With California’s reservoirs brimming — but snowpack abysmal — experts warn of a potentially early fire season.
Wildfires
Posted inLatest News
This year’s U.S. wildfires have already set records that could foreshadow a smoky, fiery summer
Recently released data show how drought, paltry Western snows and unseasonable heat, all exacerbated by climate change, could be priming the nation for a long wildfire season.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
When home insurance fails, California’s families and communities feel the fallout
After seeing her home insurance policy not renewed because of wildfire risk, Marcella Cranford writes that homes that lose coverage can become un-mortgageable. Property values decline. Communities that stood for decades begin to be hollowed out.
Posted inLatest News
Santa Cruz Fire Department gets a new fire engine
Santa Cruz Fire Station 61 held a “push-in” ceremony Wednesday to celebrate its newest vehicle, a compact and highly maneuverable four-wheel-drive wildland engine designed for responding quickly to fires in rough terrain.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
California’s next insurance commissioner will have ‘brutal’ balancing act
Ricardo Lara’s successor will have a full plate. California insurance premiums are rising; fire survivors are struggling; the FAIR Plan is still growing.
Posted inEducation
What California’s planned power outages are costing schools: Darkness, disruption and debt
California schools faced repeated planned power outages in 2024-25 as Southern California Edison cut electricity to prevent wildfires, forcing closures and costly backup power solutions.
Posted inLatest News
California State Parks acquires 153-acre property for Big Basin expansion
The $2.4 million acquisition of the NoraBella property along Highway 236 is seen as a key step in the post-CZU fire recovery of Big Basin Redwoods State Park.
Posted inLatest News
California announces investigation into delayed evacuation orders during L.A.-area wildfire
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced a civil rights investigation Thursday into how delayed evacuations affected a historically Black community ravaged by one of last year’s deadly wildfires in Altadena.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Fires burn swiftly, but insurance battles linger: New bills propose consumer-friendly regulations
As fire survivors continue to navigate life after disaster, California lawmakers roll out new bills attempting to further regulate insurance companies like State Farm.
Posted inLatest News
Prescribed burn scheduled into early February in Forest of Nisene Marks State Park
About 13 acres of forest along Santa Rosalia Ridge along Aptos Creek Fire Road will be the focus of a multi-day burn in The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park.