OAKRIDGE, Ore. (AP) — A firefighter who was hit by a falling tree while battling a wildfire near Oakridge, Oregon has died of his injuries, authorities said Thursday. Collin Hagan, who was with the Craig Interagency Hot Shots from Colorado, died Wednesday of injuries...
National Park Service Fire Lookout, 74, Killed When McKinney (CA) Fire Overruns Her
Kathy Shoopman, 74, the Buckhorn fire lookout at the Klamath National Forest died Friday in the McKinney fire. Shoopman began her service as a fire lookout in 1974 and served faithfully to the end. Even as sheriff’s deputies and her supervisor urged her to evacuate,...
‘Gone in 30 Seconds’ – Shingle Springs (CA) Loses Two Rigs in Wildfire at Six Rivers National Forest
The Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians Tribal Fire Department lost two rigs when fire burning at Six Rivers National Forest overran the vehicles Monday. The crew from El Dorado County had parked the rigs what they thought was a safe distance from the fire, but a...
Deadly CA Wildfire Wipes Out Scenic River Town
By HAVEN DALEY and CHRISTOPHER WEBER Associated Press KLAMATH RIVER, Calif. (AP) — Roger Derry, 80, and his son have lived together in the tiny scenic hamlet of Klamath River in Northern California for more than 40 years. They know most of the town's 200 or so...
Western Flames Spread, CA Sees Its Largest 2022 Fire
By NOAH BERGER Associated Press YREKA, Calif. (AP) — Crews battling the largest wildfire so far this year in California braced for thunderstorms and hot, windy conditions that created the potential for additional fire growth Sunday as they sought to protect remote...
Chief: Bottle-Magnified Sunlight Ignited Possum Kingdom (TX) Fire
By TERRY WALLACE Associated Press Sunlight magnified by glass bottles in an open garbage can ignited paper trash, starting a 500-acre (200-hectare) North Texas wildfire that destroyed five homes, fire officials said Thursday. The July 18 fire on Possum Kingdom Lake's...
Wildfire Threat Becomes Tool to Fight Home Builders
Preston Brown knows the risk of wildfire that comes with living in the rural, chaparral-lined hills of San Diego County. He’s lived there for 21 years and evacuated twice. That’s why he fiercely opposed a plan to build more than 1,100 homes in a fire-prone area he...
Yosemite (CA) Fire Grows as Crews Protect Iconic Sequoias
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) — A wildfire threatening the largest grove of giant sequoias in Yosemite National Park more than doubled in size in a day, and firefighters were working in difficult terrain Sunday to protect the iconic trees and a small mountain...
CA Wildfire Strands Fourth of July Revelers
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Firefighters in Northern California were battling a fresh wildfire that broke out Monday east of Sacramento at a recreation area packed with Fourth of July revelers and forced a number of evacuations. As the fire quickly spread, 85 to 100...
Northern CA Wildfire Threatens 500 Buildings
BRIDGEPORT, Calif. (AP) — A wildfire that erupted in Northern California forced evacuations as it threatened about 500 homes and other buildings Tuesday, authorities said. The Rices Fire erupted at around 2 p.m. near the Yuba River in Nevada County and had spread to...
Wildfire Threatens Unspoiled GA Island Rich in History
By RUSS BYNUM Associated Press ST. CATHERINES ISLAND, Ga. (AP) — Wildfires sparked by lightning have scorched hundreds of acres on this unspoiled island off the Georgia coast, where crews are battling to protect plantation ruins, the remnants of a 16th century...
Biden Signs Off on Hefty Pay Raise for Federal Firefighters
By AAMER MADHANI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has signed off on giving federal wildland firefighters a hefty raise for the next two fiscal years, a move that affects more than 16,000 firefighters and comes as much of the West braces for a...