Spokane Wildfires Destroy Hundreds of Buildings as Thousands Evacuate

By: Christina Morales — 3 August 2026 at 02:56

Firefighters were hopeful that improving weather conditions in Washington state could help efforts to contain the blaze, which officials described as the largest natural disaster in the history of Spokane.

All of Christine and Bryan Farris’s belongings burned in the Old Trail fire in Spokane, Wash.

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A Powerful El Niño Is Forming. If History Is a Guide, It Could Hit Hard.

By: Chico Harlan — 21 May 2026 at 13:19

The biggest episodes of the past have altered the course of human events, according to researchers. An emerging one is drawing historic comparisons.

An illustration published in 1877 depicted a scene in southern India. Millions died from a famine that coincided with an El Niño that year.

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I Never Understood Our Data-Saturated Life Until a Hurricane Shut It Down

By: Trevor Quirk — 11 August 2025 at 09:01

When Helene disconnected my part of North Carolina for weeks, my neighbors and I had to relearn old ways of knowing what was happening — and what wasn’t.

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Leader of FEMA Is Dismissed as Trump Administration Takes Aim at the Agency

By: Christopher Flavelle — 8 May 2025 at 20:29

The ouster of Cameron Hamilton, less than a month before the start of the hurricane season, came a day after he told lawmakers that FEMA was vital to communities “in their greatest times of need” and should not be eliminated.

Cameron Hamilton, center, during his run for a congressional seat last year. He was appointed acting head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency soon after President Trump began his second term.

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Californians Know About Earthquakes, but Tsunamis Are a Different Story

By: Heather Knight， Amy Graff and Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs — 7 December 2024 at 00:41

Northern California cities and residents seemed unsure on Thursday about the best response to an official tsunami warning that went out to five million Californians.