Submit your Article

Thousands of firefighters are battling wildfires in Portugal, Spain and southwestern France, in the grip of a heatwave that shows no sign of easing, BBC reported.

In northern Portugal, a pilot died when his waterbombing plane crashed in the Foz Coa area, near the Spanish border.

Fires are ravaging areas of France's Gironde region, where more than 12,000 people have been evacuated.

In southern Spain, near the Costa del Sol, about 2,300 people had to flee a wildfire spreading in the Mijas hills.

Holidaymakers on the beach in Torremolinos saw big plumes of smoke rising in the hills, where several aircraft were tackling the blaze.

Ashley Baker, a Briton who lives in Mijas in southern Spain, told the BBC that the fire appeared more threatening on Friday, but since then the wind had blown it away from his area.

Planes have been a dropping fire retardant substance, as helicopters shuttle to and from the coast, collecting seawater to douse the flames, according to BBC.

"There are about 40 houses in our area, everyone was really nervous and standing outside or on balconies watching it," Mr Baker said.

"Even now there are fires at the top of the mountains. It moved away from here, I'm very relieved. When you live in the hills, it's very scary - all the road signs are giving you updates all the time about extreme fire risks."

Meanwhile, near France's south-west Atlantic coast, a local resident described the forest fires as feeling "post-apocalyptic". 

"I've never seen this before," Karyn, who lives near Teste-de-Buch, told news agency AFP.

The fire there and another just south of Bordeaux have ravaged nearly 10,000 hectares (25,000 acres). Some 3,000 firefighters are tackling the blazes.

Christophe Nader and his son-in-law are now at a shelter near Teste-de-Buch, having been forced to abandoned their house in the village of Cazaux with nothing more than the clothes they are wearing. He told the BBC he was hoping to get back there to rescue their cat. Hundreds of others from the danger zone are also at the temporary shelter, which has provided beds.

Animal rescues are being organised from there, but it is a slow process, the BBC's Jessica Parker reports.

"Everything went so fast - the fire too, was big, big, big," Manon Jacquart, 27, told the BBC. She was evacuated from the campsite she works at early on Wednesday morning, and has been sleeping at a shelter near La Teste-de-Buch, on France's west coast.

"I'm just worried, I'm afraid… I'm trying to be as strong as I can but I'm not ok… I want to forget this week," she said.

Since Tuesday, temperatures have soared to 47C in Portugal and above 40C in Spain, leaving the countryside bone dry and fuelling the fires. More than 300 people have died from the heat in both countries, Spain's Efe news agency reports, BBC reported.

The Portuguese pilot who died was flying solo in a Fire Boss amphibious plane.

Portugal's fire hotspots are in the north - east of the city of Porto. Fires have destroyed 30,000 hectares (75,000 acres) of land this year - the largest area since the summer of 2017, when Portugal suffered devastating fires in which some 100 people died.

Gemma Suarez, a Spanish farmer evacuated from Casas de Miravete, sobbed as she told Reuters news agency: "What a night. We haven't slept all night.

"A social worker came to see me to go pick up my elderly uncle. We spent the night in Navalmoral but we didn't sleep at all. I have never seen such a big fire."

Query

I am a 52-year-old banker who was diagnosed with breast cancer six months ago. At my doctor's suggestion, I will have to undergo chemotherapy, as well as remove one of my breasts to stop the cancer from spreading. My doctor tells me that I will survive, but I feel sad and hopeless. Somehow, I have no enthusiasm to undergo treatment and get better. Lately, I have been avoiding my friends, family and well-wishers. Is this normal? -A confused patient

Answer by Rishav Koirala, Psychiatrist and Researcher

For most cancer patients, it is very difficult to accept the fact that they have cancer. It is normal to feel frustrated in a situation like yours. The reluctance to undergo treatment is also fairly common, as the news of cancer can make patients emotionally vulnerable. 

Chemotherapy has many kinds of mental and physical effects on the human body. It can result in loss of hair and weight, which is directly connected to the individual’s appearance. For most cancer patients, the thought of this can be very stressful. They are unable to come to terms with the fact that they will undergo physical changes. After all, our appearance is part of our identity.  

