Environment

Friday, August 14th 2026 - 22:34 UTC
Peru rehearses its response to a magnitude 8.8 quake off Lima and Callao

Peru held the year's second national multi-hazard drill on Friday, an exercise testing evacuation protocols and the response capacity of the public and the authorities to a possible magnitude 8.8 earthquake centered off the central coast of Lima and Callao.
Friday, August 14th 2026 - 08:40 UTC
Argentina restricts access to an Andean plain after damage caused by a pickup truck

Authorities in the Argentine province of San Juan will keep access to Pampa del Leoncito restricted until the end of the month, after a vehicle drove across the white clay plain, located at 1,500 meters above sea level at the foot of the Andes, despite a ban on traffic, leaving ruts up to 25 centimeters deep.
Thursday, August 13th 2026 - 06:55 UTC
The main land crossing between Argentina and Chile passes its winter closure record

The Cristo Redentor international crossing, which links the Argentine province of Mendoza with Chile's Valparaíso Region through the Andes, has now been closed for close to a month because of a snow and wind storm, surpassing the winter closure record set in 2023. Authorities on both sides estimate it could reopen next week, depending on weather conditions.
Wednesday, August 12th 2026 - 23:05 UTC
Falklands pause Loligo squid fishing for two weeks over low biomass

The Falkland Islands Fisheries Department announced on Wednesday that fishing within the Loligo Box will be paused for around two weeks as a precautionary measure, following low Loligo squid biomass in the area.
Tuesday, August 11th 2026 - 10:51 UTC
At least 132 dead in the magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck western Colombia

At least 132 people were killed and 570 injured by the magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck western and central Colombia on Monday, according to the latest report submitted by the Colombian Association of Capital Cities at 7:00 p.m. local time. Authorities warned the figure is preliminary and that rescue work is continuing.
Tuesday, August 11th 2026 - 10:11 UTC
Colombia and Venezuela quakes are unconnected despite similar magnitude, experts say

The magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck western and central Colombia on Monday has a different tectonic origin from the earthquakes recorded in Venezuela in June, despite comparable magnitudes, said Viviana Dionisio, a seismologist with Colombia's National Seismological Network.
Monday, August 10th 2026 - 14:29 UTC
Colombia records its strongest earthquake in a decade, geological service says

A magnitude 7.4 earthquake shook western and central Colombia on Monday, causing damage in several cities and affecting six airports. It is the strongest earthquake recorded in the country in the past decade, according to the Colombian Geological Service (SGC). No official casualty figures have been released so far.
Monday, August 3rd 2026 - 18:47 UTC
Rhine barges run at 20% of capacity as freight rates surge

Falling water levels on the Rhine are forcing barges to operate with a fraction of their usual load and have sharply raised the cost of river transport, as drought and extreme temperatures affect Europe's main inland waterways.
Sunday, August 2nd 2026 - 20:43 UTC
Two crew killed as firefighting helicopters collide in midair in Greece

Two crew members were killed on Sunday when two helicopters battling a wildfire collided in midair in the Psatha area, on the boundary between Attica and Boeotia northwest of Athens, the Hellenic Fire Service said.
Wednesday, July 29th 2026 - 07:46 UTC
Wildfires in Spain and France hit the world's two largest wine-growing nations

The wildfires affecting Spain and France since mid-July have reached an unprecedented scale in both countries, which together account for nearly a quarter of the world's vineyard area. Spain declared a national wildfire emergency for the first time, while French President Emmanuel Macron described the situation as the most severe recorded in his country since the Second World War.