BBC: Devastating Rain

http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/n...shtml?newX=200

Looking around the world today, rain features rather heavily with, in some
cases, devastating results.

Firstly, in Piedras Negras, northern Mexico, an area of low pressure has
brought heavy downpours for several days. The rain began on Sunday night
which caused the Escondidio River to overflow. This in turn triggered flash
flooding, killing 33 people and damaging more than 600 homes: 150 of which
were completely destroyed. The rain finally cleared on Wednesday, allowing
the salvage operation to begin.

Flooding has also continued in northern Namibia. 20,000 people have been
evacuated from Windhoek, as the rain-swollen Zambezi River burst its banks,
killing 6 people. The floods are reported to be the worst since 1958, with
the water level in the Zambezi rising to nearly 7 metres (22 feet) on
Tuesday.

Much of Namibia is arid or desert, but floods are a frequent problem.
Seasonal rains, which fall across Caprivi, Angola and Zambia, pour into the
upper reaches of the Zambezi before it threads its way across the continent
towards the Indian Ocean.

The Asian sub-continent has also seen some hefty downpours. Most recently,
Gilgit in Pakistan was lashed by heavy rain, but here, one positive effect
has been seen. Both Pakistan and northeastern India have been suffering from
a heatwave, as the pre-monsoon heat has built up in previous weeks. The rain
in Gilgit has had a beneficial effect on the mercury at least, and also
potentially on local crops.

Rain is likely to affect Islamabad in the next 24 hours. Not heavy, but
nonetheless there could be enough convection to produce thunderstorms too.
But, without significant downpours, the squally winds produced by the storms
will more likely lead to dust storms instead. After this weather system
moves through, the temperatures here too should subside, breaking the
prevailing heatwave conditions.


BBC Weather

--
Viaene Björn
http://users.telenet.be/weathersite
__________________________________________

In article ,
"Bjorn Viaene" wrote:
BBC: Devastating Rain

http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/n...shtml?newX=200

Looking around the world today, rain features rather heavily with, in some
cases, devastating results.

[snip]

Got a way to go in these parts if it's to beat the 1911 cyclone
though.


Cheers, Phred.

--
LID