The site of Al-Abd Theater in Camp Shizar , which was discovered in 2013, dates back to the Roman and Hellenistic eras 323 BC and lies in a residential neighborhood just a block inland from the Mediterranean coast.

The Facebook group Egypt's Heritage Task Force, who campaigned unsuccessfully to save the site, posted photos of the site before and after it was destroyed. The group claimed the Antiquities Ministry was ceding the land over to a contractor to build on the lot.

Alexandria Antiquities Director Mostafa Roshdy said the site was demolished after residents complained it threatened the architectural stability of the adjacent buildings. “The technical report said the depth of the excavations threaten the surrounding buildings and recommended to close the site,” he told newspaper Youm7.

One resident, Mostafa Hussein, complained after he noticed cracks appearing in his neighboring building.

Archaeologists were able to recover some artifacts from the site before the ancient structures were destroyed. “So we decided to evacuate the site, take some of the artifacts that can be moved to the museum and leave the rest that are cracked and are difficult to restore,” Mohamed Mostafa, from the Antiquities Ministry, told the Youm7 earlier this month.

The demolition of the archaeological site demonstrates the difficulty of governmental authorities to both appease locals and responsibly manage the country's rich archaeological history with limited resources. Archaeological sites across Egypt also face looters, in addition to restoration and maintenance issues related to lack of funding.

Author: Drew Brammer | Source: Egypt Independent [April 16, 2015]

Tornado was rare 'multivortex' twister, reveals National Weather Service
Obama to visit region on Sunday as he says tornado was 'devastating and heartbreaking'

The way things used to be: This Google Street Map view shows the same place as the above picture, before the horrific tornado struck
As shell-shocked residents of tornado-hit Joplin braced themselves for another powerful storm system this evening, new aerial images emerged showing in terrifying detail the path of the twister which destroyed the Missouri city.
The shocking photos reveal for the first time the true extent of the damage caused when the mile-wide tornado that killed at least 122 people blasted much of the city off the map and slammed straight into its hospital.
Forecasters warned residents on Tuesday to prepare themselves for a looming storm system that has all the early signs of spawning more deadly tornadoes.
Devastated: Aerial photo shows 26th street, the main route through the centre of Joplin, Missouri. On the right is St Mary's elementary school
Housing: Whole residential neighbourhoods were destroyed by the powerful tornado when it went straight through the centre of the city that has has 50,000 people
Tonight the stunned residents of Joplin faced the horrifying possibility of more storms - but a tornado warning was cancelled later in the evening.
‘This is a very serious situation brewing,’ said Russell Schneider, director of the Storm Prediction Center.
About 1,500 people are still unaccounted for, it was announced Tuesday, leading to fears that the death count could rise much higher.
Tonight tornadoes touched down in Kansas and Oklahoma - including one on the outskirts of Oklahoma City, which reportedly tore a 50-mile long path through rush-hour traffic.
Blown away: The remains of this apartment block surround what was once a swimming pool. Around 2,000 homes are thought to have been destroyed
Closed for business: The Home Depot do-it-yourself store was where many dead bodies have been recovered. Many of the shop shelves are still intact though
Grocery store: The city's Walmart superstore is barely recognisable in this photo from after Sunday's tornado that killed over 100 people
Shopping mall: This line of shops was severely damaged by the storm system when it struck on Sunday evening at around 6pm
Hospital: The St John's Medical Center was at the heart of the tornado's path through the city. Hundreds of patients had to be evacuated
Fire chief Robert Daus said that 500 people had been injured by the tornado, in addition to the 1,500 people who remain unaccounted for.
But he said the high number of people still recorded as missing could be a reflection of the widespread breakdown of communication systems in the city.
Thunderstorms that are moving across southeast Kansas, central Oklahoma and north Texas this afternoon are forecast to move into the Joplin area between 10pm and 2am tonight.
Destroyed: This incredible aerial image reveals how the tornado tore off the roof of Joplin's Home Depot
Flattened: This aerial photograph shows the scale of the destruction to the Home Depot store

Flattened: Damage is seen a day after the tornado tore through Joplin killing at least 122 people in Joplin, a town of about 50,000
Decimation: Residential buildings are shown flattened in this aerial shot over Joplin
Razed to the ground: Joplin's Walmart store was completely destroyed by Sunday's devastating twister
Wasteland: The horror of Sunday's tornado is laid bare by this harrowing panoramic shot of Joplin
Horseshoe: A destroyed neighbourhood is seen in Joplin on Tuesday after a big tornado moved through much of the city

