firefighters News

China Wildfire Provokes Public Anger as 19 Emergency Workers Die

Eighteen firefighters and a forest guide died this week battling a wildfire in southwest China that has spread over more than 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres), prompting criticism on social media that the government isn’t doing enough to protect the lives …

Los Angeles High-Rise that Caught Fire Lacked Sprinklers

LOS ANGELES — A 25-story West Los Angeles apartment tower that caught fire, forcing firefighters to pluck stranded people from the rooftop and a ledge, had no sprinklers even though the same building burned seven years ago, authorities said. Flames …

Australia Wildfires Trigger Exodus as Navy Joins Rescue Effort

Australia’s navy rushed to rescue thousands of holiday-makers from a wildfire-ravaged coastal community while many more struggled to escape endangered towns by road before extreme weather triggers fresh infernos in the nation’s southeast. Eight people have been killed in the …

Fire Damages Home of Man Who Helped Create American Football

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — A fire on Christmas morning heavily damaged the historic home of Walter Camp, a Connecticut man credited with developing American football. Firefighters in New Haven said the fire started around 8 a.m. Wednesday in the three-story, …

There’s a 60,000-Year-Old Way to Help Stop Australia Burning

Australia’s indigenous people say the bushfire-ravaged country is paying the price for ignoring their expertise in managing the ecology of the world’s-driest inhabited continent. The fires have already burned more than 6 million acres — an area the size of …

Public Lands Commissioner Proposes Fund to Fight Wildfires

SPOKANE, Wash. — The state’s commissioner of Public Lands released a proposal Monday to raise some $63 million each year to fight wildfires and take steps to prevent them in the first place. Money for the fund will come from …

Sewer Blockage Pushes Waste into 300 New York City Homes

NEW YORK — A blocked sewer main flooded basements Saturday with brown filth and left residents in the neighborhood near New York City’s Kennedy Airport feeling sickened by the stench. A water condition caused the backup, pushing human waste into …

Undisclosed Settlement Reached Over Deadly Honolulu Fire

HONOLULU — Plaintiffs and defendants reached a settlement over a deadly Honolulu high-rise fire, although the amounts to be paid by insurance companies remains confidential, attorneys said. A settlement conference concluded Tuesday regarding the July 2017 Marco Polo building fire …

After Years of Fiery Hell, California Gets Less of a Scorching in 2019

Mother Nature has given a bit of a break to California during the 2019 wildfire season, but firefighters say the threat remains in force. Only about 163,000 acres have burned this year, a fraction of the 632,000 or so scorched …

Alaska Wildfire Destroys 51 Homes, 3 Businesses

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A wildfire burning north of Anchorage, Alaska, has destroyed 51 homes and three businesses, officials said Friday. Another 84 buildings between the communities of Willow and Talkeetna, about 70 miles north of the state’s largest city, also …