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Hydrau

The newsletter that makes sense of natural disasters.

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Tsunami Watch… Broken?, Lombok, INDONESIA

Catastrophic scenarios during holidays only exist in disaster movies, don’t they? We already worry enough hoping the weather will be good for our holidays, we’re not going to spend even more energy thinking about impossible events. Yet, you should know the precedent in this country: Indonesia. 130,000 people killed by a tsunami the day after Christmas 2004. So… the impossible scenario is not just possible, it already happened. Did you take that into account? July 7, 2026, Senggigi Beach,...
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❄️ Off-Piste Skiing Triggers Avalanche, Alps

February 7, 2026, Unknown Location, Alps. It is a nice day. Really, a very nice day Snow is fresh from the night, people are skiing in t-shirts on the ski slopes. Yeah.. really, what to ask more. Because after 3 days of going down the same slopes, the search for the excitement of the first time comes back quickly. That’s great because 2 people in your group of friends know off-piste well and do it often near their place. So in the early afternoon, you decide to follow them, it’s not the first...
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❄️ Ice Storm Strikes Ontario, CANADA

January 3, 2026, Flamborough, Ontario For this edition, I should add another info : -20°C / -4°F And yet, it is the warmest day of the last 3and the coldest of the next 3. But unfortunately, the worst is not behind. This ice storm didn’t just freeze the roads, your bones, and daily life; it froze the power lines feeding your neighborhood. It’s been a few hours now since the power went out in your home. Knowing that the municipality has opened a warming center a few miles away, your partner...
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🪨 After a Super Typhoon in Baguio, PHILIPPINES

November 22, 2025 — Baguio, Philippines The last 36 hours will be remembered. Yes, the Philippines IS the country most hit by Typhoons. But this one will leave scars. Still, your preparations and a bit of luck kept you safe. Or at least alive. The storm has passed, and it’s time to go outside. As you step out, you start to realize the extent of the damage. Baguio after a Typhoon Trees have fallen,Power lines hang low,Roofs lie scattered across the streets. It is not your first typhoon, and......
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🌋 Mount Etna Eruption on a hike, Sicily, ITALY

June 2, 2025 – Sicily, Italy Mount Etna is one of the most active volcanoes in Europe. But also one of the most visited: 1.5 million people a year So hiking is common there. Both for the views of Sicily, and for its frequent effusive eruptions: lava fountains and flows. Of course, it isn’t possible to hike all the way to the summit (3,326 m) for safety reasons. But most hikers climb up to 2,900–3,000 m on marked trails. These days, the volcano is quiet. No lava in sight, and little chance of...
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🌧️ Cévenol Episode Flooding Nîmes, FRANCE

October 25, 2025 – Nîmes, France Since early morning, rain has been falling almost without pause. The rivers are filling up, and the sky hasn’t cleared once. This is what locals call a “cévenol” A storm born when warm, humid air from the Mediterranean collides with cooler air over the Cévennes mountains It forces massive amounts of water to fall on the valleys below, including Nîmes Downtown Nîmes in the rain But that’s not where you are this afternoon, Because you’ve just had a long French...
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🔥 First Smoke Seen from the Beach, Rhodes, GREECE

July 11, 2025 – Faliraki, Rhodes, Greece A seaside paradise resort in the southeast of Greece Faliraki is known for its long sandy beach opening onto the Mediterranean Sea. It’s one of the most famous tourist spots on the island of Rhodes, So this is the dream place you chose for your week of vacation in Europe. Beach at Faliraki Early afternoon Not the best time to sit under the sun, yet the beach is at its busiest. The sound of chatter and music fills the air. Then the chatter grows louder....
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🌀 Category 4 Hurricane Heading for Fort Myers, FLORIDA

September 27, 2025 – Fort Myers, Florida Founded as a military post in the mid-1800s. It later grew into a river city, stretched along the Caloosahatchee, just a few miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico. Getty Image Sunrise in the city. For the past few days, a hurricane had been tracked in the Gulf. Its sudden shift toward Fort Myers in the last hours has residents on edge. As the city wakes, every phone buzzes with the same alert: “ ALERT — Mandatory evacuation order. Hurricane Selene is...
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⚠️ 7.4 Magnitude Earthquake in Valparaíso, CHILE

September 13, 2025 – Valparaíso, Chile The “Valley of Paradise” (Valle Paraíso). A port city built on steep hills, open to the Pacific Ocean. View of Valparaíso Late afternoon. People are heading home from work, climbing one of the many sloping streets that lead to the southern residential districts. Colorful houses line both sides, pressed tightly together. You take your usual path: a narrow street, barely ten meters wide, with parked cars on one side. One of the colourful streets of...
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