THomas Fire

Exhaust flows out of the tailpipe of a vehicle at , 'Mufflers 4 Less', July 11th, 2007, in Miami, Florida.

Air quality is harming children, sea otters get some good news, and a utility company provides a partial mea culpa for a major fire.

By Rebecca Worby

Fire trucks pass by approaching flames during the Carr fire near Whiskeytown, California, on July 27th, 2018.

Environment

One idea for a long-term fix: Communities could designate clean air centers where residents can spend time in filtered air for free.

By Francie Diep

A firefighter observes the flames while trying to extinguish a fire in Cabanoes, Portugal, on October 16th, 2017.

Environment

Americans learned long ago how to keep cities from burning. And then, it seems, we forgot.

By Stephen Pyne

A firefighter puts out hotspots on a smoldering hillside in Montecito, California, as strong winds blow smoke and embers inland on December 16th, 2017.

New Landscapes

As wildfires burn longer and fiercer, doctors are trying to work out how today's smoke will affect tomorrow's health.

By Sophie Yeo

A smoke-filled sky filters sunlight to orange around shorebirds as the Thomas Fire threatened communities from Carpinteria to Santa Barbara on December 12th, 2017, in Carpinteria, California.

Environment

A group of researchers and students took to the Santa Barbara Channel, while the Thomas Fire raged on shore, to learn how wildfires impact oceans.

By Ian Evans

Thousand of cottontail rabbits were killed in the Thomas Fire, victims of both their inability to move large distances quickly and their susceptibility to heat. This cottontail rabbit was in the Ventura Botanical Garden, above Ventura's city hall.

Environment

One local ecologist set out to catalog the destruction.

By Francie Diep

A man waters his home as firefighters battle the Thomas fire along a hillside near homes in Santa Paula, California, on December 5th, 2017.

Environment

The proposed system would increase emergency alert outreach by communicating through cell phones and landlines, as well as by radio, television, and state-controlled billboards on highways.

By Candace Butera

A firefighter instructs journalists to retreat to safer ground after a rain-driven mudslide destroyed two cars and damaged property in a neighborhood under mandatory evacuation in Burbank, California, January 9th, 2018.

Environment

At least eight people have been killed by mudflows after a deluge of rain fell on the region left vulnerable by the Thomas Fire.

By Kate Wheeling

A Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy alerts a resident of mandatory evacuations on January 8th, 2018, in the Creek Fire burn area.

Environment

Mudslides, waterspouts, and flash flooding are expected in already hard-hit areas.

By Eric Holthaus

Flooded homes are shown near Lake Houston following Hurricane Harvey on August 30th, 2017, in Houston, Texas.

Environment

The total cost of $306 billion was mostly attributed to hurricanes and wildfires.

By Max Ufberg

A slurry bomber drops its load on a ridge in an effort to stop the Hayman Fire on June 14th, 2002, in Deckers, Colorado.

Environment

These lessons from Colorado will help you get informed and involved.

By Bob Berwyn

A strong wind blows embers during the Thomas Fire on December 16th, 2017, in Montecito, California.

Environment

As fire conditions intensify around the globe, scientists are helping countries prepare for a fiery new normal.

By Bob Berwyn

Fire rages across a Romero Canyon hillside in Montecito, California, on December 12th, 2017.

Environment

As of Monday afternoon, the fire had swelled to 270,000 acres.

By Eric Holthaus

Fires burn across the Romero Canyon hillside in Montecito, California, on December 12th, 2017.

Environment

A reminder that wildfires have wide-ranging and surprising effects.

By Francie Diep

Trees burn in Toro Canyon, California, on December 12th, 2017.

Environment

Fires can be rejuvenating for some ecosystems. But as wildfires increase in frequency and severity, those ecosystems could see could their soil fertility and carbon capture depleted.

By Kate Wheeling

The Thomas Fire approaches a home on December 12th, 2017, in Montecito, California.

Environment

Weather models continue to show absolutely no rainfall until December 30th at the earliest.

By Eric Holthaus

Firefighters light backfires as they try to contain the Thomas wildfire in Ojai, California, on December 9th, 2017.

Environment

We have a pretty good idea of why some structures are more vulnerable to fire than others, but will those in power act on that information?

By Faith Kearns

People watch from a roadside as the Thomas Fire burns in the mountains Ojai, California, on December 6th, 2017.

Education

Ventura and Santa Barbara County schools must prepare to help students who have been pushed into housing instability as a result of the wildfire.

By Elena Gooray

Environment

A plume of smoke is seen from Ojai, California, as the Thomas Fire grows and advances toward seaside communities on December 10th, 2017, near Carpinteria, California.

By Pacific Standard Staff

A family wears face masks as they walk through the smoke-filled streets of Ventura, California, on December 6th, 2017.

Environment

Here's what individuals and communities can do to protect themselves.

By Francie Diep

Environment

As Southern California's firestorm continues to grow and air quality plummets, what happens to one of the largest unsheltered homeless populations in the nation?