Ruins: The winding path of the devastating tornado is seen in this aerial picture of Joplin, Missouri
Savaged: The path of the powerful tornado is seen in an aerial photo over Joplin, Missouri
Destroyed: The tornado ruined thousands of houses in Joplin, Missouri
From the sky: Uprooted trees and building without roofs lie devastated in Joplin, Missouri after the tornado hit on Sunday
Flattened: Members of Missouri Task Force One search-and-rescue team work at the tornado-damaged Home Depot store in Joplin
Shock: Joplin residents are still coming to terms with the loss of their homes as rescue workers continue efforts to find survivors
Recovery: Beverly Winans, left, Debbie Spurlin and Austin Spurlin look for what they can salvage from their home after it was destroyed
Lost: Carra Reed looks at a friends home that was destroyed when the massive tornado passed through Joplin, Missouri
Missing: Rescue workers and neighbours search for victims and survivors
The President says he wants Midwesterners whose lives were disrupted by the deadly storms last weekend to know that the federal government will use all resources at its disposal to help them recover and rebuild.
Obama spoke in London, the second stop on his four-country, six-day tour of Europe.
Obama is due back in Washington Saturday night.
Little hope: Ryan Harper pauses in the shadow of a splintered tree as he searches for a missing friend after who may have been pulled away by the twister

A time for coming together: A couple drenched by the heavy rain walk arm-in-arm towards a building ravaged by the killer storm, and right, a woman whose life has been shattered overnight by the tornado breaks down in tears and has to be comforted by a friend
Frantic: Volunteers claw through the rubble in search of survivors, but grey storm clouds loom overhead threatening to disrupt the efforts
'Heartbreaking': Barack Obama, speaking in London today, vowed to visit Missouri on Sunday to console victims
President Barack Obama called Nixon after details of teh tragedy emergedand offered his condolences to those affected, assuring the governor that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) would provide whatever assistance was needed.
'Michelle and I send our deepest condolences to the families of all those who lost their lives in the tornadoes and severe weather that struck Joplin, Missouri, as well as communities across the Midwest today,' the President said in a statement sent from Air Force One as he flew to Europe.
'We commend the heroic efforts by those who have responded and who are working to help their friends and neighbours at this very difficult time.'
New dawn: The sun rises over devastated Joplin on Tuesday as the search for survivors continues
Heartache: Two women fight back the tears as they hug in front of a house ripped apart by the tornado. In a symbolic show of strength, the U.S. flag flies from a tree behind them
Wiped off the landscape: Meghan Miller stands in the middle of a destroyed neighbourhood as she checks on her sister-in-law's home, which only days before had stood in the same spot
source: dailymail

VIA Shocking before and after images reveal how giant tornado ripped apart Joplin's city landmarks

Commercial Mailboxes for houses

Residential Mailboxes for cottages

VIA «Mailboxes for apartments and cottages»

The heart-breaking images of families desperately searching for loved ones amid the rubble of their homes sent shockwaves around the world.
Now, three months on, these images show the Japanese people remain undaunted by the havoc nature has wreaked on their homeland as step by step they rebuild their nation.

