Indonesia: Floods kill six people in Riau - Rescue agency

ANTARA 13 Dec 18;

Pekanbaru (ANTARA News) - Floods that have been inundating certain parts of Riau Province in Sumatra Island over the past two months have claimed the lives of six people, with majority of the victims being children, the local search and rescue agency said.

The Pekanbaru National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) reported here that two of the six victims were found dead on Thursday. They were residents of Kampar District, who went missing for three days.

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Philippines: Sea turtle rescued in Malaysia slaughtered for meat in Cebu

Rhodina Villanueva The Philippine Star 14 Dec 18;

MANILA, Philippines — A marine turtle rescued and tagged in Malaysia ended up in the freezer of a restaurant in Cebu.

Dr. Rogelio Demelletes Jr. of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Biodiversity Management Bureau said an identification tag was found on one of the turtles, among the endangered species in the world.

Demelletes said wildlife conservationists had rescued and tagged the pawikan that was reportedly caught in Sandakan, Malaysia and later released to the open sea.

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High sea surface temperatures expected to bleach coral off Northern Australia

Jane Bardon ABC News 14 Dec 18;

Widespread coral bleaching is forecast for waters off the Northern Australia coast, due to above-average sea surface temperatures that could last for up to two months.

Rising sea surface temperatures prompted the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, part of the US Department of Commerce, to issue a "Red Alert Level 1" for coral bleaching off most of the Northern Territory coastline, apart from the Gulf of Carpentaria.

North of the Tiwi Islands, where sea surface temperatures have topped 33 degrees Celsius, a "Red Alert Level 2" has been put in place.

The administration said that meant there was a 60 per cent chance of mass coral bleaching across those areas.

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