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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: California wildfires

California wildfires stories: 54 news summaries

1 - 20 of 54 Stories | 1 2 3 Next >>

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Wildfire Suspect Charged in Heart Attack 'Murders'

Unusual case links arson to deaths

Oct 23, 09 4:13 AM CDT
(Newser) - California officials have taken the unusual step of charging a wildfire arson suspect with murder in the death of 5 people who suffered heart attacks escaping the flames. Prosecutors intend to prove the stress of the fire caused the deaths in the massive 2003 San Bernardino blaze. The groundbreaking case... More »

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California • crime • murder • heart attack • arson • California fires • California wildfires • San Bernardino

  California: Too Broke 
  for More Fires 

At least not without major help from Uncle Sam

Sep 8, 09 7:45 AM CDT
(Newser) - California’s wildfires haven’t just destroyed property and forestland, they’ve also scorched the state’s beleaguered budget, Time reports. Arnold Schwarzenegger didn't lay a finger on the state's forestry budget of $518 million, and more than doubled the state’s emergency fund for fighting wildfires this year... More »

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California • FEMA • wildfires • California wildfires • California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection • Station fire

(Newser) - The fight to contain the deadly Los Angeles-area Station fire has so far cost more than $37 million, the LA Times reports, and that’s not counting property damage or the cost to the environment. The blaze is still burning through the San Gabriel Wilderness, but it’s 42%... More »

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Los Angeles • arson • California wildfires • Station fire

 Lab Tests Substance 
 in LA Wildfire Probe 

Station fire, 42% contained, chars 148K acres

Sep 4, 09 6:10 PM CDT
(Newser) - Investigators of a deadly Los Angeles wildfire are having a substance from the scene tested to confirm whether the blaze was man-made. “There was material that didn't belong there," a source tells the Los Angeles Times. "It was clear evidence that the fire was intentionally set.... More »

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Los Angeles • firefighters • arson • California wildfires • Station fire

 LA Fire Began as Arson: Feds  

With blaze having killed 2 firefighters, sheriff begins homicide investigation

Sep 3, 09 8:10 PM CDT
(Newser) - The wildfire that has burned 144,000 acres north of Los Angeles was set by arsonists, the US Forest Service said this afternoon. With the blaze having killed two firefighters, authorities are now treating the matter as homicide, KTLA-TV reports, and the LA County Sheriff’s Department has begun an... More »

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investigation • crime • Los Angeles • firefighters • homicide • arson • California wildfires • Station fire • Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department

(AP) - Federal authorities failed to follow through on plans earlier this year to burn away highly flammable brush in a forest on the edge of Los Angeles to avoid the very kind of wildfire now raging there. Months before the blaze erupted, the US Forest Service obtained permits to burn away... More »

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Los Angeles • California wildfires • Station fire • US Forest Service

 Chimps, Lions 
 Saved From 
 Calif. Inferno 

Volunteers help evacuate exotic animals from threatened Wildlife Waystation

Sep 2, 09 3:59 AM CDT
(Newser) - Volunteers leaped to the rescue yesterday as the gigantic Station fire approached a home for exotic animals north of Los Angeles. Rescuers drove trucks, horse trailers, and an 18-wheeler Budweiser truck to the Wildlife Waystation to help evacuate its tigers, lions, bears, ostriches and other animals to the Los Angeles... More »

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California • lion • chimpanzees • Los Angeles Zoo • California wildfires • tiger • exotic animals • Station fire

 LA Fire Now 22% Contained 


Sep 1, 09 10:22 PM CDT
(Newser) - The Station fire raging near Los Angeles is 22% contained tonight, authorities tell the Times—though they caution that if the weather turns uncooperative again the blaze could worsen. Some evacuation orders were lifted. The Mount Wilson observatory and a nest of communication towers nearby were still threatened, however, and... More »

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Los Angeles • firefighters • California wildfires • Station fire • Mount Wilson observatory • communications towers

UPDATED

 LA's 'Very Angry Fire' 
 Hits 105K Acres 

Blaze claims 74 structures; officials not optimistic until weather changes

Aug 31, 09 9:44 PM CDT
(Newser) - The so-called Station wildfire in Los Angeles County has now burned 105,000 acres, authorities say tonight, and has claimed 74 structures. “The fire is headed just about anywhere it wants to,” one official told the Times as gusty afternoon winds fanned the blaze, which is threatening the... More »

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Los Angeles • California wildfires • Station fire • Mount Wilson observatory