A Shinto shrine gate and surroundings in the town of Otsuchi, Iwate Prefecture three days after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami and the same spot on June 3
But despite their progress, stark reminders of the work left to do means the resilience of this Asian country is still being tested.
Headway in the clean-up has been made in the town of Otsuchi in Iwate Prefecture where the pleasure boat ''Hamayuri'', which was remarkably washed up on the rooftop of an inn, has been removed, along with a building shattered by the the wall of water.
Further down is an image of a Shinto shrine gate in the town three days after the March 11 disaster.
The same spot on June 3 which shows thousands of tonnes of rubbish, which had lay smouldering in an almost post-apolcalyptic landscape, has been cleared, roads re-laid and power lines restored.
Civilisation appears to have returned in Natori in Miyagi prefecture too. The first image shows a towering wall of ocean crashing through trees devastating homes and businesses lining the coast, tearing down power lines and drowning anything in its path.
A residential area being hit by the tsunami in Natori, Miyagi prefecture, top, and the same area, with only one house remaining on June 3, bottom
A parking lot of a shopping centre filled with houses and debris in Otsuchi town, Iwate prefecture two days after the earthquake hit and the same area picture on June 3
Astonishingly just one house survived the wave and a lone digger is pictured having cleared away the once thriving community reduced to rubble. Hundreds of cars parked in the foreground remain abandoned and appear to be the only reminder of the devastation.
Similarly, the striking image of a ship atop tonnes of rubble in the Kesennuma in Miyagi prefecture on March 20 was projected around the world and became a symbol of the disaster.
The photograph shows grey smoke filled skies above a path of destruction, but three months on, much of the debris has been cleared, power lines restored and hope is on the horizon.
A car park in a shopping centre, filled with houses and debris in Otsuchi town in Iwate prefecture is also back on its feet and signs of life are returning. Parking spaces are clearly visible where piles of wood, bricks, and vehicles lay strewn just a few weeks ago.
A view of earthquake and tsunami-hit Kesennuma, Miyagi prefecture on March 15, top, and the same area pictured on June 3
The final image shows local people walking through debris on a street in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture to get water 48 hours after the disaster. The same image on June 3 shows the massive tank which lay in the road has gone and a damaged house on the left side of the street has been cleared and restored.
The 9.0 magnitude earthquake caused the worst crisis in Japan since the Second World War and left almost 28,000 people dead or missing.
The clean-up bill is expected to top £184 billion and radiation fears from the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant are still growing after four of the reactors were damaged leading to radiation leaks.
This week, an earless bunny was born near the reactor in north east Japan raising concerns the radiation could have long-term side effects.
Following the blast and initial leaks Japanese officials told people living near the plant to stay indoors and turn of air conditioning and also to not drink tap water.
High levels of radiation are known to cause cancer and other health problems but scientists are not yet clear if the defect in the rabbit is linked to the blast.
Local residents walking through debris on a street in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, to get water 48 hours after the disaster, top, and the same area on June 3 where a large tank and a damaged house on the left side of the street have been cleared away
Japan's economy slipped into recession following the devastation and new data shows it shrank 0.9 percent in the first quarter of this financial year but experts say a recovery later this year as industry kicks into action.
Industrial output rose one per cent in April from a record decline in March.
Manufacturers are making progress in restoring supply chains and ecnomists are predicting Gross Domestic Project to begin expanding again between July and September.

A view of earthquake and tsunami-hit Kesennuma, Miyagi prefecture on March 20, left, and the same area after the building and debris was removed on June 3
Australian Red Cross - Japan Earthquake and Tsunami devastation

source: dailymail

VIA Back from the dead: Astonishing pictures show how Japan is recovering just three months after tsunami

Since 2006, the birthplace of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has seen vigorous archaeological digs in pursuit of the 10 Buddhist monasteries Tsang described during his visit to Vadnagar some 1,400 years ago, recorded in his journals Hsi-yu Chi (Record of Western Countries). The efforts multiplied following the discovery of a nearly 2,000-yearold Buddhist monastery by Y S Rawat, director of the Gujarat State Archaeology Department — an excavation that was given the push by the then state government. Modi's tweet about the Gujarat connect with Buddhism in September 2014, ahead of Chinese premier Xi Jinping's visit to India, only increased curiosity about Vadnagar. Perhaps this is why, in 2013, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) took over from Rawat and started excavations this January. But, it isn't going to be an easy ride.

The Human Angle

Vadnagar has 45 villages, but it is the fortified area that forms Vadnagar town (in a 3.5-km perimeter area) that's the subject of curiosity.

The ASI is currently conducting trial excavations at three sites. One is near the Kirti Toranas — 40-feet high intricately carved towers representing victory over enemy built during the Kumarpal Solanki rule (11-12 century AD) — while the other two are in the Baba no Tekro Locality I and Locality II. These two sites are located on the banks of Sarmishtha lake, a landmark, and is part of the Vadnagar panchayat area. The land here is owned by both, government and as private owners. And, it's these two areas that the ASI believes, have the potential for significant archaeological finds.

Although a team of researchers have found remnants from the Solanki era dating back to 960 AD, they haven't yet discovered any Buddhist monasteries. Trial excavations, typically, entail finding out when the city originated and its expanse in ancient times viz a viz the present town.

In the last two-and-a-half months, says superintending archaeologist Dr Madhulika Samanta, the ASI has found about 150 coins from the 1-3rd century AD. The present fortification was built by Kumarapal Solanki (1143-1174 CE). "The main town of Vadnagar is situated on a high mound, created over a number of buildings that were built and destroyed during earlier periods, and the settlement has not outgrown the medieval fortification," says superintending archaeologist Dr Madhulika Samanta. This has led them to believe that much of Vadnagar's treasures could lie beneath the human habitation — as per the 2011 Census it had 27,700 residents.

