Join our Community
Support ToI and remove all ads
Learn more

ISRAEL AT WAR - DAY 469

California fires

Composite image showing the approaching fires in Los Angeles' Topanga Canyon neighborhood, with rabbis Dovid Weiss (left) and Mendy Piekarski (right) of Chabad of Topanga with rescued Torah scrolls. (images courtesy Chabad of Topanga)
It’s a mitzvah: LA fires activate Jewish law of saving Torah scrolls from calamity
By Gavriel Fiske
While saving human lives is top priority according to Jewish tradition, the mandate to save Torahs is a close second, propelling congregants into still-raging fires before evacuation
Israel unequipped to combat LA-style wildfire, officials warn
By Charlie Summers
An ‘Iron Dome’ to stop wildfires: Israeli startup’s ‘FireDome’ is based on missile defense
By Sharon Wrobel
Firefighters try to extinguish a fire after missiles launched from Lebanon hit open areas near the northern city of Safed, on June 12, 2024. (Michael Giladi/Flash90)
January 15, 2025, 2:36 pm
Israel unequipped to combat LA-style wildfire, officials warn
Country’s firefighters are ‘stretched from end to end’ amid ongoing war as officials worry that California blazes could be replicated in the warming Mediterranean region
By Charlie Summers
Composite image showing the approaching fires in Los Angeles' Topanga Canyon neighborhood, with rabbis Dovid Weiss (left) and Mendy Piekarski (right) of Chabad of Topanga with rescued Torah scrolls. (images courtesy Chabad of Topanga)
January 14, 2025, 1:52 am
It’s a mitzvah: LA fires activate Jewish law of saving Torah scrolls from calamity
While saving human lives is top priority according to Jewish tradition, the mandate to save Torahs is a close second, propelling congregants into still-raging fires before evacuation
By Gavriel Fiske
Israeli startup FireDome has developed a wildfire defense system. (Courtesy)
January 12, 2025, 9:35 pm
An ‘Iron Dome’ to stop wildfires: Israeli startup’s ‘FireDome’ is based on missile defense
System shoots capsules of eco-friendly fire retardant to create barrier; detects and extinguishes blazes; set for testing in Israel in May, and the US in 2026
By Sharon Wrobel
Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies stand near the destroyed Altadena Community Church, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, in the Altadena section of Pasadena, Calif. (AP/Chris Pizzello)
January 10, 2025, 12:28 am
California firefighters make some progress, but largest fires remain out of control
LA official ‘hopeful that the tide is turning,’ as Hollywood Hills area sees evacuation order lifted; 20 arrested for looting; blazes have left 5 dead, destroyed 45 square miles
By Christopher Weber, JULIE WATSON and John Seewer
The Pasadena Jewish Temple & Center smolders after burning in the Eaton Fire in Pasadena, California, January 8, 2025. (Mario Tama/Getty Images via JTA)
January 9, 2025, 9:35 pm
Deadly LA wildfires rip through Jewish communities, sparking action amid ashes
Congregants rescue 13 Torah scrolls from burning synagogue, as pop-up bagel shop partners with World Central Kitchen on relief effort; firefighters report hydrants short of water
By PHILISSA CRAMER
Trees sway in high winds as the Eaton Fire burns structures Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
January 8, 2025, 10:36 pm
Thousands flee as Los Angeles wildfires burn out of control, destroy homes
Some 1,000 structures destroyed, LA fire chief says, as sheriff, ordering 70,000 to evacuate, says force ‘prioritizing life over everything else’; more than 180,000 lose power
By jaimie ding, Christopher Weber and JULIE WATSON
Flames burn near the Klamath River during the McKinney Fire in the Klamath National Forest northwest of Yreka, California, July 31, 2022. (David McNew/AFP)
August 1, 2022, 5:40 pm
California’s largest wildfire this year kills two as state of emergency is declared
Fire ‘zero percent contained’ as of Sunday night; climate change, drought exacerbate blaze; more fires expected in coming months
By David McNew
The Oak Fire outside Yosemite National Park burns through trees near Jerseydale, California, July 24, 2022. (JUSTIN SULLIVAN/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images via AFP)
July 25, 2022, 12:40 am
6,000 evacuated as ‘explosive’ California blaze remains out of control
2,000 firefighters and 17 helicopters deployed to fight fire that has burned through 14,200 acres and destroyed 10 properties; ex-VP Gore warns against US ‘inaction’ on climate
