http://remotesensing.usgs.gov/ Hazards and Disasters Events. Links and contacts within this release are valid at the time of publication. /feature/description.php?id=297 In the summer of 2012 a series of fires burned the Cerrado savanna in northeastern Brazil. Landsat imagery illustrate conditions before, during, and after the fires. 2013-01-25 /feature/description.php?id=296 Extremely hot and dry weather in southern Australia has led to a number of brush fires. On the island of Tasmania, south of the Australian continent, fires that started in early 2013 have already burned over 148,000 acres. 2013-01-14 /feature/description.php?id=289 A large grass fire that started August 2 burned over 58,000 acres of grassland and destroyed over 380 homes in Creek County, Oklahoma. Residents of small towns in the path of the fire were evacuated in this drought stricken area west of the city of Tulsa. 2012-09-28 /feature/description.php?id=287 Landsat satellite data, acquired and processed by the U.S. Geological Survey, illustrate the effects of Hurricane Isaac on land between Lake Maurepas and Lake Pontchartrain northwest of New Orleans, Louisiana. 2012-09-07 /feature/description.php?id=286 The 2012 drought, which has affected much of the cropland in the Midwest and the western United States, has also had a major effect on the level of the Mississippi River. The diminishing flow of the river has delayed barge traffic and movement of cargoes to ports at the lower mouth of the river 2012-08-31 /feature/description.php?id=285 Fires continue to destroy residences, grassland cover, and forests in the western United States. Landsat images, acquired and processed by the U.S. Geological Survey, illustrate the damage caused by fires in the Nevada/Oregon border region. 2012-08-24 /feature/description.php?id=284 As the largest interior marsh in the United States, Cheyenne Bottoms provides a resting place for millions of migrating birds every fall. As the water levels dwindle and disappear, wildlife officials are concerned that the effects could be devastating for the habitat. 2012-08-16 /feature/description.php?id=283 In late July, a large fire developed in the Creek County area in northeastern Oklahoma. Within days, over 91 square miles were burned and a number of residents in Mannford and Kellyville were evacuated. 2012-08-08 /feature/description.php?id=281 Landsat images of the Mount St. Helens region in southwestern Washington illustrate the conditions before, shortly after, and decades after the eruptions of the Mount St. Helens volcano in 1980. 2012-08-06 /feature/description.php?id=278 Wildfires are doing severe damage in a number of western U.S. states. Extremely dry conditions, stiff winds, unusually warm weather, and trees killed by pine bark beetle outbreaks have created a situation in which major fires thrive. 2012-07-16 /feature/description.php?id=276 These Landsat images show the Omaha, Nebraska area during the flooding in June 2011, and again recently on June 8, 2012. 2012-07-06 /feature/description.php?id=272 Sparked by lightning on June 9, 2012, the High Park Fire has burned over 58,000 acres near and in Roosevelt National Forest, just west of Fort Collins, Colorado. 2012-06-25 /feature/description.php?id=262 On May 22, 2011, the city of Joplin, Missouri, was devastated by a catastrophic EF5 multiple vortex tornado. These Landsat images show the area of Joplin, Missouri, on May 7, 2011, on June 8, 2011, after the tornado touched down, and again recently on May 9, 2012. 2012-05-16 /feature/description.php?id=248 In 2005, large fires caused extensive damage to forested regions in the Cordillera Central, the mountains in the Dominican Republic. The February 2011 image shows the regrowth of the forest lands. The fire scars are covered by darker green tones representing developing forest lands. 2012-01-12 /feature/description.php?id=235 Extreme dry conditions have led to major fires in north central Australia the past year. In February, fires along the coast caused extensive damage and loss of life. 2011-10-06 /feature/description.php?id=233 In spring of 2011, the communities along the Missouri River were threatened by high flows and record releases from dams in Montana and the Dakotas. One community especially hard hit was Hamburg, Iowa (pop. 1,300). 2011-09-21 /feature/description.php?id=232 Severe drought conditions throughout much of the summer of 2011 have sparked many wildfires throughout Texas. 2011 has been reported to be the most severe single-year drought since the 1950s and received the lowest single-year rainfall since the late 1800s. 2011-09-15 /feature/description.php?id=231 Tropical Depression Lee formed in late August 2011 and made landfall in the Gulf Coast area during Labor Day weekend. The center of the storm stretched across the central Gulf Coast, dumping torrential rains in the low lying bayou communities of Louisiana. 2011-09-13 /feature/description.php?id=228 The flooding from Hurricane Irene, shown here in a Landsat 5 TM image from August 31, 2011 (right), may bring an early end this year for much of the vegetable harvest in this region. 2011-09-09 /feature/description.php?id=226 Lightning sparked a fire on June 19, 2011, within the Holly Shelter Game Land in North Carolina. Hot, dry conditions fueled the fast ignition of over 30,000 acres of thick evergreen shrubs and deep highly flammable coal-like soil. 2011-08-29 /feature/description.php?id=224 In February, 1991, hundreds of oil wells in Kuwait were set ablaze during the early stages of the Desert Storm conflict. 