Mt. Rokatenda erupts in Eastern Indonesia

               A volcanic eruption in Eastern Indonesia killed about six people in Eastern Indonesia. The eruption was reported by Indonesia's National Disaster Mitigation Agency, as people were banned from the surrounding area due to concerns of increasing volcanic activity. The Mt. Rokatenda volcano erupted at 4:27 am Local Time, and spewed hot ash over 2000 m. above the crater.
               The volcano, located on the island of 'Palue', a popular tourist spot in the East Nusa Tenggara province erupted, and killed six people at the Punge beach beside. The eruption which lasted about four hours, caused streaks of hot lava flow, which caused the deaths.
               The Indonesian archipelago, which nestled in the Ring of Fire, is full of active volcanoes, the most commonly known being Mt. Merapi in the Java islands, which killed around 350 people in one of the most horrifying series of eruptions.

Mount Rokatenda



Thailand fights massive Oil Spill

               A massive oil spill from the leakage of a pipeline in the Gulf of Thailand has hit tourism in Thailand. The worst hit area of Ao Prao (Coconut Bay) beach in Koh Samet is surrounded by oodles of slick from the oil spill which has formed tar balls near the beaches. The pipeline belonging to oil giant PTT Global Chemical leaked about roughly 50,000 litres of crude oil off the coast of the eastern province Rayong. Thai soldiers wearing bio-hazard suits are trying to remove the oily sludge that has blackened the beaches. The pipeline operator PTT Global Chemical said that the leak had been plugged. Meanwhile, Thai naval vessels also joined the efforts to prevent the spill from reaching mainland, and affecting fisheries.
               The affected areas are about 230 km. from the Thai capital, Bangkok and include key holiday resorts and islands which is because there will be a widespread impact on tourism. Oil spills largely affect the marine ecology as well as the aquatic flora and fauna. PTT Global Chemical is the same pipeline operator whose subsidiary was involved in an enormous oil spill off north-western Australia which was dubbed as the worst offshore drilling accident in Australia.





When Nature Takes Revenge......

     "Nature is generous, but, it can take revenge when exploited"

                We witnessed nature's fury less than a month ago, here in Uttarakhand. The floods that devastated the mountainous state has shown us the pitiful condition of disaster management. Close to 75,000 people were greatly affected by these floods, with over 3000 villages being cut off by terrestrial routes, beyond accessibility. The ethnic spot of Devprayag where the mighty rivers Alakananda and Bhagirathi meet to form the river which has been considered sacred since aeons, the Ganges.Among the massively hit areas were major towns like Rishikesh and Haridwar, as well as the religious centres of Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath which together form the "Char Dham", a paramount pilgrimage, sought by many. The cloudburst at Kedar Dome, sent heavy streams of meltwater gushing down towards Kedarnath. The sanctum sanctorum remained intact, but the Kedarnath temple's courtyard was completely washed, as also the 'samadhi' of the great philosopher Adi Shankaracharya.
               The condition was more or less adverse in the Chamoli district, in which thousands of Sikh pilgrims were stuck for days together at the famous Hemkund Sahib gurudwara. Joshimath, a gateway to Himalayan expeditions and trekking trails to Badrinath, was devastated by the rushing waters resultant of the cloudbursts. The rivers overflowed due to the heavy downpour amounting to a 100+% surplus rain in North India. The conditions along areas of the Yamuna, as well as in the district like Mandi of Himachal Pradesh were much worsened, too. The floods were growing to be the worst natural disaster ever faced in the history of the recently formed state of Uttarakhand. Soon, the Armed Forces began to come into the act, rescuing tens of thousands of stranded pilgrims and locals. IAF Mi-17 copters and Mi-26 copters flew over the affected areas, scanning for the injured and dead victims. C-130 Hercules aircrafts were deployed to drop packages of food packets and other relief material onto the inaccessible areas. UAVs were sent for reconnaissance. The rescue efforts in full flow, as the 10,000+ soldiers deployed collectively from the BSF and ITBP raced against time to rescue. The relief work was in progress, as a possibilities of another rainstorm loomed. Amidst this hullabaloo, was the crash of three IAF copters near Gauri Kund which killed all on board. Fresh helipads were built by the army at certain spots to aid the relief. The nation heaved a sigh of relief, as only a few thousands remained in the snow-clad corners of the Himalayas. Trekking teams from abroad, where brought back safely. Evacuations got under way..
                These floods totally ravaged Uttarakhand, as huge tracts of land stood submerged, and heavy soil erosion was an immediate effect. This destruction has acted as an eye-opener for the disaster management authority which reportedly neglected warnings from the meteorological department. Fellow states have donated crores of Rupees to tackle the destruction. The iconic "Char Dham" yatra has been suspended for two years. Uttarakhand has survived, but only just. Now is the time for rehabilitation of the distressed, and reviving of the local life. Let's pray for Uttarakhand! Let's become one, and face this!