Disasters

"California fire officials say at least 1,400 homes have been destroyed by two Northern California wildfires."

"Rescuers searched for a 6-year-old boy and a hiker missing on Wednesday after flash floods in southern Utah killed at least 18 people in a national park and a small town on the Arizona border."

"Strong aftershocks rippled through Chile on Thursday after a magnitude 8.3 earthquake that killed at least eight people and slammed powerful waves into coastal towns, forcing more than a million people from their homes."

"A third person was confirmed dead on Wednesday in the massive California wildfires that have destroyed more than 800 homes and forced the evacuation of 20,000 people, but crews appeared to turn a corner against the blazes as rain fell over the region."

"Federal investigators complained that secret meddling, arrogance and 'shady' conduct on the part of Pacific Gas and Electric Co. hindered their probe into the deadly San Bruno gas pipeline explosion, according to new court filings that shed light on prosecutors’ decision to seek a criminal obstruction-of-justice case against the company."

"Top administration officials wrote Congress on Tuesday to urge it – once again – to change the way it budgets for firefighting in light of the disastrous wildfire season in the western United States."

""It has been a record year for wildfires in California, and officials are warning that the end is not yet in sight."

"MIDDLETOWN, Calif. — Corie Barloggi looked across a charred field in this once scenic Northern California town, best known for hot springs and its proximity to Napa Valley, and was struck by what she didn't see: her neighbors' homes."

"CSX Transportation moves up to five trains, each carrying 1 million gallons or more of a kind of crude oil, through Baltimore weekly, according to records released Wednesday by the Maryland Department of the Environment."

"Two major wildland fires continued to burn out of control Sunday in Northern California despite the efforts of more than 5,000 firefighters to halt the progress of the blazes, which had burned hundreds of homes and scorched more than 164 square miles in Amador, Calaveras and Lake counties."