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The LEO Network is a worldwide network of observers and experts that share their observations of environmental change.
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Observations

Winter storms close the Yukon's Highway 3 for six days and counting
Yukon's Highway 3 has been closed for six days due to heavy snowfall and challenging conditions, with no clear reopening date.
Haines Junction, Yukon, Canada
CBC

Roof of vacant, condemned Anchorage warehouse partially collapses under snow load
The warehouse at 4640 Gambell St. damaged Wednesday is owned by Marten Martensen, the primary owner of the Continental Auto Group in Anchorage. He was part of a group that purchased the property in October 2022 and briefly used it to store around 10,000 tires until last December’s successive snowstorms caused the structure to begin collapsing.
Anchorage, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media

Grizzly bear spotted close to Kotzebue
While Northwest Arctic residents encounter bears year-round, such sightings are not common in Kotzebue this time of year, Cantine said. Charlie Henry Jr., an Elder from Kotzebue, agreed: “That is so strange — brown bear in the middle part of the coldest months.”
Kotzebue, Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

Orcas are flocking to Southern California waters. One bloody, awe-inspiring spectacle shows why
Whales native to Mexico and Central America are spotted dozens of times from Long Beach to the Palos Verdes Peninsula to Laguna Beach over the last three weeks.
Long Beach, California, United States
Los Angeles Times

'You just want to give up': Pond Inlet hunter swam to qamutik after snowmobile sank through ice
A young Nunavummiut hunter, who's known for providing country food to his community, fell through the ice in late December on a snowmobile route he'd safely traveled just weeks before.
Pond Inlet, Nunavut, Canada
CBC

Anchorage Spenard Builders Supply facility suffers major snow-related roof collapse
The Spenard Builders Supply facility in Anchorage suffered a significant roof collapse due to heavy snow, causing no injuries but damaging the structure and nearby utilities.
Anchorage, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media
Chris Klint, Alaska Public Media - Anchorage

White Mountains, North Country hit hard by storm that caused flooding, closed roads
A storm caused flooding and road closures in New Hampshire's White Mountains and North Country, with ongoing concerns about rising river levels and dam operations.
Concord, New Hampshire, United States
New Hampshire Public Radio

Eruption Begun On Reykjanes Peninsula
A volcanic eruption began near Hagafell mountain on the Reykjanes Peninsula in Iceland at 10:17 pm, following an M4.2 earthquake, with local authorities seeking to determine its impact.
Reykjanesbær, Southern Peninsula, Iceland
Iceland Review

More than 300 rescued from floodwaters in northeast Australia
Over 300 people were rescued from severe flooding in northeast Australia, with many stranded on rooftops and infrastructure damaged, including a closed Cairns Airport.
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
CTVNews

Power outages climb to more than 230,000 as high winds, heavy rain buffet Maine
Over 230,000 customers in Maine face power outages due to a severe winter storm with high winds and heavy rain, prompting a multi-day restoration effort.
Maine, New York, United States
Press Herald

Storm drenches Florida and causes floods in South Carolina as it moves up East Coast
A powerful storm caused flooding and damage as it moved up the East Coast, drenching Florida and inundating South Carolina with record rainfall. Rising sea levels driven by human-caused climate change mean even relatively weak weather systems can now produce storm surges previously associated with hurricanes, said Meteorologist Jeff Masters, co-founder of the Weather Underground. In South Carolina that's worsened by natural subsidence along the coast.
Georgetown, South Carolina, United States
CTVNews

Tick carrying Lyme disease bacteria found on dog in N.W.T.
A Lyme disease-carrying tick was found on a dog in Fort Simpson, N.W.T., with uncertainty about whether the tick originated locally or from a southern province.
Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories, Canada
CBC

Dozens of Newtok students attend classes in a school that’s coming apart
Rapid erosion and permafrost degradation mean school district officials are in a race to shore up the building for the remainder of the school year.
Newtok, Alaska, United States
KYUK

