Tag Archives: Travel News

Oklahoma tornado: Dozens killed in Moore

21 May 2013 Last updated at 07:08 GMT

At least 91 people, including 20 children, are feared killed by a huge tornado which tore through Oklahoma City suburbs, officials in the US state say.

Worst hit was Moore, south of the city, where neighbourhoods were flattened and schools destroyed by winds of up to 200mph (320km/h). About 120 people are being treated in hospitals.

President Barack Obama has declared a major disaster in Oklahoma.oklahoma tornado

Hours after the storm struck, the frantic search-and-rescue operation is still going on. Heavy machinery is being used under floodlights to try and find and free those still trapped under the tons of debris.

The town of Moore was hit by a record breaking storm once before – 14 years ago – when a deadly tornado took a similar path. More people are already known to have been killed this time around.

Hospitals have been treating the scores of injured – many are still critically ill and the authorities warn that the number of dead is likely to increase. He also ordered federal authorities to join in the search efforts which are continuing throughout the night.

Monday’s twister hit Moore, a suburb of about 55,000 people, at 14:56 (19:56 GMT) and remained on the ground for about 45 minutes. The official death toll is 51, but local authorities say the figure is expected to rise as another 40 bodies have been found.

The Oklahoma chief medical examiner’s office said at least 20 children were among the dead. Plaza Towers Elementary school took a direct hit: the storm tore off the building’s roof and knocked down walls.

“The school was flattened. The walls were pancaked in,” Oklahoma’s Lt Gov Todd Lamb told the BBC.

“There’s still roughly two dozen children that are missing. There have been some bodies recovered from that school and it’s absolutely horrific and devastating.”

Another school – Briarwood Elementary – was also damaged, and teachers were later seen leading pupils out to safety.

Oklahoma Gov Mary Fallin said it was a “tragic” day.

More than 200 Oklahoma National Guardsmen as well as out-of-state personnel have been called in to assist the search-and-rescue effort.

The BBC’s Alastair Leithead in Oklahoma says many tornadoes in the region hit the open plain, but this one struck a residential area. Many houses are built on hard ground without basements, so many people did not have recourse to shelter, our correspondent adds.

‘Most powerful tornado’

Shocked survivors spoke of the tornado’s power.

“We locked the cellar door once we saw it coming, it got louder and next thing you know is you see the latch coming undone,” survivor Ricky Stover said.

“We couldn’t reach for it and it ripped open the door and just glass and debris started slamming on us and we thought we were dead, to be honest.”

The damage wrought by the tornado was “unlike anything that I’ve ever seen before,” said Rick Smith of the National Weather Service

Melissa Newton said: “There’s shingles and pieces of sheet rock and wood in our yard and all across our neighbourhood. Some homes are completely gone. It’s devastating.”

James Rushing said he had hurried to Plaza Towers Elementary School, where his foster son Aiden was a pupil, to see it destroyed by the storm.

“About two minutes after I got there, the school started coming apart,” he told the Associated Press news agency.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said Monday’s tornado had generated winds of up to 200mph.

“It’s certainly the most powerful tornado that I’ve ever dealt with in my 20 years with the weather service,” NWS meteorologist Rick Smith in Norman, Oklahoma, told the BBC.

The town of Moore was hit by a severe tornado in May 1999, which had the highest winds ever recorded on Earth.

But Betsy Randolph of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol told local news station Skynews 9 that the damage on Monday appeared to exceed that of the 1999 tornado.

Tornadoes, hail and high winds also hit Iowa and Kansas, part of a storm system stretching from Texas to Minnesota.

On Sunday, a tornado smashed a trailer park on Highway 102 near Shawnee, Oklahoma.

Oklahoma’s state medical examiner confirmed earlier on Monday that two people had been killed in the area.

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Columbus Direct customers who have purchased their policies after 21 May 2013, 07:08 GMT  will not be covered under the policy for Travel Delay, Abandonment, or Missed Departure as a direct or indirect result of the bad weather.

Please note that the airlines should make themselves responsible for offering clients alternate flights / compensation for additional accommodation and so these elements would not be covered under the policy.

Please contact customer services if you have any queries.

Tel: 0845 888 8893
Email: admin@columbusdirect.com

Cyclone Mahasen: Bangladesh orders coastal evacuation

Hundreds of thousands of people are being evacuated from coastal areas of Bangladesh threatened by Cyclone Mahasen.

