Temperature Extremes
High temperature extreme:
Jervois, Northern Territory, Australia, +110 degrees.

Low temperature extreme:
Oimyakon, Siberia -76 degrees.

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Winter's Worst
The second in a series of severe winter storms to sweep across the eastern United States and Atlantic Canada paralyzed parts of the region with ice, numbing cold and unprecedented amounts of snowfall.

The storm first hit Georgia where ice glazed trees and powerlines, producing power failures that lasted for days in some communities. Instead of heading out to sea as earlier predicted, the storm made a sharp 90-degree turn to the north and drifted slowly over the Carolinas and Virginia before skirting the coast of New England. The resulting heavy snowfall brought many communities to a standstill, including Washington, D.C., where government offices were unable to operate. Another icy storm was predicted to strike the southeastern United States over the weekend.

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Returning Famine
Drought and famine killed at least nine people during the week and forced thousands of families to flee their homes in the southern Somalian regions of Bakol and Gedo.

The area was abandoned as its water supplies became exhausted after two years of ongoing drought. Witnesses reported that numerous farm animals have also perished with the next rainy season at least two months away. Serious food shortages and lack of water have also increased outbreaks of nutrition-related diseases such as tuberculosis and anemia. Hundreds of nomadic herders are reported to have abandoned their wives and children to move their livestock into the regions of Bay, Middle Jubba and Lower Shabelleh where water supplies are still ample.

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Tropical Storms
Tropical cyclone Jo passed harmlessly over the open waters of the South Pacific to the south of Fiji.

Cyclone Connie formed over the western Indian Ocean and was predicted to pass between the islands of Reunion and Madagascar late in the week.

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Austral Heatwave
At least 22 people died in a searing heatwave that enveloped northeastern Australia for several days.

Hundreds of residents were treated for heatstroke, and more than 100 others became hospitalized as daytime temperatures in the city of Brisbane averaged 106 degrees Fahrenheit. Many of the victims were elderly with pre-existing medical conditions that were worsened by the heat. Medical emergency teams said that many victims had kept their homes closed because of security fears and ambulance drivers had found them locked inside stifling conditions.

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Earthquakes
A magnitude 5.5 temblor struck China’s quake-prone province of Yunnan but there no reports of damage or injuries.

Earth movements were also felt in Taiwan, central Japan, southern Tibet, eastern Nepal, El Salvador, Southern California and New Hampshire.

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Deadly Waves
At least 5,150 people were left homeless and scores of others injured by massive waves that swept over the remote southern Philippine province of Tawi-tawi.

Scores of residents in the stricken coastal villages fled to the safety of higher ground in advance of the 65-foot waves after local fishermen sounded the alert. Officials were at a loss to explain how the huge waves were generated.

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Mystery Ice
Ice balls falling from the sky over southern Europe claimed their first victim when a man in the Italian city of Ancona suffered head injuries after being bombarded by a chunk of ice weighing more than one and a half pounds.

Spain had also reported similar incidents during the previous week, including one nine-pound block falling on a car in Seville.

Although the onset of the mysterious falling ice balls coincided with a spate of bitterly cold weather, experts in Italy were no more able to thoroughly explain the phenomenon than their counterparts in Spain. However, some of the ice was known to have been created as a hoax.

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Loyal to the Grave
A grieving sheepdog left the home of his new owners in Cheshire, England, and set out on a sad journey last Christmas Eve to find the grave of his deceased master, a place he had never been.

The border collie Spot traveled four miles from his new home, dodging traffic on main highways, until he eventually found the cemetery where the farmer who had been his owner was buried. A local policeman found Spot, lying directly on the grave of his master in the yard of St. James Church. The dog was then taken to the home of the trainer where he was born. The trainer plans to enter Spot in local sheepdog trials. The dog’s new house is appropriately named “Dunroamin.”

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