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PeakMetrics / Fact Checks

Disasters & emergencies fact checks

Explore claims publishers have checked about disasters & emergencies. Read their original ratings and follow the evidence.

3,259 published reviews in this topic

dpaDisasters & emergencies

A Madrid, la salle des archives du ministère de la santé disparaît sous les flammes alors qu'une enquête était en cours concernant la politique de vaccination et des différents confinements imposés à la population.

Publisher’s rating: L'incendie dont il est question dans la vidéo s'est déclaré au siège du Conseil économique et social (CES) espagnol. Cet organe consultatif du gouvernement est situé dans un bâtiment adjacent au ministère de la Santé publique. Le feu n'a toutefois pas affecté les locaux de ce dernier, a assuré son service de presse à la dpa.

The claim identifies the burning building as the Spanish Ministry of Public Health’s archive room and links the fire to an alleged inquiry into vaccination policy and lockdowns. The review says the fire occurred in central Madrid on 12 April, but identifies the building in the video as the headquarters of Spain’s Economic and Social Council (CES), a separate government advisory body next to the ministry. The ministry’s press office told dpa that the fire did not affect its premises and that no fire had occurred inside them. The review also reports that the ministry and CES are distinct entities. [S1: “Le 12 avril dernier, un incendie s'est déclaré en plein centre de Madrid.”; “L'incendie dont il est question dans la vidéo s'est déclaré au siège du Conseil économique et social (CES) espagnol.”; “« Aucun incendie n'a eu lieu dans nos locaux », a assuré son service de presse à la dpa.”; “« Le CES est une autre entité, indépendante du ministère de la Santé », a-t-il ajouté.] To check which building appears in the video, the review describes comparing it with footage published on El Mundo’s YouTube channel, filmed from ministry offices, and consulting Google Maps and Street View. It says the footage shows the fire in the building opposite the ministry, and that the CES’s narrow windows are visible in the social-media clip. The article says it found no reliable source confirming that the ministry’s archives were destroyed. [S1: “Dans cette séquence vidéo diffusée sur la chaîne YouTube du quotidien El Mundo, et filmée depuis les bureaux du ministère, on peut voir que l'incendie embrase le bâtiment d'en face.”; “Une recherche sur Google Maps permet également de constater que les deux bâtiments sont distincts.”; “Sur Google Street View, le siège du CES se démarque notamment des bâtiments du ministère par ses fenêtres étroites, que l'on voit également dans l'extrait vidéo partagé sur les réseaux sociaux.”; “La rumeur sur la prétendue destruction des archives du ministère de la Santé, qui circule largement sur les réseaux sociaux (comme ici, ici et ici sur Facebook ou encore ici sur Twitter), n'est confirmée par aucune source fiable.”] The review also examined the alleged inquiry connection. It reports that the posts supplied no source and that its Spanish-language searches found no relevant reporting supporting an investigation into vaccination policy and lockdowns. The review distinguishes that allegation from a parliamentary commission established in March 2021 to examine vaccine management and the vaccination plan; it says the commission’s conclusions were approved in March 2022. [S1: “Les internautes qui partagent la rumeur ne citent aucune source.”; “Plusieurs recherches sur Google effectuées en espagnol avec les termes « enquête », « vaccins » et « Espagne », et « enquête », « confinements » et « Espagne » ne livrent aucun résultat pertinent, à l'exception de références à une Commission d'enquête parlementaire relative à la gestion des vaccins et au plan de vaccination en Espagne.”; “Mise sur pied en mars 2021 à la demande de plusieurs partis politiques, cette commission avait pour objectif d'investiguer les éventuelles « irrégularités, les failles et les retards dans la gestion des vaccins et du plan de vaccination en Espagne ».”; “Les conclusions, qui avalisent la politique vaccinale durant la pandémie, ont été approuvées en session plénière, le 31 mars 2022, par 169 voix pour, 153 contre et 22 abstentions.”]

dpaDisasters & emergencies

Im Video brennt und explodiert ein E-Fahrzeug.

Publisher’s rating: Das brennende Fahrzeug ist ein Kleinlaster mit Dieselmotor. Der Unfall ereignete sich bereits im Juli 2013 in Moskau. Der Transporter hatte Gasflaschen geladen, die infolge einer Kollision nach und nach explodierten.