The Bangladeshi authorities have raised the danger level to seven out of 10 for low-lying areas around Chittagong and the coastal district of Cox’s Bazar. The cyclone, heading north-east through the Bay of Bengal, is estimated to reach land on Thursday.

Burma is also threatened and evacuation efforts are under way there.

Tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslims living in camps in low-lying areas of Burma’s Rakhine state are feared to be at risk. They were displaced by ethnic violence last year and many are reluctant to move from the camps.Projected path of Cyclone Mahasen

Hla Maung said he lost his mother and two young daughters during the clashes between Muslims and Buddhists. ”I lost everything … I don’t want to go anywhere. I’ll stay here. If I die, I want to die here,” he said.

The country’s National Planning Minister, Tin Naing Thein, said more than 150,000 people had been relocated to higher ground. The government said a fifth of those were Rohingyas.

‘Life-threatening’

The Bangladesh Meteorological Department said the storm could create a surge 2m high in coastal districts and residents are being urged to make for cyclone shelters.

The airport in Cox’s Bazar has closed and Chittagong airport is to shut over the next few hours. The United Nations Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs said Cyclone Mahasen appeared to have weakened to a Category One storm.

But the UN still described it as “life-threatening” for 8.2 million people in Bangladesh, Burma and north-east India.

At least 50 Rohingya Muslims were feared drowned on Tuesday when boats evacuating them from the path of the cyclone capsized off western Burma.

More than 100,000 people died in 2008 when Cyclone Nargis devastated many of Burma’s coastal villages.

Columbus Direct customers who have purchased their policies after 15 May 2013 09:59 GMT will not be covered under the policy for Travel Delay, Abandonment, or Missed Departure as a direct or indirect result of the storm.

Please note that the airlines should make themselves responsible for offering clients alternate flights / compensation for additional accommodation and so these elements would not be covered under the policy.

Please contact customer services if you have any queries.

Tel: 0845 888 8893
Email: admin@columbusdirect.com

Mexico on Alert as Popocatepetl Volcano Blows Steam

15 May 2013 Last updated at 02:31 GMT

Mexico on alert as Popocatepetl volcano blows steam

Mexico on alert as Popocatepetl volcano blows steam

Mexican authorities are preparing for possible evacuations after a volcano near Mexico City begin blowing steam on Tuesday.

Hundreds of soldiers have been sent to the area in case the Popocatepetl volcano does erupt. The evacuation of up to 11,000 local residents is needed.

 

The volcano has been quiet in the past few years, with the last major eruption in 2000.

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Columbus Direct customers who have purchased their policies after 15 May  2013, 02:31 GMT will not be covered under the policy.

Please note that the airlines should make themselves responsible for offering clients alternate flights / compensation for additional accommodation and so these elements would not be covered under the policy.

Please contact customer services if you have any queries.

Tel: 0845 888 8893
Email: admin@columbusdirect.com

Volcanic Ash – North America & Asia

Sunday 5 May 2013 15.00 BST

A remote Alaska volcano rumbled to life on Saturday with three explosions and started emitting a Cleveland Volcano Eruptioncontinuous plume of ash, steam and gas in an area important to air traffic, scientists said.

The low-level explosions at Cleveland Volcano, which lies below a major air-traffic route between North America and Asia, were not severe enough to cause a significant threat to planes. But the incident did prompt federal aviation authorities to divert some traffic north of the volcano as a precaution, said Rick Wessels, a US Geological Survey geophysicist at the Alaska Volcano Observatory.

“Based on the signals we can see, we think it’s continuously in an eruption right now,” Wessels said of the volcano, which is located 940 miles [1,500 km] southwest of Anchorage.

Cleveland Volcano, which has been restless since mid-2011, is on an uninhabited island in one of the most sparsely populated regions of the world, although major eruptions could cause potential aviation threats. Federal Aviation Administration officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

The 5,676ft volcano began oozing lava in the summer of 2011, causing lava domes to form at the crater and allowing pressure to build inside the peak. There have since been 20 to 25 explosions at sporadic intervals, Wessels said. But Saturday’s trio of explosions was a new turn of events. “We haven’t seen a phase like this where we’ve had multiple explosions,” he said.

