Video: Deadly forest fires sweep across Portugal and northern Spain

16 October 2017 (Protect Mother Earth) – Hurricane Ophelia’s strong winds are blamed for fanning flames of deadly forest fires in Portugal and Spain At least six people have been killed and around 25 others injured – mainly firefighters – during Portugal’s worst day of the year for forest fires. Around 500 blazes were reported […]

California’s wildfires aren’t “natural” – Humans made them worse at every step – “Personally, I think it will be one of the worst disasters in California history”

By Umair Irfan  15 October 2017 (Vox) – Raging infernos in California are burning through shrub land and neighborhoods while inching perilously close to San Francisco and Los Angeles.This year is shaping up to be one of the state’s worst fire seasons ever, as windswept flames have scorched more than 214,000 acres and caused at […]

Image of the Day: Satellite view of Santa Rosa scarred by wildfire

By Mike Carlowicz 11 October 2017 (NASA) – Devastating wildfires have burned through California’s wine country since October 8, 2017, taking dozens of lives and leaving thousands of people homeless. Even communities distant from the fires have been plagued by poor air quality, as the smoke plumes have darkened skies and canceled school and other […]

69 Republicans vote against hurricane aid for Puerto Rico, other disaster sites

By Cristina Marcos 12 October 2017 (The Hill) – Legislation to provide $36.5 billion in aid for communities affected by recent wildfires and hurricanes, including Puerto Rico, secured widespread support in the House on Thursday save for 69 Republicans. The votes in opposition included many members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, who believe government […]

The catastrophic toll of California’s deadliest wildfires on record: 29 dead, hundreds missing, thousands displaced – “This is a once-in-a-career fire”

By Cleve R. Wootson Jr., Kristine Phillips, Joel Achenbach, and Herman Wong 12 October 2017 SANTA ROSA, California (The Washington Post) – The winds fanning wildfires in Northern California’s wine-country have calmed, for now, giving firefighters a badly needed break from the “red flag” conditions that have made this menacing arc of flames so deadly […]

Record Amazon fires stun scientists; sign of sick, degraded forests – “The dry seasons in Brazil seem to be becoming drier and more frequent”

By Sue Branford and Maurício Torres 11 October 2017 (Mongabay) – Figures from the Brazilian government’s INPE (National Institute of Space Research) show that 2017 is shaping up to be the worst year on record for forest fires: 208,278 were detected by 5 October 2017. Alberto Setzer, who runs INPE’s fire monitoring department, told Mongabay […]

Whole towns evacuated as Northern California firestorm grows; at least 23 people dead, 285 missing – “We’re not going to be out of the woods for a great many days to come”

By Phil Willon, Paige St. John, Louis Sahagun, Chris Megerian, and Alene Tchekmedyian 12 October 2017 SANTA ROSA, California (The Los Angeles Times) – The death toll rose to 23 from the rapidly spreading firestorm in California wine country as officials issued more evacuations Thursday morning across the region. With winds picking up, it was […]

California’s wildfires: Why have they been so destructive? “We’ve never seen anything like this”

By Julie Turkewitz 11 October 2017 (The New York Times) – Intense, fast-moving fires have been raging across much of California since Sunday night. The blazes have barreled through communities like freight trains, turning homes to dust in a blink and leaving at least 21 people dead. The largest of the fires are in the […]

San Francisco Bay Area experiencing “worst air quality ever in many parts”

By Amy Graff 10 October 2017 (SF Gate) – Raging wildfires across Northern California generated thick plumes of smoke that spilled across the greater Bay Area Monday morning and gave rise to dangerous air quality throughout the region. The smoky haze was especially thick Monday morning, lightened in the afternoon and evening and returned heavy […]

Another youth climate lawsuit turns to crowdfunding in Portugal

By Bobby Magill 27 September 2017 (Climate Liability News) – After more than 60 people died in wildfires that scorched central Portugal this summer, a London nonprofit group plans to file suit against 47 European countries on behalf of six children affected by the fires. The lawsuit aims to force the countries to cut their […]

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