.
The government has decided to deploy more helicopters in Uttarakhand to rescue over 60,000 people still trapped in the rain-ravaged hill state and expedite relief operations.
West Bengal and Tamil Nadu together account for almost 30 per cent of all deaths and 75 per cent of houses destroyed in the country due to natural calamities.
In northern Thailand, hundreds of international rescue workers have been spending their last waking hours for the past 11 days trying to get a group of 12 boys, ages 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old soccer coach who have been trapped in a cave after flooding caused by relentless monsoon rains. On July 2, rescue teams discovered all of the boys and their coach alive and in relatively good health, sheltering deep inside the cave complex. Outside, family and friends, who had gathered, welcomed the news. While the boys have been found, extracting them from the cave still remains a difficult task -- much of the return trip is underwater and even though pumps are lowering the water level, the rainfall is not letting up. Here's what's happening and what officials are planning to get them out.
In a minor relief for residents of flood-hit Chennai, the rains have stayed away for the last few hours.
Even as the Uttarakhand floods are being referred to as man-made disasters, experts say such disasters are waiting to happen at places like Ooty and Munnar.
States across America are beginning the process of digging their way out of record-breaking snowfall on Monday after Winter Storm Jonas battered the nation's East Coast, wreaking havoc on millions and turning major cities into ghost towns.
The recent tragedy confirms the view of humanitarian aid as a political weapon
Here is a list of previous cyclones that have struck the country.
More than 86,000 people worldwide have been infected with the novel coronavirus and the global death toll is nearing 3,000. To try to prevent the spread of the virus, local governments have been closing tourist attractions that normally draw large crowds. World-famous destinations such as the Great Wall of China and the Venetian canals resemble ghost towns. As new coronavirus cases are confirmed daily, more closures and cancellations are expected. For the most up-to-date information on the status of an attraction or event, check the institution's or event's main web page.
Hurricane Matthew, the fiercest Caribbean storm in nearly a decade, strengthened as it barreled toward the southeastern United States after killing at least 140 people, mostly in Haiti.
Over 1,800 dead in just over a week! The bristling summer continues to claim lives across India as temperatures soar between mid-to high-40 degrees. And there's no respite in sight for at least the next couple of days.
A team of six trekkers from New Delhi and Shimla is missing in Kinnaur district, officials said. A rescue operation will be launched.
'Electronic media splash sensational headlines of the bulb prices about to cross the three-figure mark and focus on customers looking longingly at baskets full of onions, bemoaning their misery without this essential staple of their diet,' notes Shreekant Sambrani.