This, locals believe, may pose challenges. A local, who is familiar with the excavations, said, "The land under which the Buddhist monastery was found was a vacant government plot surrounded by residential houses. We believe a lot of adjoining area needs to be dug up for further findings, but they are covered by homes. Vacating these houses can be a huge problem and cause unrest among people."

Expanding Horizons

Samanta says that a search for the remaining nine monasteries might have to extend beyond the current periphery of the historic town. "I believe Vadnagar was much bigger and more densely populated during the medieval period than it is now. The existence of 10 monasteries, within the fortified area is not possible as monasteries are mostly built on the periphery. We need to carry out excavations over large areas to be able to locate them."

But, she claims the district magistrate has failed to give permission for further excavations. "We have followed up with the collector since January. I met him on February 13 and have written to him four to five times but there is an inordinate delay. The ASI does not take land. We only excavate, document and return the land. If the land is owned by a private party, we compensate the owner. If it is government property, we do not need to."

Excavations may soon extend to adjoining villages. "We are setting up a tent at another village in a week. Excavation will be extended to the eastern and northern banks of the Sarmishtha lake," she adds.

While excavations are on, security for the discoveries is minimal. At the site where the Buddhist monastery was uncovered — along with a stupa, a courtyard, and several cells where the Buddhist monks are believed to have lived — there is no security, leaving the area vulnerable to vandalism.

For now, the ASI has hired family members of private land owners as labourers or security at the site of the trial excavations — mostly agricultural land. "We pay them for their services and use their land. The more the number of working family members, the more these families earn," she adds.

Sixty-two-year-old Mangaji Thakor, a farmer who has lent part of his land, sees profits in the deal. He said, "I earn about Rs 50,000 per year from agricultural produce. I am being paid Rs 222 per day for guarding excavated land in my field."

While the Thakors are counting the cash, not all Vadnagar residents share the joy. Kamlesh Patel, 37, says he used to run his scrap-dealing business on part of the land where the Buddhist monastery was discovered. Patel, who has now filed a case in the court, says, "I used to earn Rs 2.5 lakh each year from the business and have lost that much money each year since the land was taken. The state's possession of my land has ruined my 20-year-old business."

The Many Names of Vadnagar

The original town was a settlement of Nagars, a well-known Brahmin community of Banias. In the 7th century, Hueng Tsang visited Vadnagar, then known as Anandapura, and described it as a rich and densely populated city, affluent enough to support culture, arts, literature and religious centres of learning for Buddhist monks and Hindu priests. The town is also believed to have once been called Chamatkarpura, after its king was cured of leprosy after bathing in lake Shakti Tirth. Later, it came to be known as Anartapur and its warriors found mention in the Mahabharata. Vadnagar also has a Greek connect, as it is believed that the Nagars are descendants of Alexander's army who stayed back. In 1152 AD, the Solankis thwarted the Malvas attack and Kumarpal Solanki built the fort where the present population lives. After the Solanki period, the town faced attacks from the Delhi Sultanate, Marathas and Gaekwads.

Archaeological Intrigue

The ASI team that is conducting trial excavations at Baba no Tekro Locality I and Locality II in Vadnagar has found coins made of the alloy potin, lead and copper belonging to the Solanki period. They have also found seals that were used on coins of other kingdoms like the Deccan, which the Solankis had annexed. However, what intrigues them is an ash layer under the solid ground in the agricultural fields. "The ashy deposits are a metre deep. A huge area has been discovered entirely covered with ashy deposits one and a half meter below a mud floor and it is obviously built by humans. As lot of antiquities, bones of different animals and iron objects and leads have been discovered from this layer, but none of them are burnt or charred. It is an enigma," Dr Samanta says.

Author: Ojas Mehta | Source: Pune Mirror [May 01, 2015]

