California Wildfires

Fire officials are bracing for the worst as scientists predict that climate change could cause more lightning strikes, which often ignite deadly, unpredictable and remote wildfires in Northern California.

In a year of superlatives, some statistics stand out for California’s 2020 fire year: Four million acres, 112 million tons of greenhouse gases, thousands of lightning strikes, 11 million gallons of fire retardant. And 31 lost lives.

Insurance companies want to factor climate change in calculating wildfire coverage, but consumer watchdogs worry California homeowners will end up with higher premiums. Lawmakers from fire-damaged districts say they are open to change because their constituents are already losing coverage.

Ravaged by wildfire last summer, a state park — and all its redwood forests, creatures and trails — will undergo a transformation. Big Basin Redwoods will be back after a massive rebuilding project. But what will it look like?

1. California widens mental health conditions insurers must cover In the past, state law only required treatment for nine serious mental illnesses. Even before the pandemic, more than half of Californians said most people with mental health conditions couldn’t get the help they needed. Some families even dropped private insurance to qualify for treatment in […]

In an attempt to prevent wildfires, the utility is removing vegetation from around power lines. But it’s leaving downed trees on people’s property that are “little fire bombs waiting to ignite,” one expert says.

A program that incentivizes homeowners to mitigate wildfire risk through insurance discounts would be a win-win for insurers and consumers. Creating one is the hard part.

When the state consolidates inmate fire camps next month, remote Modoc County is left with few resources to prevent and battle its lightning-sparked fires.