California wildfires

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6 Firefighters Critically Injured in California Crash

They had just finished 12-hour shift battling Airport Fire

(Newser) - Six firefighters were critically injured Thursday night in a rollover crash on a freeway in Orange County, California. The two other firefighters in the fire truck had minor injuries, KTLA reports. The California Highway Patrol says the Orange County Fire Authority truck hit a guardrail and rolled over after it...

Man Pleads Not Guilty to Starting Massive California Fire

Delivery driver Justin Halstenberg allegedly used incendiary device

(Newser) - A California man has pleaded not guilty to starting a fire that authorities said ballooned into a massive wildfire and forced the evacuation of thousands of homes. Online court records show Justin Wayne Halstenberg, 34, entered the plea from jail in a video arraignment Tuesday in the San Bernardino city...

Cooler Weather Helps Crews Fight Southern California Fires

Officials are dialing back evacuations near Bridge Fire

(Newser) - Thousands of firefighters aided by cooler weather made progress Saturday against three Southern California wildfires, and officials in northern Nevada were hopeful that almost all evacuees from a blaze there could soon be home. Authorities have started scaling back evacuations at the largest blaze, the AP reports. The Bridge Fire...

Suspect Accused of Starting Massive California Fire

Sheriff believes FedEx driver Justin Halstenberg may be responsible for more wildfires

(Newser) - A California man has been arrested for allegedly starting a wildfire that has put more than 65,000 structures at risk. Riverside County resident Justin Wayne Halstenberg, 34, was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of arson, KCAL reports. Investigators believe he started the Line Fire , which has burned more than 54...

Out-of-Control Wildfire Rages in California Heat

Blaze threatens thousands of homes east of Los Angeles

(Newser) - Tens of thousands of homes and buildings were threatened Sunday by an out-of-control wildfire burning in the foothills of a national forest east of Los Angeles, amid a dayslong heat wave that pushed temperatures into the triple digits across the region. State firefighters said three firefighters had been injured and...

Park Fire Becomes California's 4th Largest Ever

Wildfire activity is up 2.8K% from last year, officials say

(Newser) - California is dealing with 15 active wildfires, officials said Friday, one of which has become the fourth largest in state history. The Park Fire is at 399,437 acres and is only about one-fourth contained, the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection reported. The blaze has destroyed hundreds of structures,...

He Ran 1.5 Miles From Chopper to Save Dogs From Park Fire

Trevor Skaggs' heroism on display amid 5th-largest fire in California history

(Newser) - A man fleeing California's Park Fire was forced to leave behind his two Rottweilers and their litter of puppies on Wednesday when his truck broke down. The remote area above Cohasset was soon blocked by fire and the dogs "presumed lost," the North Valley Animal Disaster Group...

California's Biggest Wildfire Just Got Even Bigger

Firefighters are struggling to contain Park Fire, threatening thousands of homes in 4 counties

(Newser) - California's largest active fire exploded in size on Friday evening, growing rapidly amid bone-dry fuel and threatening thousands of homes as firefighters scrambled to meet the danger. The Park Fire's intensity and dramatic spread led fire officials to make unwelcome comparisons to the monstrous Camp Fire, which burned...

Cops: Man Used Burning Car to Ignite Wildfire

California officials arrest 42-year-old over Park Fire, state's biggest of the year so far

(Newser) - A California man under arrest Thursday was accused of starting the state's largest wildfire of the year by pushing a burning car into a gully as other fires scorched the Pacific Northwest. Flames from the fire the suspect is accused of starting exploded into what is now the Park...

Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch Is in Wildfire's Path

The Lake Fire is also threatening wineries in California's Los Olivos area

(Newser) - One of the largest wildfires currently burning in California has Michael Jackson's former home in its sights. The Lake Fire, which has grown to more than 18,000 acres since it broke out Friday afternoon, is burning in southern California's Santa Barbara County near Los Olivos, and along...