Emergency workers say thunderstorms are hampering efforts to find survivors as 1,500 rescuers search for missing
Family and friends of the missing post moving appeals for information on Facebook and blogs
Storm Prediction Center says more violent weather expected with further tornadoes through the middle of week
Devastation: Destroyed homes and debris cover the ground as a second storm moves in on Monday in Joplin, Missouri
Thousands of people were left without homes to go tonight after the deadliest single tornado to strike the United States in over 60 years touched down on Missouri, reducing the city of Joplin to rubble, ripping buildings apart and killing at least 116 people in a 6-mile path of destruction.
Authorities said they had rescued seven people alive on Monday, but emergency warned that the death toll could climb higher as heavy winds, strong rain and hail quarter-sized hail stones hampered the search effort.
Meteorologists issued a new tornado warning for the devastated city as forecasters warned large swathes of the country to brace for more big storms on Tuesday.
Path of destruction: No house escaped the wrath of nature in some of Minneapolis
A tornado watch was issued on Monday for Oklahoma and parts of southern Kansas due to an 'evolving tornado threat', said Russell Schneider, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Storm Prediction Center.
'We are currently forecasting a major severe weather outbreak for Tuesday over the central United States with strong tornadoes likely over Oklahoma, Kansas, extreme northern Texas, southwest Missouri,' Mr Schneider said.
The National Weather Service said the tornado packed winds of up to 198 mph.
The weather service's director, Jack Hayes, said the storm was given a preliminary label as an EF4 - the second-highest rating given to twisters. The rating is assigned to storms based on the damage they cause.
Hayes said the storm had winds of 190 to 198 miles per hour. He said survey teams from the National Weather Service are on the scene and will make a final determination on the rating Tuesday.
Missouri Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency and activated the National Guard to help out after one of the worst disasters in the state's history.
Homeless: Ted Grabenauer sleeps on his front porch the morning after a tornado ripped off the roof of his home when it hit Joplin, Missouri
Ruins: A view of the devastation after a tornado blew the roof off the St John's Regional Medical Center, rear, where about 180 patients cowered and were eventually evacuated
Desolation: A residential neighbourhood in Joplin is seen after it was levelled by the tornado
President Barack Obama called Nixon and offered his condolences to those affected, assuring the governor that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) would provide whatever assistance was needed.
'Michelle and I send our deepest condolences to the families of all those who lost their lives in the tornadoes and severe weather that struck Joplin, Missouri, as well as communities across the Midwest today,' the President said in a statement sent from Air Force One as he flew to Europe.
Map: Infrared image of the powerful tornado that spun through a densely populated part of Missouri
'We commend the heroic efforts by those who have responded and who are working to help their friends and neighbours at this very difficult time.'
Caring for the injured was made more difficult because the main hospital, Saint John's Regional Medical Center, had to be evacuated after suffering a direct hit - the tornado ripped off its roof and smashed all its windows.
Cries could still be heard early Monday from survivors trapped in the wreckage.
Despair: A tree stripped of bark and leaves frames St John's Regional Medical Center
Eye of the storm: The tornado tore a 6-mile path across southwestern Missouri
Relief: Maggie Kelley and her husband, Trey Adams hug their dog, Saint, after finding him amid the rubble of her home in Joplin
Mr Nixon said he feared the death toll would rise but also expected survivors to be found in the rubble.
‘I don't think we're done counting,’ he said. ‘I still believe that because of the size of the debris and the number of people involved that there are lives to be saved.’
Crews found bodies during the night in vehicles the storm had flipped over, torn apart and left looking like crushed cans.
Triage centers and shelters set up around the city quickly filled to capacity.
At Memorial Hall, a downtown entertainment venue, nurses and other emergency workers from across the region treated critically injured patients.

Efforts: Rescue workers in lime-green jackets search for bodies and survivors inside St John's hospital
Re-united: A man carries a young girl who was rescued after being trapped with her mother in their home
Devastation: Emergency personnel walk through a neighbourhood severely damaged by a tornado near the Joplin hospital. There are are no firm details on the number of dead or injured, as the hospital is out of action
Memories: Evelyn Knoblauch looks at a picture in what is left of her daughter's house
At another makeshift unit at a Lowe's home improvement store, wooden planks served as beds.
Outside, ambulances and fire trucks waited for calls. During one stretch after midnight on Monday, emergency vehicles were scrambling nearly every two minutes.
On Monday morning, survivors picked through the rubble of what were once their homes, salvaging clothes, furniture, family photos and financial records, the air pungent with the smell of gas and smoking embers.
Others wandered through the wreckage with nowhere to go, their homes or apartments destroyed.
Kelley Fritz, 45, of Joplin, rummaged through the remains of a storage building with her husband, Jimmy.
Search: An emergency vehicle drives through a severely damaged neighbourhood in Joplin
They quickly realised they would never find the belongings they stored there, and that they had lost much of what was in their home after the tornado ripped away the roof.
Their sons, aged 20 and 17, went outside after the storm and saw that every home was destroyed.
‘My sons had deceased children in their arms when they came back,’ Mrs Fritz said. ‘My husband and I went out and saw two or three dead bodies on the ground.’

