Fire

National

A man says his stepmom locked him in a room for decades. He escaped by setting a fire

1:31pm March 13, 2025

Police in Waterbury, Conn., allege the man's stepmother locked him in his room with limited food and water for over 20 years, until he started a fire using hand sanitizer, printer paper and a lighter.

Anastasios Adamopoulos was driving a city bus early Monday morning in Chicago when he saw homes on fire. He stopped to help.

National

Opinion: Some heroes drive city buses

8:31am March 09, 2024

by Scott Simon

NPR's Scott Simon recounts the heroic actions of a Chicago bus driver and his passengers, who saw buildings on fire at 2 a.m. and raced to warn residents.

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In this photo provided by the Flower Mound, Texas, Fire Department, Flower Mound firefighters respond to a fire in the Texas Panhandle, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024.

National

Expanding wildfires force Texas nuclear facility to pause operations

11:26pm February 27, 2024

by The Associated Press

Rapidly moving Texas wildfires Tuesday prompted evacuations in small towns and shut down a nuclear facility as strong winds, dry grass and unseasonably warm temperatures fueled the blazes.

In this image made from video, a fire engine, firefighters and other officials are seen inside police tape on scene of a small plane crash in Clearwater, Florida, Feb. 1, 2024.

National

Several die after a small plane crashes into a Florida mobile home, officials say

6:49am February 02, 2024

by Ayana Archie

Authorities received emergency calls at the same time about a structure fire and an aircraft that went off radar three miles from a Florida airport. It is still unknown how many fatalities there were.

Workers on Tuesday examine a home that exploded in Arlington, Va., on Monday night.

National

Police ID suspect in Arlington, Va., house explosion: Here's what to know

5:17pm December 05, 2023

Arlington officials identified James Yoo as the suspect involved in the massive Monday night explosion. Police say he is presumed dead as they investigate what caused the home to go up in flames.

Health & Safety

Third child dies following weekend house fire in North Carolina

9:08am August 21, 2023

by Associated Press

A third child has died following a weekend house fire in North Carolina, officials said.

Uilani (left) and Keeamoku Kapu run the Na 'Aikane o Maui Cultural and Research Center which was burned to the ground in the wildfires so they set up this grassroots community distribution center in Lahaina. They are on the phone here taking a call from Oprah about supplies she will be delivering.

Priceless connections to Hawaii's ancient past were lost when cultural center burned

3:15pm August 18, 2023

by Jonaki Mehta

As people grapple with more than 100 people who died in the Lahaina fire on Maui, they're still trying to understand the loss of priceless artifacts and their connections to the island's ancient past.

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Niko Sena, right, hugs a friend who has been helping with the effort.

On Maui, another fire is burning but capturing less attention than Lahaina

5:01am August 18, 2023

While the world focuses on the devastation in West Maui and the destruction of the historic community of Lahaina, another wildfire is still burning in the hills some 25 miles away in Kula.

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August 10: The search of the wildfire wreckage on the Hawaiian island of Maui on Thursday revealed a wasteland of burned out homes and obliterated communities as firefighters battled the stubborn blaze making it the deadliest in the U.S. in recent years.

Photos: 'Whole town went and dissolved into ashes,' Hawaii lieutenant governor says

7:27pm August 10, 2023

In Maui, a fast-moving wildfire decimated the town of Lahaina. Historical losses includes one of the largest banyan trees in the U.S.

A man carries a child as they leave an area where a forest fire burns, on the island of Rhodes, Greece, Saturday, July 22, 2023. A large wildfire burning on the Greek island of Rhodes for a fifth day has forced authorities to order an evacuation of four locations, including two seaside resorts.

World News

19,000 people have been evacuated as a wildfire rages on the Greek island of Rhodes

6:19am July 23, 2023

by The Associated Press

A wildfire burning on the Greek island of Rhodes for a fifth day has forced authorities to order an evacuation of sites including seaside resorts that are full of tourists.