The sun got a little crown briefly: Part of The Sun Has Broken Off And Formed a Vortex… What The Heck Is Going on? (msn.com)
https://watchers.news/2023/02/08/th...g-after-worst-rains-in-170-years-new-zealand/ Thousands of buildings in Auckland unsafe for living after worst rains in 170 years, New Zealand Thousands of buildings in New Zealand’s Auckland area are currently unsafe for living after the region was hit by extreme rainfall and severe flooding at the end of January. The amount of rain that fell in a matter of days made January 2023 Auckland’s wettest month in at least the last 170 years. The flooding has put the public’s focus on nature-based alternatives to traditional stormwater systems. The presence of a low level jet, or strong wind in the lower atmosphere, combined with tropical moisture to create persistent heavy rain in the Auckland area on Friday, January 27, 2023, resulting in widespread severe flooding, destruction and 4 fatalities. Auckland officials described it as a devastating rain event, culminating in the declaration of a state of emergency.1 For many locations in Auckland, it was their wettest day on record — receiving approximately an entire summer’s worth of rain in one day. The weather station located at Auckland Airport recorded 245 mm (9.65 inches) of rain, surpassing the previous record of 161.8 mm (6.37 inches) by over 50%. On the same day, Auckland’s Albert Park was drenched with 280 mm (11 inches) of rain in under 24 hours and 211 mm (8.3 inches) in under 6 hours. Other weather stations around the region also reported remarkable rainfall, with many spots noting between 250 – 300 mm (9.84 – 11.81 inches) of rain within the day. Some stations even reported over 80 mm (3.15 inches) of rain in an hour. To put this into context, the highest classification for intense rain at New Zealand’s MetService is ‘torrential’, which is defined as 40 mm (1.57 inches) of rain or more in an hour. Heavy rains continued through the end of January and into February, breaking Auckland’s previous wettest month on record by far. The new monthly record now stands at 539 mm (21.2 inches). The weather records there date back to 1853. Honorary Associate Professor Anthony Fowler from the School of Environment at the University of Auckland said that nothing in the observational record has come close to what they’ve seen in the past few weeks. “Total January rainfall was more than twice the previous record for the month, contributing to an exceptionally wet summer and the wettest three months on record. It was already a very wet January before the storm on the 27th, but that single event doubled the total over a single day. Rainfall intensities in the early evening, at the height of the storm, were quite astounding.”2 In total, Central Auckland experienced over 45% of its yearly rainfall in just one month, where the annual average is 1 190 mm (46.8 inches). This is over 8.5 times that of a typical January and over 2.5 times of an entire summer. The rain across northern New Zealand has resulted in extensive damage due to widespread flooding on January 27, which the country’s National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) describes as at least a 1-in-200-year event. Four people have lost their lives and many hundreds have been displaced, with dozens of properties destroyed. Flights ground to a halt after Auckland International Airport was flooded and had to close, leaving thousands stranded abroad, some not able to get flights back for weeks. NIWA Urban Aquatic Scientist Dr. Annette Semadeni-Davies says Auckland’s flooding has put the public’s focus on nature-based alternatives to traditional stormwater systems. “Many parts of the network are aging and under increasing pressure from continued urbanisation and greater rainfall intensity. Nature-based solutions, such as infiltration basins, ponds and wetlands, have been put forward as additions to our current pipe-based systems for flood protection. However, these alone won’t be enough. We also need to explore low-risk infrastructure that diverts and stores water more effectively, introduce managed retreat for vulnerable areas, and continued maintenance and upgrades to our existing drain network.”
Please keep the North Island of New Zealand in your prayers today and tomorrow as we are being hit by Cyclone Gabrielle which will bring much more rain and very strong winds to areas which are still recovering from very recent flooding. (I live in the South Island and that means Im safe, but I feel quite anxious for the North Island.)
I have a daughter who lives in Auckland. They have bags ready incase they have to vacate their home. It’s all very worrying
When exactly was this? The reason I ask is that my daughter, who is in Rio with her husband on vacation, sent me a beautiful picture of them in front of that statue this morning. They both no longer practice the Faith so I was surprised she even sent it to me. It did give me a glimmer of hope however!
Thanks Mario, AED, and Heavenly Hosts.The worst of it is due to start hitting the Auckland metropolis and Coromandel Peninsula in about 12 hours from now, in the evening. It may be a difficult night for those people and it will continue moving all the way down the North Island to Wellington.
Saw this on FB today. https://www.indiatoday.in/world/sto...pic-leaves-netizens-in-awe-2333697-2023-02-12
