California Burning
The Climate Crisis is Setting the State on Fire
Yes, California always had wildfires, but no one was prepared for them to get this big, this soon. What do we do now?
California’s Forever Fire
After another devastating year, it’s clear that Californians can’t keep trying to “fight” wildfires. Instead, they need to accept it as their new reality.
New Maps Show How Climate Change is Making California’s “Fire Weather” Worse
On California’s fall fire days — days with high temperatures and wind speeds, as well as low humidity — all it takes is a spark from a downed power line to start an inferno. New research indicates that they’re about to become a lot more common.
California Will Keep Burning. But Housing Policy Is Making It Worse.
There are ways to keep people and homes safer from wildfires. Then, there’s what California does.
What the Photos of Wildfires and Smoke Don’t Show You
The West will need “good fire” — controlled, managed fire that balances the ecosystem — to stave off deadly, out-of-control fire. We need to know what that looks like.
The Climate Crisis Is Happening Right Now. Just Look at California’s Weekend.
Record high temperatures. Record fires. Record smoke. ProPublica reporter Elizabeth Weil spoke to former California Gov. Jerry Brown about the state’s converging apocalypses.
They Know How to Prevent Megafires. Why Won’t Anybody Listen?
This is a story about frustration, about watching the West burn when you fully understand why it’s burning — and understand why it did not need to be this bad.
