Protecting California from devastating wildfires was the Legislature’s biggest focus in this year’s session. Recognizing the urgency, lawmakers formed a special wildfire committee, heard from numerous experts, and, after several emotional debates, passed a $1 billion new law they said would “prevent catastrophic wildfires and protect Californians.” Less than two...
Commentary: The Politics of California’s Killer Wildfires
Californians – most of us, anyway – loath President Donald Trump and the state’s voters punished him this month by flipping as many as half of its Republican-held congressional districts. Donald Trump feels the same way about California and with the votes still being counted, he lashed back by blaming...
Scientists: Wind, Drought Worsen Fires, Not Bad Management
WASHINGTON — Both nature and humans share blame for California's devastating wildfires, but forest management did not play a major role, despite President Donald Trump's claims, fire scientists say. Nature provides the dangerous winds that have whipped the fires, and human-caused climate change over the long haul is killing and...
Grim Search for More Fire Victims, 31 Dead Across California
PARADISE — As wildfires raged at both ends of the state, officials released another grim statistic: six more bodies discovered in the burned-over town of Paradise and outlying areas, bringing the death toll there to 29 and matching the record for the deadliest single blaze in California history. Statewide the...
California Takes Financial Wallop From Unrelenting Wildfires
SHASTA-TRINITY NATIONAL FOREST — California is taking a financial wallop from unrelenting wildfires that have drained its firefighting budget and prompted nearly $1 billion in property claims even before the start of the dangerous fall fire season, officials said Thursday. The disclosures came as a roaring blaze in a rural...
State Says Seniors Abandoned in California Wildfire
SACRAMENTO — Staff at two senior care centers abandoned residents during an evacuation as wildfires swept through Northern California last October, state officials said Thursday as they moved to revoke licenses from the Santa Rosa facilities and their top administrators. Nobody in either facility died. A Department of Social Services...
Do You Want to Pick Up Tab for PG&E's Wildfire Negligence?
SACRAMENTO — California's utility regulators would have the option of letting power companies charge their customers for some of the costs of lawsuits stemming from disastrous 2017 wildfires under legislation that will go before the Assembly and Senate this week. After weeks of meetings, a legislative conference committee advanced its...
Feds Pledge to Thin Forests, Work with States to Fight Wildfires
WASHINGTON — As wildfires choke California and other Western states, the Trump administration pledged Thursday to work more closely with state and local officials, including to those in California, to prevent wildfires from starting. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said the Forest Service and other agencies will step up efforts to...
Cars Packed With Visitors Line Up to See Yosemite Valley
Hikers and nature lovers returned to Yosemite National Park's scenic valley Tuesday after a rare 20-day closure because of smoke from wildfires. Some said they didn't mind the hazy air that obscured scenic vistas; others came prepared with eye drops and face masks. Park officials also advised visitors to expect...
California's Priorities Questioned As Deadly Fires Explode
The Wall Street Journal wrote in an editorial published Aug. 7 that liberals exploiting natural disasters such as drought, hurricane, and blizzards to promote their anti-fossil fuels agenda is no secret. Yet, these same liberals are outraged that Trump is daring to fight fire with fire by making a connection...