Minister Alarmed by Plastic Pollution on Eldey Island
The expedition revealed that gannets have easy access to plastic, as their nests are mostly made from plastic debris. Hundreds of dead gannets were also observed by the experts, with it being estimated that three factors played a role in their deaths: natural attrition, bird flu, and plastic pollution.
Eldey Island
Iceland Review

Rare fin whale found dead near Kodiak
A rare, emaciated fin whale was found dead near Kodiak, Alaska, with the local Sun'aq Tribe conducting a necropsy. There isn’t enough data for biologists to declare a trend yet, but these whales are being found on the heels of an unusual mortality event for gray whales in the Pacific Ocean.
Kodiak, Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media

52-foot-long dead fin whale washes up on San Diego beach; cause of death unclear
It is not common to see fin whales stranding along the West Coast. The species tends to stay in deeper water compared with gray whales, which travel from 10,000 to 14,000 miles (16,000 to 22,500 kilometers) round trip up and down the coast in annual migrations. There were not obvious signs of the cause of death.
San Diego, California, United States
vancouversun

52-foot-long dead fin whale washes up on San Diego beach; cause of death unclear
A 52-foot fin whale carcass appeared on a San Diego beach with no clear cause of death; it was towed back to sea.
San Diego, California, United States
Associated Press

Thousands of tons of dead sardines wash ashore in northern Japan
The sardines and some mackerel washed ashore in Hakodate on Japan’s northernmost main island of Hokkaido on Thursday morning, creating a sliver blanket along a stretch of beach about a kilometer (0.6 mile) long. Takashi Fujioka, a Hakodate Fisheries Research Institute said the fish may have been chased by larger fish, become exhausted due to a lack of oxygen while moving in a densely packed school, and were washed up by the waves.
Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan
AP News

Mass deaths of elephant seals recorded as bird flu sweeps across the Antarctic
The virus was first reported among brown skua on Bird Island, off South Georgia. Since then, researchers and observers have reported mass deaths of elephant seals, as well as increased deaths of fur seals, kelp gulls and brown skua at several other sites. Researchers warn of one of ‘largest ecological disasters of modern times’ if the highly contagious disease reaches penguin colonies.
South Georgia, Sandwich Islands
the Guardian

Eaglecrest opening delayed again, target date now TBD
Eaglecrest Ski Area's opening is delayed again due to warm weather and rain, with no new target date set for the season start.
Juneau, Alaska, United States
Juneau Empire

Kodiak dog tests positive for canine distemper
A dog at the Kodiak Animal Shelter was euthanized after testing positive for canine distemper, leading to a quarantine and a halt on adoptions.
Kodiak, Alaska, United States

250,000 birds euthanized in Petaluma due to bird flu
Avian influenza or “bird flu” is hitting Bay Area poultry farms hard, with a quarter of a million birds euthanized in Sonoma County this week alone. Mike Weber, the co-owner of Sunrise Farms in Petaluma, says around 82,000 of his egg-laying chickens had to be euthanized after birds started testing positive for avian flu.
Petaluma, California, United States

Power restored in Pangnirtung; mayor grateful for ‘community spirit’ during lengthy outage
Things were returning to normal in Pangnirtung on Monday after an extreme winter storm left parts of the community without electricity for close to four days.
Pangnirtung, Nunavut, Canada
Nunatsiaq News

Unseasonably warm temperatures leave winter athletes in Fort Simpson, N.W.T., in the lurch
In Fort Simpson, the weather is still not cold enough to open the community's ice rink. Young athletes in the community say they are struggling to adapt.
Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories, Canada

Wolf believed to have killed pet dog in Yellowknife area
A black wolf that was seen travelling between Dettah and Ndilǫ this weekend is believed to have “mauled and killed” a pet dog, according to the N.W.T. Department of Environment and Climate Change.
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada

Experts detonate historic cache of TNT discovered near Tok
Eielson Air Force Base's EOD team safely detonated a historic TNT cache from WWII-era Alaska Highway construction discovered near Tok.
Tok, Alaska, United States

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