The alarming wildfires on the West Coast are again putting the spotlight on climate change. But it's not the only reason why we're seeing so much destruction and lives lost.
A change in weather conditions is being seen as a needed assist for nearly 30,000 fire personnel battling blazes. Authorities are also attempting to debunk online rumors about the cause of the fires.
NPR's Scott Simon recounts what life in California, once the stuff of dreams, has become for too many residents as wildfires, mudslides, earthquakes seem to happen with increasing frequency.
One hundred large fires are burning in 12 states across the West — but just five of them have been contained, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
The U.S. Forest Service said 14 firefighters, overrun by the blaze in Los Padres National Forest, used portable fire shelters. Three were airlifted to a hospital, where one is in critical condition.
An estimated 45,000 acres are burning in Fresno County, where more than 200 people were rescued overnight as military helicopters plucked the stranded from a reservoir in Sierra National Forest.
Gov. Gavin Newsom says an area the size of Rhode Island is now ablaze in his state. He's looking for help from other states and the federal government.
The possibility of catching or spreading the coronavirus adds a new dimension of risk to the job, both on and off the front lines, and poses new threats to those seeking refuge in temporary shelter.
"We are all experiencing rather extraordinary conditions," Gov. Gavin Newsom says. There are about 15 fires burning in the northern and southern ends of the state.
Two back-to-back wildfires have erupted around Los Angeles. And across the country, major wildfires are burning in a dozen states, including one of the largest in Colorado's history.
A group people displaced by the Camp Fire in California moved to an unlikely place far away: Crossville, Tenn. They say the community, the cost of living and the values were the major draws.
