Category Archives: Wildfires

‘The new reality’: Athens wildfire victims vow to adapt and stay put

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People say they are determined and that prevention will be key to mitigating the effects of the climate crisis

“I used to talk to them every day.” Dimitris Petrou takes in the creatures that were once his fluffy chicks but now look like coals. The buckled cage with its carbonised birds is part of the cataclysmic scenery left behind by the fire that bore down on Athens after raging across the Attica plains consuming everything in its path.

The 72-year-old retiree and his wife, Frosso, though red-eyed and fatigued, are “somehow still going” but are profoundly shocked.

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Canada’s 2023 wildfires produced nearly a decade’s worth of blaze emissions

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Fires made at least three times more likely by climate crisis and emitted about 2bn tonnes of CO2, data reveals

Canada’s “record-shattering” wildfires last year produced nearly as much greenhouse gas emissions in one season as would be expected over a decade of fires in normal circumstances, data has shown.

The fires, in Canada’s “wildest season ever”, were made at least three times more likely by the climate crisis, and produced about 2bn tonnes of CO2, about a quarter of the total global emissions from wildfires last year, according to data in the State of Wildfires report, published on Wednesday.

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Greece takes stock of wildfires that raged through Athens suburbs

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Opposition and media turn on government as firefighters work to contain ‘scattered hotspots’

Greek authorities are continuing to battle scattered fires on the outskirts of Athens as officials take stock of the damage wreaked by a disaster that forced mass evacuations and killed at least one person.

On Tuesday, the third day of one of the worst wildfires in living memory, firefighters were helped by a drop in winds as they sought to contain the remnants of an inferno that had reached the capital’s northern suburbs and decimated homes and businesses.

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Greece orders evacuations near Athens as wildfires rage – Europe live

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An army of volunteers have also rushed to help extinguish raging blazes north east of Athens

AFP reports from Penteli:

Thick smoke from burning trees filled a small square in Penteli where local resident Mariana Papathanasi said they could only pray that their houses would be saved.

“There is still a strong fire. Some houses were burned after midnight and we are trying to protect our local restaurant,” the 49-year-old supermarket employee told AFP.

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Greek officials evacuate residents as wildfire moves ‘like lightning’

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More than 670 firefighters working to control blaze that has formed 12-mile front on outskirts of Athens

• Europe live – latest updates

Firefighters are battling to contain a massive blaze moving “like lightning” on the outskirts of Athens, with authorities evacuating people from towns, villages and hospitals as flames rip through trees, homes and cars.

Propelled by gale-force winds, the wildfire had formed a 12-mile (20km) front by Monday despite “superhuman” efforts by forest commandos and volunteers overnight.

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Weather tracker: Storm Debby leaves power cuts and flooding in its wake

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Meanwhile, a tropical disturbance in the Atlantic is likely to develop into a named storm within days

Storm Debby, which initially struck Florida as a hurricane, caused widespread destruction as it moved up the east coast, leaving many without power and dealing with severe flooding.

The storm brought significant damage across Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont, with power outages affecting large areas days after the storm’s passage. In Steuben County in New York, heavy rain triggered flash flooding, leading to road closures and evacuations. In Pennsylvania, numerous water rescues were necessary as flood waters rose rapidly.

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Greek officials advise staying in with windows shut due to fires near Athens

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Whole neighbourhoods are being evacuated from around capital as firefighters mount huge effort to put out blazes

Greek authorities have warned people to stay indoors with their “windows closed” as hundreds of firefighters battled to contain blazes on the outskirts of Athens that were forcing the evacuation of entire communities.

Huge clouds of billowing smoke had by mid-afternoon on Sunday darkened the skies above the capital as 10 groups of “forest commandos” backed by water-bombing aircraft, helicopters and fire engines tried to douse flames fanned by gale-force winds. Volunteers had also joined the fight near the village of Varnava about 35km (21 miles) north of the city.

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Wildfires in Brazil’s Pantanal wetland fuelled ‘by climate disruption’

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Devastation in Brazil wetlands was made at least four times more likely by fossil fuel use and deforestation, scientists say

The devastating wildfires that tore through the world’s biggest tropical wetland, Brazil’s Pantanal, in June were made at least four times more likely and 40% more intense by human-caused climate disruption, a study has found.

Charred corpses of monkeys, caimans and snakes have been left in the aftermath of the blaze, which burned 440,000 hectares (1.1m acres) and is thought to have killed millions of animals and countless more plants, insects and fungi.

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Fast-moving California wildfire destroys homes and burns at least 100 acres

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Edgehill fire started in San Bernardino and forced evacuations as more than 200 firefighters assigned to blaze

Several homes burned on Monday as a fast-moving wildfire torched a California hillside community, triggering evacuations while hundreds of firefighters tried to control the blaze.

The Edgehill fire started at about 3pm in the Shandin Hills area of San Bernardino and spread rapidly through the neighborhood, burning homes and forcing evacuations, according to the San Bernardino county fire department.

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One person killed and national guard deployed as Colorado battles wildfires

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Governor says national guard will support first responders as state becomes latest in west to battle several major fires

One person has died and at least five homes were destroyed as Colorado becomes the latest western state to battle several major wildfires.

The Boulder county sheriff, Curtis Johnson, reported the death was discovered in one of the five homes burned by the Stone Canyon fire near the town of Lyon, but did not provide further details. The fire has burned more than 1,500 acres (607 hectares) and was reported 20% contained on Wednesday evening.

