Latest Wildfire Headlines
All the headlines from our Wildfire Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Florida Panhandle Wildfire Destroys Home, Damages 15 Others
Apr 8 2024 // PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) — A wildfire in the Florida Panhandle has destroyed a home and damaged at least 15 others. The Florida Forest Service said Friday that the blaze, which broke out Thursday near Pensacola, was now more...
Utility Company Skips Texas Panhandle Wildfire Hearings
Apr 4 2024 // AMPA — A company hired to inspect utility poles in the Panhandle declined to testify before Texas lawmakers Wednesday, as part of the state’s inquiry into the Smokehouse Creek fire — the largest wildfire in state...
Bird Flu is Another Blow to ‘Cattle Country’ Following Wildfires
Mar 28 2024 // LUBBOCK — Cows in the Texas Panhandle have tested positive for the bird flu, another blow to the Texas dairy industry following historic wildfires that killed at least 7,000 livestock. The discovery, reported at three...
Subpoenas on Agencies and Officials Delay Release of Key Report into Deadly Hawaii Wildfire
Mar 27 2024 // Hawaii’s attorney general blamed a delay of the release of a key report into a deadly Maui wildfire on county agencies that forced investigators to issue subpoenas. The first phase of an independent investigation...
Virginia Still Battling Shenandoah Valley Wildfires
Mar 24 2024 // Crews who have been battling still-burning wildfires in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley this week have gotten an assist from rain and from the state government, which has deployed new resources to the area, officials...
West Texas Ranchers Face Losses After Historic Wildfires
Mar 20 2024 // LUBBOCK — There are burned spots on Jay O’Brien’s ranch outside Stinnett that predate the Smokehouse Creek fire. Over the last several months, small fires — ones that weren’t pushed by strong winds or...
Subpoenas on Maui Agencies and Officials Delay Release of Report Into Wildfire
Mar 20 2024 // Hawaii’s attorney general blamed a delay of the release of a key report into a deadly Maui wildfire on county agencies that forced investigators to issue subpoenas. The first phase of an independent investigation...
Maui’s Mayor Prioritizes Vows to Hire More Firefighters After Hawaii Wildfire
Mar 19 2024 // Maui’s mayor says he is prioritizing housing, evaluating evacuation routes and hiring more firefighters as his Hawaii community recovers from the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century. Mayor Richard Bissen...
Texas Firefighters Completely Contain Panhandle Wildfire
Mar 18 2024 // LUBBOCK — Firefighters have completely contained the Smokehouse Creek fire in Hutchinson County after a nearly three-week battle with what quickly became the largest wildfire in Texas history. That inferno and a series...
Southern California Edison to Pay $80M to US Over 2017 Wildfire
Mar 18 2024 // Southern California Edison agreed to pay the United States $80 million to cover costs and damages incurred by the U.S. Forest Service from the 2017 Thomas wildfire in California’s Los Padres National Forecast, the...
California Insurance Commissioner: Allow Cat Modeling in Rates for Wildfires
Mar 14 2024 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said he will allow catastrophe modeling to be used in rate regulation for wildfires, a move he says will help restore insurance options for Californians. It was the latest...
Texas Committee to Investigate Panhandle Wildfires
Mar 14 2024 // LUBBOCK — Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan is creating a legislative committee to investigate the Texas Panhandle wildfires to ensure the state is prepared for future disasters. His Tuesday announcement comes more than...
Xcel Texas Wildfire Legal Reckoning to Take Years to Play Out
Mar 12 2024 // (Xcel Energy Inc. will likely be wrangling for years with the legal fallout from the wildfires burning through the Texas Panhandle. The experience of utility companies in California and Oregon sued over massive blazes...
Texas Firefighters Make Progress Containing Panhandle Wildfires
Mar 12 2024 // LUBBOCK — Texas firefighters are gaining more control over the remaining wildfires in the Panhandle, more than two weeks after the infernos first engulfed large swaths of the region and burned more than 1 million...
Texas Utility Rules Didn’t Prevent Panhandle Wildfires
Mar 8 2024 // Before it burned to a pile of ashes, Melanie McQuiddy’s house on the outskirts of Canadian was her family’s home base. Her daughter and grandchildren flocked there for holidays. At Christmastime, she put a tree...
Pacificorp Ordered to Pay Oregon Wildfire Victims Another $42M
Mar 8 2024 // A jury in Oregon has ordered PacifiCorp to pay more than $42 million to 10 victims of devastating wildfires on Labor Day 2020 — the latest verdict in litigation that is expected to see the electric utility on the hook...
Xcel Energy Acknowledges Role in Texas Panhandle Wildfire
Mar 7 2024 // Xcel Energy on Thursday acknowledged its involvement in the Smokehouse Creek Fire, which started last week and quickly became the largest wildfire in state history, burning more than 1 million acres. “Based on...
Texas Fire Chief Dies While Fighting House Fire in City Hit Hard by Wildfires
Mar 7 2024 // A Texas fire chief whose small town was among the hardest hit last week by historic blazes sweeping across the Panhandle died Tuesday while fighting a house fire, authorities said. The house fire that Fritch Fire Chief Zeb...
Washington Commissioner Wants Insurers to Modify Claims Process for Wildfire Victims
Mar 6 2024 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler on Wednesday sent a letter to insurers urging them to consider loosening personal property claim filing requirements for victims of last summer’s Spokane County...
Texas Panhandle Ranchers Look to Rebuild After Wildfires
Mar 6 2024 // CANADIAN — Farmers and ranchers in the Panhandle lost livestock, buildings and infrastructure in the wildfires still raging through the region. Now they’re looking to rebuild. More than 100 people packed a room at...
