Earthwatch: A Diary of the Planet

Tropical Storms

Hurricane Georges killed at least 300 people and left a trail of destruction as it cut through several populated areas from the Caribbean to the Gulf of Mexico.

Tropical Storm Vicki caused widespread flooding across the northern Philippines and through a long stretch of Japan. Hurricanes Ivan and Jeanne and Tropical Storm Karl moved over the open waters of the Atlantic.

Baboons Poisoned

Timber companies are poisoning hundreds of baboons in Zimbabwe’s Eastern Highlands, causing them to die a slow and painful death, according to a report in Harare’s Sunday Mail. The state-controlled newspaper quoted environmentalists as saying that the baboons are taking from seven to 10 days to die after being fed an unspecified poison. Bill Johnstone, spokesman for the Timber Producers’ Federation, confirmed that measures were being taken to control the baboon population, but said it had received the approval of the appropriate government agencies.

Deadly Wildfires

Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency reported that two people were killed and 136 houses burned when forest fires swept across Russia’s far eastern island of Sakhalin. Officials attempted to evacuate the village of Gorki but many of the 700 inhabitants preferred to stay and try to save their possessions. Almost all of Gorki burned to the ground in just 90 minutes as the wildfire swept across the community. Only five of the village’s 141 houses were not damaged.

Earthquakes

Parts of southwestern Italy were shaken by a magnitude 3.8 temblor early Wednesday that caused a brief panic but no visible damage. Southwestern Iran was rocked by a magnitude 5.4 quake in an otherwise very quiet week for worldwide seismic activity.

Volcanoes

Ongoing activity at Mexico’s Popocatepetl Volcano produced several moderate eruptions, sending plumes of ash soaring over the suburbs of Mexico City.

An eruption of Guatemala’s Pacaya Volcano forced the country’s main airport to close for several hours as crews cleared a layer of ash off the runways.

Bulgarian Wolf Terror

At least 41 sheep and a cow have been killed by a pack of wolves that has kept villagers in a southern Bulgarian town afraid of going out at night, according to the country’s official news agency, BTA. Frightened villagers in the Rhodope Mountains community of Trigrad are staying indoors while hunters prepare for a massive wolf hunt. Forestry officials told BTA that a population explosion of wolves has increased the number of the predatory animals in the mountain range to three times above normal.

Additional Sources: U.S. Climate Analysis Center, U.S. Earthquake Information Center