Please find below links to some aspects of disaster resilience that were in the news recently…
Recent emergencies/disasters
Extreme rainfall hits Hebei and Beijing, forcing mass evacuations https://watchers.news/2025/07/27/extreme-rainfall-flood-hebei-baoding-beijing-china-july-2025/
Flash floods hit Chicago after over 150 mm (6 inches) of rain in under 2 hours https://watchers.news/2025/07/26/flash-floods-chicago-150mm-6inches-rain-2-hours/
Fires engulf Turkey’s coast as government declares disaster zones https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/fire-turkey-karabuk-manavgat-tourists-b2795963.html
Massive tornado damages buildings near Watertown, South Dakota https://watchers.news/2025/07/28/tornado-damage-watertown-south-dakota-july-2025/
17 dead, over 1 700 evacuated as wildfires sweep through Bursa Province, Türkiye https://watchers.news/2025/07/28/17-dead-1-700-evacuated-wildfires-sweep-through-bursa-province-turkiye/
Rapidly spreading wildfire traps beachgoers at Punta Molentis, destroys dozens of vehicles in Sardinia, Italy https://watchers.news/2025/07/28/rapidly-spreading-wildfire-traps-beachgoers-destroys-vehicles-punta-molentis-sardinia/
At least 11 deaths linked to scorching heatwave in S. Korea https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/at-least-11-deaths-linked-to-scorching-heat-wave-in-s-korea
Eastern US swelters from heatwave as high temperatures affect half of country https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/28/us-weather-heatwave-temperatures-east
30 dead and over 80 000 evacuated as extreme rainfall hits Beijing, China https://watchers.news/2025/07/29/30-dead-80-000-evacuated-extreme-rainfall-beijing-china/
At least 5 fatalities reported in Jharkhand as flooding submerges over 60 homes in Jamshedpur, India https://watchers.news/2025/07/28/jharkhand-floods-5-dead-homes-submerged-jamshedpur-india/
Firefighters In ‘Titanic Battle’ As Wildfires Rage In Greece https://time.com/7305736/firefighters-in-titanic-battle-as-wildfires-rage-in-greece/
Dozens killed as heavy rains and floods wreck Beijing’s infrastructure https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-29/beijing-heavy-rain-and-floods-kill-30-people/105587190
Powerful M8.8 earthquake and tsunami strike Kamchatka Peninsula, sixth strongest earthquake on record https://watchers.news/2025/07/30/powerful-m8-8-earthquake-tsunami-kamchatka-sixth-strongest-recorded/
Tsunami threat remains in Chile and French Polynesia as other countries downgrade alerts https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-31/tsunami-warnings-still-active-after-russian-earthquake/105593378
Severe floods leave at least 25 dead and thousands displaced in Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria https://watchers.news/2025/07/30/severe-floods-leave-at-least-25-dead-and-thousands-displaced-in-yola-adamawa-state-nigeria/
Turkey battles wildfires, at least 14 people killed https://www.lemonde.fr/en/environment/article/2025/07/28/wildfires-threaten-turkey-s-fourth-largest-city-as-southern-europe-grapples-with-blazes_6743791_114.html
Extratropical cyclone brings damaging winds and coastal flooding to Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil https://watchers.news/2025/07/30/extratropical-cyclone-brings-damaging-winds-coastal-flooding-rio-grande-do-sul-brazil/
Volcanic activity worldwide 31 Jul 2025: Santiaguito volcano, Klyuchevskoy, Barren Island, Shiveluch https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/volcano-activity/news/276968/Volcanic-activity-worldwide-31-Jul-2025-Santiaguito-volcano-Klyuchevskoy-Barren-Island-Shiveluch.html
Monsoonal rain triggers flash floods at burn scars in Ruidoso, New Mexico https://watchers.news/2025/07/31/monsoonal-rain-flash-floods-burn-scars-ruidoso-new-mexico/
Flash flood after cloudburst kills three in Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, during early-morning hours https://watchers.news/2025/07/31/flash-flood-cloudburst-kills-three-mandi-himachal-pradesh-during-early-morning-hours/
Hundreds evacuated after series of rockfalls in Italy’s Brenta Dolomites https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/30/rockfalls-italy-brenta-dolomites-alps-climate-crisis
Extreme Weather and Climate Change
Level 4 HeatRisk alert issued for over 30 million people in the Southeastern United States https://watchers.news/2025/07/26/level-4-heatrisk-alert-southeastern-united-states-30-million-people/
Climate change is increasing the number of devastating forest fires https://www.climatechangepost.com/news/climate-change-is-increasing-the-number-of-devastating-forest-fires/
The First Planned Migration of an Entire Country Is Underway https://www.wired.com/story/the-first-planned-migration-of-an-entire-country-is-underway/
