Thousands Evacuated in China’s Tianjin After Cracks Appear Near High-Rises 

A general view of Tianjin, China, September 7, 2021. Picture taken September 7, 2021. (Reuters)
A general view of Tianjin, China, September 7, 2021. Picture taken September 7, 2021. (Reuters)
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Thousands Evacuated in China’s Tianjin After Cracks Appear Near High-Rises 

A general view of Tianjin, China, September 7, 2021. Picture taken September 7, 2021. (Reuters)
A general view of Tianjin, China, September 7, 2021. Picture taken September 7, 2021. (Reuters)

Thousands of people were evacuated from several high-rise apartment buildings in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin in recent days after land collapses created large cracks on nearby streets, according to state media and the local government.

Large fissures appeared on roads near a residential complex in Tianjin's Jinnan district and geological experts said they were likely caused by underground cavities below a depth of 1,300 m (4,270 feet), the Tianjin government said on Thursday on social media.

As of June 3, a total of 3,899 residents from at least three 25-storey high-rise buildings were evacuated to nearby hotels, state-backed Global Times quoted the district government as saying.

The Tianjin government called the incident a "sudden geological disaster" following preliminary information from geological experts and several government departments after they did surveying, mapping and monitoring at the site.

"The situation is very rare," according to an expert questioned about the incident at the Tianjin government municipal headquarters.

It cannot be ruled out that the drilling of geothermal wells had resulted in soil loss and land subsidence in the area, the Tianjin government said.

Experts said the high-rise buildings facing the street were affected to varying degrees.

Roads could be seen buckled and warped in photos on social media, while others showed a section of wall tile from a building collapsed on the floor.

The incident adds to concerns for building safety in China, where the government has enforced stricter rules and policies and handed out hefty punishment for lax management of properties.

In addition, the Chinese government has recently had several high-level meetings on geological and hidden disaster preparation.



Sunken WWII Japanese Warship Found Off Solomon Islands

A team from the US non-profit Ocean Exploration Trust discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki. Photo: Ocean Exploration Trust
A team from the US non-profit Ocean Exploration Trust discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki. Photo: Ocean Exploration Trust
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Sunken WWII Japanese Warship Found Off Solomon Islands

A team from the US non-profit Ocean Exploration Trust discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki. Photo: Ocean Exploration Trust
A team from the US non-profit Ocean Exploration Trust discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki. Photo: Ocean Exploration Trust

An international research team has located a Japanese World War II destroyer on the deep seabed off Solomon Islands as the 80th anniversary of the war's end approaches.

A team from the US non-profit Ocean Exploration Trust discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki at a depth of more than 800 meters (2,625 feet) off the small island nation northeast of Australia, AFP reported.

A video image of the wreck shows parts of the 134-meter (440-foot) Teruzuki, which was torpedoed by the US military in 1942, illuminated by lights from the research team's underwater drones.

The footage shows red paint on the hull, corroded gun barrels and the warship's massive stern.

Commissioned in 1942, the Teruzuki was designed for screening aircraft carriers from aerial attacks, the exploration group said.

However, the Teruzuki, which means "Shining Moon" in Japanese, was hit by US torpedoes just months into its service.

Nine sailors were killed but most of the crew members survived, the Ocean Exploration Trust said.

Teruzuki's stern was found more than 200 meters (660 feet) from the hull and was located by high-resolution sonar scans, it said.

The discovery was made while the team used drones to survey the area in the hope of finding unidentified shipwrecks or other items.