Hannah Ritchie

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A restaurant owner counts money by candlelight during a power outage in Johannesburg on Feb. 13. (Leon Sadiki/Bloomberg News)

MundoÁfrica,

In one of Africa’s most developed economies, the energy system is in meltdown.

On Feb. 9, South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, declared a “state of disaster” as people in some parts of the country experience planned blackouts for up to 12 hours a day. Last week, the power outages reached a new nadir amid mudslinging between the ruling African National Congress party and André de Ruyter, outgoing chief executive of the electricity utility Eskom.

Nearly all of South Africa’s power is provided by this one company, now operating at less than half its installed capacity. This story isn’t just one of aging coal plants.…  Seguir leyendo »

People stand by a collapsed building in Adiyaman, southern Turkey, Monday, Feb. 13, 2023. Thousands left homeless by a massive earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria a week ago packed into crowded tents or lined up in the streets Monday for hot meals as the desperate search for survivors entered what was likely its last hours. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

ReflexionesNaturaleza,

Though it might take weeks or months to confirm the death toll across Turkey and Syria, the latest number has topped 36,000. This makes this month’s earthquake the deadliest in the region in more than a century. Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said it was “not possible to be prepared for such a disaster”.

Data comparing similarly seismic countries suggests otherwise. Take Chile and Japan.

Chile sits along the Ring of Fire — an arc of faults and volcanoes circling the Pacific Ocean. It’s often hit by earthquakes as big, if not bigger, than those that shook Turkey and Syria. Incredibly, these now cause few deaths — if any.…  Seguir leyendo »