wildfires

Stories 501 - 520 | << Prev   Next >>

Wildfires Kill 14 in Southeast Australia

Melbourne sees hottest day on record

(Newser) - Australian wildfires have killed 14 people in the southeast, and police fear dozens more could be dead, the Age reports. Some 100 homes have been destroyed in dozens of fires, the worst in the history of the state of Victoria. Police suspect arson is behind some of the fires, which...

Scorched SoCal Hills Ripe for Mudslides

(Newser) - A Southern California recently ravaged by wildfires will now have to contend with its heaviest rainfall in 9 months—and the possibility of destructive mudslides, the Los Angeles Times reports. The denuded hills of Yorba Linda and Montecito are prime spots for mud flows, having lost vegetation that stabilizes the...

Wind Dies Down in SoCal
 Wind Dies Down in SoCal 
Nov 16, 2008 11:54 AM CST

Wind Dies Down in SoCal

As gusts slow, firefighters get reprieve, take preventative measures

(Newser) - The winds have let up in Southern California,  giving some relief to firefighters battling wildfires that have destroyed hundreds of homes and forced thousands of residents to flee. Gusts in the Sylmar area of Los Angeles were down to 39mph, much lower than the roughly 80mph winds that fanned...

Twin Wildfires Ravage LA Area

Over 100 homes ruined in Montecito; 1,500 still at risk

(Newser) - The wildfire in California’s wealthy Montecito area calmed down yesterday, but not before destroying 111 homes, the Los Angeles Times reports; and a new blaze roared overnight in Sylmar, where 5,000 were evacuated, CNN notes. Firefighters warned that 1,500 homes were still endangered by the as-yet-uncontained Montecito...

80 Homes Burn in Hills Over Santa Barbara

Blaze overwhelms firefighters in enclave of the rich and famous

(Newser) - A wildfire ripped through the wealthy enclave of Montecito in Santa Barbara County last night, destroying some 80 homes, the Los Angeles Times reports. Firefighters were overwhelmed as the wind-driven brushfire spread out of control. Much of the area, home to dozens of celebrities, was evacuated as the blazes spread...

LA Wildfire Threatens Getty
 LA Wildfire Threatens Getty 
Oct 23, 2008 9:27 AM CDT

LA Wildfire Threatens Getty

Winds could move blaze unpredictably: officials

(Newser) - A wildfire raging in Los Angeles this morning threatens the Getty Center’s priceless paintings and sculptures, and homes in swanky Brentwood's hills, the Times reports. Firefighters temporarily closed an interstate as more than 500 of them deployed an air assault to battle the early-morning blaze. Officials worry winds picking...

Light Winds Aid LA Firefighters

But season for conflagration-fueling winds has just begun

(Newser) - Firefighters made progress early today in containing two Los Angeles-area fires, as calm winds prevented the flames from blazing a path to the Pacific Ocean, the Los Angeles Times reports. The older of the two fires, the Marek blaze, was 80% contained, and firefighters have begun to cut containment lines...

Emergency Declared as Fires Lash LA Homes

2 killed, dozens of homes destroyed as flames roar into northern LA

(Newser) - California's governor has declared a state of emergency as twin wind-driven wildfires  tear through north Los Angeles. Unpredictable 60 mph Santa Ana winds are shooting roaring flames up canyons, and firefighters fear that one blaze—which has already jumped an eight-lane freeway—could burn all the way to the Pacific...

Hundreds Flee Calif. Wildfire
 Hundreds Flee Calif. Wildfire 
Oct 12, 2008 6:38 PM CDT

Hundreds Flee Calif. Wildfire

Blaze burns homes 20 miles north of Los Angeles

(Newser) - A wildfire engulfed 750 acres north of Los Angeles today and forced 1,200 people to flee, the Los Angeles Times reports. It also razed two houses and three motor homes. As helicopters water-bombed the blaze, officials said firefighters had “a really good handle” on it—but admitted the...

Cowboys Ride With Satphones at Their Side

Government gives 7 ranchers phones to warn of wildfires

(Newser) - Cowboys are men of spurs and solitude—and satellite phones, too. Federal and state agencies have equipped seven Idaho ranchers with satellite technology so they can make clear, quick calls if a wildfire breaks out, the AP reports. "Minutes count in that country," one cowboy said. "Right...

