"flood" news and stories

Floods did not keep people away from a restaurant in Xiangfan, China. In fact, the floods not only brought in the water, they brought in the people. According to Ananova, "The owner said he was prepared to temporarily close the restaurant after the heaviest rains for 50 years brought floods to the city. But he had a change of heart when he heard how the eatery's new wet look was bringing in the customers."

I wonder if they have a no splashing rule.

If this could actually happen in the U.S. with all of our health codes, I could imagine owners taking the wet look one step further with Hooter's-style servers in in wet bikinis. Judging by the photo, though, it looks like it is business as usual in Xiangfan, just with a pool of water on the ground.

Rice is a crop that needs a lot of water to grow successfully, but too much water can be devastating, and as rice fields are usually in very low-lying lands, a flood can mean the difference between feast and famine in some parts of the world. Researchers at the University of California, Davis, in collaboration with UC Riverside and the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines, are breeding a type of rice plant that can survive - and thrive - under water for up to two weeks, which is far longer than the three or so days that the plants generally last.

The gene that is responsible for the this submerged survival has been known or about fifty years, but it has only been in the past decade that scientists were able to isolate it and figure out how it worked. One of the primary goals is to bring the rice into areas that are at high risk of flash flooding, particularly in rural areas in Asia where the population could be devastated by a ruined crop. Another main goal is to take advantage of the ability to keep crops underwater for extended periods of time to keep weeds under control without increasing the use of pesticides or herbicides on the crops. This reduction in the use of potentially harmful chemicals could result in cleaner water supplies as the floodwaters run off the fields, less expensive rice production and higher yields. The new strain will also appeal to organic farmers, who will be able to reap the same weed-reducing benefits.

Source

Maybe the Boston Molasses Disaster is imprinted on the collective memories of folks in Boston, but it was news to me. Apparently, on January 15, 1919, a 50 foot tall tank of molasses (the common sweetener of the time) burst, sending 2.5 million gallons of the sweet goo hurtling through the city at a reported speed of 35 miles per hour, killing 21 people and injuring 150 others. The initial wave of molasses was between eight and 15 feet high, according to a Wikipedia entry. A Straight Dope article goes into more detail, and both pieces cite a book on the subject: Dark Tide: The Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919 by Stephen Puleo. Causes of the disaster range from shoddy tank construction to theories about anarchists. The flood apparently derailed an elevated train and remnants of the mess were still being cleaned months later.

[Photo: Wikipedia]