wildfires

Here's how Canadian wildfires are worsening air quality across the U.S.

3:50pm June 06, 2023

by Joe Hernandez

The National Weather Service said air quality has "plummeted" across the Northeast. A disaster preparedness expert says people should take the warnings seriously.

Damage from Hurricane Ian near Pine Island, Fla., in 2022. The storm caused at least $50 billion in insured damage.

Insurance firms need more climate change information. Scientists say they can help

10:56am May 23, 2023

by Rebecca Hersher

Floods, wildfires, heat waves and hurricanes cause billions of dollars of property damage each year. Can federal climate scientists help the insurance industry keep up?

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Environment

How melting Arctic ice could be fueling extreme wildfires in the Western U.S.

11:06am April 20, 2023

by Lauren Sommer

As Western wildfires get more destructive, scientists are finding a far-off connection to shrinking ice on the Arctic Ocean.

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Tree health specialists scan forests, looking for fir trees that have turned red, which indicates that they are dead.

A record high number of dead trees are found as Oregon copes with an extreme drought

5:00am December 20, 2022

by Juliana Kim

Wildfires and a Western megadrought led to a historic die-off of evergreen trees in the state — nearly twice as bad as the previous worst year. Some researchers have dubbed it "firmageddon."

Western wildfires burning in 2018, like the River Fire in Lakeport, Calif., sent plumes of smoke to the Central U.S. where it helped seed more destructive thunderstorms.

Environment

Western wildfires are making far away storms more dangerous

9:24am October 21, 2022

by Lauren Sommer

Scientists are finding that Western wildfires can have far-reaching impacts. If they're burning while Central U.S. thunderstorms are forming, the rain and hail can be dramatically more destructive.

A large fire in a recently deforested area of the Amazon rainforest along Highway BR-319 in the state of Amazonas, Brazil, on Sept. 25.

Brazil's election could determine the fate of the Amazon after record deforestation

7:01am October 01, 2022

by John Otis

Under President Jair Bolsonaro, who is running for reelection in Sunday's vote, forest clearing and wildfires have surged in the Amazon.

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A search and rescue canine leaves a home leveled by the McKinney Fire on Monday in Klamath National Forest, Calif.

National

Four people have died in Northern California's huge wildfire

2:11pm August 02, 2022

by The Associated Press

The death toll doubled when two additional bodies were found within the burn zone of the McKinney Fire, the state's largest blaze of the year.

Many Western states lack building codes that require wildfire-resistant materials, but a new study shows the cost can be minimal.

Environment

Fireproofing your home isn't very expensive — but few states require it

5:07pm July 28, 2022

by Lauren Sommer

Many Western states lack building codes for wildfire-resistant homes. But a new study finds the costs can be minimal, undercutting long-held building industry arguments against such codes.

Firefighters mop up hot spots while battling the Oak Fire in the Jerseydale community of Mariposa County, Calif., on Monday.

Crews are making progress against a destructive forest fire near Yosemite

1:01pm July 26, 2022

by The Associated Press

Crews battling the Oak Fire in California's Mariposa County got a break from increased humidity levels. The blaze, which forced the evacuations of thousands, was 26% contained, Cal Fire said.

A firefighter aircraft drops water in a wildfire in Portugal on Saturday.

World News

Parts of the U.S. and Europe are bracing for some of their hottest temperatures yet

4:54pm July 17, 2022

by Shauneen Miranda

Parts of the Great Plains are forecast to hit record-breaking temperatures this week, while in Europe, extreme heat has fueled wildfires and contributed to hundreds of deaths in recent days.