Earth News from TerraDaily.com
California battles biggest wildfire of the year
Los Angeles, United States, July 3 (AFP) Jul 03, 2025
More than 300 firefighters battled on Thursday a massive blaze in California, which is dreading summer wildfires at a time when President Donald Trump is gutting federal agencies tasked with fighting climate disaster.

The "Madre Fire" broke out on Wednesday in San Luis Obispo, a rural county in the heart of the US state. Around 200 people were ordered to evacuate, with dozens of buildings threatened by the flames.

It is the largest blaze so far this year in California, which was scarred by wildfires that destroyed swathes of Los Angeles at the start of the year.

The fire has spread quickly: in less than 24 hours, it has ravaged over 35,000 acres (14,160 hectares), according to the state's fire service Cal Fire.

Images from the state warning system showed thick columns of black smoke overhanging mountains in the hilly, remote region.

"The state will always show up to protect all communities -- no matter where a fire begins," California Governor Gavin Newsom said on X, announcing the deployment of reinforcement.

The "Madre Fire" comes at the heel of several other blazes, raising fears of a difficult summer ahead for the state already traumatized by the wildfires that killed 30 people in January.

It was an unusually dry winter and spring in southern California, and vegetation is already parched, noted UCLA extreme climate events specialist Daniel Swain in a blog post.

"Given the expectation of even more intense and widespread heat later this summer, that extra month or two of vegetation drying will heavily factor into burning conditions later this season," said Swain.

It is the first summer season since Trump ordered budget and personnel cuts at the Forest Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and FEMA, the federal agency which coordinates disaster response.

On Wednesday, Newsom accused Trump of not funding enough wildfire prevention projects.

"We need an equivalent commitment of resources - not rhetoric," Newsom said at a press conference, reminding that "57% of the land in this state is under the jurisdiction of the federal government."

rfo/aks/st

X





Space News from SpaceDaily.com
Chinese researchers craft high fidelity Mars soil simulant to support future missions
Ancient river systems reveal Mars was wetter than we thought
NASA's Parker Solar Probe Snaps Closest-Ever Images to Sun

24/7 Energy News Coverage
One billion Africans being harmed by cooking pollution
US reaches civil nuclear cooperation accord with Bahrain
American firms flag hit from US export controls targeting China

Military Space News, Nuclear Weapons, Missile Defense
China, India should work towards 'win-win' cooperation: Chinese FM
US delays Patriot arms deliveries to Switzerland in switch to Ukraine
US 'moving at haste' to get Ukraine weapons: envoy

24/7 News Coverage
New deep sea mining rules lack consensus despite US pressure
Lightning strikes kill 33 people in eastern India
From Antarctica to Brussels, hunting climate clues in old ice


ADVERTISEMENT



All rights reserved. Copyright Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.