March 05, 2026

DISASTER MANAGEMENT Huge pit visible in Shanghai after viral sinkhole video Shanghai (AFP) Feb 13, 2026 A gaping sinkhole was visible at a Shanghai construction site on Friday, according to an AFP reporter, a day after dramatic footage purporting to show the ground collapsing went viral. The edges of a large crater matching the location seen in the videos - a work site for a section of a new metro line in an outer district of the city - could be seen from a nearby shopping mall. Sections of the roads nearby were blocked off, with police and construction vehicles surrounding the site. Local a ... read more

Mexican navy ships arrive with humanitarian aid for Cuba Havana (AFP) Feb 12, 2026 Two Mexican navy ships arrived in Cuba with more than 800 tons of much-needed humanitarian aid Thursday, as the island nation struggles under what amounts to a US blockade of oil deliveries. ... more Morocco to spend $330 million on regions ravaged by floods: govt Rabat (AFP) Feb 12, 2026 Morocco plans to spend some $330 million on regions hit hardest by weeks of flooding across the country's north that have battered its key agricultural zones, the government said Thursday. ... more Lebanon says 5 dead in building collapse in northern city Beirut, Lebanon (AFP) Feb 8, 2026 The toll in a building collapse in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli on Sunday rose to five dead, state media reported, as rescuers searched for survivors in the second such incident in weeks. ... more IAEA board meets over Ukraine nuclear safety concerns Vienna (AFP) Jan 30, 2026 The UN nuclear watchdog's board of governors will meet Friday to discuss nuclear safety in Ukraine, with several countries expressing growing concern over volatile conditions at Ukrainian power plants. ... more

Climate change fuels disasters, but deaths don't add up Paris, France (AFP) Jan 21, 2026 Climate change is turbocharging heatwaves, wildfires, floods and tropical storms, but how deadly have extreme weather events become for people in their path? ... more Hong Kong ferry disaster ruled 'unlawful killing' after 13 years Hong Kong (AFP) Jan 21, 2026 A Hong Kong ferry collision in which 39 people died more than a decade ago was an unlawful killing, according to a long-awaited court ruling on Wednesday. ... more Poland moves to phase out aid for Ukrainian refugees Warsaw (AFP) Jan 20, 2026 Poland's government on Tuesday moved to phase out assistance for Ukrainian refugees put in place when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, as public support for the aid wanes. ... more China factory explosion death toll rises to 9 Beijing (AFP) Jan 20, 2026 The death toll from an explosion at a steel factory in northern China rose to nine, state media said Tuesday, after dozens were also injured in the weekend blast. ... more South Africa declares national disaster as floods batter region Johannesburg (AFP) Jan 18, 2026 South Africa on Sunday declared a national disaster after widespread flooding that destroyed homes and killed dozens, while thousands sought shelter in neighbouring Mozambique. ... more

Australia warns of floods, fires after cars washed away; Floods kill 10 in South Africa, Mozambique on alert Sydney (AFP) Jan 16, 2026 Australia's emergency services warned people Friday to stay prepared for sudden downpours and dangerous bushfires in the country's east after a flash flood swept cars into the sea. ... more Thailand train accident kills 28 at China-backed project Bangkok (AFP) Jan 14, 2026 A crane at a China-backed high-speed rail project in Thailand collapsed onto a passenger train on Wednesday and caused it to derail, killing at least 28 people and injuring dozens more, authorities said. ... more 'Are You Dead?': Chinese app for solo dwellers goes viral Beijing (AFP) Jan 13, 2026 'Are You Dead?', an app that sounds the alarm if a user doesn't check in every 48 hours, was one of China's top-selling paid apps on Tuesday as the country's growing class of solo dwellers flocked to download it. ... more Sri Lanka seeks Chinese aid to rebuild after deadly cyclone Colombo (AFP) Jan 12, 2026 Sri Lanka asked China to help rebuild key infrastructure damaged by Cyclone Ditwah, which killed at least 641 people and caused extensive damage, the island's foreign minister said on Monday. ... more Japan nuclear plant operator may have underestimated quake risks Tokyo (AFP) Jan 6, 2026 A Japanese nuclear plant operator said it may have presented data underestimating earthquake risks to regulators, as Japan moves to revive nuclear power nearly 15 years after the Fukushima disaster. ... more

'I can't walk anymore': Afghans freeze to death on route to Iran Ghunjan, Afghanistan (AFP) Jan 5, 2026 Habibullah set off from his home in western Afghanistan determined to find work in Iran, only for the 15-year-old to freeze to death while walking across the mountainous frontier. "He was forced to go, to bring food for the family," his mother, Mah Jan, told AFP at her mud home in Ghunjan village. "We have no food to eat, we have no clothes to wear. The house in which I live has no electricity, no water. I have no proper window, nothing to burn for heating," she added, clutching a photo of her s ... read more Filipinos master disaster readiness, one roll of the dice at a time Manila (AFP) Dec 29, 2025 In a library in the Philippines, a dice rattles on the surface of a board before coming to a stop, putting one of its players straight into the path of a powerful typhoon. ... more

'Shivering from cold and fear': winter rains batter displaced Gazans Khan Yunis, Palestinian Territories (AFP) Dec 28, 2025 It only took a matter of minutes after the heavy overnight rain first began to fall for Jamil al-Sharafi's tent in southern Gaza to flood, drenching his food and leaving his blankets sopping wet. ... more Thais, Cambodians fear returning home despite border truce Bangkok (AFP) Dec 28, 2025 At a Thai university-turned-shelter for displaced people, Kanlaya Somjettana is reluctant to go home even after a truce halted weeks of border clashes with Cambodia, fearing the violence may not be over. ... more Inside Chernobyl, Ukraine scrambles to repair radiation shield Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, Ukraine (AFP) Dec 26, 2025 Inside an abandoned control room at Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant, a worker in an orange hardhat gazed at a grey wall of seemingly endless dials, screens and gauges that were supposed to prevent disaster. ... more Last Christians gather in ruins of Turkey's quake-hit Antakya Antakya, Turkey (AFP) Dec 25, 2025 Saint Peter's, one of the world's oldest rock churches, is a sacred rallying point for the isolated Christians still left in quake-hit Antakya in southeastern Turkey, the city known in ancient times as Antioch. ... more Spain to set up national climate shelter network: PM Madrid (AFP) Dec 17, 2025 Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced Wednesday that Spain would set up a national network of climate shelters to help people survive increasingly severe heatwaves. ... more

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