Hundreds of thousands affected by extreme weather events around the globe in December
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There have been a number of extreme weather related events around the globe in December.
Extreme weather has affected several countries in Asia, South America and North America particularly hard this December. Earlier in November, Western Canada was also hit by heavy rainfall and mudslides causing massive destruction to homes, infrastructure damage and the death of thousands of farm animals leading to food shortages in British Columbia. Towards the end of November, Storm Arwen left 100 000 without power and killed three people in the UK.
300 000 evacuated from "Super Typhoon" in the Philippines
375 people have been confirmed dead after Typhoon Rai affected the Philippines the week before Christmas. Another 500 people have been injured in the storm, which destroyed many homes, hospitals and schools.
Many of the dead were from the popular tourist province of Bohol, which is home to about 1.2 million people, according to local authorities.
More than 300,000 people were forced to leave their homes and tourist facilities when the "super typhoon" blew through the area with wind speeds of up to 54 meters per second. A super typhoon is similar in strength as to what is classified in the Atlantic as a category 5 hurricane, the highest category on the scale.
The Philippines has long been ranked as one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change. Researchers have also predicted that storms there will be stronger due to global warming.
The Philippines are allegedly struck by 20 dangerous weather related events every year.
Storms in Brazil displace 35000
More than 35,000 people were forced to flee their homes in the Brazilian state of Bahia due to severe storms. Since November, a total of 18 people have been killed in recurring storms that have caused floods in Brazil. Two more people are missing.
Until Christmas Eve, the total precipitation in Bahia's capital, Salvador, was measured at 250 millimeters - five times the average.
"It's a huge tragedy. I can not remember anything to this extent in Bahia's modern history," said Governor Rui Costa.
10 000 trapped by floods in Malaysia
The week before Christmas, rescue efforts were carried out to save people stranded during one of the worst floods in Malaysia in several years. Heavy rain was affecting the country for three days. At least three people have been reported dead in the floods and at least 10,000 have been trapped by large masses of water.
The amount of rain that came in one day in the state of Selangor, Saturday a week before Christmas, is equivalent to what usually falls during all of December, according to Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
Near the capital more than 10,000 people were forced to leave their homes, and many were stuck in cars along flooded roads. Tens of thousands of rescue workers have been sent to Selangor and other parts of the country to deal with the effects of the weather.
100 people swept into a lake from mudslides in Nyanmar
Up to a hundred people are feared to have been dragged into a landslide early on Wednesday morning at a mine in northern Myanmar on December 21st.
"Around 70-100 people are missing after a landslide that happened at four o'clock in the morning", said a rescue worker to the news agency AFP.
25 injured have been taken to hospital.
A search is underway at the Hpakant mine in the state of Kachin. About 200 rescue workers were involved in the efforts.
The victims are believed to have been swept into a lake that contains waste from the mine, according to what an employee of a local rescue organization told the news agency Reuters.
100 000 without power and 100 dead after tornadoes in the US
As CTIF has reported earlier this month, Kentucky and other US states were struck hard by tornadoes which killed a hundred or more in Mid December.
More than 50 tornadoes devastated entire communities in six US states. According to the governor of Kentucky, about 100 people have died, and bodies are still being discovered. According to state sources, storm is the deadliest ever in the state's history.
Cover Photo: (Above) Photo from the city of Tacloban after Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, November 2013. Wikipedia Commons License Photo by: Henry Donati/Department for International Development