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Record-breaking heat wave grips western United States

A record early heat wave striking the western United States on Friday is a one-in-500-year event and almost certainly the result of human-caused climate change, experts say. The heat has been toppling records this week and is set to continue into the weekend across western cities while expanding eastward. Four locations in the desert area near the California-Arizona border registered 44.4 degrees Celsius on Friday, a US national record for March. The readings were recorded near Yuma and Martinez Lake in Arizona, and around Winterhaven and Ogilby in California. Read: Intense heatwave grips US, triggering record-breaking temperatures Already, 65 cities have recorded new March highs, ranging from Arizona and California to Idaho, Weather.com reported. Death Valley reached 40°C on Thursday, while typically cool and foggy San Francisco tied its historic March record at 29°C. In Colorado, skiers were seen hitting the slopes shirtless. The National Weather Service issued extreme heat warni...
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Sri Lanka floods, landslides kill 40 with 21 missing after week of torrential rain

Floods and landslides triggered by heavy rain killed at least 40 people and injured 10 across Sri Lanka this week, with 21 others missing, authorities said Thursday. Most of the deaths occurred in the central tea-growing district of Badulla, where 21 people were buried alive when mountain slopes crashed onto their homes overnight, the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) said in a statement. Another four were killed in a similar manner in the adjoining Nuwara Eliya district. The remaining fatalities were reported elsewhere. More than 425 homes were damaged in mudslides, with over nearly 1,800 families moved to temporary shelters. The DMC said river levels were rising across Sri Lanka and warned residents in low-lying areas to move to higher ground. Sri Lanka is currently experiencing the northeast monsoon season, but rain has intensified due to a depression east of the island, it added. The government suspended final year school examinations nationwide for two days because of the weather. Sri Lanka's parliament suspended a budget debate so that legislators could return to their constituencies to deal with the damage. More than 100 millimetres of rainfall was expected across Sri Lanka, with some areas in the northeast forecast to be deluged with 250 millimetres of rain on Thursday. This week's weather-related toll is the highest since June last year, when 26 people were killed following heavy rains. In December, 17 people were killed by flooding and landslides. The worst flooding this century was in June 2003 when 254 people were killed. Sri Lanka depends on seasonal monsoon rain for irrigation and hydroelectricity, but experts have warned that the country faces more frequent floods due to climate change.

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At least 32 miners dead after bridge fails at cobalt site in southeast DR Congo

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US, Philippines kick off joint military drills in South China Sea with 16,000 troops

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Indian devotees splurge on jets, gold idols as Hindu temple opens

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