I want to assure you that feeling this way is normal. But letting this escalate will worsen your stress. As a cancer patient, you need enough rest and a positive outlook, which is not possible if you focus on the negative and keep imagining bad scenarios for yourself. 

One thing you can do to stop overthinking negative thoughts is give them a positive spin. For instance, if you are worried about losing your hair, focus on the long-term outcome and not the temporary effects of therapy. The hair will grow back once the treatment is over. More importantly, you will be cancer-free and healthy again.

Yes, it is difficult to stay positive when you have been diagnosed with cancer. But positivity is something you practice and it is a gradual process.

You should also remember that you cannot tackle this situation on your own. You need people to talk to. So, rather than avoiding interactions, I suggest you find someone whom you are comfortable sharing your thoughts, someone who will listen to you and give you the right suggestion. Doing this can improve your depressive symptoms. 

If these suggestions do not work, you can always consult a psychiatrist or a psychologist, who can help you navigate this difficult process. 

Hammersmith Bridge has been wrapped in giant pieces of foil to stop it from overheating as temperatures soar, BBC reported.

Silver insulation foil has been placed over the structure to protect it from the sun and keep the bridge open, with London expected to see highs of 35C (95F) next week.

A £420,000 temperature control system is also switched on at night.

The bridge, currently only accessible to pedestrians and cyclists, was also closed in 2020 due to a heatwave.

An amber alert has been issued by the Met Office from Sunday until Tuesday, with extreme heat expected in the capital.

Hammersmith Bridge, which was built in 1887, is currently undergoing major repair works at an estimated cost of £140m.

The heatwave in 2020 closed the Grade II*-listed structure when cracks in the cast-iron expanded. The bridge reopened the following year but only to pedestrians and cyclists.

Almost £9m has already been spent on stabilising the bridge's pedestals.

Hammersmith and Fulham Council said a toll to help pay for repairs was the "only way" the bridge could reopen entirely, according to BBC.

Insulation foil and the cooling system are being used to keep the bridge's pedestals safe in order for it to remain open. 

The supporting chains are maintained to stay at 13C (55F). Engineers will need to close the bridge if the temperature of the chains reaches 18C (64F), according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

Sebastian Springer, the engineer who is leading the project, said: "The safety of the public is our first priority.

"The temperature control system allows us to track weather spikes and maintain a constant temperature. As we deal with the current extreme heat, we are also coming up with innovative solutions to keep the temperature within the threshold."

Around 25 million children around the world missed out on routine vaccinations last year that protect against life-threatening diseases, as the knock-on effects of the pandemic continue to disrupt health care globally, Reuters reported.

That is two million more children than in 2020, when COVID-19 caused lockdowns around the world, and six million more than pre-pandemic in 2019, according to new figures released by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

UNICEF described the drop in vaccination coverage as the largest sustained backslide in childhood vaccination in a generation, taking coverage rates back to levels not seen since the early 2000s.

Many had hoped that 2021 would see some ground recovered after the first year of the pandemic, but the situation actually worsened, raising questions over catch-up efforts.

"I want to get across the urgency," UNICEF's senior immunisation specialist, Niklas Danielsson told Reuters. "This is a child health crisis."

The agency said that a focus on COVID-19 immunisation campaigns in 2021, as well as the economic slowdown and strain on healthcare systems, had stymied a quicker recovery for routine vaccinations.

Coverage dropped in every region, the figures showed, which are estimated using data on the take-up of the three-dose diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP3) jab and include both children who get no jabs at all and those who miss on any of the three doses necessary for protection. Globally, coverage fell by 5% to 81% last year, according to Reuters.

The number of "zero-dose" children, who did not receive any vaccinations, rose by 37% between 2019 and 2021, from 13 to 18 million children mostly in low and middle-income countries, the data showed.

For many diseases, more than 90% of children need to be vaccinated in order to prevent outbreaks. There have already been reports of rising cases of vaccine-preventable diseases in recent months, including a 400% rise in measles cases in Africa in 2022.

