losses News

Hammer Sparks Led to California’s Mendocino Blaze

California fire officials say sparks from a hammer driving a metal stake into the ground ignited a 2018 blaze in Northern California that killed a firefighter and became the largest wildland fire in state history. The California Department of Forestry …

Hawaii Eruption Caused $94M Loss in Economic Benefit

Communities near Hawaii Volcanoes National Park lost up to $94 million in economic benefit last year compared to the previous year due to the eruption of Kilauea Volcano, officials said. The National Park Service found the Big Island park had …

Expert Discusses Potential Solutions to Ease the Pain of California’s Severe Wildfires

James Woods has his sights set on finding ways to help California deal with repeated years of severe wildfire seasons, and the prospect of more seasons in which record losses from large blazes may lie ahead of us. Woods has …

California Disaster Insurance Act Passes Key Committee

Legislation by that could lead California to consider buying insurance in the private market to cover rapidly increasing costs of fighting wildfires due to climate change cleared a key committee vote Tuesday. Senate Bill 290, called the California Disaster Insurance …

Washington Blizzard Killed 1,850 Cows, Yakima Farmers Reeling

The unexpected blizzard that swept through the Yakima Valley on Feb. 9 was just one more clobbering for the region’s dairy farms. The number of dairy farms in the state has plummeted from 2,500 in 1993 to 377 in 2018, …

California Wants Faster Forestry Approvals in Wildfire Fight

California wildland managers said this week that they want to speed up logging and prescribed burns designed to slow wildfires that have devastated communities in recent years. After the deadliest and most destructive blazes in state history, officials are scrapping …

‘Goat Fund Me’ Campaign Launched by California Town to Prevent Wildfires

The threat of catastrophic wildfires has driven a California town to launch a “Goat Fund Me” campaign to bring herds of goats to city-owned land to help clear brush. Nevada City in the Sierra Nevada began the online crowdsourcing campaign …

Authorities: At Least $3B to Clear Debris from Homes Destroyed By California Wildfires

State and federal authorities estimate that it will cost at least $3 billion to clear debris from 19,000 homes and businesses destroyed by three California wildfires last month. The disaster relief officials said the cleanup costs will far surpass the …

More Than 100 Buildings Found Unsafe After Alaska Quake

More than 100 homes and buildings in the Anchorage area have been found unsafe to enter because of damage caused by the magnitude 7.0 earthquake, according to city data. At least another 182 buildings received some kind of damage from …

California Regulators to Look at New Blackout Rules to Prevent Deadly Wildfires

California regulators have decided they need to step in and help determine when power blackouts are appropriate to prevent wildfires after a series of deadly blazes linked to electrical equipment. Utilities PG&E Corp., Edison International and Sempra Energy have been …