Residents of Sioux Falls, South Dakota were in awe when the sky turned into green color.

The National Weather Service (NWS) revealed it was not due to a tornado as some believed, but stemmed from a derecho.

A derecho is an intense wind storm associated with a fast-moving group of severe thunderstorms.

This one in particular barreled across the northern Midwest with winds up to 99 miles per hour that knocked out power for thousands.

‘This of course caught the attention of many who had never seen skies so green.’

‘In this particular case, the green skies lasted for around 10-20 minutes as the storms approached the city of Sioux Falls.’

The storm flowed into the Sioux Falls area around 3pm to 3:30pm CST, carrying a murky green sky along with it.

The storm tapered off around 5:30pm and by that time, more than 26,000 people in the city were without power.

The Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has issued a new date for the completion of the new airfield lighting work on Runway 18 Left of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos.

Between July 8 and September, the runway will be out of service for all flight operations.

The new September date is contrary to the July date that was initially given for the installation, to bring to an end the 14-year blackout on the critical infrastructure.

The Runway 18L that services the local airport was 2008 rehabilitated but without provision for airfield lighting. The current administration in July 2021 awarded a new contract for the airfield lighting and estimated completion in six-month.

The impact of the routine blackout and attendant under-utilisation of the local facility is telling on local airlines’ schedules, with the airport exposed to “operational nightmare”, especially at nightfall or in bad weather.

Acting General Manager, Corporate Affairs of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Faithful Hope-Ivbaze, said the authority remained committed to improving the safety and efficiency of flight operations and had concluded arrangements to complete the installation of the CAT III Airfield Ground Lighting system on the local runway.

“The project, which will commence effectively on Friday, July 8, 2022, is expected to last for 90 days. Consequently, Runway 18L/36R will be closed to flight operations during this time.

“However, stakeholders are to note that there will be no disruption of in-flight services. All normal flight operations will be conducted through runway 18R/36L (of the international airport). A Notice to AirMen (NOTAM) to this effect has already been published and disseminated accordingly,” Hope-Ivbaze said.

Managing Director of FAAN, Capt. Hamisu Yadudu, earlier told reporters that several of the facilities at airports nationwide had not been rehabilitated nor replaced in the last forty years.

“Now, we are going out of our way to make sure we do our best. We are fixing the 18L at Lagos Airport. You cannot land on 18L at night; now the contractor is back.

He was supposed to finish in March, but the cables he had were of low quality and we are insisting on original ones. So, he said he would fix it by June or July.

“We have contacted the airfield lighting company in Europe to fix the new ones and to overhaul the whole airfield lighting system.

There was no overhauling in 42 years. So, after nine years, we are fixing some of these things that were abandoned and we are also starting new ones, including baggage handling, the central cooling system and others,” he said.

Emergency responders have rescued three persons from a Lexus Jeep that was swept away by a heavy flood around Oyatoki area of Agege, Lagos State, Nigeria’s South-west.

This is contained in a statement signed by Mr Ibrahim Farinloye, the Zonal Coordinator, South-West, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), on Saturday in Lagos.

Farinloye said that the incident involved two vehicles, a Lexus Jeep carrying three persons and a Toyota with three occupants.

According to him, the six persons were reported to have been swept away when rainwater overflowed an uncompleted canal in the area.

“The residents reportedly warned the people in the vehicles to desist from passing through the road but they were adamant but drove through, and they were swept away,

“One of the people in the Toyota refused, dropped down from the vehicle, the other two drove and they are the only once missing presently.

“Altogether, three rescued alive, one jumped out to safety, while the remaining two are missing,” he said.

Farinloye said that emergency responders on ground included the Lagos State Fire Service, NEMA, LASEMA, Police and other responders from the community.

“Search and rescue operations are ongoing in search of the other two persons.

“The community members are mobilised due to the fact that they know the terrain of the canal and successfully rescued the four persons,” he added.

Some stakeholders has lauded the Maritime Seminar for Judges, saying it would enable them to effectively and efficiently handle maritime-related cases in courts.

The 16th International Maritime Seminar for Judges was held in Abuja and organised by the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) in collaboration with the National Judiciary Institute (NJI).

Dr Emeka Akabogu, the Senior Partner, Akabogu and Associates, said the seminar had given the judges an understanding of the primacy of Admiralty Law and its importance compared to other areas of law.

“You need speed; you need immediate action many times, because you are dealing with ships, which are international in nature.

“The ships are moving from one jurisdiction to another, they come into the country, spend a few days and have to leave, in some cases they are at rest and different things.

“So, the judges have a better understanding of the importance of admiralty law within the context of law generally and are able to act quickly on it.

“This particular edition is important because it incorporates justices of all starters of courts, the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal and the Federal High Court; and in incorporating their attendance; they are exposed to the most challenging things.

“The topics that have been set out on the schedule are those which are most challenging at this time.

“So if you look at the programme, you will see discussions on the standard operating procedures at the ports, current issues which are affecting adjudication of cases, on case management in application of technology etc.

“We are hopeful that at the end of the day, the judges will go home better equipped to discharge the functions in their offices.’’