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Largest wildfire in US grows to cover area bigger than Los Angeles

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Park fire scorches 386,000 acres as firefighters battle blazes across US west, including historic mining town of Havilah

The largest wildfire in the US swelled to more than 380,000 acres (154,000 hectares) on Tuesday morning, an area bigger than the city of Los Angeles and three times the surface area of Lake Tahoe, as thousands of firefighters battled the blaze in a remote wilderness area in northern California.

Meanwhile, the destruction caused by wildfires raging across the US west came into sharp focus as photographers documented the destruction left by the Borel fire in southern California. The fast-growing fire tore through the historic mining town of Havilah, leaving burnt buildings, cars and forests.

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Firefighters battle California’s seventh largest wildfire on record as thousands under threat

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The Park fire has more than doubled in size in 24-hour span to burn 350,000 acres and stretches over four counties

Thousands of firefighters continued to battle the Park fire in northern California which, propelled by extreme fire weather conditions, has become the state’s seventh-largest on record after burning for less than a week.

The Park fire, about 90 miles (144km) north of the state capital of Sacramento, had more than doubled in size in a 24-hour span to burn upwards of 350,000 acres (141640 hectares) – an area about the size of Los Angeles – and stretched over four counties: Butte, Plumas, Shasta and Tehama, according to the California department of forestry and fire protection, or Cal Fire.

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‘The PTSD is horrible’: for Californians who survived tragedy, new blazes stir trauma

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As the Park fire rages near Chico, residents who were evacuated from the deadly Camp fire in 2018 are evacuated again

As the biggest fire of the season raged through northern California on Saturday, Stephen Murray wasn’t taking any chances.

The Paradise resident loaded up his vehicle and prepared to flee with his wife and children. Almost six years after the Camp fire destroyed his hometown and killed 85 people, the community was under an evacuation warning due to the Park fire, which had scorched nearly 350,000 acres.

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Cooler temperatures bring relief as Park fire explodes in California

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Intensity and dramatic spread have led to unwelcome comparisons to 2018 Camp fire, which killed 85 people

Cooler temperatures brought some relief to the thousands of firefighters battling the Park fire in northern California after it exploded in size, becoming the largest in the state and prompting the governor to make an emergency declaration for three counties.

The intensity and dramatic spread of the wildfire led officials to make unwelcome comparisons to the disastrous Camp fire, which burned out of control in nearby Paradise in 2018, killing 85 people and destroying 11,000 homes.

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California’s largest wildfire of year whips through community of Forest Ranch: ‘The sky was dark with smoke’

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Park fire has burned 239,000 acres, with an official telling CBS it was spreading at a rate of 4,000 to 5,000 acres an hour

A massive and explosive wildfire whipped through the small rural community of Forest Ranch, California, on Thursday, bringing back dark memories in a region that has withstood several devastating wildfires in recent years.

The Park fire has grown into the state’s largest this year, destroying buildings and forcing the evacuations of thousands in one of the state’s most wildfire-hardened regions.

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Alberta premier fights tears over Canada wildfires despite climate crisis denial

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Danielle Smith and her government’s refusal to combat global heating is said to have made blazes more intense

When Danielle Smith, premier of Alberta, began her grim update about the wildfire damage to Jasper, the famed mountain resort in the Canadian Rockies, her voice slipped and she held back tears.

Hours earlier, a fast-moving wildfire tore through the community, incinerating homes, businesses and historic buildings. She praised the “true heroism” of fire crews who had rushed in to save Jasper, only to be pulled back when confronted by a 400ft wall of flames. She spoke about the profound meaning and “magic” of the national park.

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Man accused of starting California’s largest wildfire of the year is arrested

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Suspect allegedly pushed burning car into gully which started Park fire as other fires scorch Pacific north-west

A California man was arrested on Thursday and accused of starting the state’s largest wildlife of the year by pushing a burning car into a gully.

The flames have since exploded into what is now the Park fire, which has burned more than 71,000 acres (28,733 hectares) near the city of Chico. Evacuations were ordered in Butte and Tehama counties, with the blaze only 3% contained early on Thursday.

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Canadian Rockies town Jasper badly damaged by fast-moving wildfire

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More than 25,000 residents and tourists evacuated from national park region as firefighters forced into a retreat

A fast-moving wildfire has destroyed parts of Jasper, the old mountain town in the Canadian Rockies, with the mayor warning the damage was “beyond description and comprehension”. The blaze had forced more than 25,000 people to flee earlier this week.

Jasper national park officials said the fire entered the southern edge of the town on Wednesday evening. But, given the speed and intensity of the blaze, fire crews working to protect key infrastructure were ordered to retreat.

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Tourists evacuated from Italian camping village as wildfire spreads

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About 1,000 holidaymakers forced to leave Baia di Campi, near Vieste on Gargano peninsula in southern Italy

About 1,000 tourists have been evacuated from a camping village in the southern Italian region of Puglia after a vast wildfire broke out in an area of forest close to the complex.

The fire started early on Wednesday morning around the bay of San Felice, a wooded-coastal area near the town of Vieste in Gargano, a peninsula in the northern part of Puglia.

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Canada wildfires: 25,000 evacuate Jasper national park amid multiple blazes

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Alberta officials order residents, seasonal workers and tourists to flee as fires and smoke descend on Rocky Mountain community

Out-of-control wildfires near the Canadian town of Jasper have forced more than 25,000 to flee one of the country’s largest national parks as multiple blazes and thick smoke descended on the Rocky Mountain community.

Officials in the province of Alberta ordered residents of the Jasper townsite to leave immediately on Monday night, and soon after they called for the park, more than 4,200 sq miles (10,900 sq km) in size, to be fully cleared out. The town is home to 5,000 full-time residents, alongside 5,000 seasonal workers. The park also had roughly 15,000 visitors at the time.

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