(Newser) - The so-called Station Fire is closing in on Los Angeles residents who refused to evacuate with their neighbors over the weekend and are now trapped and in danger, KTLA reports. Five people are stranded in a canyon, according to the AP. "Those people were told to get out two... More »

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California • Los Angeles • evacuation • wildfires • California wildfires • disaster

 Calif. Wildfire Doubles 
 Size to 85K Acres 

10K evacuated as soot covers parts of Los Angeles

Aug 31, 09 1:44 PM CDT
(Newser) - A southern California wildfire almost doubled in size overnight, reaching a whopping 85,760 acres, NBC Los Angeles reports, calling the speed of the fire’s spread “staggering.” A blanket of soot covers parts of the city as locals are warned to stay indoors, and heavy winds are... More »

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Los Angeles • Southern California • evacuation • wildfires • California wildfires • disaster • soot • NBC Local

 2 Firefighters 
 Killed in Calif. Blaze 

Pair drives off road as flames consume national forest

Aug 31, 09 3:04 AM CDT
(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... More »

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California • Los Angeles • firefighters • wildfires • California wildfires • brush fires • brushfires • Los Angeles County • Acton • Angeles National Forest

updated

 'Treacherous' Calif. 
 Blaze Threatens Town 

Official cites 'perfect storm of fuels, weather, and topography'

Aug 30, 09 7:02 PM CDT
(Newser) - A growing California wildfire that has already scorched 35,000 acres and burned three people is bearing down on a small mountain community, the Los Angeles Times reports. Driven toward Acton, Calif., by wind and triple-digit heat, the blaze is "treacherous," said one fire chief. Firefighters plan “... More »

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California • firefighters • heat • evacuation • California wildfires

(Newser) - The La Brea fire that’s scorched 90,000 acres of California is the most visible sign yet of the glut of Mexican-run drug farms lurking in the state’s forests, the LA Times reports. Authorities are all but certain the fire was started by drug traffickers at a... More »

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California • marijuana • California wildfires • pot • Mexican drug cartel

(Newser) - An illegal marijuana farm is responsible for a blaze that has charred more than 75,000 acres in Santa Barbara County, Calif., the Los Angeles Times reports. Authorities say a Mexican drug organization started the fire in the cooking area of a pot farm, and those behind it are likely... More »

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marijuana • farm • California wildfires • weed • Mexican drug cartel

 Wildfire Scorches Santa Cruz 


Aug 15, 09 6:16 AM CDT
(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... More »

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California • firefighters • wildfires • Santa Cruz • California wildfires

(Newser) - Thanks to cooler, more humid weather and a drop-off in damaging winds, thousands of Santa Barbara wildfire evacuees are being allowed back home, the Los Angeles Times reports. Firefighters fought back the fire significantly last night, containing the 8,700-acre Jesusita blaze in Santa Barbara by 30%. Most of... More »

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California • Southern California • firefighters • humidity • Santa Barbara • California wildfires • high winds • Jesusita fire • sundowner • containment

 Oprah's House Evacuated 
 as Wildfires Rage 

Calif. fires come within a few miles of host's $50m home

May 9, 09 2:46 AM CDT
(Newser) - Oprah Winfrey's mansion in Montecito has been evacuated as wildfires rage a few miles away in Santa Barbara, a source tells Us Weekly. Movers have been seen shifting the talk show host's belongings from the $50 million home. The fires have forced more than 30,500 people from their homes... More »

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California • Oprah Winfrey • evacuation • wildfires • Santa Barbara • California wildfires • mansion • Montecito

(Newser) - Poor firefighting conditions today—following a windy night—have allowed the Santa Barbara, Calif., wildfire to grow, and it has now consumed 3,500 acres and 75 homes, KNBC-TV reports. The fire, which has forced 30,000 people to flee their homes, is just 10% contained. Winds today are expected... More »

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firefighters • fuel • evacuation • natural disaster • Santa Barbara • California wildfires • high winds • sundowner • NBC Local

 Morning Winds 
 Stoke Raging 
 Calif. Wildfires 

Firefighters unable to get blaze under control as 30,000 evacuate

May 8, 09 9:50 AM CDT
(Newser) - Early-morning winds kicked up the uncontrolled Jesusita fire in the hills of Santa Barbara, causing the evacuation of thousands more residents, reports the Los Angeles Times. The fire has now burned more than 2,800 acres, destroyed dozens of homes, and forced 30,000 people to evacuate. Gov. Schwarzenegger has... More »

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firefighters • evacuation • wildfires • Santa Barbara • California wildfires • Santa Barbara County • Jesusita fire

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