By David McNew and Michael Mathes
Flames leap from trees as the Dixie Fire jumps Highway 89 north of Greenville in Plumas County, California, on August 3, 2021. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
February 23, 2022, 9:52 am
World must brace for more extreme and devastating wildfires, UN warns
International body’s environment program says the most ambitious efforts to curb greenhouse gas emissions won’t prevent a dramatic surge in the frequency of extreme fire conditions
By Marlowe HOOD
Assistant Fire Manager Leif Mathiesen, of the Sequoia and Kings Canyon Nation Park Fire Service, looks for an opening in the burned-out redwood tree from the Redwood Mountain Grove which was devastated by the KNP Complex fires earlier in the year in the KingsCanyon National Park, CA, on November 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Gary Kazanjian)
November 20, 2021, 8:02 am
Wildfires torched up to a fifth of all giant sequoia trees in the US
The trees were once considered nearly fire-proof, but two years of blazes so intense to burn hot enough and high enough to kill so many giant sequoias show impact of climate change
By brian melley
In this September 2, 2021 file photo, cabin partially covered in fire-resistant material stands next to properties destroyed in the Caldor Fire in Twin Bridges, CA. (AP/Jae C. Hong,File)
September 18, 2021, 10:33 pm
Aluminum wrap used to protect homes in California wildfires
Wrapping deflects heat away from buildings, helping prevent flammable materials from combusting
By SCOTT SONNER
Deer pass a Greenville building destroyed by the Dixie Fire, on Aug. 7, 2021, in Plumas County, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
August 9, 2021, 4:29 am
California’s ‘Dixie Fire’ now second-worst in state history, authorities say
Blaze destroys 463,477 acres, up from the previous day’s total of 447,723 acres, and now covers area larger than Los Angeles
By Josh Edelson
An American flag is placed on a burned fire engine at a burned fire station in downtown Greenville, California on August 7, 2021. (JOSH EDELSON / AFP)
August 8, 2021, 6:50 am
Five reported missing as huge wildfire rages through northern California
Only 21% contained, Dixie Fire destroys 447,723 acres in four counties, up from previous day’s total of 434,813 acres burned and surpassing vast Bootleg Fire in southern Oregon
By AFP
Flames from the Dixie Fire consume a home on Highway 89 south of Greenville on Aug. 5, 2021, in Plumas County, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
August 7, 2021, 8:44 am
‘We lost Greenville’: Wildfire destroys a California town
Over 100 homes leveled as Dixie Fire burns through mountain town; no injuries or deaths immediately reported; efforts delayed as some residents refuse to evacuate
By Christopher Weber and noah berger
A house in Napa County burns in the Glass Fire, September 29, 2020. (Napa County Sheriff/ via JTA)
October 6, 2020, 5:07 am
How the Northern California fires affected an already disrupted Yom Kippur
Backup arrangements due to the coronavirus pandemic are changed again as congregations are forced to evacuate — some of them in the middle of services
By Maya Mirsky, Dan Pine and Gabe Stutman
Load More
Sign in or Register
Please use the following structure: example@domain.com
Or Continue with
By registering you agree to the terms and conditions
Register to continue
Or Continue with
Log in to continue
Sign in or Register
I forgot my password / Send me a sign in link
Or Continue with
check your email
Check your email
We sent an email to you at .
It has a link that will sign you in.
Never miss breaking news on Israel
Get notifications to stay updated
You're subscribed
image
Register for free
and continue reading
Registering also lets you comment on articles and helps us improve your experience. It takes just a few seconds.
Already registered? Enter your email to sign in.
Please use the following structure: example@domain.com
Or Continue with
By registering you agree to the terms and conditions. Once registered, you’ll receive our Daily Edition email for free.
Register to continue
Or Continue with
Log in to continue
Sign in or Register
I forgot my password / Send me a sign in link
Or Continue with
check your email
Check your email
We sent an email to you at .
It has a link that will sign you in.