Forest Fire Rages by Yosemite
 Forest Fire Rages by Yosemite
Jul 28, 2008 4:42 AM CDT

Forest Fire Rages by Yosemite

Hundreds evacuated, homes destroyed in blaze

(Newser) - Hundreds of people have been evacuated and 12 homes destroyed as a forest fire rages out of control near Yosemite National Park, the Sacramento Bee reports. The fire, which began Friday, has burned 26,000 acres of forest, including the Mariposa County foothills that serve as the gateway to the...

California Fires Set Destruction Record

1,312 square miles destroyed

(Newser) - California wildfires over the last three weeks have set a record for widespread destruction, reports the Los Angeles Times. Some 840,000 acres—1,300 square miles—have been scorched by 1,700 fires, sparked by lightning strikes. Firefighters are bringing the remaining 300 blazes under control, but officials worry...

Calif. Firefighters Battle 2 Huge Blazes

Predicted heat wave will magnify 1,700 fires in Calif.

(Newser) - Thousands of California firefighters battled a huge blaze today that threatened homes in Santa Barbara County, but lost ground to another fire near Big Sur, the Los Angeles Times reports. And weather likely will not help: Winds, lightning strikes, and fierce heat are expected to hit the state this week....

Fires, Spiking Gas Aside, Calif. Tourism Still Sunny

Flocking foreigners capitalize on dollar

(Newser) - Near-continuous wildfires and soaring gas prices don’t seem to have made much of a dent in California’s tourism industry, the San Jose Mercury News reports. California's AAA reports only an 0.8% drop in Fourth of July domestic tourism, and a jump in visitors from abroad more than...

Big Sur Evacuated as Fires Rage

680 square miles scorched by wildfires

(Newser) - California residents have been ordered to evacuate the coastal resort Big Sur as wildfires rage in the hills above the town, USA Today reports. Ash rained on people as they packed cars before fleeing to safety. The Big Sur blaze is one of more than 1,100 wildfires in the...

Emergency Declared in Calif. Fires

Blazes threaten more than 6,800 homes; better weather expected

(Newser) - President Bush declared a region stretching from Nevada to the Pacific Ocean a federal disaster area, the Los Angeles Times reports, as more than 1,000 fires raged across northern California. Some 17,000 firefighters are battling the blazes, which threaten 6,800 homes. “We don’t have any...

Fires Threaten Big Sur
 Fires Threaten Big Sur 
Jun 27, 2008 5:20 AM CDT

Fires Threaten Big Sur

California smokeaters stretched thin with 700 blazes

(Newser) - Firefighters rushed to guard historic buildings in the scenic coastal town of Big Sur yesterday as a lightning-sparked wildfire blazed through a national forest in California, AP reports. The fire, only 3% contained, has burned 42 square miles of redwoods and destroyed 16 homes since Saturday. With 700 fires blazing...

Condors Pulled From Calif. Fires

Calif. wildlife group moves to protect rare birds

(Newser) - Wildfires in Northern California spurred the rescue of eight California condors from their Monterey County refuge, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The unusual operation was performed by a US Coast Guard helicopter crew after a wildlife organization said that the fires threatened the condor sanctuary. The birds were taken to...

8,000 Lightning Bolts Spark California Fires

44,000 acres burn in 700 blazes

(Newser) - Thousands of lightning strikes over a wide swath of Northern California ignited more than 700 wildfires that have burned some 44,000 tinder-dry acres of grassland, brush and forest. Firefighters managed to protect most homes in almost all of the fires. The historically bad fire season has been spurred by...

Wildfires Tamed in Calif., Rage in NM

2K people still evacuated in Santa Cruz County

(Newser) - Firefighters almost completely contained a Northern California blaze today as fires in New Mexico threatened to spread, buoyed by lightning and high winds, the AP reports. The California fire, in Santa Cruz County, has leveled up to 15 homes and led to the continued evacuation of 2,000 people. Officials...

Stories 501 - 520 | << Prev   Next >>
Most Read on Newser