wildfires News

As California Burns, the Winds Arrive and the Lights Go Out

SHAVER LAKE, Calif. — Wildfires churned through bone-dry California on Tuesday after a scorching Labor Day weekend that saw a dramatic airlift of more than 200 people trapped by flames and ended with the state’s largest utility turning off power …

California Avoids Major Power Outages as Wildfires Rage

SHAVER LAKE, Calif. — Rescuers in military helicopters airlifted 207 people to safety over the weekend after an explosive wildfire trapped them in a popular camping area in California’s Sierra National Forest, one of dozens of fires burning amid record-breaking …

Disasters Cause Insurance Double Whammy for Pandemic-Hit Businesses

As insurers brace for an expensive natural-disaster season because of storms and wildfires ravaging parts of the United States, the novel coronavirus is giving them an odd financial break. Many companies that were damaged or evacuated because of natural catastrophes …

Worst-Ever Arctic Fires Released Record Amount of CO2

The Arctic has experienced the worst fire season on record for the second year in a row, with giant wildfires sending over one third more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than last year. Fires raging across the Arctic Circle emitted …

California Beset With Fires and Virus Sells $2.4 Billion in Debt

Last September, California entered its bi-annual bond sale flush with a ratings upgrade from Fitch Ratings and a $21 billion budget surplus. A year later, California kicks off its fall debt sales under dramatically different circumstances. Wildfires scorching thousands of …

Wildfires Again Threaten Business in California Wine Country

HEALDSBURG, Calif. — With an early harvest already underway, a wildfire a few miles west of John Bucher’s ranch added new urgency to getting his pinot noir grapes off the vine. If flames didn’t do any damage to the delicate …

UW Study Finds Ponderosa Pine Forests Most at Risk From Wildfires

Recent years have brought unusually large and damaging wildfires to the Pacific Northwest – from the Carlton Complex Fire in 2014 that was the largest in Washington’s history, to the 2017 fire season in Oregon, to the 2018 Maple Fire, …

Fires and Virus Converge on California

Californians are in their sixth month of sheltering in place because of a pandemic that’s killed more than 11,000 residents. Now a new crisis — hundreds of wildfires — is forcing people to prepare to flee their homes at a …

Crews Battle Wildfires Amid Brutal Heat Wave in California

LOS ANGELES — Firefighters struggled to contain three wildfires near Los Angeles on Saturday as forecasters warned that the risk of new fires was high with temperatures expected to spike and humidity levels to drop across California. In Northern California, …

PG&E Fire Insurance Costs Skyrocket After Bankruptcy, Fires

PG&E Corp. is finding it very costly to buy fire insurance after wildfires triggered by its power lines sent the company into bankruptcy and left it paying $25.5 billion for claims. It’s hoping customers will foot the bill. The San …