2011-08-10 /feature/description.php?id=222 On April 30, 2011, lightning caused wildfires near the Okefenokee National Wildlife refuge in the Honey Prairie region of Georgia. 2011-07-26 /feature/description.php?id=221 Landsat satellite imagery illustrate the extensive damage caused by the Las Conchas fires in New Mexico. 2011-07-19 /feature/description.php?id=220 The Puyehue volcano in Chile erupted on June 4, 2011, after being dormant for over 50 years. 2011-07-13 /feature/description.php?id=219 The city of Minot, divided by the river, has been especially hard hit by the flooding which is due to unusually heavy rainfall in southern Canada and North Dakota. The river has inundated over 4,000 homes and forced over 11,000 residents to evacuate. 2011-06-29 /feature/description.php?id=218 The Richardson backcounty fires started in mid-May, 2011. Within days they combined to create the largest wildfire in Alberta since 1919, a fire still not under control. 2011-06-22 /feature/description.php?id=217 The second largest fire in Arizona history, the Wallow Fire is graphically depicted by this Landsat image, taken June 7, which shows burning in the mountains of eastern Arizona near the border with New Mexico. 2011-06-13 /feature/description.php?id=211 Landsat 5 images acquired during the fires in 2009, and again in 2011, show the drastic burn scars and re-growth of the areas. 2011-05-27 /feature/description.php?id=210 The lower Mississippi River is rising to nearly the record height of 1927. To relieve pressure on downstream levees protecting Baton Rouge and New Orleans, gates at the Morganza Spillway were opened. 2011-05-19 /feature/description.php?id=209 Landsat satellite data recorded major flooding in the Memphis, Tennessee, area on May 10, 2011. 2011-05-17 /feature/description.php?id=208 Landsat satellite data illustrate the tremendous damage done by recent tornadoes which touched the ground in the southeastern United States recently. 2011-05-16 /feature/description.php?id=206 Seasonal flooding is fairly common in the lower Mississippi River Basin in south central United States. Landsat satellite data are used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and state officials to monitor the extent and the timing of periodic flooding. 2011-04-26 /feature/description.php?id=203 Extreme drought and high winds have fueled many wildfires in west Texas recently. 2011-04-25 /feature/description.php?id=197 A massive earthquake, and subsequent tsunami, struck the northeast coast of Japan on Friday, March 11, 2011. 2011-03-30 /feature/description.php?id=196 A massive earthquake, and subsequent tsunami, struck the northeast coast of Japan on Friday, March 11, 2011. 2011-03-17 /feature/description.php?id=194 The Great Artesian Basin in Central Queensland has been subjected to the worst flooding in modern history. By late January, 35 people died as a result of the flooding and over $5 billion in damage was recorded. 2011-02-08 /feature/description.php?id=192 2010-09-24 /feature/description.php?id=191 On June 20, 2010, a forest fire, caused by an improperly extinguished camp fire, started near Flagstaff, Arizona. 2010-07-20 /feature/description.php?id=190 On April 20, 2010, an explosion at an oil well in the Gulf of Mexico resulted in a major oil spill. Since then, emergency response efforts have been underway to cap the leaking well system. 2010-05-11 /feature/description.php?id=187 On April 20, 2010, an explosion at an oil well in the Gulf of Mexico resulted in a major oil spill. 2010-05-04 /feature/description.php?id=184 These images show a portion of the Northwest Territories in 1992, and again in 1995. Unburned forest is shown in darker green tones; burn scars show in shades of orange. 2010-02-03 /feature/description.php?id=182 Landsat satellite data, acquired before and during the fires in Southern California show the region affected and the size of the major burns. 2009-09-01 /feature/description.php?id=181 Landsat 5 satellite images acquired by the U.S. Geological Survey illustrate the series of fires affecting an area in Northwest California. Over 40 fires, caused by lightning strikes, were started on August 1, 2009. 2009-08-18 /feature/description.php?id=163 Wildfires swept through this coastal region of South Carolina destroying about 70 homes and forcing more than 2,500 people to evacuate. 2009-04-28 /feature/description.php?id=162 In late March the Red River Basin of North Dakota and Minnesota experienced historic flooding. Landsat 5 satellite imagery, acquired on March 2 and April 3, illustrate the rapid rise and extent of the flooding in the Fargo, North Dakota/Moorhead, Minnesota region. 2009-04-17 /feature/description.php?id=161 The Landsat 5 false color image shows the large brown ash cloud extending over the Cook Inlet and the western Kenai peninsula (right side of image) 2009-03-31 /feature/description.php?id=160 On March 1, 2009, Landsat 5 acquired a clear image of the Mt. Redoubt region in Alaska. Scientists have been carefully monitoring the area as Mt. Redoubt has experienced volcanic tremors and gas releases in recent months, activities normally associated with possible eruptions. 2009-03-30 /feature/description.php?id=159 An earthen dam holding a containment pond at the Kingston, Tennessee Fossil Plant gave way, releasing over 500 million gallons of ash and sludge. 2009-03-28 /feature/description.php?id=155 Before and after Hurricane Ike made landfall on Galveston Island, Texas. High Resolution Orthoimagery, 1-foot and approximately 10-inch spatial resolution. 2008-12-04