"In the country that gave the world the word tsunami, the Japanese nuclear establishment largely disregarded the potentially destructive force of the walls of water. The word did not even appear in government guidelines until 2006, decades after plants — including the Fukushima Daiichi facility that firefighters are still struggling to get under control — began dotting the Japanese coastline."
"Loggers are finding it impossible to profitably harvest some federal forests. That leaves more fuel for fires to accumulate."
"The nation’s energy regulators have shot down a bid from a regional grid operator to cut power to some large data centers during a supply shortfall — leaving the issue largely in the hands of states."
"The drumbeat of monster hurricanes in the Pacific has broken a record for nasty long-lasting storms east of the international date line, turbocharged by nature’s supersized El Niño, scientists said."
"Residents of a small San Francisco Bay Area town plagued by refinery accidents came to a community meeting to call for stronger enforcement and transparency about risks."
"Isaias made landfall near Destin, Florida, on Friday evening as a 105-mph Category 2 -- just 6 mph below Category 3 intensity on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Isaias will continue to lose wind intensity as it moves over the interior United States. As storm surge flooding and winds subside along the Gulf Coast, torrential rainfall, gusty winds and tornadoes will occur inland this weekend."
TV journalist Jacob Soboroff grew up in Pacific Palisades, so when the Los Angeles neighborhood was swept by wildfires in 2024, he reported from familiar sites as they burned. He writes about the experience in “Firestorm: The Great Los Angeles Fires and America’s New Age of Disaster,” whose strength BookShelf contributor Jennifer Weeks says is its street-level descriptions of chasing the fast-developing story. Read her review.
"Isaias strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane as it barreled toward the U.S. Gulf Coast on Thursday, prompting orders for tourists to abandon beaches for safer spots inland, sending locals scurrying for gas and groceries and leading fishing crews to secure their boats before the potentially destructive storm’s arrival."
"As wildfires surge through some of the most treasured landscapes in the nation, two new studies show that supercharged blazes make it harder for forests to recover."
