California wildfires

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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...

100-Plus Homes Were Destroyed. Now, an Arrest

Edward Wackerman, 71, is suspected of setting devastating blaze in Mariposa County, California

(Newser) - An elderly man who lives near Yosemite National Park has been arrested after a forest fire there last year destroyed more than 125 homes. The AP reports that Edward Wackerman of Mariposa was taken into custody Friday, suspected of setting last summer's Oak Fire that burned nearly 20,000...

Another Insurer Stops Selling California Homeowner Policies

Allstate has put new policies in the state on pause

(Newser) - Another big insurance company has quietly stopped selling home insurance in California. Allstate, which in 2021 was the fourth-largest property and casualty insurance provider in the state, is no longer writing new homeowner, condo, or commercial insurance policies there, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The company says the pause on...

California Fire Levels Homes
Wildfire Rips Through Homes
Sep 3, 2022 2:50 PM CDT

Wildfire Rips Through Homes

About 100 structures are lost to California blaze that sent residents fleeing

(Newser) - A wind-swept wildfire in rural Northern California tore through a neighborhood and destroyed about 100 homes and other buildings, fire officials said Saturday after at least two people were injured and thousands were forced to evacuate. The Mill Fire started shortly before 1pm Friday just north of Weed, a city...

Wildfire Wipes Out Scenic California Hamlet

At least 4 Klamath River residents died in devastating McKinney Fire

(Newser) - The scenic Northern California hamlet of Klamath River was home to about 200 people, a community center where they gathered, a corner store, and a post office. But the wildfire raging through the forested region near the Oregon state line jumped the river last weekend, killing four residents of the...

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