So far, the cloud streaming from Cleveland’s crater has reached only about 15,000ft – too low to cause damage to higher-flying jet airliners. “Once it gets to about twice that, we get really worried,” Wessels said.

If the eruption becomes stronger, the National Weather Service will advise mariners to avoid the area, he said. Still, scientists have been put on around-the-clock duty to try to track Cleveland’s activities, he said. “It’s got us all paying attention. We’re not sure if it will escalate or do what Cleveland does, which is to settle down after small explosions,” he said.

It is difficult for scientists to monitor Cleveland Volcano because there is no seismic equipment on the mountain. Alaska Volcano Observatory scientists rely on satellite data, signals from a different volcano about 50 miles away, eyewitness reports and other information. Cleveland Volcano, which occupies about half of Chuginadak Island, is the only one of Alaska’s 90 active volcanoes which is believed to have killed a person in an eruption. A soldier on the island during World War Two disappeared during an eruption, according to Observatory scientists.

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Please note that the airlines should make themselves responsible for offering clients alternate flights / compensation for additional accommodation and so these elements would not be covered under the policy.

Columbus Direct customers who have purchased their policies after 5 May  2013, 15:00 GMT will not be covered under the policy.

Please contact customer services if you have any queries.

Tel: 0845 888 8893
Email: admin@columbusdirect.com

Severe Weather Warning – Strong Winds

Tue, 07 May 2013 11:29AM

A severe weather warning has been issued for very strong winds across much of southern A severe weather warning has been issued for very strong winds across much of southern England, including the Isle of Wight, for Thursday.England, including the Isle of Wight, for Thursday.

The Met Office has issued the yellow warning, saying that very strong south westerly winds for the time of year could see gusts of 50 mph and up to 60mph along the coasts.

The weather forecaster said the public should be aware that some disruption to transport is possible along with possible damage to trees.

The warning is valid between 9am and 9pm on Thursday.

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Columbus Direct customers who have purchased their policies after 7 May 2013, 11:29 GMT will not be covered under the policy for Travel Delay, Abandonment, or Missed Departure as a direct or indirect result of the bad weather.

Please note that the airlines should make themselves responsible for offering clients alternate flights / compensation for additional accommodation and so these elements would not be covered under the policy.

Please contact customer services if you have any queries.

Tel: 0845 888 8893
Email: admin@columbusdirect.com

Lufthansa strike sees ‘massive’ flight cancellations

Lufthansa is offering free alternative bookings

22 April 2013 Last updated at 01:38 GMT

German airline Lufthansa has cancelled the majority of its flights scheduled for Monday due to a Lufthansa Strikestrike over pay.

The airline said only about 20 of its flights would run as planned, out of more than 1,700 originally scheduled.

Flights to and from London, Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle, Glasgow, Dublin, Aberdeen and Edinburgh will be hit. German airports affected are Frankfurt, Munich, Dusseldorf and Hamburg.

The airline said the strike, second in the last two months, was uncalled for.

“It’s completely out of proportion,” a Lufthansa spokesman was quoted as saying by the Reuters news agency.

“Especially given that four further dates for pay talks had already been agreed upon.”

Common tactic

Ground staff have called a one-day strike amid an ongoing pay dispute with the airline.

Like many airlines, Lufthansa is looking to cut costs in the face of stiff competition from low-cost carriers and big Gulf airlines, as well as rising fuel prices.

Last week, Lufthansa rejected union demands for a 5.2% wage increase over the next 12 months.

Strikers are also looking for guarantees over job cuts.

Unions staged a similar one-day strike last month. Short “warning strikes” are a common tactic among German unions, designed to put pressure on wage negotiations.

In a statement on its website, Lufthansa said passengers should expect “massive” flight cancellations and delays that will start to affect long-haul flights from Sunday.

The airline said it was offering free alternative bookings.

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Columbus Direct customers who have purchased their policies after today 22 April 2013, 01:38 GMT will not be covered under the policy for the strike above.

Please refer to the respective sections of the policy wording and contact customer services if you have any queries.

Tel: 0845 888 8893
Email: admin@columbusdirect.com

Angolan Floods

8 April 2013 Last updated at 12:22 GMTAngola Floods

At least nine people have died in Angola’s capital, Luanda, after weekend floods caused by torrential rains.

