Latest Wildfire Headlines

All the headlines from our Wildfire Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Wildfire Destroyed Dozens of Homes in Southern California

Oct 11 2019 // Burning trash dumped by a garbage truck caused a fire that by early Friday had destroyed dozens of homes in California’s Riverside County, fire officials said, as wildfires across the state led to power cuts for...

Millions in Northern, Central California Lose Electricity to Mitigate Wildfire Risks

Oct 10 2019 // California utility giant PG&E Corp. expanded the biggest blackout that has ever been orchestrated to prevent wildfires with a second round of shutoffs in the Sierra Nevada foothills.The company told reporters late...

Eastern Australia Wildfires Destroy Up to 30 Homes

Oct 10 2019 // About 500 firefighters were battling out-of-control wildfires in eastern Australia that have destroyed up to 30 homes.More than 40 bushfires were burning across New South Wales state. Temperatures were cooler Wednesday...

Activists Push Big Index Funds to Back Shareholder Votes on Climate Risk Disclosure

Oct 9 2019 // The far-reaching impacts of climate change on companies have investors pressing corporate leaders for action to minimize environmental damage and to maximize disclosure of risks to their businesses. The threats range from...

PG&E Could Cut Power to Hundreds of Thousands of Californians over Wildfire Fears

Oct 8 2019 // Pacific Gas & Electric officials on Tuesday announced plans to cut off power to some 600,000 Northern California customers as a wildfire safety precaution.The outages are expected to begin early Wednesday depending on...

California Wildfire Victims in PG&E Bankruptcy See $13.5B in Claims

Oct 8 2019 // A lawyer for the committee representing wildfire victims in the bankruptcy of PG&E Corp said at a hearing on Monday that the committee sees $13.5 billion as the cost to the power provider for paying claims of the...

Supreme Court Rejects Sempra’s Bid to Recover $379M from 2007 California Wildfire Payouts

Oct 7 2019 // The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a bid by Sempra Energy’s San Diego Gas & Electric Co to recover $379 million from customers related to damages it was forced to pay out in litigation after the...

Lawsuit Says Colorado Railroad Ignited Fires Prior to Wildfire

Oct 7 2019 // A federal lawsuit says nearly 50 fires in Colorado were ignited by a railroad company in the weeks leading up to a major wildfire.The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad caused the smaller fires along its tracks...

22 New California Laws Take Aim at Wildfire Danger

Oct 4 2019 // California is adopting nearly two dozen laws aimed at preventing and fighting the devastating wildfires that have charred large swaths of the state in recent years and killed scores of people.Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom...

Wildfire Risk in Georgia Increasing Amid Southern Drought

Oct 1 2019 // The ongoing drought has made outdoor burning in Georgia more dangerous than previous years, state officials said.In the past three months, the Georgia Forestry Commission says firefighters have responded to – on average...

Council Recommends $4B Plan to Safeguard Oregon from Wildfires

Sep 30 2019 // A task force created by Oregon Gov. Kate Brown says climate change, overstocked forests and understaffed fire teams have placed Oregonians in extreme risk, necessitating a multi-billion-dollar program to safeguard the...

Lawsuit Says Colorado Railroad Ignited Fires Prior to Wildfire

Sep 27 2019 // A federal lawsuit says nearly 50 fires in Colorado were ignited by a railroad company in the weeks leading up to a major wildfire.The Durango Herald reported Tuesday that The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad...

Death Toll from Northern California Wildfire Back Down to 85

Sep 26 2019 // The number of those who died in California’s deadliest wildfire is back down to 85 after authorities determined that a bone fragment previously classified as unidentified belongs to a victim named in January.The...

PG&E Cuts Power to 48K California Customers to Avert Wildfire Risk

Sep 25 2019 // Pacific Gas & Electric cut power to 48,200 customers in seven counties in California’s Sierra Foothills and North Bay overnight because of high fire danger.The majority of those affected by the power outage,...

Thousands of Californians Face Power Shutoffs Due to Wildfire Risk

Sep 24 2019 // California utilities are warning that they may shut off electricity to thousands of customers across the state as hot, dry and windy weather raises the risk of another catastrophic wildfire sparked by a power line.PG&E...

Alaska Has This Year’s Most Expensive Wildfire in U.S.

Sep 24 2019 // The nation’s most expensive wildfire this year is one that has been burning for months on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula.The Swan Lake Fire has so far cost about $46 million to fight, according to the National...

PG&E Attacks Plan for Paying California Wildfire Victims Before Insurers

Sep 23 2019 // PG&E Corp. and a group of insurers urged a judge to reject a competing reorganization plan for the bankrupt utility because the proposal would pay fire victims who lost their homes ahead of insurance companies and...

How Forested Communities Are Trying to Adapt to Growing Wildfire Threat

Sep 23 2019 // Unless it’s Sunday, Kelly Loew is steering her rusty red Jeep down the same mail route in Shingletown, as she has six days a week for the last seven years. But she delivers less mail these days as California’s...

Re/insurers Rethink Climate Change Risks as Losses Grow from Wildfires, Floods, Hail

Sep 20 2019 // By the time David Kaisel got back from selling his flour at a farmers’ market, a wildfire in California’s Capay Valley had burnt both his tractor and the shipping container where he kept some tools. His insurer...

Federal Settlements in South Dakota Wildfire Total More Than $700K

Sep 19 2019 // Landowners in South Dakota have received over $700,000 in a lawsuit accusing a federal agency of burning their properties in an April 2013 prescribed fire that blazed out of control, destroying more than 10,000 acres.The...