International
Weather expert predicts more disasters looming for Brazil
AFP
The tragic collapse of a cliff that left 10 dead in Brazil on Saturday was caused by torrential rains and more disasters could be on the way, meteorologist Estael Sias told AFP.
Two months of downpours have caused deadly flooding in several Brazilian states, including Bahia in the northeast and Minas Gerais in the southeast, where a huge column of rock crashed down on tourists boats on Furnas Lake.
According to Sias, who works for the state meteorology agency Metsul, global warming is provoking an ever greater number of natural disasters.
“There is certainly a relationship” between the heavy rains and the cliff collapsing, Sias told AFP.
“It is a fact that the long and intense period of rains generated an infiltration of water in the rocks that caused the rocks to move and the fall of the cliff face.
“Several videos show that minutes earlier there was a huge amount of rain falling down the waterfalls in the region putting great pressure on the rocks.”
Sias said heavy summer rains are caused by the South Atlantic Convergence Zone (ZCAS) — a phenomenon created by a humid corridor from the Amazon rainforest meeting a cold front from the South.
That generates large amounts of rain that result in frequent floods or landslides in several states.
Another meteorological phenomenon, called ‘La nina’, which provokes a cooling of the Pacific Ocean causing heavy rains in some parts of the world and drought in others, also contributes to an increased rainfall.
Heavy rain is forecast for the next 10 days and “unfortunately, the could mean more disasters,” said Sias.
Less rain is expected in the second half of January but “February and March remain periods of high rainfall.”
“The extremes that we’ve registered throughout the whole world in the last two years have been ever more frequent with historic heat events, ever more recurring rains, and given that the last two years have been the two hottest in the history of the planet, it is difficult to separate phenomenon like ZCAS … with global warming, which is the fuel that accentuates extremes throughout the planet.”
International
HMPV infection rate declining in Northern China, health official reports
The rate of human metapneumovirus (HMPV) infections, which is similar to the flu, in northern China is decreasing, a health official said on Sunday, amid international concern about a potential pandemic.
HMPV, which belongs to the same family as the human respiratory syncytial virus, causes symptoms similar to the flu or a cold, such as fever, cough, and nasal congestion. Symptoms often resolve on their own, although they can lead to lower respiratory tract infections in children, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals.
“Human metapneumovirus is not a new virus and has been with humans for at least several decades,” said Wang Liping, a researcher at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, during a press conference by the National Health Commission of China.
Wang added that the recent increase in cases of the virus, first detected in the Netherlands in 2001, is due to better detection methods.
International
Elon Musk sends Cybertrucks with Starlink and supplies to assist Los Angeles wildfire victims
Rescuers are working to contain the wildfires in Los Angeles, where the death toll stands at least 24. Amid the tragedy, billionaire Elon Musk announced the deployment of Cybertrucks with Starlink and supplies to help the victims.
“We’re going to place Cybertrucks with Starlinks and free WiFi in a grid pattern in the areas that need it most in the Los Angeles/Malibu metropolitan area,” Musk posted on X.
“Security personnel will also be added to the vehicle, along with snacks and drinks for passersby,” he explained.
The Cybertrucks being used are scheduled deliveries, so Musk apologized in advance.
“We apologize to those awaiting Cybertruck deliveries in California over the next few days. We need to use those trucks as mobile base stations to provide power to Starlink internet terminals in Los Angeles areas without connectivity. A new truck will be delivered by the end of the week,” he stated.
International
Trump announces creation of external revenue service to collect foreign tariffs
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump announced on Tuesday the creation of a body to “collect tariffs, duties, and all revenue from foreign sources,” comparing it to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which collects taxes from Americans.
“We will begin charging those who profit at our expense through trade, and they will finally start paying what they owe,” Trump said in a message on his social media platform, Truth Social.
He indicated that the new body, to be called the External Revenue Service, will begin operations on January 20, the day Trump is sworn in as the 47th president of the U.S. and when he is expected to make the first decisions of his second term.
The Republican also criticized “soft and pathetically weak trade deals” that have been in place until now.
“The U.S. economy has provided growth and prosperity to the world while we taxed ourselves,” he stated.
Trump has been insisting on raising tariffs for months and has even declared that “tariff” is, for him, “the most beautiful word in the dictionary.”
HMPV infection rate declining in Northern China, health official reports
Elon Musk sends Cybertrucks with Starlink and supplies to assist Los Angeles wildfire victims
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Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
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