China’s carbon emissions may have peaked thanks to renewables push https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-27/chinas-co2-emissions-may-have-peaked-thanks-to-renewable-energy/105549598
Caribbean leaders hail ICJ climate ruling as ‘historic’ win for small island states https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/25/caribbean-leaders-hail-icj-climate-ruling-as-historic-win-for-small-island-states
Turkey sets new record of 50.5 degrees as Europe swelters https://www.dw.com/en/turkey-sets-new-record-of-505-degrees-as-europe-swelters/a-73426915
New climate plans must supercharge energy transition, says UN’s Guterres https://www.climatechangenews.com/2025/07/22/new-climate-plans-must-supercharge-energy-transition-says-uns-guterres/
Las Vegas leaders are banking on trees for cooling. The science is complicated https://www.bradenton.com/news/nation-world/national/article311486993.html
Plant trees to tackle deadly heatwaves, say experts https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0l4j8wkrw7o
One year on: Collective action where the heat hits hardest https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/one-year-collective-action-where-heat-hits-hardest-kamal-kishore-dlric
How flood-ravaged Boston took on the climate deniers – and won https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jul/24/flood-boston-climate-deniers-trump-administration-coastal-city-resilient
Scientists issue warning about concerning trend in extreme US weather: ‘Significantly windier and rainier’ https://www.thecooldown.com/outdoors/rising-noreasters-intensity-climate-change/
As heat rises in Wisconsin, new analysis finds heat streaks are becoming more common https://www.wpr.org/news/heat-rises-wisconsin-analysis-heat-streaks-more-common
State of the climate: 2025 on track to be second or third warmest year on record https://www.carbonbrief.org/state-of-the-climate-2025-on-track-to-be-second-or-third-warmest-year-on-record/
Rapid Ocean Warming https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-matters/rapid-ocean-warming-2025
Historical model biases in monthly high temperature anomalies indicate under-estimation of future temperature extremes https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-025-02579-5
Cities Are Heating Up. Better Infrastructure Can Cool Them Down https://www.wri.org/insights/urban-heat-effect-solutions
Flames to floods: How Europe’s devastating wildfires are fueling its next climate crisis https://phys.org/news/2025-07-flames-europe-devastating-wildfires-fueling.html
‘Sponge City’: How Copenhagen Is Adapting to a Wetter Future https://e360.yale.edu/features/copenhagen-sponge-cities
Disaster risk reduction
Anticipatory finance: An introductory guide https://www.preventionweb.net/publication/anticipatory-finance-introductory-guide
Floodplains belong to rivers https://www.texasobserver.org/flooding-houston-hill-country-planning/
Study finds 10 times more quakes in Yellowstone than earlier records showed https://watchers.news/2025/07/26/yellowstone-earthquakes-machine-learning-reveals-10x-more-events/
Early Warnings For All Implementation Toolkit https://earlywarningsforall.org/site/early-warnings-all/early-warnings-all-programmatic-framework-country-level-implementation/implementation-toolkit
Understanding Polycrisis: Definitions, Applications, and Responses https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/global-sustainability/article/understanding-polycrisis-definitions-applications-and-responses/970EC4CDD3698E3D5F0162C94900246A
Global South shows higher urban flood exposures than the Global North under current and future scenarios https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-025-02585-7
Identifying landslide threats using hydrological predictors https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2025/07/identifying-landslide-threats-using-hydrological-predictors/
Fighting fire with innovation: a pan-European push to tackle extreme wildfires https://projects.research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/en/horizon-magazine/fighting-fire-innovation-pan-european-push-tackle-extreme-wildfires
What the Los Angeles fires taught us about a catastrophe peril unlike any other https://www.moodys.com/web/en/us/insights/insurance/what-the-los-angeles-fires-taught-us-about-a-catastrophe-peril-u.html
Unauthorised roadside campfire prompts warning for tourists https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-27/campfire-bushfire-incident-reminds-campers-of-campfire-rules/105558460
3 things we’re getting wrong about disasters in America https://thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/5423995-disaster-response-system-failure/
