Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
The New Normal: How Humans Are Going To Have To Adjust To A World On Fire
The New York Times: A Forecast For A Warming World: Learn To Live With Fire
Facing down 600 wildfires in the past three days alone, emergency workers rushed to evacuate tens of thousands of people in Southern California on Thursday as a state utility said one of its major transmission lines broke near the source of the out-of-control Kincade blaze in Northern California. The Kincade fire, the largest this week, tore through steep canyons in the wine country of northern Sonoma County, racing across 16,000 acres within hours of igniting. (Fuller and Pierre-Louis, 10/24)
Wired: Kincade Fire: The Age Of Flames Is Consuming California
Welcome to what fire historian Steve Pyne calls the Pyrocene, a unique time in history when human use of fire, particularly the burning of fossil fuels, and the attendant climate change combine to create hell on Earth. “We are creating a fire age that will be equivalent to the Ice Age,” he says. The reckoning is here, and California—a highly flammable state packed with people—is getting it worse than just about anybody in the world. (Simon, 10/24)
The Washington Post: Pacific Gas And Electric Power Line Broke Before Kincade Fire Ignited In Sonoma County
A fast-moving wildfire, spurred by powerful winds, burned through Northern California on Thursday and forced thousands of people to evacuate parts of Sonoma County — the rural wine country 75 miles north of San Francisco that is still recovering from a deadly 2017 blaze. Pacific Gas & Electric, the state’s largest utility, told state regulators Thursday that a jumper on one of its transmission towers broke close to where officials say the Kincade Fire started, near Geyserville. (Thebault, Bellware and Freedman, 10/25)
Sacramento Bee: Power Outages Show Rural CA Health Safety Net Is Vulnerable
The widespread PG&E power shutdowns are depriving California’s rural and indigent residents of critical care from community health clinics that they have come to count on not only for primary care but also for many types of emergency care, leaders in the industry told The Bee. (Anderson, 10/24)
Los Angeles Times: Fires Explode Across California, From Wine Country Vineyards To Southern California Subdivisions
Fueled by violent winds from the northeast, fires erupted on dry hills across California, tearing through oaks and vineyards in Sonoma County and burning homes hundreds of miles away in subdivisions near Santa Clarita. The extreme weather conditions will continue into this weekend, heightening both the fire threat and the likelihood of more widespread power outages as utilities try to prevent electrical lines from sparking more blazes. (Willon, Luna, Fry and Reyes-Velarde, 10/24)
Los Angeles Times: California Wildfires Map
The most recent fire is the Mines fire, which started today. It is 0% contained and has burned 35 acres so far. (10/24)