The video was presented as evidence that electric vehicles can become “driving bombs”: it shows a vehicle engulfed in a fireball and repeated explosions on a highway. The investigation identifies it instead as footage of a July 2013 crash on Moscow’s MKAD ring road involving a diesel delivery truck carrying gas cylinders. It reports that the truck collided with a bus and that the cylinders exploded after the collision. To identify the footage, the review compared the video with recordings of the same crash from other viewpoints. It matched visible details including the trees, a distinctive bus shelter, a grey car beside the explosions, road signs, and distant high-rises. The review also describes a reverse image search of the video’s opening frame that located similar views. Together, these details linked the clip to the Moscow incident rather than an electric-vehicle fire. The review further cites contemporary Russian news-agency reporting on the collision and says the truck was an Isuzu model. It describes vehicle features and a video sequence showing the truck was associated with a company that delivered gas cylinders. The manufacturer told dpa that it was known for diesel technology and had no electric vehicles in 2013. The evidence therefore supports the review’s identification of the vehicle and the source of the explosions; it does not establish that the footage depicts an electric vehicle.

dpa-factcheckingDisasters & emergencies

Dieses Video zeigt, wie ein Elektroauto explodiert.

Publisher’s rating: Das Video zeigt kein explodierendes Elektroauto, sondern einen Chevrolet Nexia-3, dessen Gasflasche in Usbekistan beim Betanken mit Erdgas explodierte. Der Tankstellenmitarbeiter starb bei dem Unglück.

The video shows a car exploding at a filling station, with a red object flying from the vehicle and striking an employee. The review traces the footage to an incident on 25 February 2023 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. It reports that Uzbek authorities confirmed the incident in social-media posts and said a gas cylinder exploded while the car was being refuelled; the employee died.

dpaDisasters & emergencies

Deze video toont een brandende elektrische auto (Tesla).

Publisher’s rating: Het gaat hier niet om een elektrische auto. De brand was een gevolg van een botsing tussen een bus en een vrachtwagen waar gasflessen in lagen. Daardoor ontstonden de explosies. Het ongeluk gebeurde op een snelweg rond Moskou in 2013. De vrachtwagen was van het merk Isuzu. Dit merk had in 2013 geen elektrische vrachtwagens, dus het gaat om een vrachtwagen met een verbrandingsmotor.

The video was shared as showing a nearly impossible-to-extinguish electric-car fire, with some posts identifying the vehicle as a Tesla. The investigation instead traced the footage to a 2013 crash on a highway near Moscow: a truck carrying gas cylinders collided with a bus, and the cylinders exploded. The fire and explosions therefore did not establish that an electric car was involved. (S1: “Een elektrische auto, volgens sommigen van het merk Tesla, zou een bijna onblusbare brand veroorzaken op een weg.”; “Het ongeluk gebeurde op een snelweg rond Moskou in 2013.”; “Een vrachtwagen komt in botsing met een bus en de lading van de vrachtwagen ontploft bijna direct.”) To identify the footage, the investigators used reverse-image searches of video screenshots. They found YouTube videos of the incident and, using details in their descriptions, located more footage from different angles, including dashcam video showing the collision. They also compared features in the circulating clip with Google Street View imagery: the bus-stop signs and shelter, nearby apartment buildings, and road signs matched the Moscow location. (S1: “Met een reverse image search op screenshots uit de video is snel de context achter de beelden te vinden.”; “Er is zelfs een dashcamvideo waarop je het ongeluk kunt zien gebeuren.”; “Op de Google Street View-beelden uit 2014 zijn de twee borden die de bushalte aangeven en de overkapping van de halte rechts te herkennen.”) The investigation identified the truck as an Isuzu carrying 119 gas cylinders, citing Russian state news agency RIA; the cylinders exploded on impact. Although it could not establish the truck’s exact model, it found no basis for calling it electric: Isuzu’s small, medium and large trucks were sold with diesel or petrol engines, while the company’s report described electric-truck prototypes as being under test only from 2019. Those details support the conclusion that the 2013 vehicle was not an electric truck; the footage was misrepresented when presented as a Tesla fire. (S1: “Volgens staatspersbureau RIA was de vrachtwagen die in brand vloog van het merk Isuzu en vervoerde deze 119 gasflessen, die ontploften door de impact.”; “Hoewel het type Isuzu niet zeker is”; “Op de Russische website van het merk zijn de kleine, middel- en grote varianten van vrachtwagens alleen maar met diesel- of benzinemotor te koop.”; “Volgens een duurzaamheidsrapport van Isuzu zijn sinds 2019 tests aan de gang met prototypes van elektrische vrachtwagens.”)