'Vast Majority' of California Evacuees Allowed Home

Crews are continuing to battle Thompson Fire near Oroville

(Newser) - Thousands of people evacuated during a Northern California wildfire were allowed to return home Thursday afternoon as crews continued battling flames amid scorching heat, officials said. Containment of the Thompson Fire near the city of Oroville in Butte County also increased to 29% from 7%, the AP reports. The "...

First California Wildfire a 'Taste of What's to Come'

Hot and windy conditions are fueling the Post Fire near Los Angeles

(Newser) - California's first major wildfire of the season is here, and the newly named Post Fire is not expected to enter the record books in terms of scale or damage. But the nature of the fire in Los Angeles County and the fact that it's only mid-June nonetheless has...

Fire Near Livermore Prompts Evacuations

Blaze pushed by high winds is 15% contained, officials say

(Newser) - A wind-driven fire continued to scorch thousands of acres 60 miles east of San Francisco on Sunday, prompting residents to flee their homes and the closure of two major freeways near the central California city of Tracy. The blaze was still spreading, officials said. The California Department of Forestry and...

Utility to Pay $80M Over 2017 California Wildfire

Under the terms, Southern California Edison does not accept blame

(Newser) - Southern California Edison has agreed to pay $80 million in connection with a huge 2017 wildfire that destroyed more than 1,000 homes and other structures. Federal prosecutors said Monday that the deal, in which the utility does not admit fault or wrongdoing, will settle claims on behalf of the...

Fatal Gender Reveal Stunt Leads to Jail Time

California's Refugio Jimenez Jr. cops to involuntary manslaughter after firefighter died in El Dorado Fire

(Newser) - A man whose family's gender reveal photo shoot sparked a Southern California wildfire that killed a firefighter in 2020 has pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter. The El Dorado Fire erupted on Sept. 5, 2020, when Refugio Jimenez Jr., Angelina Jimenez, and their young children staged a photo shoot for...

After Years of Research, Expert Advice: Burn California's Forests

Burning, thinning, or a combination of both found to make trees more resilient to wildfire, drought

(Newser) - The findings of a 20-year study on the health of California forests will come as no surprise to Native Americans, whose ancestors traditionally managed land through controlled fires . The study out of the University of California-Berkeley confirms that prescribed burning, the use of controlled fire to clear debris; restoration thinning,...

Town Decimated by Fire Has New Obstacle to Rebuild

Homeowners in California town of Paradise find home insurance premiums have skyrocketed

(Newser) - The soaring cost of home insurance has consumed the California town of Paradise, residents and officials say, just after the five-year anniversary of the Nov. 8, 2018, Camp Fire, the deadliest wildfire in California history. Residents have received annual premiums that are near or exceed $10,000—leaving many to...

California's Famous Forests Are in Jeopardy

Management practices, more intense fires, a warming climate among the factors

(Newser) - On a steep mountainside where walls of flames torched the forest on their way toward Lake Tahoe in 2021, blackened trees stand in silhouette against a gray sky. "If you can find a live tree, point to it," Hugh Safford, an environmental science and policy researcher at the...

In California, Crews Battle Fire Tornadoes

State's first big wildfire of the year erupted Friday, is still 0% contained

(Newser) - After a slow start to the wildfire season, California is feeling the heat with its biggest blaze of the year. First spotted Friday in the New York Mountains area of the Mojave National Preserve in eastern San Bernardino County, the York Fire had burned thorough 77,000 acres as of...

California Winemakers Doubling Up as Firefighters

'We play with pumps and hoses, too, except our hoses are full of wine'

(Newser) - Wildfire season is approaching in California—and winemakers are prepared. After devastating fires in Northern California wine country in recent years, winemakers have rebuilt with fire-resistant materials and learned firefighting techniques, the BBC reports. Alan Viader at Viader Vineyard and Winery in Napa Valley became a qualified firefighter after the...

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