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Articles on Wildfires

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Wildfire smoke is hard to avoid in California, even in urban neighborhoods. Paul Harris/Getty Images

Wildfire smoke linked to thousands of premature deaths every year – here’s why and how to protect yourself

Breathing wildfire smoke can cut years off people’s lives. As fires become more frequent in a warming world, smoke is leading to a public health crisis, harming people far from the flames.
Wildfire smoke traveling hundreds of miles caused hazy skies all the way to Virginia in 2023. AP Photo/Alex Brandon

Wildfire smoke is back – fires burning across Canada are already triggering US air quality alerts in the Midwest and Plains

States could be in for another summer of unhealthy wildfire smoke as ‘zombie fires’ resurface in western Canada and more blazes break out in the dry conditions.
Trismegist san, Shutterstock

Gone in a puff of smoke: 52,000 sq km of ‘long unburnt’ Australian habitat has vanished in 40 years

We compiled maps of bushfires and prescribed burns in southern Australia from 1980 to 2021 to see how fire activity is changing habitat for 129 threatened species such as mountain pygmy possums.
Utilities can turn off power to reduce the risk that their equipment could spark wildfires during extreme weather events. Smith Collection/Gado via Getty Images

Colorado is latest state to try turning off the electrical grid to prevent wildfires − a complex, technical operation pioneered in California

Turning off power is a last-ditch strategy for utilities to reduce the risk that their systems could spark wildfires. In most states, deciding whether to take that step is up to utilities.

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