I’ve mentioned before that weather is the number one topic of casual conversation in Canada. I suspect that is because it’s a conversational ice-breaker, but I also think it’s because it’s so unpredictable.

Have you ever noticed that when you live in a large city weather doesn’t quite take on the importance it does in rural areas?
I hate floods. I really hate them. It’s not just the devestation, it’s the smell. A flood isn’t something you clean up from in a day or two.

Here in Canada, forest fires are encroaching on towns in Quebec. Southern Manitoba has been dealing with heavy rain and flooding and now Calgary is facing floods.
No one has been injured or killed.

That is not the case in China. 17 million people have been displaced in 16 south-western provinces. Over 200 people are dead.

One of the effects of flooding is disease. Three cases of typhoid are confirmed.
One of the ways it is spread is by sewage coming in contact with food and drinking water.
A typhoid vaccination is common if you travel to most parts of the world. But a vaccination will not necessarily prevent the disease, which, if caught in time is treated with antibiotics. 20% of people that don’t receive treatment die.
About 12.5 million cases are reported worldwide each year.

Bangladesh is also suffering. 60% of the country is flooded from monsoons.
Dysentry, typhoid and dengue fever from the mosquitoes breeding in the floodwaters is threatening the 30 million people in the region.