China sinkhole sends hundreds fleeing: state media

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

by Staff Writers
Beijing (AFP) Dec 20, 2008
Nearly 400 villagers in southern China were forced to evacuate after a sinkhole opened up, causing one building to collapse and threatening up to 72 others, state media reported on Saturday.

The cave-in on Friday afternoon left a three-metre-wide (10-foot) hole in the ground in the southern city of Guangzhou, Xinhua news agency said.

However, it has affected at total of 5,000 square metres (54,000 square feet) of land in Xiamao village, it added.

The report said an initial investigation has found the sinkage was caused by pilings being driven into the earth for a real estate project, which weakened a subterranean limestone cave.

However, it added that an investigation was continuing.

No casualties have been reported as the damage occurred gradually, giving people time to evacuate, it added.

A total of 381 people were evacuated, Xinhua said.

One building collapsed, 11 were "cracked", and 61 others were being monitored for possible safety problems, it said.

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS
Solar Energy Solutions
Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ...

Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

Disasters killed more than 238,000 people in 2008: Swiss Re

Geneva (AFP) Dec 18, 2008
Catastrophes killed more than 238,000 people this year, with cyclone Nargis which swept through Myanmar accounting for more than half the deaths, a study by reinsurer Swiss Re showed on Thursday.

INTERNET SPACE Mumbai attacks caps year for citizen journalism: NowPublic About 90 percent of all email is spam: Cisco Google reaffirms commitment to net neutrality Yahoo layoffs underway as investor calls for Microsoft deal	LAUNCH PAD Ariane 5 Achieves Another Successful Mission Arianespace's Sixth Ariane 5 Of 2008 Completes Assembly China Launches Yaogan V Remote-Sensing Satellite W2M Satellite To Be Launched On December 20
AEROSPACE Britain's environment minister concerned by Heathrow plan Climate protesters cause chaos at British airport Thompson Files: Protect U.S. aerospace NASA studies pilot cognition	MILITARY COMMUNICATIONS Boeing Develops Common Software To Reduce Risk For TSAT USAF Tests Battlespace Information Solution On AC-130 Gunship Harris Awarded Contract For USAF Satellite Control Network Program LockMart Delivers Key Hardware For US Navy's Mobile User Objective System
TECH SPACE Solutions Created For Two NASA Missions New polymer coatings prevent corrosion Eliminating Space Debris - The Quest Continues HP offering aims at penny-pinching IT departments	APPOINTMENTS Berndt Feuerbacher New President Of IAU Orbital Appoints Frank Culbertson And Mark Pieczynski To Management Chris Smith Named Director Of Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory AsiaSat Appoints New General Manager China
EARTH OBSERVATION Japanese seek to scrap Google's Street View Contraction Of Boundary Between The Earth's Ionosphere And Space Mission Operations Readiness Review For NPOESS Prep Project Completed Jason-2 Satellite Data Now Available To Scientists	GPS NEWS MEMSIC Launches Magnetic Sensors with Enhanced Digital Compass Capabilities Alltel Wireless Introduces GPS Application For Outdoor Enthusiasts New GPS Enabled Mobile Skateboarding Application GIS Development To Felicitate Microsoft Virtual Earth

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright Space.TV Corporation. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space.TV Corp on any Web page published or hosted by Space.TV Corp. Privacy Statement