wildfires News

California Braces for Power Shutoffs and Warm, Windy Weekend

SAN FRANCISCO — Firefighters and officials at California’s largest utility company braced for hot, dry and windy weather in northern and central areas of the state this weekend that may fan the flames of several major wildfires or ignite new …

Masks Are Coveted Items With Covid and Smoke Sweeping West Coast

Lindsey Major, wracked with asthma, crisscrossed Seattle in search of an N95 mask as wildfire smoke blanketed the West Coast. The 25-year-old from Mercer Island scoured stores. Pharmacies, big-box outlets, grocers — none had anything to offer. At work, a …

Wildfires Taint West Coast Vineyards With Taste of Smoke

TURNER, Ore. — Smoke from the West Coast wildfires has tainted grapes in some of the nation’s most celebrated wine regions with an ashy flavor that could spell disaster for the 2020 vintage. Wineries in California, Oregon and Washington have …

As Wildfires Approach Silicon Valley, Tech Firms Struggle to Find the Backing to Fight Them

Silicon Valley’s innovation engine has been slow to produce useful new tools to help firefighters like Dave Winnacker extinguish the deadly blazes that each year fill California’s skies with smoke. Winnacker, a fire district chief who led a team against …

Few Resources, Old-Growth Forest Allowed For Fire’s Growth

LOS ANGELES — A lack of firefighting resources in the hours after it was sparked allowed a fast-moving wildfire to make an unprecedented run through Southern California mountains and eventually find fuel in old-growth trees to become one of Los …

Huge California Wildfire Threatening More Than 1,000 Homes

LOS ANGELES — A wildfire scorching its way through brush and timber from the mountains to the desert northeast of Los Angeles threatened more than 1,000 homes on Tuesday as crews across the West battled dozens of other major blazes. …

Oregon Grieves For Natural Places Wiped Out By Wildfires

DETROIT LAKE, Ore. — Oregonians are grieving the loss of some of their most treasured natural places after wildfires wiped out campgrounds, hot springs and wooded retreats that have been touchstones for generations in a state known for its unspoiled …

Extreme Wildfires Turn Smoke Apps Into the New Weather Apps

For weeks, smoke has blanketed the west coast. The Bay Area has seen a vast improvement in the past few days, but terrible air lingers in Portland and Seattle. Millions of people have been furiously checking the air quality ratings …

Fierce, Frequent, Climate-Fueled Wildfires May Decimate Forests Worldwide

LONDON — Wildfires among ponderosa pines and Douglas firs of the U.S. West have long been part of nature’s cycle of renewal, as much as the changing of the seasons. But as climate change makes the region more arid, wildfires …

Seeping Under Doors, Bad Air From West’s Fires Won’t Ease Up

PORTLAND, Ore. — Dangerously dirty air spewing from the West Coast wildfires is seeping into homes and businesses, sneaking into cars through air conditioning vents and preventing people already shut away by the coronavirus pandemic from enjoying a walk or …