Tsunami warnings are triggering mass evacuations across the Pacific – even though the waves look small. Here’s why https://theconversation.com/tsunami-warnings-are-triggering-mass-evacuations-across-the-pacific-even-though-the-waves-look-small-heres-why-262224
Disaster-ready housing starts local, says landmark inquiry https://www.unsw.edu.au/newsroom/news/2025/07/disaster-ready-housing-starts-local-says-landmark-inquiry
Kamchatka earthquake is among top 10 strongest ever recorded. Here’s what they have in common https://theconversation.com/kamchatka-earthquake-is-among-top-10-strongest-ever-recorded-heres-what-they-have-in-common-262223
Emergency Management
Cyprus wildfires: The frustration of delayed aid and the EU mechanism under scrutiny https://in-cyprus.philenews.com/local/cyprus-wildfires-the-frustration-of-delayed-aid-and-the-eu-mechanism-under-scrutiny/
620 personnel, 51 vehicles, and 4 helicopters involved in firefighting efforts in Azerbaijan’s Aghdara https://en.apa.az/incident/620-personnel-51-vehicles-and-4-helicopters-involved-in-firefighting-efforts-in-azerbaijans-aghdara-video-473793
FEMA under fire for 24-hour delay in sending search and rescue teams to deadly Texas floods https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/article/fema-richardson-texas-flooding-20782256.php
Is that wildfire smoke plume hazardous? New satellite tech can map smoke plumes in 3D for better air quality alerts at neighborhood scale https://theconversation.com/is-that-wildfire-smoke-plume-hazardous-new-satellite-tech-can-map-smoke-plumes-in-3d-for-better-air-quality-alerts-at-neighborhood-scale-259654
America is remaking its disaster-relief system https://www.economist.com/united-states/2025/07/28/america-is-remaking-its-disaster-relief-system
‘Never again’ for deadly Texas floods? Here’s how to fix crisis response https://www.star-telegram.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/other-voices/article311177285.html
California bill to turn lost Pacific Palisades homes into affordable housing paused after locals call it ‘a land grab’ https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/california-bill-turn-lost-pacific-101500316.html
Google failed to warn 10 million of Turkey earthquake severity https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c77v2kx304go
Insurance losses soar on Los Angeles fires and US storms, says global re-insurer Munich Re https://www.straitstimes.com/world/insurance-losses-soar-on-los-angeles-fires-us-storms-munich-re
News analysis: European wildfires start early, putting pressure on firefighting resources https://www.airmedandrescue.com/latest/long-read/news-analysis-european-wildfires-start-early-putting-pressure-firefighting
Disaster Education, Communications and Engagement
Burns survivor wants to use second chance to teach others about fire safety https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-27/burns-survivor-tim-haslam-thanks-fiona-wood-for-second-chance/105567722
Almost 20 Years After Katrina, a Filmmaker Visited New Orleans. Everyone Told Her the Same Thing https://www.newsweek.com/hurricane-katrina-race-against-time-interview-director-traci-curry-2103917
Flood Safety https://thefloodhub.co.uk/flood-safety/
Two energy projects, two vastly different approaches to community engagement https://reneweconomy.com.au/two-energy-projects-two-vastly-different-approaches-to-community-engagement/
Natural Flood Management Leaflet https://rainnorthants.co.uk/natural-flood-management-leaflet/
Disaster psychology
European Court of Human Rights and Mental Health https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S3050713825000129
Crowds as Fluids https://ukresilienceacademy.org/resources/crowds_as_fluids/
Sociology and disasters
Social homophily predicts evacuation destination choice and long-term displacement decisions after the Marshall Fire https://arxiv.org/html/2507.18270v1
Networks in crisis: Measuring ethnic stratification and organizational reach post-disaster https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2212420925003851
Socioeconomic disparities in heat vulnerability among adults in Finland https://www.preventionweb.net/publication/documents-and-publications/socioeconomic-disparities-heat-vulnerability-among-adults
Community Resilience to Disaster Risk in Older Adults: Socio‑Community Attributes and Resilient Dimensions Produced via Participatory Strategies https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/jcop.70030
Rising compound hot-dry extremes engendering more inequality in human exposure risks https://www.preventionweb.net/publication/documents-and-publications/rising-compound-hot-dry-extremes-engendering-more-inequality
Disaster Resilience News 