Puerto Rican emergency management director fired after unused supplies found
Puerto Rico Gov. Wanda Vazquez fired the director of the island's emergency management agency Saturday after the discovery of a warehouse filled with water, cots and other supplies as the U.S. territory struggles to recover from a strong earthquake. Vazquez said the inaction of Carlos ...
Australian tourism industry gets government aid as bush fires recede
The Australian government said on Sunday it will channel 76 million Australian dollars ($52 million) to the tourism industry as recent heavy rains have dampened many of the monthslong bush fires, allowing the country to look to recovery. The number of fires burning across Australia's ...
Disaster response poses an ongoing challenge in this calamity-prone country.
Groups across Japan inspired by school staff disaster team set up after Kobe quake
Japanese teachers are taking lessons learned from the 1995 earthquake that devastated the city of Kobe 25 years ago next Friday and using them as part of an effort form disaster relief teams across the nation. The first was launched in 2000 in Hyogo Prefecture, ...
Decade after killer quake, Haiti says global aid system needs overhaul
The international aid system is deeply flawed and needs an overhaul, Haitian President Jovenel Moise said on Saturday, almost 10 years since the impoverished Caribbean island nation was struck by one of the deadliest earthquakes in history. Haitians were on Sunday to commemorate the thousands ...
Australian leader Scott Morrison proposes high-level inquiry into response to bush fires
After weeks of criticism over the handling of the bush fires scorching Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Sunday, when the fires claimed another firefighter's life, that he will propose a national review into the response to the disaster. With the Australian bush burning for ...
5.9 aftershock in Puerto Rico causes millions of dollars in new damage
A magnitude 5.9 quake shook Puerto Rico on Saturday, causing millions of dollars of damage along the island's southern coast, where previous recent quakes have toppled homes and schools. The U.S. Geological Survey said the 8:54 a.m. quake hit 8 miles (13 kilometers) southeast of ...
Two strong aftershocks collapsed homes and cracked walls in Puerto Rico on Friday as the Caribbean island tried to recover from its worst earthquake in more than a century. The first quake of magnitude 5.2 struck at 6:26 p.m., followed by another of magnitude 4.8 ...
Most local governments in Japan have or plan multilingual disaster info services
A large majority of major Japanese cities recognize the need to provide multilingual information and aid to the growing number of foreign residents and tourists should a natural disaster occur, a Kyodo News survey found Thursday. The survey, conducted late last year, found that 52 ...
A decade of climate science confirmed our suspicions
Death toll from Jakarta landslides and flash floods reaches 60
Landslides and floods triggered by torrential downpours have left at least 60 people dead in and around Indonesia's capital, and rescuers struggled to search for people apparently buried under tons of mud, officials said Saturday. Monsoon rains and rising rivers submerged a dozen districts in ...
Novak Djokovic says wildfires could cause problems for Australian Open
Novak Djokovic has voiced concerns about the impact of the devastating wildfires in Australia on tennis' season-opening major, saying organizers may have to consider delaying the tournament if conditions around Melbourne deteriorate. Djokovic has won a record seven Australian Open men's championships at Melbourne Park ...