Four people are also missing after a storm led to the flooding of hundreds of houses, a government official told Angola’s Angop news agency.

Landslides forced the closure of some roads, including one near the port, it was reported.

Angola, a major oil producer, is recovering from a 27-year civil war which ended in 2002.

Government official Antonio Resende told Angop the deaths were caused by flood damage to houses.

The areas affected by the flood were on the outskirts of the city, including the Kilamba Kiaxi housing development recently built by the Chinese, Reuters news agency reports.

There has been a construction boom in Luanda in recent years to build infrastructure and housing for the millions of people who sought refuge in the city during the civil war.

Correspondents say property prices are very expensive and many of the city’s residents still live in sprawling slums.

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Columbus Direct customers who have purchased their policies after 8 April 2013, 12:22 GMT will not be covered under the policy for Travel Delay, Abandonment, or Missed Departure as a direct or indirect result of the bad weather.

Please note that the airlines should make themselves responsible for offering clients alternate flights / compensation for additional accommodation and so these elements would not be covered under the policy.

Please contact customer services if you have any queries.

Tel: 0845 888 8893
Email: admin@columbusdirect.com

Bahrain Anniversary Protests

14th February 2013 Last updated at 10:15 GMT

Hundreds have taken to the streets to mark the second anniversary of an uprising in the Sunni-ruled kingdom

The Bahraini government has announced an investigation into the death of teenage boy during protests marking the second anniversary of a failed uprising.

Anti-government demonstrators have set up road blocks and clashed with members of the security forces.

Opposition groups have called for a general strike.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International has called for the release of what it calls Bahrain’s “prisoners of conscience”.

The call by the human rights organisation comes on the anniversary of a protest movement that has led to two years of unrest and violence.

The organisation has adopted 22 political activists as prisoners of conscience, including several sentenced to life imprisonment.

Amnesty International Middle East and North Africa Deputy Director Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui said: “The government of Bahrain cannot carry on imprisoning people simply because it can’t take criticism.”

The death of a teenage boy in renewed clashes today is a further reminder that the simmering insurgency in Bahrain’s Shia villages is far from over. The government says it is investigating his death, the opposition is calling him a martyr, while some on Twitter are questioning why he wasn’t in school.

The clashes that have erupted on this second anniversary of the 14 February protest movement will be used by sceptics on both sides who do not want the current round of reconciliation talks between government and opposition to succeed.

Many Shias doubt the ruling family’s sincerity about granting more democracy and believe it is simply stringing the opposition along while giving away almost nothing. But many Sunnis and expatriates – who make up half the country’s resident population – say legitimate, peaceful protest often descends into riots and vandalism.

He added: “Many of the allegations put forward by the prisoners of conscience have still not been investigated by the authorities.”

‘Charges wrong’

Correspondents say that Thursday’s protest could mar reconciliation talks which began last week between opposition groups and the government and its loyalists in a bid to end political deadlock.

Witnesses said that the protest turned violent when police fired shotguns and teargas to disperse the crowds, wounding several people, witnesses said.

The website of the main opposition al-Wefaq group said that the boy, 16, was killed on Thursday in the village of Daih “when the regime forces targeted him with birdshot at close range”.

It says that the the teenager “sustained a serious injury to his stomach” and was taken to hospital before he died.

The interior ministry acknowledged that one person had been “brought in with injuries, but it turned out he had later died”.

The ministry said rioters had blocked several roads and security forces were seeking to restore order.

Witnesses reported that several roads connecting villages around Manama had been blocked, while schools for Westerners remained closed.

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Please be advised that delays or other claims as a result of the violent protests occurring within Bahrain will not be covered as we exclude hostilities from the policy cover. Please refer to the respective Exclusions Applicable to the Whole Policy with regards to hostilities.

Please note that Columbus Direct customers who have purchased their policies after 10.15 (GMT) today (14 Feb 2013) will not be covered under the policy for the planned strike above.

Please refer to the respective sections of the policy wording.

If you have any queries please contact customer services

Tel: 0845 888 8893
Email: admin@columbusdirect.com

British Consulate say: We’re not directory enquiries!

