A sudden eruption of the Tungurahua volcano in the Ecuadorian Andes sent a column of ash more than 4.3 miles into the sky. The eruption occurred at 10.35pm on Monday and the incandescent material "shot into the air and then descended onto the slopes of the volcano", a witness said.
The powerful eruption was followed by smaller ones and reports have come in of ash and pebbles falling on Choglontus and other villages west of the volcano.
A ski-patrol director in Colorado was killed in an avalanche last week. Scott Kay (41) was killed while doing avalanche control work when he got caught in a slide.
The death toll from the eruption of the Mount Merapi volcano in central Java climbed to 324 last week. As many as 427 victims of the eruption were still being treated in hospital.
The 2,968m Mount Merapi has frequently erupted since 26 October, spewing hot clouds of ash over 40km away.
US president Barack Obama declared the Territory of the US Virgin Islands a disaster zone, and freed federal aid for recovery efforts.
From 8 to 12 November the island of St Croix was struck by severe storms, flooding, rock slides, and mudslides associated with Tropical Storm Tomas.
Severe storms tore through the upper US Midwest, spawning as many as seven tornadoes in Illinois and Wisconsin along with damaging winds and rain.
Golf ball-sized hail was reported near Dekalb, Illinois.
10cm Depth of snow cover on the North York Moors, England, closing schools and causing traffic chaos
50 Days three teenagers spent adrift in a small boat in the Pacific Ocean before they were rescued
350 People killed when a bridge near Phnom Penh, Cambodia, started swaying, sparking a stampede
THE Balkan state of Albania has long been rugged and warlike. Ruled over by Greeks, Romans and Byzantium, it was overrun by Goths, Huns and Slavs.
In 1190 the first Albanian state, the Principality of Alber, was founded with its capital at Krujë, and although others followed in the surrounding lands, the whole region was seized by the Ottomans in the late 14th and 15th centuries.
A feudal heir called Gjergj Kastrioti was recruited by the Turkish janissaries and renamed Iskandar Bey, who later deserted with 300 men and began an Albanian rebellion against the Ottomans.
Skanderbeg, as he became known, re-converted to Catholicism and declared a holy war against the Ottoman empire.
After a long trek to Albania he eventually captured Krujë on 28 November 1443, by forging a letter from the Sultan to the governor which granted Skanderbeg control of the city.
He raised a red flag bearing his family emblem of the double-headed eagle, and his Albanian force held off the Ottomans for 25 years until his death. The rebellion continued, but the loyalties and alliances he created collapsed and the Ottomans reconquered Albania in 1478.
Skanderbeg is the national hero of Albania, and it was on Flag Day in 1912 that the country declared independence from the Ottoman empire. Skanderbeg's first triumphant raising of the standard took place 567 years ago, on this day.
The latest on the pope's statement that "in some cases" condoms will be deemed acceptable: the next meeting on the subject is planned for 2210 where they will discuss the possibility of taking them out of the packets and using them
President Obama said GM's comeback would be the success story of this recession. GM said it wanted to thank those who made its recovery possible: Toyota's brakes, Toyota's steering and Toyota's accelerator
George Bush opening a library? That's like Kirstie Alley opening a can of Diet Coke
I'll tell you how confident Sarah Palin is. She's already started writing her inaugural address on her hand
A man from Mponela is battling for his life after he cut off his own testicles on Sunday night. Pilirani Lazaro (22) took a very sharp knife and cut off his testicles. Lazaro said he did it "out of financial hiccups". He thought he could sell them in local markets.
Industry minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer threatened to close down oil refineries in the city of Haifa, a day after a toxic leak left three workers dead. "The whole area is like a nuclear bomb and I have been warning of the danger there for years," said Ben-Eliezer.
Some beach volleyball players of Arab nations are finding it quite tough to focus on their game with bikini-clad cheerleaders around them.
"They had an effect on how we played," Yemen volleyballer Adeeb Mahfoudh told the Tianfu Morning News.
A Columbia, Missouri, man was arrested after complaining to police that he was ripped off by two prostitutes. Ryan M McNames (19) told officers he offered two women $60 to perform acts. After he placed payment on a stereo, they took the money and left.
Mackenzie Taylor, 32 British comedian, comic writer and director
Ingrid Pitt, 73, Polish-born British actress (Countess Dracula, The House That Dripped Blood)
Pavel Lednyov, 67, Russian modern pentathlete, twice Olympic gold medallist
75 Cents, 77, Croatian singer in 2008 Eurovision
Bernard Matthews, 82, English turkey manufacturer
Norris Church Mailer, 61, US actress, and final wife of author Norman Mailer
Peter Christopherson, 55, musician (Throbbing Gristle) and LP designer (Hipgnosis)
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