 Tropical Storm Kate forms near the Bahamas Miami (AFP) Nov 9, 2015 - Tropical Storm Kate formed near the Bahamas Monday, and gathered strength as it headed toward the central and the northwestern parts of the island chain, US weather forecasters said. The Miami-based National Hurricane Center said the storm's winds were clocked at 40 miles (65 kilometers) per hour by a US air force hurricane hunter plane. At 10:00 am (1500 GMT), the storm was northeast of Cat Island in the Bahamas, moving in a northwesterly direction at a speed of 15 miles per hour, the center said. Kate is the 11th named storm of this year's Atlantic hurricane season. "On the forecast track, the center of Kate is forecast to pass near or over portions of the central Bahamas during the next few hours and near or over portions of the northwestern Bahamas this afternoon and tonight," the NHC said. The Bahamas were punished in early October by Hurricane Joaquin, which reached Category 4 status on the five point Saffir-Simpson scale. Besides wreaking extensive damage in the islands, the hurricane resulted in the sinking of a cargo ship, El Faro, with all 33 crew members aboard. Joaquin was the third and most powerful hurricane of the current season, which lasts until the end of the month.
|
Cyclone Megh has killed six people on war-ravaged Yemen's Socotra island, the second rare tropical storm to hit the Arabian Peninsula country in a week, an official said on Monday.
The latest deaths since the cyclone made landfall on Sunday "include two women, while three other people have gone missing and dozens were injured," said the official who spoke to AFP by telephone from Socotra.
"Most of the victims died when their homes collapsed," he said, requesting anonymity.
The cyclone caused panic and prompted appeals for help for residents on the island, already badly battered by last week's cyclone Chapala.
"The wind, rain, and floods have receded during the past few hours but the cyclone has caused massive destruction to homes," said the official.
The Arabian Sea island is located 350 kilometres (210 miles) off the Yemeni mainland.
Fisheries Minister Fahd Kavieen, who is from Socotra himself, urged the United Nations and neighbouring Oman on Sunday to "urgently intervene with emergency teams to save residents" on the island "which is now facing a cyclone stronger than Chapala".
World Meteorological Organization (WMO) spokeswoman Clare Nullis said Friday tropical cyclones are extremely rare over the Arabian Peninsula, and two back-to-back was "an absolutely extraordinary event".
The UN's humanitarian agency OCHA said on Monday that up to 6,808 families were displaced by Chapala, which hit mainland Yemen on November 3, triggering heavy flash floods and mudslides.
It warned that Megh is expected to make landfall on mainland Yemen on Wednesday, with the southern provinces of Abyan and Bayda most at risk.
Chapala killed eight people in Yemen's southeastern Hadramawt province, where residents reported rain and strong winds on Monday.
The country has been riven by conflict since Iran-backed rebels seized control of the capital Sanaa in September last year and advanced into other areas.
A Saudi-led coalition launched air strikes against the rebels in March in support of a fightback by forces loyal to President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, who had earlier fled to Saudi Arabia.
| . |
|
|
Tweet |
del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
Google
