The rain may have stopped, but South Carolina is grappling with a host of new concerns. Dam breaks. Billions of dollars in damage. And rivers that still haven’t crested. “God smiled on South Carolina because the sun is out,” Gov. Nikki Haley told reporters on Tuesday afternoon of October 7. “That is a good sign, but I will tell you that for us, we still have to be cautious. The next 36 to 48 hours are going to be a time that we need to continue to be careful.” Haley declined to provide an estimated cost of the damage –…
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Three scientists from Japan, China and Ireland whose discoveries led to the development of potent new drugs against parasitic diseases, including malaria and elephantiasis, won the Nobel Prize for Medicine. Irish-born William Campbell and Japan’s Satoshi Omura won half of the prize for discovering avermectin, a derivative of which has been used to treat hundreds of millions of people with river blindness and lymphatic filariasis or elephantiasis. China’s Tu Youyou was awarded the other half of the prize for discovering artemisinin, a drug that has slashed malaria deaths and has become the mainstay of fighting the mosquito-borne disease. Youyou is…
The massive flooding in Plateau State has washed snakes from far distances into farms and residences in Pankshin/Kanke/Kannam Federal Constituency, according to Rep. Timothy Golu. Golu, who represents the area in the House of Representatives, sais in Jos that all manner of snakes had taken over his constituency. He said: “The floods have pushed snakes into my constituency. They move around openly and snake bites have become very common there. As the waters pushed them, some snakes climbed trees, others entered holes, while some just held unto any straw. All of them later descended into residences and farms where they have…
Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Director for Africa said one out of every six people in the African continent suffers mental disorder. This was contained in a press statement issued in Abuja by Charity Ahrey, the Communications Officer of WHO, to commemorate the World Mental Health Day. The statement said the theme of this year’s commemoration: “Dignity in mental health,” was aimed at drawing attention to the crucial need of mental health patients, adding that they required to be treated with dignity. It urged the Federal Government to improve on mental healthcare by tackling discrimination through individual…
Stakeholders in poultry farming on Friday gathered to mark the World Egg Day to promote consumption of one-egg-per-day, saying cholesterol in egg prevents heart disease, breast cancer. The stakeholders included farmers, students, markets and egg merchants. They expressed the belief that an egg has many nutritional benefits like protein, vitamins, and cholesterol, which can reduce the risks of heart diseases. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the programme was organised by the Poultry Association of Nigeria, Lagos State Chapter in collaboration with Novus Nigeria Limited. The theme of the programme, held in Lagos, was: “Benefits of Eating One Egg a Day…
An ophthalmologist, Dr. Jaiyeola Adido, has said about 19 million children are blind globally. Adido, who disclosed to newsmen in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, on Saturday, noted that children and the aged were usually vulnerable to eye diseases in Nigeria. He identified cataract, glaucoma and diabetes as major causes of blindness world over. He emphasised the need for people to always have balanced diets to save them from visual impairment. Adido advised Nigerians to constantly check up their eyes to ensure early detection and treatment of ailments that could lead to blindness. He counseled Nigerians to shun superstitious beliefs associated…
Executive Director of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Segun Awolowo, has revealed that the sum of almost N350 billion is lost to smuggling of Shea products from Nigeria every year due to the non-existence of proper structure for the Shea value chain in the country. “Nearly N345 million is lost in the smuggling of Shea products out of the country,” Mr Awolowo stated at the Shea Conference in Abuja. The two-day conference which had the theme, Shea Conference: A Concerted Renaissance, was organised by the USAID Nigeria Expanded Trade and Transport (NEXTT) project in collaboration with Shea Origin and…
The management of the Jos Wide Life Park in Plateau State, Nigeria, has said that it invited troops to kill an escapee 43-year-old lion because it has no tranquilisers with which it could have sedated the animal. The lion had strayed away after escaping from its cage. John Doy, General Manager of the Park, said the organisation lacked tranquilisers because it has no license to pick up the drug from drug stores. He said: “We don’t have tranquilisers. We don’t have the licence to buy tranquilisers. We applied for licence, but we were not given. So, instead of allowing the animal…
Somalia is the country most vulnerable to the impact of climate change, according to Notre Dame University’s Global Adaptation Index. The index assesses 177 economies on how well they can adapt to climate change, including their readiness and vulnerability. The report measures vulnerability based on exposure, sensitivity and ability to react to climate change and has a number of sub-indicators measuring the vulnerability of food, water, health, ecosystems, human habitats and infrastructure. The following table shows those nations most vulnerable, based on the 2014 Index. So what is it that makes these countries so vulnerable?
A five-mile (8km) section of the Mississippi River near St Louis, Missouri, has been closed to vessels as rising water levels caused “hazardous conditions”, the US Coast Guard said. Storms and tornadoes have lashed the region in recent days, swelling rivers and causing flash flooding. Missouri Governor Jay Nixon said 13 people in the state had died in the floods. He said the National Guard had been called in to help local authorities. Aerial footage showed water from the Mississippi River engulfing buildings in the evacuated town of West Alton, north of St Louis, on Tuesday. In the town of…