World South Africa floods, mudslides kill 33, children missing
People abandon their homes at an informal settlement of BottleBrush, south of Durban, after torrential rains and flash floods destroyed their homes People abandon their homes at an informal settlement of BottleBrush, south of Durban, after torrential rains and flash floods destroyed their homes (AFP Photo/RAJESH JANTILAL)Durban (South Africa) (AFP) – The death toll from floods and mudslides that crushed homes in the South African port of Durban on Tuesday has risen to 33, with reports of children missing and scores of people displaced, authorities said.”Heavy rains have since claimed 33 lives so far,” Nomusa Dube-Ncube, a KwaZulu-Natal provincial minister said in a statement.Among those killed were a six-month-old baby and a child aged around 10.She added that 10 children are missing in Durban and 42 people have been injured.An AFP photographer saw two of the nine bodies — including that of a small child — being pulled out of a house belonging to a school caretaker in Westcliff, a working class suburb on the outskirts of Durban.The victims were buried under a wall that had collapsed on them while they were sleeping.At least 145 people have been displaced, the government said.A Hindu temple in the city was entirely flooded with water levels of up to 10 metres (33 feet), the photographer reported.Heavy rains have lashed South Africa in recent days, with the southern and eastern parts of the country badly hit since the start of Easter weekend.”Last night the weather conditions worsened significantly,” Dube-Ncube said.Government said dozens of incidents of collapsed walls and flooded homes were reported throughout the night, as roads were also flooded.Those killed were either crushed to death by mudslides or drowned in flood waters, Rescue Care spokesman Garrith Jamieson told AFP.Search and rescue operations have combed the debris for those who might be trapped underneath.In addition to collapsed buildings and flooded roads, sewer lines were blocked and electricity pylons had toppled over.South African military personnel have been dispatched to help rescue and evacuation efforts.Government, political and religious groups were Tuesday handing out food parcels to the affected people.The South African Weather Services warned that more heavy rain and gale force winds were expected until Wednesday, which could threaten low-lying bridges and roads.
Even light rain increases your risk of a deadly car crash
FILE – In this Monday, Feb. 6, 2017 file photo, pedestrians cross a rainy street in downtown Los Angeles. According to a study released in April 2019 in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, even light rain significantly increases the risk of a fatal car crash. (AP Photo/Nick Ut)WASHINGTON (AP) — Even light rain significantly increases your risk of a fatal car crash, a new study finds.The wetter the roads, the deadlier they become, with rain, snow and ice increasing the risk of deadly car crashes by 34%, according to a study this week in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society .Light rain — „We’re talking a drizzle, just at the point where you might consider taking an umbrella out,” said study lead author Scott Stevens — increased the fatal crash risk by 27%.Stevens, a data analyst and meteorologist at the North Carolina Institute for Climate Studies, and colleagues looked at 125,012 fatal car crashes in the Lower 48 states from 2006 to 2011, factoring in how many cars are on the road, to calculate the risk of a fatal accident.While other studies have used police reports and the nearest weather station to calculate rain and snow conditions, Stevens said his is the first study to use more precise weather radar data. It was able to distinguish how hard the rain or snow was falling to come up with results showing an increase in fatal crashes even in rain of less than one-tenth of an inch per hour.”People slow down when it starts to rain heavily, but I think they under-appreciate the risk of light rain,” Stevens said Tuesday.With moderate rain the risk of fatal car crashes is 75% more than in nice weather, Stevens said, and with heavy rain it’s nearly two-and-a-half times more risky.The Northern Rockies and Upper Midwest had the highest risk of fatal crashes with rainy and snowy weather, while the risks were lowest in the Northeast and Southeast. Stevens thinks that’s because the east is more urban and people aren’t driving fast enough for fatal accidents.Charles Farmer, vice president of research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, who wasn’t part of the study, said it makes sense that your risk goes up in bad weather._Follow Seth Borenstein on Twitter: @borenbears .
_The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
