By DEREK GATOPOULOS Associated Press GLYKA NERA, Greece (AP) — In a drill at a 12th century monastery near Athens, a fast-approaching wildfire threatens to trap clergy and a group of people attending a baptism. Volunteers and firefighters race to pull them to safety...
US Wildfires Are Getting Bigger and More Complex, Changing Firefighting Workforce
By TY ONEIL Associated Press PRESCOTT, Ariz. (AP) — It’s shaping up to be a long wildfire season, with Texas already seeing its largest blaze in recorded history and firefighters becoming overwhelmed with recent blazes in Virginia. Just in the first three months of...
FL Panhandle Wildfire Destroys One Home and Damages 15 Others
PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) — A wildfire in the Florida Panhandle has destroyed a home and damaged at least 15 others. The Florida Forest Service said Friday that the blaze, which broke out Thursday near Pensacola, was now more than 60% contained over an area of 50 acres (20...
TX Emergency Management Chief Believes the State Needs Its Own Firefighting Aircraft
By STEPHEN SIMPSON, The Texas Tribune PAMPA, Texas (AP) — Texas' top emergency manager told a panel of lawmakers that the state should establish its own firefighting aircraft division after a series of wildfires, including the largest in state history, scorched the...
15-Year Plan Calls for Burning 74,000 Acres North of Los Alamos (NM)
Scott Wyland The Santa Fe New Mexican (TNS) Apr. 1—The federal government plans to conduct large-scale tree thinning and prescribed burns northwest of Los Alamos in a 10- to 15-year project intended to enhance forest lands and watersheds while reducing wildfire risks....
VA Firefighter Collapses and Dies While Battling Wildfire
GATE CITY. Va. (AP) — A firefighter collapsed and died while battling a 3-acre wildfire in southwestern Virginia, officials said. Firefighter James C. Ward collapsed Saturday while working with a crew to extinguish the fire that broke out in Scott County, the Virginia...
Wildland Refresher Training: Don’t Just Go Through the Motions
By Todd McNeal I am confident that most of you reading this would agree that we are in an era of fire years, not fire seasons. Wildland fires are now more numerous, destructive, prolonged, and impactful than at any point in our nation’s history. We have a plethora of...
Maui County (HI) Attorneys Request State Subpoenas to Manage Fire Response Probe
Peter Boylan - The Honolulu Star-Advertiser Mar. 25—Maui County attorneys say they have requested subpoenas to work with investigators hired by the state to assess governments' response to the Aug. 8 wildfires, which killed 101 people, because the investigators have...
Forest Fires Burn in Nearly Half of Mexico’s Drought-Stricken States, Fueled by Strong Winds
By FÉLIX MÁRQUEZ Associated Press NOGALES, Mexico (AP) — Forest fires were burning in nearly half of Mexico’s drought-stricken states Monday fueled by strong winds. The National Forestry Commission reported 58 active fires in 15 states, including in protected nature...
Fighting Every Wildfire Ensures the Big Fires Are More Extreme, and May Harm Forests’ Ability to Adapt to Climate Change
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.) Mark Kreider, University of Montana In the U.S., wildland firefighters are able to stop about 98% of all wildfires before the fires have burned even 100...
State Farm Discontinuing 72,000 Home Policies in CA in Latest Blow to State Insurance Market
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — State Farm will discontinue coverage for 72,000 houses and apartments in California starting this summer, the insurance giant said this week, nine months after announcing it would not issue new home policies in the state The Illinois-based...
Wildland Firefighters Fitted With Apple Watches to Measure the Effect of Smoke on Health
Jim McKay Government Technology (TNS) Mar. 21—Residents living near where a wildland fire is burning or those in the vicinity of the smoke are told to stay indoors or leave the area altogether because of the contaminants the smoke is known to contain. But what about...