REDDING — A fast-moving wildfire in Northern California is threatening thousands of homes and forcing evacuations. The fire in Shasta County started around noon Thursday in a rural area northwest of Redding about 200 miles north of San Francisco. Cal Fire Capt. Robert Foxworthy says the blaze quickly spread to...
Storm Brings Record Rainfall, Snow to Southern California
LOS ANGELES — Crews were busy Friday assessing damage and cleaning up after a storm that brought record rainfall to Los Angeles, snowfall to northern elevations, snarled traffic and forced evacuations as debris flows hit areas burned by wildfires. Evacuation orders were either lifted or downgraded Thursday night and Friday...
New Evacuations Ordered Because of Florence Flooding
WILMINGTON, N.C. — A new round of evacuations was ordered in South Carolina as the trillions of gallons of water dumped by Hurricane Florence meanders to the sea, raising river levels and threatening more destruction. With the crisis slowly moving to South Carolina, emergency managers on Friday ordered about 500...
Fire Roaring Through Northern California Triples in Size
REDDING — An explosive wildfire that closed down dozens of miles of a major California freeway nearly tripled in size overnight, just weeks after a nearby blaze that left neighborhoods in ruins and killed eight people, officials said Thursday. The fire that erupted Wednesday afternoon and devoured timber and brush...
Still Raging: Largest Wildfire in California History Grows
LAKEPORT — Wildfires tearing through trees and brush, rampaging up hillsides and incinerating neighborhoods: The places and names change, but the devastation is showing signs of becoming the new normal in California. Twin fires in Northern California being treated as one are the largest wildfire in state history and by...
Gov. Brown Pledges Any Resources Needed for Fires
UPPER LAKE, Calif. — A massive wildfire in Northern California has torched more than 1,000 homes in and around the city of Redding, authorities said Wednesday as some evacuees were allowed to return home and new blazes exploded in what has become an endless summer of flame in the Golden...
Fire Near Yosemite Grows To 43,000 Acres. Brown Declares Emergency.
California Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency in Mariposa County on Thursday afternoon because of the deadly Ferguson Fire. Earlier Thursday, the governor declared emergencies due to wildfires in Riverside and Shasta counties. Firefighters worked through Wednesday night to expand and strengthen containment lines around the wildfire west...
Visitors Leave Yosemite Valley as Nearby Wildfire Rages
The few remaining campers in Yosemite Valley packed up their gear Wednesday and cleared the area for firefighters battling a huge wildfire near Yosemite National Park. The sun rose in a smoke-filled sky over the scenic valley, which normally bustles with summer tourists but has largely emptied out after authorities...
2,700 Firefighters Battle Growing Ferguson Fire Near Yosemite
MARIPOSA — A wildfire in the Sierra Nevada just west of Yosemite National Park expanded to nearly 36 square miles Friday. More than 2,700 firefighters aided by a fleet of helicopters were battling the Ferguson Fire but only 7 percent of its perimeter was contained. Ground crews dealt with high...
Storms, Dead Trees Could Hinder Firefighting Near Yosemite
MARIPOSA — A deadly forest fire kept spreading Wednesday west of Yosemite National Park, and erratic winds and trees killed by a historic California drought are expected to pose more problems for firefighters, officials said. The Ferguson Fire between the park and the town of Mariposa that's popular with visitors...