Fossils formed millions of years ago could give clues on how to conserve Australia's endangered animals - CNA

SAVING MOUNTAIN-PYGMY POSSUMS

From his laboratory, Prof Archer is helping to forge a better understanding of how wildlife existed millions of years ago. 

Thanks to his work on the Riversleigh area of far north Queensland, it was discovered that 20 million or more years ago, a critically endangered Australian marsupial lived in temperate rainforest much further north. 

According to the Australian Conservation Foundation, mountain pygmy-possums were thought to be extinct until they were rediscovered at Mt Hotham, which is nestled amongst the Victorian Alps, in the 1960s.

Today, these mountain pygmy-possums live in alpine areas, which they had to adapt to due to climate change. The possum is Australia’s only hibernating marsupial and hibernates for up to seven months under the snow. 

The foundation added that there are fewer than 2,000 endangered mountain pygmy-possums left in the wild. It said that they continue to be under pressure from threats including lack of food as Bogong moth numbers decline, climate change as their habitat warms, and the development of ski resorts.

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2024-04-23 03:14:11Z
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Series of earthquakes rattle Taiwan, centred on east coast - CNA

TAIPEI: More than 80 earthquakes, the strongest of 6.3 magnitude, struck Taiwan's east coast starting Monday (Apr 22) night and into the early hours of Tuesday. Some caused shaking of buildings in the capital Taipei, the island's weather administration said.

The quakes were centred on the largely rural eastern county of Hualien, where on Apr 3 at least 17 people died after a 7.2 magnitude temblor. Singaporean couple Sim Hwee Kok and Neo Siew Choo are the only people still unaccounted for. They are believed to have gone missing along the Shakadang Trail.

Taiwan has been jolted by hundreds of aftershocks since then.

The fire department in Hualien said early on Tuesday that a hotel which had already been damaged on Apr 3 and was no longer in operation was now slightly leaning on its side.

However, there were no reports of any casualties.

The first strong quake - a magnitude 5.5 - hit on Monday at around 5.08pm, according to Central Weather Administration. It could be felt in the capital Taipei.

That was followed by a series of aftershocks and quakes, with two intense tremors hitting one after another around 2.30am Tuesday, according to AFP reporters and witnesses in Taipei.

"I was washing my hands, and suddenly felt what I thought was vertigo," Olivier Bonifacio, a tourist staying in Taipei's Da'an district, told AFP.

"I stepped into my room and noticed the building was rocking and I heard the desk creak," he said, adding that it was then he realised it was another aftershock.

The Central Weather Administration said a magnitude-6.0 quake had hit at 2.26 am, followed six minutes later by the magnitude-6.3 tremor.

The US Geological Survey put the first one at a magnitude-6.1, followed by a magnitude-6.0.

Dozens more smaller tremors were recorded by the Central Weather Administration over the rest of the night, with a new one every few minutes, according to its website - all in the Hualien region.

Through Monday, AFP reporters could feel their buildings swaying during intense quakes, while one said "glass panels of bathroom and windows were making noises" as the island shuddered.

Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is prone to earthquakes.

More than 100 people were killed in a quake in southern Taiwan in 2016, while a 7.3 magnitude quake killed more than 2,000 people in 1999.

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2024-04-23 00:33:09Z
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Record-breaking floods hit China’s Guangdong, killing 4 and displacing thousands - South China Morning Post

Helicopters and rubber boats have been deployed as floods hit central-northern areas along the Bei River, a southern tributary of the Pearl River, which flows from Shaoguan to the Pearl River Delta.

The Bei River’s water levels were confirmed to have exceeded 50-year highs at Feilaixia reservoir in Qingyuan on Monday, according to Xinhua. Water flow to the Feilaixia hydropower plant approached 100-year highs.

Provincial authorities earlier warned that the river’s water levels were expected to hit “once in a century” levels, but they later lowered their predictions.

Rescuers were sent to relocate trapped residents in Shaoguan and transport food and other materials, according to Guangzhou-based news site dayoo.com, owned by Guangzhou Daily.

Shaoguan, located in the north of the province, on Monday downgraded the city’s flood emergency response warning to level three in a four-tier alert system in which level one is the most severe.

More than 300 emergency personnel were deployed on Saturday to rescue trapped residents in six villages in the town of Jiangwan, where roads were cut off by landslides. At least six people in the villages were injured, according to online news site The Paper.

Mobile phone and internet services were restored in the town on Sunday after the landslide disrupted telecoms cables.

In central Guangdong’s Qingyuan city, water levels in some areas reached the first floor of buildings on Sunday morning and flooded homes and shops. As of 4pm on Sunday, more than 60,000 residents had been transferred from affected areas, according to Xinhua.