Soul destroying: Jean Logan surveys the damage to her home in Joplin after the tornado. She had taken refuge in her laundry room with her granddaughter
A total mess: Rachel Hurst picks through her belongings that were strewn about from her garage that was blown away in Minneapolis on Sunday
Mrs Fritz said she was surprised she survived. ‘You could just feel the air pull up and it was so painful. I didn't think we were going to make it, it happened so fast.’
Tornado sirens gave residents about a 20-minute warning before the tornado touched down on the city's west side.
Staff at St John's Regional Medical Center rushed patients into hallways before the storm struck the nine-storey building, blowing out hundreds of windows and leaving the facility unusable.
The hospital was among the worst-hit locations.
Emergency: Extensive damage can be seen at the St John's Regional Medical Center in Joplin, Missouri. An emergency agency spokesman says fatalities had been reported but was unsure of the exact figure
The Joplin twister was one of 68 reported tornadoes across seven Midwest states over the weekend, stretched from Oklahoma to Wisconsin, according to the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center.
One person was killed in Minneapolis. But the devastation in Missouri was the worst, eerily reminiscent of the tornadoes that killed more than 300 people across the South last month.
Residents said the damage was breathtaking in scope.
‘You see pictures of World War II, the devastation and all that with the bombing. That's really what it looked like,’ said Kerry Sachetta, the principal of a flattened Joplin High School.
‘I couldn't even make out the side of the building. It was total devastation in my view. I just couldn't believe what I saw.’
Emergency management officials rushed heavy equipment to Joplin to help lift debris and clear the way for search and recovery operations.
Governor Nixon declared a state of emergency, and President Barack Obama said the Federal Emergency Management Agency was working with state and local agencies.
Raised to the ground: Blocks of homes lie in total destruction after the devastating tornado
Unbelievable: Destroyed vehicles are piled on top of one another in the parking lot of the Joplin Regional Medical Centre

Desperate: Amy Langford carries items from her house that she was in with her husband Mark when the tornado hit their home in Joplin
Jeff Lehr, a reporter for the Joplin Globe, said he was upstairs in his home when the storm hit but was able to make his way to a basement closet.
The storm tore the roof off his house, but he was safe. When he emerged, he found people wandering through the streets, covered in mud.
‘I'm talking to them, asking if they knew where their family is,’ Mr Lehr said. ‘Some of them didn't know and weren't sure where they were. All the street markers were gone.’
Justin Gibson, 30, huddled with three relatives outside the tangled debris of a Home Depot. He pointed to a black pickup that had been tossed into the store's ruins and said it belonged to his roommate's brother, who was last seen in the store with his two young daughters.
Mr Gibson, who has three children of his own, said his home was levelled and ‘everything in that neighbourhood is gone. The high school, the churches, the grocery store. I can't get hold of my ex-wife to see how my kids are.
‘I don't know the extent of this yet,’ he said, ‘but I know I'll have friends and family dead.’
In Minneapolis, where a tornado killed one person and injured 29, authorities imposed an overnight curfew in a 4-square-mile area, including some of the city's poorest neighbourhoods, to prevent looting and keep streets clear for emergency crews.
Levelled: Red Cross representatives say 75% of Joplin is gone - here, vehicles and houses in the vicinity of Twenty-fourth and Main Streets are a jumble of rubble after a the tornado swept through
Condolences: President Barack Obama talks on the phone with Missouri Governor Jay Nixon during his visit to Dublin, Ireland. The President extended his condolences to all impacted by the deadly tornadoes
Widespread devastation: Another tornado in Minneapolis damaged at least 100 homes, toppling hundreds of trees and injuring at least 29 people
Community spirit: Residents of Joplin help a woman who survived in her basement after a tornado tore a path a mile wide and four miles long destroying homes and businesses
Mayor RT Rybak said one liquor store was looted right after the tornado hit late Sunday and a few burglaries took place overnight.
He said it wasn't immediately clear how many homes were affected, simply saying: 'It's a lot.'
Though the damage covered several blocks, it appeared few houses were totally demolished. Much of the damage was to roofs, front porches that had been sheared away and fences.
The tornado left part of a garage door in a tree and many large trees were left leaning against houses.
Pat Trafton said her family escaped unharmed after a tree was left leaning against her house.
Mrs Trafton, 67, said: 'It's been a crazy day.
'They say it was a monster tornado. It all just happened so fast.'
It was the first tornado to hit the city since August 2009. 'There was no doubt right away,' the meteorologist said.
North Minneapolis resident Tiffany Pabich was taking a nap just as the tornado blew through.