Recent enquiries received by Foreign Office staff in Spain include a request for Phil Collins’ telephone number, whilst a man asked staff to contact his dominatrix after she had left him stranded at the airport.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is today reminding British travellers of the role of its global network of Embassies, High Commissions and Consulates as staff continue to be approached for weather forecasts and ticket bookings. 

Other enquiries received by Foreign Office staff include:

  • A man rang the Consulate in Sydney to find out what clothes he should pack for his holiday
  • A Brit in Sofia asked the Consulate if they could sell his house for him
  • A man called the Consulate in Florida to report that there were ants in his holiday villa and asked for advice on what he should do 
    • A lady complained to the Embassy in Moscow about a loud buzzing noise in her apartment – she wanted someone to visit her flat and advise the authorities to stop the noise
    • A caller in Spain wondered what shoe size Prince Charles wears so they could send him a pair of shoes as a present
    • A man asked a Consulate in Greece for information on how to go about putting a chicken coop in his garden
    • A man asked Consular staff in Dubai to meet his dog on arrival at customs and help the dog through the customs process, as he would be on holiday when the dog arrived 
      • A caller asked staff in Malaga in mid-September where she could get a Christmas lunch as everywhere she had phoned was already booked up
      • Staff in Greece were asked for tips on the best fishing spots and where to purchase good bait

Jeremy Browne, Minister for Consular Affairs, said: “We will always try to help where we can but there are limits to the support that we can provide.  It is important that people understand the level of help we can offer.  Our priority is to help people in real difficulty abroad and we cannot do this if our time is diverted by people trying to use us as a concierge service.  We need to be able to focus primarily on helping victims of serious crimes, supporting people who have been detained or assisting people who have lost a loved one abroad.”   

The FCO set up the Iberia Contact Centre in Malaga earlier this year to cope with the volume of non-consular enquiries received by British Embassies and Consulates in Spain, Portugal, Italy and Andorra.  The centre filters calls so that Consular staff can focus their resources on situations where they can provide assistance.

Maria Leng, Consular official in Tenerife, said: “A lot of our time was being taken up with queries that we could not assist with but now the Malaga call centre is making a big difference by filtering enquiries.  We can issue emergency travel documents or visit you in hospital but we can’t pick you up from the airport or make private arrangements.”

How the FCO can help you when you’re abroad:

The FCO can:

  • Issue you with replacement travel documents
  • Provide information about transferring money
  • Provide help if you have suffered rape or serious sexual or physical assault, are a victim of crime, are ill or in hospital
  • Give you a list of local lawyers, interpreters, doctors or funeral directors
  • Contact you if you are detained abroad
  • Contact friends and family back home for you if you wish
  • Provide help in cases of forced marriage
  • Assist people affected by parental child abduction

The FCO can’t:

  • Help you enter a country if you don’t have a valid passport or necessary visas
  • Give you legal advice or translate documents
  • Investigate crimes or get you out of prison
  • Get you better treatment in hospital or prison than is given to local people
  • Pay any bills or give you money
  • Make travel arrangements for you

For insight into the range of Consular incidents across the globe over a real 24 hour period visit: http://www.youtube.com/embed/nbO-k0zJkqE  

Full details of how the Foreign Office can provide support to British nationals when things go wrong abroad are outlined in the publication, Support for British nationals abroad: A guide: www.fco.gov.uk/travel

Greek air traffic controllers to cause further flight disruption

Another period of Greek industrial action started again last night resulting in airlines warning passengers of potential delays and disruption. Air traffic controllers went on a strike from midnight last night and is expected to last 48 hours.

British Airways and easyJet said flights to and from Greece would be affected tomorrow and Thursday.

EasyJet is offering passengers booked on flights from Gatwick, Manchester, Liverpool and Bristol to Athens and the Greek islands tomorrow and Thursday the option to transfer their booking to another flight.

BA said passengers should check the status of their flight before travelling to the airport.

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All existing customers whose policies were purchased prior to Tuesday 18th October 2011 12:00 GMT will still have claims considered under the Travel Delay, Abandonment and Missed Departure sections of their polices.

Due to the above, please note that any policies purchased after Tuesday 18th October 2011 12:00 GMT will not be covered under the policy for these strikes for Travel Delay, Abandonment and Missed Departure claims.

Please note that the airlines should make themselves responsible for offering clients alternate flights / compensation for additional accommodation and so these elements would not be covered under the policy.