Some schools in heavily affected areas of Qingyuan were suspended on Monday.

Average rainfall across Guangdong totalled 121.8mm (4.8 inches) from Friday 10am to Sunday 11am, according to the provincial department of water resources.

China Meteorological Administration predicted heavy downpours to continue until Tuesday, with 100mm to 170mm of rainfall in 24 hours in some areas of southeastern Guangdong from Monday afternoon.

Cumulative rainfall has broken records for April in the cities of Guangzhou, Shaoguan and Lechang as well as the counties of Lechang and Shixing, according to regional newspapers Guangzhou Daily and Nanfang Daily.

China issues ‘once in a century’ flood warning for Guangdong’s Bei River zone

The rain also affected rail services, with more than 300 trains returning or being suspended between Friday and Sunday, according to the China Railway Guangzhou Group. All trains were operating again as of Monday.

Provincial party secretary Huang Kunming and governor Wang Weizhong on Sunday visited Shaoguan city and held meetings with regional emergency management offices, Nanfang Daily reported.

They also visited the city’s Mengzhou dam along the Bei River and a primary school in Longgui town where residents have been staying since flooding hit their homes.

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2024-04-22 14:13:22Z
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Rescuers in China’s Guangdong race to save residents from flooding - South China Morning Post

Helicopters and rubber boats have been deployed as floods hit central-northern areas along the Bei River, a southern tributary of the Pearl River, which flows from Shaoguan to the Pearl River Delta.

The Bei River’s water levels were confirmed to have exceeded 50-year highs at Feilaixia reservoir in Qingyuan on Monday, according to Xinhua. Water flow to the Feilaixia hydropower plant approached 100-year highs.

Provincial authorities earlier warned that the river’s water levels were expected to hit “once in a century” levels, but they later lowered their predictions.

Rescuers were sent to relocate trapped residents in Shaoguan and transport food and other materials, according to Guangzhou-based news site dayoo.com, owned by Guangzhou Daily.

Shaoguan, located in the north of the province, on Monday downgraded the city’s flood emergency response warning to level three in a four-tier alert system in which level one is the most severe.

More than 300 emergency personnel were deployed on Saturday to rescue trapped residents in six villages in the town of Jiangwan, where roads were cut off by landslides. At least six people in the villages were injured, according to online news site The Paper.

Mobile phone and internet services were restored in the town on Sunday after the landslide disrupted telecoms cables.

In central Guangdong’s Qingyuan city, water levels in some areas reached the first floor of buildings on Sunday morning and flooded homes and shops. As of 4pm on Sunday, more than 60,000 residents had been transferred from affected areas, according to Xinhua.

Some schools in heavily affected areas of Qingyuan were suspended on Monday.

Average rainfall across Guangdong totalled 121.8mm (4.8 inches) from Friday 10am to Sunday 11am, according to the provincial department of water resources.

China Meteorological Administration predicted heavy downpours to continue until Tuesday, with 100mm to 170mm of rainfall in 24 hours in some areas of southeastern Guangdong from Monday afternoon.

Cumulative rainfall has broken records for April in the cities of Guangzhou, Shaoguan and Lechang as well as the counties of Lechang and Shixing, according to regional newspapers Guangzhou Daily and Nanfang Daily.

China issues ‘once in a century’ flood warning for Guangdong’s Bei River zone

The rain also affected rail services, with more than 300 trains returning or being suspended between Friday and Sunday, according to the China Railway Guangzhou Group. All trains were operating again as of Monday.

Provincial party secretary Huang Kunming and governor Wang Weizhong on Sunday visited Shaoguan city and held meetings with regional emergency management offices, Nanfang Daily reported.

They also visited the city’s Mengzhou dam along the Bei River and a primary school in Longgui town where residents have been staying since flooding hit their homes.

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2024-04-22 06:44:12Z
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Cyclist scolds driver with vulgarity after child following him on bike crashes into car in Orchard - STOMP

Crosswalk? What crosswalk?

A cyclist scolded a driver with a vulgarity after a child following him crashed into a car on Cuppage Road between The Centrepoint and Orchard Point buildings on April 21 at 4.14pm.

Dash cam video of the incident was posted online by SG Road Vigilante on April 21.

The video shows two cyclists riding across Cuppage Road as the car was about to turn into the road from Orchard Road and sounded its horn.

Just as the car turned into Cuppage Road, the child on a bicycle appeared and crashes into the side of the car with a loud thud.

Fortunately, all three cyclists were wearing helmets.

A female passer-by went to help the crying child up and off the road as another car was about to turn into the road.

