As California Fires Rage, Pandemic Leaves State Hundreds of Firefighters Short
As California battles both wildfires and the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, resources have been "stretched totally thin," the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) told Newsweek.
COVID Plans Put to Test as Firefighters Crowd Camps for Peak Wildfire Season
HELENA, Mont. — Jon Paul was leery entering his first wildfire camp of the year late last month to fight three lightning-caused fires scorching parts of a Northern California forest that hadn’t burned in 40 years.
More than half of California's incarcerated firefighters are under lockdown as coronavirus sweeps through state prisons, resulting in a shortage of crews in fire season
As more than 360 fires burn across the state of California, the coronavirus pandemic is creating a shortage of inmate fire crews to battle the wildfires.
COVID-19 Could Threaten Firefighters as Wildfire Season Ramps Up
Paul is one of thousands of firefighters from across the U.S. battling dozens of wildfires burning throughout the West. It’s an inherently dangerous job that now carries the additional risk of COVID-19 transmission. Any outbreak that ripples through a camp could easily sideline crews and spread the virus across multiple fires—and back to communities across the country—as personnel transfer in and out of “hot zones” and return home. Though most firefighters are young and fit, some will inevitably fall ill in these remote makeshift communities of shared showers and portable toilets, where medical care can be limited. The pollutants in the smoke they breathe daily also make them more susceptible to COVID-19 and can worsen the effects of the disease, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Videos: California Wildfires Rage Across State, Tens of Thousands Forced to Evacuate
During a Wednesday news conference, California Governor Gavin Newsom revealed that there are more than 360 known fires currently burning in California. The state is experiencing record heat levels and has seen more than 10,000 lightning strikes in the last 72 hours.
COVID-19 could threaten firefighters as wildfire season ramps up
Jon Paul was leery entering his first wildfire camp of the year late last month to fight three lightning-caused fires scorching parts of a Northern California forest that hadn’t burned in 40 years.
California Teaming Up With Native American Tribes To Prevent Wildfires
For more than a century, California's Native American tribes were largely banned from doing traditional burning of the landscape. Now, they're restoring that practice to help prevent fires.
Four Wildfires Engulf More Than 125,000 Acres In A Hot And Dry Colorado. And There’s No Relief In Sight
More than 125,000 acres of Colorado have burned as four different wildfires continue to rage in different parts of the state. All the fires are fueled by the heat, the low humidity and the wind. Not to mention the drought that Colorado is experiencing
Watching mushroom clouds from the beach in LA. Apocalypse...maybe not now, but soon!
There’s a heatwave in Los Angeles and much of California — something about a high-pressure system trapping the air and not letting it circulate. That, on top of global warming, means that heat records are being broken all over the place. Our crappy privatized electrical grid is having trouble handling the AC demand — and companies are rolling out targeted blackouts to dampen the load. And it’s only gonna get worse next week.
It’s Still Unclear When I-70, Closed By The Grizzly Creek Fire, Will Reopen. That’s Wreaking Havoc On Businesses
At a press conference on Thursday, Aug. 20, Colorado Department of Transportation executive director Shoshana Lew said they are looking at "days, not weeks" to reopen Interstate 70 at Glenwood Canyon.
The women battling wildfires and breaking barriers in the American wilderness
One hot and dry midsummer day in Utah, Hannah Gross went to her first fire. A brand new wildland firefighter in 2015, she had no idea where this assignment would take her and her crew as they approached the hill where fire was ripping through the trees.
Freakish Arctic Fires Alarmingly Intensify
NASA satellite images of fires in eastern Siberia depict an inferno of monstrous proportions, nothing in modern history compares. And, as of July, it’s intensifying. Should people be concerned? Answer: Yes, and double yes.
Climate Apartheid Is the Coming Police Violence Crisis
In a 2019 report, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights warned about the possibility of climate apartheid: a world in which only elites are able to access basic forms of social protection while everyone else faces the devastating effects of climate crises.
Reformers Aim to End Prison Firefighters’ ‘Indentured Servitude’ in California
Brandon Smith was incarcerated in Wasco State Prison in 2012 when a correctional officer approached him about becoming a firefighter—not after prison, but during his time inside. Smith would, if he said “yes,” serve in what the state calls its Conservation Camp Program.