It all started with a bushfire. Emma Sutcliffe is a committed operational firefighter with the Country Fire Authority in Victoria. She was so committed in fact that she “sacrificed” her Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (plugin hybrid electric vehicle) to the flames during a grass fire at Little River. It was her … [continued]
Preparing for emergencies and preventing disasters requires planning, equipment and communications. This is true for fighting fires and for keeping the electric power system operating in extreme weather. Firefighters have strategic plans regarding territory to address, as well as operational plans. Equipment includes fire trucks, protective gear and hoses. First … [continued]
Wildland firefighters have been sounding the alarm on a lack of accessible housing. Is anyone listening?
As wildfires, fueled by human-caused climate change, have grown more extreme, so has the burden on the wildland firefighters, and it’s pushing many out of the job they love, Thomson Reuters reports. “The seasons are longer, and we’re not being treated any better,” Brian Campbell, veteran of nearly two decades … [continued]
Wildfires fueled by extreme heat and drought continue to rage across the West Coast. Climate change exacerbates drought and heatwaves that set the stage for massive conflagrations, like the Sugar Fire in Northern California which doubled in size from Friday to Saturday and produced so much smoke and ash that, … [continued]
President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris met (virtually) with a bipartisan group of Western governors yesterday to discuss preparations for this year’s wildfire season, which is expected to be especially severe due to an ongoing drought fueled by climate change. “Climate change is driving the dangerous confluence of extreme … [continued]
Wildfires, fueled by heat and drought, are straining firefighters in Arizona and California as conditions augur worse fires to come in Oregon. At least 15 fires actively burning more than 400,000 acres across Arizona have stretched fire crews already hampered by extreme heat. Though cooler weather is expected later in … [continued]
In my last article, I summarized the extraordinary documentary The Human Element and added some of my own commentary about the touching subjects. In this article, I’m relaying the highlights of my interview with James Balog, the writer of the film. The documentary will be available on all major VOD platforms — iTunes, Amazon, DirectTV, etc. — on January 29, 2019.
Put any other distraction on hold for an evening and watch the extraordinary documentary The Human Element, a deep look into the heart of our last century and how we are transforming in the early part of this century. You will not regret spending the time to watch this one.
On my last flight to San Jose, California, on Thursday the 15th from Los Angeles, a 45-minute flight, I finally understood the extent of the current California fires. A bird eye’s view stretching from LA to San Francisco reveals what no TV or news can convey, the desolation of the land and the lingering pollution.