The cyclists returned on foot and the older cyclist rushed to the car, which had stopped, and confronted the driver.

It should be noted the cyclist did not check on the well-being of the child first.

The cyclist asked the driver in a foreign accent: "Hey, what the f*** is your problem? This is a crosswalk. You don't honk and speed through here."

The driver replied: "I didn't speed."

Actually, there was no designated pedestrian crossing or "crosswalk" at that location.

The person who submitted the video was quoted as saying: "Parent lets kid ride across the road without due care, claims it's a crosswalk and blames driver for it.

"Traffic Police came down and advised to file a report, nothing much can be done. Rider gets away free of responsibilities and driver is left to fix his own car."

In response to a Stomp query, the police said they were alerted at about 4.15pm to an accident involving a car and a bicycle at the junction of Orchard Road and Cuppage Road.

No injuries were reported, added the police.

Many netizens blamed the cyclist for what happened, with one commenting: "The kids' parents should be charged for endangering the life of their children."

But one commenter also faulted the driver, saying: "Yes, the cyclists should slow down and look out for cars when crossing such road, but it’s not like the driver is practising defensive driving knowing that he is turning left. In fact, the driver sped up a bit."

To which someone else replied: "The driver had given a tap on the horn to warn the cyclists. The taxi blocked the view of the driver and therefore, the driver was not able to get a clear view. The little cyclist carried on to ride across and knocked onto the car. Don't think the blame should be on the driver at all."

Police investigations are ongoing.

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2024-04-22 06:06:20Z
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Russia says deeper US hybrid war using Ukraine will end in Vietnam-style humiliation - CNA

MOSCOW: Russia said on Sunday (Apr 21) that US lawmakers' approval of US$60.84 billion more in support for Ukraine showed that Washington was wading deeper into a hybrid war with Russia that would end in humiliation on a par with Vietnam or Afghanistan.

President Vladimir Putin's 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine has triggered the worst crisis in relations between Russia and the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, according to Russian and US diplomats.

The US House of Representatives on Saturday with broad bipartisan support passed a US$95 billion legislative package providing security assistance to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, over bitter objections from some Republicans.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that it was clear that the United States wanted Ukraine "to fight to the last Ukrainian" including with attacks on Russian sovereign territory and civilians.

"Washington's deeper and deeper immersion in the hybrid war against Russia will turn into such a loud and humiliating fiasco for United States as Vietnam and Afghanistan," Zakharova said.

She said that ordinary Ukrainians were being "forcibly driven to slaughter as 'cannon fodder'" but that the United States was now no longer betting on a Ukrainian victory against Russia.

The leaders of the West and Ukraine have cast the war in Ukraine as an imperial-style land-grab which shows that post-Soviet Russia is one of the top two biggest nation-state threats to global stability, alongside China.

Putin, though, presents the war as part of a much bigger struggle with the United States, which he says ignored Moscow's interests after the 1991 Soviet collapse and then plotted to cleave Russia apart and grab its natural resources.

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2024-04-21 10:11:09Z
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M'sia Airports Honours Policeman With RM1K Cheque for His Bravery During KLIA Shooting Incident - WORLD OF BUZZ

Malaysia Airports, the airport management company which manages Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), has extended its appreciation to a policeman for his courage during the shooting incident at the airport on April 14. 

Taking to its official Facebook page, Malaysia Airports expressed its appreciation to the policeman, Corporal Mohammad Shafiq Safi’ai, an Aviation Security (AVSEC) member for performing his duties with responsibility and dedication to ensure visitors’ safety at KLIA.

Honoured by Malaysia Airports for his bravery

According to the post, Shafiq acted immediately by giving out a stern warning to the suspect by aiming his firearm at him after the suspect had released 2 gunshots at the airport.

After Shafiq’s courageous actions, the suspect immediately fled the scene, which prompted a manhunt nationwide searching for him.

The suspect was later caught in Kota Bharu, Kelantan by the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) in less than 48 hours.

Malaysia Airports attached 2 photos to the post, one of Shafiq and the other of him receiving a certificate of appreciation as well as a mock cheque for RM1,000 contributed by Malaysia Airports.

The infamous shooting incident took place at around 1:30 am at the KLIA Terminal 1 arrival hall, in which the suspect fired 2 gunshots aimed at his wife.

Both of the gunshots missed her but 1 shot struck her bodyguard, identified as Nur Hadith, who had since been hospitalised in critical condition.

What do you think of Malaysia Airport’s show of appreciation for the brave policeman? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!

Also read: Police Boosts Airport Security After Shooting Incident by Stationing More Personnel

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2024-04-21 02:54:18Z
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