Bettered streets: Debris is scattered about in Minneapolis. On Sunday night a tornado warning was issued for several areas in central states
Crushed: Vehicles were picked up and dumped across the city by the tornado which left 30 people dead and dozens injured
In the north-east Kansas, powerful storms spawned funnel clouds and hail that ripped limbs off of trees and shattered windows.
About 200 homes were damaged in and around Reading with the tornado sweeping through the small town around 9:15pm Saturday night, said Kansas Division of Emergency Management spokeswoman Sharon Watson.
A man was pronounced dead shortly after being taken to Newman Regional Hospital in Emporia, about 20 miles from where the tornado hit, hospital supervisor Deb Gould said.
Ms Gould said two other people were brought in with injuries but she had no further details.
Five people were injured in all, along with the person killed, said Ms Watson.
Reading, a town of about 250 people is 50 miles south of the Kansas capital city, Topeka.
Carnage: Rescue vehicles line up along northbound Rangeline Road in Joplin, Mo. after a fatal tornado swept through the city
Reverend Lyle Williams, who is a pastor for about 10 worshippers at the Reading First Baptist Church, said the church suffered extensive damage: 'Yeah, it's pretty bad,' he said. 'My daughter was out there and told me about it.'
'I'm not going to be able to have church today that's for sure,' he added, saying he's been a pastor at the church for 21 years.
In Jefferson County, a mobile home was destroyed with an elderly couple was trapped inside, Ms Watson told CNN. She said responders cleared the debris and rescued the couple unhurt.
Wreckage: A man stands amid the remains of a Wal-Mart store, after it was hit by the tornado, in Joplin
Power had been restored in the town by early Sunday and a shelter was being set up at a local school.
The National Weather Service confirmed that a tornado also touched down in Topeka and northeast of the city near Lake Perry, where damage was reported at a nearby campsite, Ms Watson said.
While many states have been struck by severe storms this spring, Kansas has been having one of its lightest tornado seasons in decades, according to the National Weather Service.
A taste of spring? Trees were stripped of branches and many were left resting against houses
Flattened: Reading - a town of about 250 people, 50 miles south of capital city Topeka
Twister tragedy

Joplin Missouri 2011 Tornado May 23rd 2011 Massive Monster Killer Twister Tornado EF 5 MO 2011

I WILL PRAY ~Joplin Missouri Tornado Tribute~ (5/22/11)

source:dailymail

VIA America's deadliest tornado for 64 years: Terrifying twister cuts six-mile swathe through a Missouri town, leaving up to 116 dead

Car factory in Paris

AREP builds on city's historic legacy with redevelopment of former car factory in Paris. AREP has redeveloped the former Panhard car factory in Porte d'Ivry, Paris, applying exciting design choices to work with the city's existing heritage.

The Panhard and Levassor workshops were partially demolished in 1967 to create the Olympiades district. They are the last remnants of a thriving industrial past, after the demolition of all the automobile plants in Paris: the Renault facilities on Ile Séguin, Citroën in Javel and part of the Panhard factory at Porte d'Ivry.

Between 2007 and 2013, AREP extended and entirely refurbished the building to create 21,000 sq m of office space as well as public facilities (a nursery and the premises of a non-profit organisation running a day centre for the homeless). The firm worked with architects Jean-Marie Duthilleul and Etienne Tricaud and with Benoît Ferré and Serge Caillaud (Phase 1 and Building Work Management).

In an environment dominated by the verticality of high-rise residential blocks, the project keeps the former factory alive, sustains its horizontality and unique architectural style and relies on the ornamental features of the existing façades: materials, dominant chromatic palette and contour line.

The brick façade provides a mineral base extending the current façades while the openings are in line with the rhythm of the original building. Each, partially or entirely, new façade forms a coherent whole with the reinforced mineral angles providing the framework for a more open sequence in the centre.

Two large industrial-style statuesque boxes loom above the roof-top mouldings, clad in a double semi-transparent layer of glass and perforated coppery metal and echoing the tiles on the saw tooth roofs. These are intended as a metaphor of the former industrial features.

The adjacent cut of the Petite Ceinture (an abandoned railway line) was decked over to create a garden. Planted with ground covering plants, shrubs and trees, the garden slopes down from Rue Regnault to the new garden level, reflecting the characteristic bucolic image of the embankments of the Petite Ceinture, where vegetation takes over any available space.

The new extension houses a nursery in its north-east corner and a day centre for the homeless in its north-west corner, both situated on the garden and ground-floor levels.

The work spaces inside the building are designed to facilitate contact, interaction, formal and informal relations. This result is achieved through clearly designed spaces (atrium and vertical access flows), quality of the working environment (natural light, acoustics and ergonomics) and green spaces.

