emergency News

Snowmelt-driven River Swelling Forces Evacuation of 90 California Homes

Authorities say 90 homes remain under mandatory evacuation orders following levee breaches along a river in California, the result of the state’s huge springtime snowpack melting in the summer heat. The Tulare County Sheriff’s Office posted aerial photos showing several …

Utah Blaze Now Nation’s Largest Active Wildfire

The nation’s largest wildfire is burning in Utah and has forced more than 1,500 people from their homes and cabins in a mountain area that’s home to a ski town. Firefighters battled high winds Monday as they fought a fire …

Average 2017 Wildfire Season Predicted for Wyoming

State forester Bill Crapser says most of Wyoming is predicted to have slightly below average to average large wildfires this year. Crapser says there could be a lot of wildfires started by lightning but most are not expected to grow …

Alaska Hosts Plate Tectonics Research Effort

Alaska averages 40,000 earthquakes per year, with more large quakes than the other 49 states combined, and America’s shakiest state is about to have its ground examined like never before. A federal agency that supports basic science research is completing …

Flooding Overwhelming Central Idaho Neighborhoods

City officials in central Idaho are warning residents to prepare for more flooding as muddy water continues to overwhelm neighborhoods in Ketchum and Bellevue. Blaine County Disaster Services Coordinator Chris Corwin says the worst of the flooding is yet to …

Idaho Flood Recovery Is Far From Over

Accustomed to drought, south-central Idaho was overwhelmed this winter by simply too much water. Snowstorms cloaked the mountains and valleys. The saturated ground froze, buckling asphalt. Then sudden runoff in February and March wrecked more roads and left people scrambling …

Managers Made Errors in Handling California Dam Crisis

Late in the afternoon of Feb. 12, Sheriff Kory Honea was at the emergency operations center for the tallest dam in America when he overheard someone say something that stopped him in his tracks: “This is not good.” Over six …

San Jose Flooding Resulted in $73M in Damages, City Official Says

A San Jose, Calif. official says an initial estimate puts damage costs from last week’s flooding of several residential neighborhoods at $73 million. Assistant City Manager David Sykes said flood damage to private property is estimated at $50 million. He …

Oregon’s Largest City Requests $3.2M in Federal Disaster Aid For Storms

The Oregon city of Portland is asking for over $3.2 million in federal disaster aid to cover costs related to the city’s record-setting snow and ice storms in January. The Oregonian/OregonLive reported the city gave Multnomah County an initial damage …

Western Kansas Saw 3 Brief Tornadoes Seen On Christmas Day

Three tornadoes were reported in Kansas on Christmas Day, causing some damage but no injuries, the National Weather Service confirmed. The Dodge City office of the weather service said the first tornado was reported six miles southeast of Bucklin Sunday …