BEIJING: An enormous sinkhole swallowed a bus and pedestrians in north-west China, sparking an explosion, killing six people and leaving four more missing, state media said yesterday. Footage showed people at a bus stop running from the collapsing road as the vehicle — jutting into the air — sank into
TANAUAN (Philippines): Taal volcano in the Philippines could spew lava and ash for weeks, authorities warned yesterday, leaving tens of thousands in limbo after they fled their homes fearing a massive eruption. The crater of the volcano exploded to life with towering clouds of ash and jets of red-hot lava
TALISAY CITY (Philippines): Lava and broad columns of ash illuminated by lightning spewed from a volcano south of the Philippine capital yesterday, grounding hundreds of flights as authorities warned of a possible “explosive eruption”. Fine grit coated homes and streets across the region surrounding the Taal volcano, which burst to
JAKARTA: Floods that killed 60 people in Indonesia’s capital after the biggest rainfall since records began should be a wake-up call to climate change in one of the world’s biggest carbon emitters, environmental groups said. But, despite the catastrophe in Southeast Asia’s biggest city, authorities see no greater impetus for
SYDNEY: Reserve troops fanned out across fire-ravaged regions in three Australian states yesterday after a horror weekend, as the government pledged $1.4 billion over two years to help recover from the devastating months-long crisis. Catastrophic bush fires have turned swathes of land into smouldering, blackened hells capes and destroyed an
LAS VEGAS: It will be revolutionary when superfast 5G mobile networks come to our gadgets, cars and digital lives. But the road to 5G remains agonisingly slow at the massive Consumer Electronics Show opening this week in Las Vegas, where ultrafast products are expected to be few and far between.
JAKARTA: Indonesia’s disaster agency warned yesterday of more deaths after torrential rains pounded the Jakarta region, triggering floods and landslides that killed at least 23 and left vast swaths of the megalopolis underwater. Tens of thousands of residents have been evacuated to temporary shelters in the area — home to
BANGKOK: Thailand began the year with a ban on single-use plastic bags at major stores, continuing a campaign launched by the government and retailers towards a complete ban in 2021 to reduce waste and debris in the sea. Public awareness of the risk to animals and the environment from such
SYDNEY: Australia ordered residents and tourists out of the path of raging bush fires yesterday as the country braced for a weekend heatwave expected to fan the deadly inferno. Catastrophic blazes ripped through the country’s south-east on New Year’s Eve, killing at least eight people and stranding holidaymakers. New South
Pope says sorry for slapping devotee VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis apologised Wednesday for his widely-viewed slap of a woman who had grabbed his hand as he greeted Catholic faithful on New Year’s Eve. The image of Francis slapping his way free from the clutches of the admirer was an instant