Winter rain cannot wash away the tragedy of the 2018 fire season for Northern California, the deadliest in state history. If the fires of 2017 were a wakeup call, the 2018 megafires were an air raid siren. We must take immediate steps to reduce fire risk, protect our rural communities, and ensure...
Judge Proposes Ordering PG&E to Shut Off Power for Wildfires
SAN FRANCISCO — To prevent wildfires, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. should re-inspect its entire electric grid and cut off power during certain wind conditions regardless of the inconvenience to customers or loss of profit, a U.S. judge proposed Wednesday. Judge William Alsup said in a court order his goal...
Trump Tweet: No Emergency Funding for California
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is threatening to withhold Federal Emergency Management Agency money to help California cope with wildfires if the state doesn't improve its forest management practices. However, local and state Republicans in California pushed back hard against the president's threat. Assemblyman James Gallagher and state Sen. Jim...
Newsom Proposes Wildfire Spending and a 911 Fee
COLFAX — California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday pledged fresh investments to prevent, fight and escape wildfires, including millions to help local governments improve their communication during emergencies and a fee to fund an update for the state's 911 system. Newsom outlined $105 million in new fire-related spending on top...
PG&E Credit Rating Slashed to Junk Status by S&P
NEW YORK — S&P slashed PG&E's credit rating to junk status as the utility grapples with the political and financial fallout from costly and deadly wildfires in California. The ratings agency cut the company's key rate five notches to "B'' from "BBB-." Shares have been weighed down since November and...
Is Bankruptcy Near for Reeling PG&E?
SAN FRANCISCO — California's largest power company is getting battered in midday trading Monday on reports that it's considering bankruptcy protection in the face of potentially crippling liability damages from a spate of wildfires. No cause has been determined for the source of California's Camp Fire, but PG&E reported an...
Official: California Must Mull Home Ban in Fire-Prone Areas
SACRAMENTO — California's increasingly deadly and destructive wildfires have become so unpredictable that government officials should consider banning home construction in vulnerable areas, the state's top firefighter says. Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Director Ken Pimlott will leave his job Friday after 30 years with the agency. In an...
Natural Disasters Will Be a Priority for Incoming Governors
Governors have a wide range of priorities they want to tackle in the coming year, from tax reform to education. Yet it's a topic that receives less attention on the campaign trail and in their speeches that could determine their success — natural disasters. In the last two years alone,...
AP Fact Check: Trump’s Misdirection on CA Fires, Climate
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is going too far in assigning most of the blame for California's devastating wildfires on the state's forest management. In comments over the weekend, he called forest management a "big problem" and suggested that California officials needed to do a much better job. But most...
Hundreds Missing in Fire’s Wake Ahead of Trump Visit
CHICO — With the confirmed death toll at 63, authorities in Northern California on Friday continued to search for those who perished and those who survived the fiercest of wildfires ahead of a planned visit by President Donald Trump. The president on Saturday is expected to get a look at...