"If we don't catch up on vaccinations quickly and urgently, we will inevitably witness more outbreaks," said UNICEF's Ephrem Tekle Lemango, saying Yemen and Afghanistan were among countries with large and disruptive measles outbreaks in recent months.

In 2021, 24.7 million children missed their first dose of measles vaccine, and a further 14.7 million did not get the essential second dose, the data showed. Coverage was 81%, the lowest since 2008, Reuters reported.

The numbers are worked out using data from national health systems in 177 countries.

The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a $100 million development policy credit (DPC) to help improve the enabling environment for Nepal’s green, climate-resilient, and inclusive development pathway.

This is the first in a programmatic series of three DPCs on Green, Resilient and Inclusive Development (GRID).

“In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Bank has pivoted its program in Nepal to focus support to the Government to pursue a greener, more inclusive, and more resilient development path, said Faris Hadad-Zervos, World Bank Country Director for Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, read a statement issued on Friday.

"Through this operation, we are supporting the Government’s key policy actions across sectors including water, land use, agriculture, forest, urban, waste, and pollution,” he further said.

This first operation supports strategic GRID transitions that help build and maintain prosperity for all. This includes the sustainable and productive use of natural capital; strengthening the resilience of urban and rural infrastructure, human capital, and livelihoods to climate and environmental risks; and promoting more efficient and cleaner production, consumption, and mobility.

The operation also supports reforms for strengthening inclusion in development decision-making and access to assets and services; and encourages private sector investment in greening Nepal’s economy and creating jobs and livelihoods related to such areas as community forestry, agriculture, clean air, and solid waste management.

“Nepal’s shift to the GRID approach is a strategic move during a challenging era that is full of opportunity. This shift will help the country continue to make progress on expanding and protecting prosperity while reducing poverty in the face of compounding challenges that affect Nepal’s development, including COVID, disaster, climate and environmental risks,” said Steve Danyo, Sector Leader for Sustainable Development for Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka, and the Task Team Leader for the operation. “The GRID DPC supports Nepal’s shift to a more sustainable, resilient, and inclusive economy.”

Nepal reported 229 new Covid-19 cases on Friday.

According to the Ministry of Health and Population, 1, 644 swab samples were tested in the RT-PCR method, of which 161 returned positive. Likewise, 2, 074 people underwent antigen tests, of which 68 were tested positive.

The Ministry said that no one died of virus in the last 24 hours. The Ministry said that 48 infected people recovered from the disease.

As of today, there are 1,284 active cases in the country.

Pushpa Bhusal has been elected as the deputy speaker of the House of Representatives.

A common candidate of the ruling coalition, Bhusal defeated Bidhya Bhattarai of the CPN-UML to become the deputy speaker of the Parliament. Bhusal is the whip of Nepali Congress.

Sher garnered 148 votes while her nearest rival Bhattarai secured 93 votes. One lawmaker stayed neutral.

Also a member of the Constituent Assembly, Bhusal had played an important role in formulating the constitution.

The post of deputy speaker had been lying vacant after the then deputy speaker Shiva Maya Tumbahamphe resigned from her post on January 20, 2020.

There are 271 lawmakers in the House of Representatives.

One has to obtain 136 votes to be elected as the deputy speaker of the Parliament.

The ruling coalition has 154 lawmakers while the main opposition CPN-UML has 98 lawmakers. The Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), which has one lawmaker, supported the UML. 

The Supreme Court scrapped the writ petition filed against the appointment of Inspector General of Nepal Police. 

A joint bench of acting Chief Justice Deepak Kumar Karki and Justice Kumar Chudal on Friday quashed the writ petition filed by AIG Bishwa Raj Pokharel, giving validation to the appointment of Dhiraj Pratap Singh. 

Earlier on May 2, Pokharel had filed the petition arguing that the government appointed Singh as the IG of Nepal Police flouting the seniority basis. 

With the annulment of the writ, the deck has been cleared for Singh to complete his term.

Similarly, the apex court also quashed the writ petition filed by Ishwor Babu Karki, Ghanshyam Aryal and Praksh Jung Karki. 

The trio had filed the petition on March 31 expressing dissatisfaction over the appointment of AIG.