Situation Report

A public health technician inspects an Aedes aegyti mosquito in a research lab to help prevent the spread of Zika virus and other mosquito-borne diseases at the entomology department of the Ministry of Public Health, in Guatemala City, January 26, 2016. REUTERS/JOSUE DECAVELE

uk.reuters.com - by Julie Steenhuysen and Roberta Rampton - January 27, 2016

President Barack Obama on Tuesday called for the rapid development of tests, vaccines and treatments to fight the mosquito-transmitted Zika virus, which has been linked to birth defects and could spread to the United States in warmer months. . . .

. . . "The president emphasized the need to accelerate research efforts to make available better diagnostic tests, to develop vaccines and therapeutics, and to ensure that all Americans have information about the Zika virus and steps they can take to better protect themselves from infection," the White House said in a statement. . . .

reuters.com - by Paulo Prada - January 30, 2016

. . . "We knew this was something else," says Carlos Brito, a doctor from Recife who told state and federal health authorities in January-February last year that they were wrong to classify all the cases as dengue. "But the authorities were slow to believe,” he said.

Kleber Luz, a physician in Natal, a city 300 km up the Atlantic coast, says he gave similar feedback but got the same response.

. . . "You have to gather the data," says Marcos Espinal, director of the department of communicable diseases at PAHO, dismissing criticism that the regional body or headquarters could have moved any sooner.

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AN EXPANDING LIST OF INFORMATION ON WINTER STORM JONAS:

CLICK HERE - The Washington Post - Mid-Atlantic coastline flooded by blizzard’s storm surge. ‘This is worse than Sandy.’

CLICK HERE - National Weather Service - Active Alerts

CLICK HERE - NOAA - Forecasts and Warnings - Storm Surge and Coastal Inundation

CLICK HERE - National Weather Service - TIDES, TIDE GUIDANCE, and TIDAL IMPACT TABLES

CLICK HERE - nj.com - When to expect high tide flooding along the Jersey Shore this weekend

CLICK HERE - nbcnewyork.com - Road Travel Banned, Mass Transit Curtailed as Snowstorm Blasts Region

CLICK HERE - CNN - Blizzard strikes East Coast; motorists stranded for hours in 3 states

Wind turbines provide energy for the residents of Samso Island, a Danish island that gets all its power from renewable sources. PHOTOGRAPH BY ANDREW HENDERSON, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CREATIVE

Low oil prices are rattling stock markets, but investors remain bullish on solar, wind, and other clean energy. Here are three reasons why.

nationalgeographic.com - by Wendy Koch - January 22, 2016

The prolonged plunge in fossil fuel prices is rippling across the globe. Yet it’s barely put a dent in the booming market for clean energy, heralding perhaps a new era for wind and solar.

Oil prices of less than $30 a barrel—the lowest in 12 years—have shaken stock markets and ravaged the budgets of major producers such as Russia and Saudi Arabia. Along with falling gas prices, they’ve slashed the profits of fossil fuel companies, which are delaying dozens of billion-dollar projects and laying off thousands of workers. . . .

. . . But solar, wind, and other clean energy? They’re expanding.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)