flooding news stories on Newser

Afghan Flash Floods Kill 19

Sun, 20 May 2012 05:25:48 CDT

Flood waters ravaged a provincial capital in northern Afghanistan, killing at least 19 people and destroying hundreds of homes, officials said earlier today. About 60 other people were missing and rescuers were looking for them across Sar-e-Pul, the capital of a province with the same name, said the national disaster...

17 Dead, Dozens Missing in Nepal Flood

Rob Quinn — Mon, 07 May 2012 01:39:20 CDT

A surge of water caused by a mountain river bursting its banks has killed at least 17 people and left 43 others missing in Nepal's central Annapurna region. The area is popular with foreign tourists and three Ukrainians are among the missing, reports the BBC . The flash flood, the worst...

Attention, Silicon Valley: You Might Return to Sea

John Johnson — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 16:44:15 CDT

It might just be the only thing that could take down Facebook and Google in one fell swoop: some good old-fashioned biblical flooding. As the AP explains, a chunk of Silicon Valley sits on land that used to be part of San Francisco Bay. Which is fine except for two...

Sea Level Rise Doubles Risk of Catastrophic US Flood

Kevin Spak — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 08:04:23 CDT

Coastal states are now twice as likely to experience a so-called once-in-a-century flood by 2030, thanks to a global warming-fueled rise in sea levels, according to a trio of reports released today. Census data shows 5 million people are in the danger zone, particularly in cities, where many people live...

Why North Korea Has So Many Famines

Mark Russell — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 10:48:05 CST

With North Korea agreeing to suspend its nuclear program in exchange for food aid (yet again), the Explainer blog at Slate takes on the question of why the North keeps suffering from famines and food shortages. In short, "poor growing conditions, fertilizer shortages, and general mismanagement." In the 1950s, to...

Floods, Ice Hit Northwest After Snowstorm

Matt Cantor — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 09:25:05 CST

Days after a new "Snowmaggedon" slammed the Pacific Northwest, an ice storm and floods have left two dead in the region. Seattle's snow began Tuesday night; the city measured a daily snowfall of 6.8 inches early yesterday, blowing away the previous record of 2.9 inches in 1954. Washington's...

Storm Wallops Houston Area

Neal Colgrass — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 17:32:02 CST

A deluge of heavy rain, wind, tornadoes, and nickel-sized hail is giving Houston-area residents a major headache today, the Houston Chronicle reports. A fast-moving storm front pummeled the city with winds reaching 60mph and up to 4.5 inches of rain, shutting part of Highway 288 and flooding a dozen...

Philippines Flood Toll Hits 1,200

Mon, 26 Dec 2011 12:38:00 CST

Fishermen joined Philippine navy sailors, police, and firefighters in an ever wider search for bodies from entire villages swept away in one of the country's worst flash floods. More bodies have washed ashore, pushing the death toll to more than 1,200, an official said today. While more than 60,...

400+ Dead in Philippines Flood

Sat, 17 Dec 2011 10:11:21 CST

Pounding rain from a tropical storm swelled rivers and sent walls of water crushing into two southern Philippine cities in the thick of night, killing at least 436 people, many caught in their beds, officials said today. The Philippine Red Cross says the latest toll was based on a body...