Wildfire Threatening Nevada Town

6 buildings destroyed so far

(AP) - A wildfire in Michigan's Upper Peninsula grew by 17% to more than 21,000 acres today as officials warned of tough conditions and welcomed help from water-dumping aircraft from the Michigan National Guard. Wind gusts were predicted at 15 mph and high temperatures were in the 60s in a dry, remote part of the state where access has been tricky because there are few roads. Tahquamenon Falls State Park, a popular destination for campers seven miles from the fire, was closed. More»

Firefighters still trying to contain blazes fed by Tropical Storm Lee

(AP) - More than 1,000 homes have been destroyed in at least 57 wildfires across rain-starved Texas, most of them in one devastating blaze near Austin that is still raging out of control, officials said today. Gov. Rick Perry, who cut short a presidential campaign trip to South Carolina to return to Texas, toured a blackened area near Bastrop, about 25 miles from Austin, where a fast-moving blaze destroyed nearly 600 homes yesterday. More»

Hundreds evacuated; kennel fire claims dogs

(NEWSER) - Wildfires continued their blaze across West Texas today, though calmer winds allowed firefighters to make some headway. The weekend brought fierce gusts that carried the fires across 120,000 acres, reducing 80 homes to ashes and forcing the evacuation of hundreds of residents. Firefighters, support helicopters, and tanker planes are mounting a coordinated assault on the fires, but it may take days to get some of them under control. More»

Pair drives off road as flames consume national forest

(NEWSER) - Two California firefighters drove off a treacherous road to their death as they helped battle a 43,000-acre inferno in the Angeles National Forest, reports the Los Angeles Times. More than 2,800 firefighters, 12 helicopters and eight air tankers have converged on the area where the blaze now threatens some 13,000 homes in Los Angeles County. The blaze is only 5% contained, and has already destroyed 18 homes. More»

(NEWSER) - The first major California wildfire of the season has consumed over 5,000 acres in Santa Cruz County and won't be fully contained for a week, the San Jose Mercury News reports. Over a thousand firefighters are battling the blaze in rugged terrain that hadn't had a major fire in over 50 years, and a hot, dry, windy weekend is expected to make their job tougher. More»