BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — An environmental group filed a lawsuit Tuesday against U.S. Forest Service officials that alleges they polluted waterways during their campaigns against wildfires by inadvertently dropping large volumes of chemical flame retardant into streams....
Video: Take a Behind-the-Scenes Tour of Los Angeles County (CA) Super Scoopers
For 27 years, Los Angeles County has had a partnership with Canadian Province of Quebec. Quebec contracts to send Canadair CL-415 Super Scoopers to California for assistance with wildland fires. Battalion Chief Pat Sprengel gives a tour of the Super Scooper...
OR Adopts CA Fire Tactic, Shutting Power Amid High Winds
By GILLIAN FLACCUS Associated Press PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon utilities shut down power to tens of thousands of customers on Friday as dry easterly winds swept into the region in the hopes that it would lessen the risk of wildfires in extremely dry and hot...
Watch How Fast This Embraer C-390 Converts from Cargo Plane to Water Bomber
Embraer reported Monday that it has successfully completed the flight testing to receive certification the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS II), which allows the C-390 Millennium to be converted from a cargo plane to perform firefighting missions. Embraer...
Eight Firefighters Suffer Heat Injuries in CA Route Fire
CASTAIC, Calif. (AP) — California wildfires erupted Wednesday in rural areas, racing through bone-dry brush and prompting evacuations as the state sweltered under a heat wave that could last through Labor Day. Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency with...
Sheriff: Two Dead in Northern CA Wildfire
WEED, Calif. (AP) — Two people have died in a blaze that ripped through a Northern California town, said Siskiyou County Sheriff Jeremiah LaRue. LaRue shared the news of the fatalities Sunday afternoon during a community meeting held at an elementary school north of...
CA Crews Face Heat Wave Along with Wildfires
CASTAIC, Calif. (AP) — Firefighters battling a Southern California wildfire were pulled back at times to find rest and shade on Thursday, a day after seven were sent to the hospital in the midst of a grueling heat wave. Progress on the Route Fire in northwestern Los...
CAL FIRE Firefighter Contract Calls For More Money, Fewer Hours
California state firefighters have reached agreement with Gov. Gavin Newsom on a contract that will give them three raises within the next year and reduce their hours. The contract calls for one raise retroactive to July, another at the start of 2023 and a third in...
CAL FIRE Helicopter Crash Injures Three Returning from Fairview Fire
A helicopter assisting with operations in the Fairview fire near Hemet crashed while attempting to land at the Banning Airport, fire officials said Saturday afternoon. The helicopter was privately owned, officials said, and crashed into a backyard just before 4 p.m....
Western Fires Outpace CA Effort to Fill Inmate Crews
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — As wildfires rage across California each year, exhausted firefighters call for reinforcements from wherever they can get them — even as far as Australia. Yet one homegrown resource is rarely used: thousands of experienced firefighters who...
Apparent Human Bones Found During Los Angeles (CA) Brush Fire
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Fire crews battling a brush fire in Los Angeles discovered bones that appeared to be human remains. The fire scorched just under 2 acres (0.8 hectare) Tuesday in the northwest corner of the San Fernando Valley. The Los Angeles Fire Department said...
CA Office of Emergency Services to Staff Strike Teams with National Guard Soldiers
California is launching a program where strike teams will be staffed with National Guard soldiers. The program will rollout this summer, and is starting with five new brush trucks just delivered to the state. Four man teams of National Guard soldiers are now being...