Crews have taken advantage of cooler weather to begin getting a handle on wildfires that have displaced tens of thousands of people around Washington state’s second-largest city, but hotter, drier and windier days lie ahead. Officials reported Wednesday that firefighters had established containment lines around the perimeters of all three fires and that they were focused on reinforcing those lines. Authorities say one of the fires was deliberately set by a man who has been arrested and charged with arson. Together the three have destroyed at least about 850 buildings and forced the evacuation of around 67,000 people since they erupted last weekend.
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Photos show water-dropping planes and helicopters as hundreds of firefighters battle major wildfires over Europe and parts of the U.S. This is…
Firefighters are racing to exploit a break in high winds, working to strengthen containment lines on fires west of the Greek capital. Stronger gusts and hotter temperatures are forecast in the coming days. Several fires that burned through mountain communities and coastal areas west of Athens were brought under control overnight into Tuesday. Planes and helicopters dumped water inside the contained perimeters through the morning, dousing hot spots while the winds stayed calm.
AP Wire
Court documents show that a 37-year-old Spokane man charged with intentionally setting a wildfire that’s destroyed hundreds of buildings in and around Washington state’s second-largest city was questioned by law enforcement about two different blazes last year, though he wasn’t charged in either. Aaron F. Farinacci was arrested Monday and booked on suspicion of first-degree arson in connection with the Old Trails Fire. He appeared in court Tuesday via video link from the jail, and the judge set his arraignment for Thursday. According to an affidavit, Farinacci denied that he set the Old Trails Fire. It is the biggest of three blazes in and around Spokane.
Los Angeles fire officials say the deadly 2025 Eaton fire was caused by Southern California Edison equipment. A report released Tuesday found the cause of the fire that killed 19 people and destroyed or damaged more than 9,000 homes and businesses was a tower that was not in service. The Eaton Fire was one of two blazes that broke out on Jan. 7, 2025. It took firefighters nearly a month to extinguish the blaze, which scorched 22 square miles.
Authorities say they’ve arrested a 37-year-old man suspected of starting one of the devastating wildfires burning around Spokane, Washington. The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office said Monday they arrested Aaron F. Farinacci for arson. He’s accused of starting the Old Trails Fire. Several fires are burning in the area. They’ve destroyed at least 700 structures and forced more than 60,000 people to evacuate. The fire sparked on Saturday.
Authorities have arrested a 37-year-old man suspected of starting a devastating wildfire in Spokane, Washington.
Europe is grappling with a record-breaking hot and dry summer. On Monday, water-dropping planes tackled a major wildfire in Greece, while firefighters in France worked to stabilize a blaze in Provence. The U.K. recorded its driest July in nearly two centuries. Strong winds returned in Greece, pushing flames into mountain home clusters, destroying farms and property, and closing a highway. In France, firefighters guarded against flare-ups near Bordeaux. The U.K. weather service reported a prolonged heat wave and lack of rainfall. Europe is the fastest-warming continent, with rising temperatures and droughts making wildfires more intense.
AP Wire
Authorities say wildfires in eastern Washington state forced the evacuation of 60,000 people in the Spokane area, including patients at its U.S. Veterans Affairs hospital, while destroying at least 600 homes, businesses and other structures. The fires have burned more than 8.2 square miles around Spokane, the second largest city in Washington, and officials said Sunday that 390 square miles have burned across the state. They've been among dozens of fires across the Western U.S. No deaths have yet been reported from the fires in the Spokane area. Meanwhile, crews were in their 10th day of fighting a fire that has burned nearly 525 square miles in western Idaho and eastern Oregon.
AP Wire
Two Greek firefighting helicopters collided in midair on Sunday as they were battling a wind-driven wildfire west of Athens, sending one aircraft crashing to the ground. Two crew members, a Greek and a Danish national, died in the crash.