Meanwhile, the Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola said judges who had participated in the seminar had become better equipped with knowledge of rudimentary maritime laws necessary in handling complex maritime claim and cases.

According to him, the seminar is designed among other things to acquaint participants with emerging trends in the sphere of Admiralty Law and the challenges that digitisation and globalisation may throw up on adjudication of admiralty matters.

Similarly, Justice Bode Vivour said the seminar provided a specialised forum for judicial officers to be equipped with requisite skill and knowledge as a means to an efficient and effective judicial resolution of maritime businesses.

“The judiciary as we all know is the lifeline of democratic societies. The need to strengthen our respective judiciaries cannot be overemphasised.

“An effective judicial system is a key pillar of an efficient economy and plays a vital role in a nation’s economic performance.

“A strong and independent judiciary which decisions are rendered fairly, transparently within reasonable time limits and in accordance with international recognised norms, encourages foreign and local private sector investment.”

In its bid to ensure boat mishaps are a thing of the past on the Lagos Waterways, the Lagos State Government has vowed to enforce safety measures and go after substandard boat operators.

The General Manager, Lagos State Waterways Authority, LASWA, Mr. Damilola Emmanuel, stated this while reacting to recent boats mishaps during a television interview.

The General Manager who condoled with the families of victims who lost their lives in the recent boat mishaps in the state noted that his agency has done so much to reduce the issue of boat mishaps to the barest minimum.

Part of the safety measures Emmanuel explained, include: LASWA’s Search and Rescue Unit, established to fully deal with incident operations in the different locations of the State Water Ways to improve response time during emergencies.

Emmanuel added that with the huge potential of water transportation in the state, Government was doing all it could to ensure that the sector is not only viable but safe and is thus ready to come down hard on any operator who endangers the lives of people while operating in the sector.

He said, “One of the boat drivers whose actions led to a boat mishap some years back was recently sentenced to life imprisonment.

“We are coming harder on operators who are compromising standards. With the huge capital committed to the water transportation sector, we cannot fold our arms and allow mediocrity.”

The LASWA GM further stated that his agency parley with the manufacturer of Yamaha, which manufactures most of the engines used in boats in Lagos State to reduce the price they are selling to the boat operators to enhance safety while running the boats journey.

He admonished passengers on the water ways to be safety conscious always.

“The life jacket can save you. Buy your own life jacket if you must. Inspect the life jackets that you are given and make sure it does not have holes or is torn, while avoiding night travels.

Safety consciousness is a collective responsibility, if you see something unusual on the Waterways, say it,” Emmanuel said.

The largest grove of giant sequoias in Yosemite National Park was closed Friday and hundreds of people ordered evacuated nearby as a wildfire burning through dense forest became the latest in recent years to threaten the world’s largest trees.

A team was being sent to the Mariposa Grove to wrap some of the massive trunks in fire-resistant foil to protect them as the blaze burned out of control, said Nancy Phillipe, a Yosemite fire information spokesperson.

More than 500 mature sequoias were threatened but there were no reports of severe damage to any named trees, such as the 3,000-year-old Grizzly Giant.

The cause of the fire was under investigation and the rest of the park remained open as nearly 300 firefighters tried to control the flames with the help of two water-dropping helicopters and an air tanker dumping flame retardant, Phillipe said.

The giant sequoias, native in only about 70 groves spread along the western slope of California’s Sierra Nevada range, were once considered impervious to flames but have become increasingly vulnerable as wildfires fueled by a buildup of undergrowth from a century of fire suppression and drought exacerbated by climate change have become more intense and destructive.

Lightning-sparked wildfires over the past two years have killed up to a fifth of the estimated 75,000 large sequoias, which are the biggest trees by volume.

There was no obvious natural spark for the fire that broke out Thursday next to the park’s Washburn Trail, Phillipe said. Smoke was reported by visitors walking in the grove that reopened in 2018 after a $40 million renovation that took three years.

The grove, which is inside the park’s southern entrance, was evacuated and no one was injured.

The fire had grown to 466 acres (188 hectares) by Friday evening, authorities said.

Evacuation orders were issued Friday for the grove along with the nearby community of Wawona — which is surrounded by the park — and the Wawona Campground, where about 600 to 700 people were staying in a campground, cabins and an historic hotel.

A fierce windstorm ripped through the grove a year-and-a-half ago and toppled 15 giant sequoias, along with countless other trees.

The downed trees, along with massive numbers of pines killed by bark beetles, provided ample fuel for the flames, but winds Friday were calm and the fire was not spreading rapidly.

The park has used prescribed burns to clear brush around the sequoias, which helps protect them if flames spread farther into the grove.

“When the unwanted fires hit those areas, it tends to slow the rate of spread and helps us gain some control,” Phillipe said.

In the Sierra foothills, 80 miles (128 kilometers) to the northwest of the Yosemite fire, some evacuation orders were lifted as containment grew to 70% on the Electra Fire that had burned 7 square miles (18 square kilometers).

The fire broke out near Jackson on Monday and temporarily forced about 100 people celebrating the July 4th holiday along a river to seek shelter in a Pacific Gas & Electric Co. facility.