lightning News

Wildfire Destroys at Least 150 Structures in New Mexico Town

RUIDOSO, N.M. (AP) — A wind-driven wildfire swept through neighborhoods in a mountain community in drought-stricken south-central New Mexico, burning at least 150 structures and forcing the evacuations of schools with 1,700 students, officials said Wednesday. Homes were among the …

Hundreds of Lightning Bolts Hit Dry Oregon, Start New Fires

SALEM, Ore. (AP) _ Lightning bolts struck the parched forests of southern Oregon hundreds of times in 24 hours, igniting some 50 new wildfires even as the nation’s largest wildfire continued to burn less than 100 miles (161 kilometers) away, …

California, Nevada Governors Tour Site of Massive Wildfire

CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) — The governors of California and Nevada on Wednesday planned to tour the state line area blackened by one of two massive wildfires that have destroyed dozens of homes in the U.S. West. Cooler weather and …

Five Firefighters Injured While Fighting Montana Wildfire

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Five firefighters were injured when a thunderstorm and swirling winds in central Montana blew a lightning-caused wildfire back on them, federal officials said Friday. All five remained in medical facilities and were still being evaluated and …

Arctic Lightning Strikes Tripled in a Decade

Meteorologists flipped their lids when they found out that a summer storm—more common to temperate latitudes—had produced a lightning strike just 32 miles from the North Pole on Aug. 13, 2019. Never before had lightning been detected so close to …

California Wine Country Wildfire Forces Evacuation of Hospital, Hundreds of Homes

ST. HELENA, Calif. — A wind-driven wildfire erupted on Sunday in the heart of northern California’s Napa Valley wine country to spread across nearly 2,000 acres (809 hectares), forcing the evacuation of a hospital and hundreds of homes, authorities said. …

These Scientists Are Studying Why California Keeps Burning

Residents of fire-ravaged Western states, and an entire world of observers looking on in horror, have asked themselves, “How can this be happening?” As fire last week taunted Paradise, California, destroyed in the 2018 Camp Fire, many others have found …

California ‘Dream House,’ Decades in the Making, is in Ashes

VACAVILLE, Calif. — When he closes his eyes at night, Hank Hanson hears sirens in his dreams — a byproduct of living nearly 30 years in the wildfire-prone wilderness of Northern California between San Francisco and Sacramento. But at about …

Crews Make Varying Degrees of Headway in Arizona Wildfires

PHOENIX — Hundreds of firefighters made some progress Monday against major wildfires across Arizona. Crews were fighting fires in the Santa Catalina Mountains in the Coronado National Forest overlooking Tucson, in the Tonto National Forest northeast of metro Phoenix, the …

Some Residents of Queen Valley Evacuated by Growing Wildfire

QUEEN VALLEY, Ariz. — An evacuation order was issued Tuesday for some residents of Queen Valley east of Phoenix as crews continued to battle a lightning-caused wildfire. Tonto National Forest officials said the fire had burned nearly 33 square miles …