El Detector / Univision NoticiasDisasters & emergencies

Un video acerca del paso del huracán Ian por Florida es una noticia de última hora sobre Estados Unidos.

Publisher’s rating: Falso

The investigation examined a Facebook video about Hurricane Ian in Florida that used the headline “Últimas noticias EEUU.” It addressed whether the video was current breaking news, rather than disputing that Ian had struck Florida. The review says the video was posted on April 9, 2023, and that its opening claimed Florida Governor Ron DeSantis had declared an emergency because of Ian’s arrival. To check that framing, the review compared the dates in the video’s account with the storm’s documented timeline. Ian made landfall on Florida’s east coast on September 28, 2022; the emergency declarations mentioned in the video occurred on September 23 and 24, 2022. The review also states Ian had dissipated by October 2, 2022. Those dates place the events described in the video months before its April 2023 posting. The review further cites the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s hurricane-season chronology: the 2022 season officially ended November 30, and the 2023 season was not due to begin until June 1. Taken together, the storm and season dates do not support presenting the video’s account of Ian’s arrival as a current emergency or breaking news in April 2023.

dpaDisasters & emergencies

Une voiture électrique explose pendant son chargement.

Publisher’s rating: La vidéo ne montre pas l'explosion d'une voiture électrique. Il s'agit d'une Chevrolet Nexia-III, dont la bouteille de gaz a explosé pendant le ravitaillement en gaz naturel (CNG).

The video shows an explosion at a service station, but the investigation found that the event was misrepresented as an electric car exploding while charging. The vehicle was identified as a Chevrolet Nexia-III, and the fuel involved was compressed natural gas (CNG), not electricity. The review says the car was being refuelled through the filling valve under the hood, as visible in the video. [S1]

FACTLYDisasters & emergencies

Visuals showing explosion of an electric car while charging

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The claim concerns a video of a car explosion shared as showing an electric vehicle exploding while charging. FACTLY identifies the footage as a real explosion, but says the proposed explanation is wrong: the car was fitted with an LPG cylinder, and the explosion occurred while that cylinder was being refuelled. The review’s account therefore distinguishes the event shown in the visuals from the cause attributed to it in the viral claim. To trace the footage, the review says it used reverse image searches on screenshots from the video and found a Turkish news article reporting the same visuals and locating the incident in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. It then describes finding Uzbek news reports and an acknowledgment from the Department of Emergency Situations of Samarkand region. FACTLY reports that these sources identified the gas cylinder as the cause, rather than the charging of an electric-car battery. The review concludes that the visuals show an explosion involving a gas-cylinder-equipped car, not an electric car exploding while charging. Its explanation is based on tracing the video to reporting about the Samarkand incident and on the reported accounts of the explosion’s cause; the excerpt does not provide links or quotations from the underlying Turkish or Uzbek reports.

FACTLYDisasters & emergencies

Video showing a collapsed building following an earthquake in Karnah tehsil in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara district

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The claim concerned a video circulating after the earthquake tremors in Jammu and Kashmir on 21 March 2023. It was presented as showing a collapsed building in Karnah tehsil, Kupwara district, and accompanying posts said three people had died in the district. The review investigated whether the video showed that event, rather than merely whether an earthquake had occurred.

Belarusian Investigative CenterDisasters & emergencies

Запад не помог Сирии после землетрясения

Publisher’s rating: Искажение информации. Германия заявила, что выделяет Сирии 50 млн евро. Франция – более 12. Вашингтон заявил, что предоставил 50 миллионов долларов для удовлетворения неотложных гуманитарных потребностей на севере Сирии.