Tag: Wildfires
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California’s incarcerated firefighters, who earn about $1 per hour, may soon get a hefty raise
In howling winds and choking smoke during the January fires that devastated Altadena and Pacific Palisades, more than 1,100 incarcerated firefighters cleared brush and dug fire lines, some for wages of less than $30 per day. Those firefighters could soon see a major raise. On Thursday, California lawmakers unanimously approved a plan to pay incarcerated…
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Volunteers are the lifeblood of Altadena’s Christmas Tree Lane. Will they return?
LOS ANGELES — Altadena’s Christmas Tree Lane Association relies on more than 100 volunteers to install its annual holiday light display and organize its free winter festival and lighting ceremony, scheduled for Dec. 6 this year. But with the community in ruins and more than half of its volunteers displaced by the Eaton fire in…
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A ‘Roomba for the forest’ could be SoCal’s next wildfire weapon
LOS ANGELES — The giant, remote-controlled vehicle — somewhere between a tractor trailer, a tank and a Zamboni in appearance — slowly rolled across the dry, brittle grass growing between the tangle of freeways making up the 101 and 23 interchange in Thousand Oaks. Inside the beast, fire churned. And as it rolled over the…
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Electric customers to pay $9 billion more to California wildfire fund under proposed bill
LOS ANGELES — California electric customers would pay $9 billion more to shore up the state’s wildfire fund under a last-minute deal reached behind closed doors that was introduced as legislation on Wednesday. Southern California Edison, and the state’s two other large for-profit electric companies, had been lobbying Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders, urging…
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Forest Service reverses decadeslong ban, allows wildfire firefighters to use N95 masks
LOS ANGELES — The U.S. Forest Service has announced it is reversing a ban on federal firefighters wearing masks, and will give crews protective N95s as they battle increasingly intense fires across the nation. For decades, the agency argued their use made firefighters vulnerable to heat exhaustion. Other wildfire-prone nations, such as Canada, Greece and…
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Mother nature helps battle Garnet Fire. But giant Sequoias still threatened
FRESNO, Calif. — The battle against the raging wildfire burning in eastern Fresno County took a turn in favor of firefighters. Officials said Wednesday that the Garnet Fire’s activity decreased due to lower temperatures and higher humidity recoveries Tuesday night. The southern portion of the fire had been contained and crews felt strong that the…
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Idaho Takes Lead in U.S. Wildfire Resilience by Adopting OroraTech Satellite-Based Detection …
New technology delivers real-time intelligence to help firefighters protect lives and property from wildfire BOISE, Idaho, Sept. 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Idaho Department of Lands has partnered with OroraTech USA to become the first in the nation to deploy a statewide satellite-based wildfire detection and monitoring system, giving dispatch centers and firefighters a…
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Takeaways from our collaboration on schools recovering from wildfires
The Camp Fire in Paradise, one of the deadliest wildfires in U.S. history, has deeply affected students’ learning
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Wildfire Mitigation Day returns; accepting pine cones and pine needles
Sep. 10—Clearing pine needles and other yard debris isn’t just about tidying up the lawn — it’s a proven first line of defense against wildfires. That’s the focus of the Estes Valley Watershed Coalition and the Estes Valley Fire Protection District as they prepare to host the community’s annual Wildfire Mitigation Day on Sept. 20.…
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Commentary: What wildfires do to our bodies when the smoke settles
In fall 2020, I woke up in an apocalypse. It was 8 a.m., but the world outside was dark and blanketed by an angry red sky. With all the lights on in the house, we watched specks of smoke and debris float down outside from a nearby wildfire in Northern California. I will never forget…