VIA «Redevelopment of the Car Factory In Porte d'Ivry [France, Paris]»

Mailboxes today

VIA «Modern mailboxes for your correspondence»

Bank on suburbs of Madrid

VIA «New vision of office space for clerks»

The Faena District in Argentina is now home to Foster + Partners’ first completed project in Latin America. Owned by Faena Group, the district totes architectural designs by some of the industry’s most expressive figures including Philippe Starck whose Faena Hotel incorporates a number of recycled silos and the Faena Arts Center by Mike McCormack and Faena Group Architects which evolved from an old mill.

“Faena District was inspired by a desire for redefining the concept of ‘dwelling’ and ‘habitat’, and was conceived as a constantly evolving work of art, a unique piece that offers an alternative lifestyle - different, rich, engaging. We are seeking to redefine how we live in cities, by combining culture, green spaces and architecture: we want to generate more general awareness.”

“The Aleph is a building that is very much borne of its place. From the traditional Buenos Aires house, which takes advantage of the climate to combine outdoor with indoor living, to the industrial architecture legacy of the Puerto Madero District, the Aleph creates a wonderful new living environment that is unique to the Faena Arts District.” says Brandon Haw, Senior Partner, Foster + Partners.

VIA «Faena Aleph Residences [Argentina, Buenos Aires]»

Hotel from the Australian architects

VIA «Architectural luxury Fiji»

The move came just a day after Diyarbakir’s wall and its nearby Hevsel Gardens were added to the list as well.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Permanent Representative of Turkey to UNESCO Hüseyin Avni Botsalı – who headed the Turkish delegation at the session – described the unanimous approval of Ephesus as a great success.

“In fact, we have a great responsibility on our shoulders in terms of cooperation of the international community in this field. We will make significant efforts for the protection of civilizational values and cultural properties,” he added.

Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Ömer Çelik celebrated the development in a series of Twitter posts.

“We have just received the second good news from Germany. Ephesus is now officially on the world heritage [list],” he said.

The minister said Ephesus had always been a key port city, as well as a cultural and commercial center, throughout history.

“A principal city of science, culture and art of its era, Ephesus had been a residential area starting from the pre-historic era and through the Hellenistic, Roman, Eastern Roman periods and also under the Ottoman Empire for about nine millennia without interruption,” he said.

Çelik also said Ephesus, which draws 2 million visitors a year, was a place that the whole world agreed was a site of global cultural heritage.

In a later interview with Anadolu Agency, Çelik noted the threat that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) posed to world heritage in neighboring countries like Syria.

“While a terrorist group called Daesh destroys cities, it is a significant message against this barbarism that Turkey as a Muslim country in the Muslim world managed to put its properties on the world heritage list,” he said, using the Arabic acronym for ISIL.

In May, ISIL militants seized the Roman ruins at the Palmyra World Heritage site in Syria’s Homs Governorate. Last week, members of ISIL destroyed a peerless statue of a lion at the site on the grounds that it is idolatrous, while it has also allegedly conducted executions at the ancient city’s famous theater.

Describing Ephesus, UNESCO said: “The Temple of Artemis, which was considered to be one of the Seven Wonders of the World, is situated on the edge of this small town. The city which was situated at the beginning of the Persian Royal Road has survived sufficiently enough to enable us to understand the ancient way of life in Ephesus. It is one of the cities which played an impressive role in the beginnings of Christianity and during the period of its proliferation (St. John Church and the shrine of the Virgin Mary). It contains one of the most spectacular examples of religious architecture of the Seljuk Period.”

Turkey first entered the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1985 with Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia and the Great Mosque and Hospital of Divriği – both in central Turkey – and the historic areas of Istanbul.

The Hittite capital Hattuşa was added to the list in 1986, followed by Mount Nemrut in Adıyaman 1987, and Hierapolis-Pamukkale in Denizli and the ancient city of Xanthos-Letoon between Muğla and Fethiye in 1988.

In 1994, the city of Safranbolu was approved as a world heritage while the archaeological site of Troy was added to the list in 1998. In recent year, Edirne’s Selimiye Mosque and its social complex was added in 2011, as was Konya’s Neolithic site of Çatalhöyük in 2012.

The latest entries in 2014 were Bursa’s Cumalikızık village which witnessed the birth of the Ottoman Empire and İzmir’s ancient city of Pergamon and its multi-layered cultural landscape.

Source: Hurriyet Daily News [July 06, 2015]