Hundreds flee homes after Guatemala’s Fuego volcano erupts

-
By Johan ORDÓÑEZ with Henry MORALES in Guatemala City | Posted by TOE Hundreds of people living on the slopes of Guatemala’s Fuego volcano evacuated their homes Tuesday after a huge eruption spewed lava and plumes of ash. Emergency services issued a red alert, the most severe warning, after Central America’s most active volcano erupted Monday morning, with conditions intensifying by nightfall. Rivers of lava streamed down the 3,763-meter (12,346-foot) volcano located less than 100 kilometers from Guatemala City, while ash rose some six kilometers into the red sky. “Since early morning it was active. That night, the alarm was raised that we needed to evacuate,” local resident Alejandro Garcia, 68, told AFP. Villagers left of their own accord out of fear, Garcia said, describing terrifying scenes of lava oozing down the mountainside. Firefighters said they transported at least 500 residents of the El Porvenir and Las Lajitas villages to the...
Post a Comment

More sun needed in Ivory Coast cocoa regions to boost main crop, farmers say

-

By Reuters | Posted by TOE

More sunny weather is needed across most of Ivory Coast’s cocoa-growing regions to support the September-to-February main crop, farmers ‌said on Monday, after below-average rainfall and a cooling spell last week.

• ‌The world’s top cocoa producer is currently in its rainy season, which typically runs from April to ​mid-November.

• Several farmers across the country said the soil moisture content was still high enough to support tree development for several weeks.

• Farmers said prospects at the moment were promising, but warned that without proper application of fertilisers and pesticides in plantations ‌this month, fruits would die ⁠and reduce the expectation of a good crop.

• “It can get very cold at times. Now is the time to treat the crops, ⁠otherwise there will be significant losses,” said Kouassi Kouame, who farms near the western region of Soubre, where 0.6 mm of rain fell last week, 11.6 mm below ​the five-year ​average.

• Farmers in the southern regions of ​Agboville and Divo and in the ‌eastern region of Abengourou, where rains were below average, said plenty of fruits were still proliferating on the trees.

• If the weather remained favorable until September, harvesting for the main crop would start to be abundant from mid-October until December at least, they said.

• In the west-central region of Daloa, and in the central ‌regions of Bongouanou and Yamoussoukro, also with below-average ​rains, farmers said plantations have yielded well, but ​more rains in September could jeopardize ​the crop’s development, with incidence of disease.

• “Many fruits are growing ‌in size, promising a bountiful harvest. However, ​if there is heavy ​rain in September, there will be a risk of disease in the plantations,” said Albert N’Zue, who farms near Daloa, where 2.4 mm fell ​last week, 17 mm below ‌the five-year average.

• Weekly temperatures across Ivory Coast ranged between 24.4 and ​27.4 degrees Celsius (75.9 and 81.3 degrees Fahrenheit).



from The Times Of Earth https://ift.tt/fAQTDI2

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Myanmar earthquake death toll rises as fresh tremors further complicate rescue efforts

-
Image
A5.1-magnitude earthquake struck near Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-largest city, on Sunday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The tremor was part of a series of aftershocks following Friday’s devastating 7.7-magnitude earthquake, which resulted in the collapse of numerous buildings and significant infrastructure damage. The death toll has risen to over 1,600, with more than 3,400 individuals reported missing; these numbers are expected to increase as rescue operations continue. Foreign rescue teams and supplies arrived in Myanmar on Sunday to help the impoverished country cope with an earthquake that killed over 1,600 and left many near the epicentre scrambling for help without proper equipment. The 7.7-magnitude quake, one of Myanmar’s strongest in a century, jolted the Southeast Asian nation on Friday, leaving 1,644 people dead, 3,408 injured and 139 missing, the military government said. India, China and Thailand are among Myanmar’s neighbours that have sent relief ...
Read more

Israel says situation on Lebanon border ‘not sustainable’

-
By James Mackenzie Reuters  Israeli officials and media reacted with satisfaction on Monday after a  long-expected missile attack  by the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement appeared to have been largely thwarted by pre-emptive Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon. Both Hezbollah and Israel seemed content to let Sunday’s attack, in retaliation for the  killing of a senior Hezbollah commander  in Beirut last month, count as settled for the moment. Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer said Hezbollah had suffered a “crushing blow” from the Israeli strikes but that a longer lasting solution was still needed. “The current situation is not sustainable,” he told a briefing, referring to the tens of thousands evacuated from their homes in northern Israel, a situation mirrored on the other side of the border in southern Lebanon. “Israel will do its duty and return its population to our sovereign territory.” Hopes that children might return for the start of the ...
Read more