SAN FRANCISCO — Pacific Gas & Electric Co. was set to begin shutting off power Wednesday to some 375,000 people in 18 Northern and central California counties as the region faces extreme fire weather that’s lasted since October. A virtually rainless fall has left brush bone-dry and forecasts called for...
Not out of Woods yet, but Winds Driving California Fires Die
LOS ANGELES — Calmer weather allowed crews to increase containment on wildfires after a three-week siege of gusts fanned blazes across California and led utilities to cut power to prevent winds from blowing branches into electric lines and igniting an inferno. Winds subsided in virtually all parts of the state,...
South Pole's Ozone Hole Shrinks to Smallest Since Discovery
WASHINGTON — The ozone hole near the south pole this year is the smallest since it was discovered, but it is more due to freakish Antarctic weather than efforts to cut down on pollution, NASA reported. This fall, the average hole in Earth's protective ozone layer is 3.6 million square miles....
Blackouts Possible Again as Fire Danger Looms in California
Less than two weeks after blacking out much of Northern California, PG&E is warning that dangerous fire weather could prompt it to shut off power to about a half-million people. Pacific Gas & Electric began notifying customers Monday that it could begin precautionary shutoffs to parts of 16 counties as...
With No El Nino, How Does California's Winter Shape Up?
Back in August, blogger Nat Johnson declared the El Niño of 2019 "officially done." Johnson isn't just any blogger, either. His day job is with the NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory. Listen to this article: The question is, what will winter 2019-2020 look like in California? Will we have a...
1.5 Million Northern Californians in the Dark, Most Now for 2nd Day
SONOMA — More than 1.5 million people in Northern California were in the dark Thursday, most for a second day, after PG&E cut off electricity to more customers to prevent wind-fueled wildfires amid dry weather and strong winds sweeping through the region. Pacific Gas and Electric cut power to more...
Power Outages Begin in California Amid Hot, Windy Weather
SAN FRANCISCO — Pacific Gas & Electric shut off power to more than a million people Wednesday for what could be days on end, in the most sweeping effort in state history to prevent wildfires caused by windblown power lines. The move came after two years of catastrophic fires sent...
With No El Nino, How Does California's Winter Shape Up?
Back in August, blogger Nat Johnson declared the El Niño of 2019 "officially done." Johnson isn't just any blogger, either. His day job is with the NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory. Listen to this article: The question is, what will winter 2019-2020 look like in California? Will we have a...
NOAA Scientist: Agency Likely Broke Science Integrity Rules
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — The acting chief scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said his agency likely violated its scientific integrity rules last week when it publicly chastised a weather office that contradicted President Donald Trump's claim that Hurricane Dorian threatened Alabama. Two top NOAA civil servants not so...
AP-NORC Poll: Most Americans See Weather Disasters Worsening
WASHINGTON — Nearly three-quarters of Americans see weather disasters, like Hurricane Dorian, worsening and most of them blame global warming to some extent, a new poll finds. And scientists say they're right. The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey shows 72% of Americans think catastrophic weather is more...